The chromogranin family is a group of acidic, soluble, and heat-stable proteins widespread in various neuronal, neuroendocrine and endocrine tissues, where they are subcellullarly located in the secretory granules, participating in the formation of the granules. Extracellularly, chromogranins may act as protein precursors, proteolytically processed to various small bioactive peptides. Neuroendocrine secretory protein 55 (NESP55) is the most recently identified member of the chromogranin family. It is structurally related to other chromogranins. However, the biological similarity between NESP55 and its siblings has not been firmly established yet, and knowledge about NESP55 is still limited compared with other chromogranins. In the present study, we focused on the distribution and localization of NESP55 in a number of neuronal tissues using immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, the peripheral projections of NESP55 containing sympathetic postganglionic cells were investigated. In the CNS-derived CAD cell line, NESP55, like other peptides/chromogranins, was expressed in the cell body and the long processes in a granular pattern. In addition, NESP55-IR was distinctly observed in fringe-like short processes around the cell body and along the long processes. GAP43-IR, a protein highly associated with outgrowth of neurites and development, partially overlapped with NESP55-IR in this structure. In the autonomic nervous system, NESP55 was expressed in a subpopulation of the principal neurons in all rat sympathetic ganglia studied. In the SCG, NESP55 containing neurons were found to project to the submandibular gland, the cervical lymph nodes, the iris, and the forehead skin. Some of these target-projecting neurons contained also NPY-IR, a peptide with vasoconstriction effects. The NESP55 containing SG neurons were observed to project to the forepaw pad. Among these paw pad-projecting neurons, a subpopulation contained CGRP-IR (a peptide with sudomotor effects). A subpopulation, which expressed NPY-IR, was also observed. In the rat spinal cord, NESP55-IR was found in various spinal neurons throughout the lamina IV-X, including motoneurons, autonomic sympathetic/parasympathetic neurons, interneurons and the LSN. Many of these NESP55 containing neurons were also immunoreactive to ChAT, a cholinergic marker. The lamina I-III and the sensory dorsal root ganglion lacked NESP55-IR. The intracellular distribution of NESP55-IR in the spinal motoneurons appeared different from that in the sympathetic neurons. In the spinal motoneurons, NESP55-IR, with an appearance of dust-like particles, was observed diffusely present in the whole cytoplasm; in contrast, in the sympathetic neurons, NESP55-IR appeared to be stored in large granules, restricted to the perinuclear region of the ganglionic cells, and overlaping with the Golgi marker, TGN38. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that NESP55 was expressed in different functional groups of neurons in the rat sympathetic ganglia and in the spinal cord. The expression of NESP55 in the CAD cells was exceptional. Our findings may add information about this novel protein and further our understanding of its functional significance. Moreover, the finding of the striking difference in the intracellular distribution of NESP55-IR in motoneurons versus autonomic neurons supports the previous suggestion that NESP55 may be involved in both constitutive and regulated secretory pathways.


Coupling of hydrological and hydraulic simulation models with numerical optimization algorithms has proven to be effective for optimizing operations of reservoir systems with respect to different management objectives. The combination of accurate reservoir inflow forecasting and optimization technology can provide more efficient balanced solutions for multi-purpose operations of reservoir systems and thereby improve the economy of hydropower production. The technology can be used for both long-term planning purposes for deriving optimal operation rule curves and for short-term water management and hydro scheduling. The forecasting and optimization system is established within a decision support system for real-time operation. The developed forecasting and optimization technologies are demonstrated on optimization of the Hoa Binh reservoir in Vietnam considering hydropower production and flood control. Optimization of reservoir operation rules provides optimal solutions that have both a smaller flood risk and a larger hydropower potential compared to the present regulations. Simulations with a balanced optimum solution show a substantial increase of hydropower production of 210 million kWh on average per year. Real-time optimization in normal flow situations provides solutions that trades-off the immediate and the future value of hydropower production. In flood situations, inflow forecast information is used to optimize reservoir releases to meet storage requirements to reduce downstream flooding.


Archaeology of the Digital: Complexity and Convention Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montreal 10 May–16 October 2016

Archaeology of the Digital: Complexity and Convention was the third and final in a series of exhibitions curated by Greg Lynn, an architect based in Los Angeles, at the Canadian Centre for Architecture. The first was a blockbuster display of four projects by Lynn's mentors and heroes; the second was a more eclectic set of six projects by Lynn's buddies.1 The third exhibition resembled the second in that it presented a diverse set of projects—fifteen, spanning twenty years—by architects roughly Lynn's age.2 A perceptive curatorial move, however, shifted the third show into a different register. Rather than clustering materials by project, the exhibition spread a jumble from all fifteen projects—drawings, models, animations, renderings, and everything in between—throughout the gallery space, with little discernible order (Figure 1). Labels with architects' names were there if one looked for them, but they were unobtrusive enough that, looking up from the labels and across the room, a visitor might have mistaken the work as the output of a single firm. Such evenness prevailed not only at the scale of the room but also over the six rooms of the exhibition as a whole. The overall effect was to immerse the visitor within the nerdy world of recent architectural production.

Figure 1
Installation view of Archaeology of the Digital: Complexity and …


Human beings make choices, and get caught up by their choices. One cannot escape the choices one has made. Your choices draw the picture of who you really are. Sometimes you are haunted by the dire consequences of the choices you have made. Where does the necessity of taking responsibility for yourself, and the choices you have made, take you? Ethics and moral conduct make sense only in conjunction with the moral agent – humankind. This article is an introductory reflection on ethics and anthropology. The argument develops mainly from the view of a human being as a relational being. People are inescapably relational beings – always being in relation with other human beings, and never able to sever the lifesaving ties to God as the human being's Maker. Human beings become themselves in relation to other human beings, and ultimately in relation to the One Other, God their Creator and Re-creator.


Complex parallel applications can often be modeled as directed acyclic graphs of coarse-grained application tasks with dependences. These applications exhibit both task and data parallelism, and combining these two (also called mixed parallelism) has been shown to be an effective model for their execution. In this paper, we present an algorithm to compute the appropriate mix of task and data parallelism required to minimize the parallel completion time (makespan) of these applications. In other words, our algorithm determines the set of tasks that should be run concurrently and the number of processors to be allocated to each task. The processor allocation and scheduling decisions are made in an integrated manner and are based on several factors such as the structure of the task graph, the runtime estimates and scalability characteristics of the tasks, and the intertask data communication volumes. A locality-conscious scheduling strategy is used to improve intertask data reuse. Evaluation through simulations and actual executions of task graphs derived from real applications and synthetic graphs shows that our algorithm consistently generates schedules with a lower makespan as compared to Critical Path Reduction (CPR) and Critical Path and Allocation (CPA), two previously proposed scheduling algorithms. Our algorithm also produces schedules that have a lower makespan than pure task- and data-parallel schedules. For task graphs with known optimal schedules or lower bounds on the makespan, our algorithm generates schedules that are closer to the optima than other scheduling approaches.


. W e have shown previously that the maximum entropy method (MEM) forms a valuable tool for assisting in the estimation of surface amplitude distributions from reflected ultrasonic pulses. Here, the surface inspection technique is extended and now allows the determination of many common surface texture parameters from the amplitude distribution function. Using relatively accessible ultrasonic frequencies, surfaces in the practically important region of around 2 pm to over 140 pm roughness (R.) are assessed in this paper. The MEM is used as a high-performance deconvolution technique to produce height amplitude distribution graphs with good resolution and low noise. From these graphs surface parameters such as R. and R, can be extracted. Three different types of machined surface and one layered surface are tested. in the latter two cases. the MEM is extended to allow negative points in its deconvolution image; the advantages of this move are described. Results from the use of 10 MHz and 40 MHz broadband plane compressional wave transducers are compared with those from a stylus instrument; good agreement is obtained. The difficulties of producing reliable results by both methods are summarized.


The work presented in this thesis examines the possibilities of having compressors running in an optimal manner which can result in energy savings. This research looks at how a compressor operates and the problems which can occur when connecting several machines, both in series and parallel. It is mainly focused on using Model Predictive Control (MPC), as a setup for controlling each compressor to a fixed operating point on the characteristic with relation to mass flow and pressure. Constraints are set on the controller outputs to help minimize the area of operation. Several types of efficiency are investigated in detail and this has helped to create a continuous efficiency island definition. These continuous curves are assumed to be equal to the characteristic plotted from tests and measurements in the lab. The continuous efficiency definition enables the possibility of calculating an operating point for each compressor. This is done using a Quadric Programming setup, which is calculated explicitly beforehand. Together with this and the implementation of MPC, the result is a load sharing scheme used here on two compressors connected in parallel. The control inputs to the plant being the impeller rotational speeds and the outflow from the throttle valve, while the measurements are in the form of plenum pressure and mass flow from each machine.


Autonomous vehicles offer the possibility of significant benefits to social welfare. However, fully automated cars might not be going to happen in the near further. To speed the adoption of the self-driving technologies, many governments worldwide are passing laws requiring data recorders for the testing of autonomous vehicles. Currently, the self-driving vehicle, (e.g., shuttle bus) has to be monitored from a remote control center. When an autonomous vehicle encounters an unexpected driving environment, such as road construction or an obstruction, it should request assistance from a remote operator. Nevertheless, large amounts of data, including images, radar and lidar data, etc., have to be transmitted from the vehicle to the remote center. Therefore, this paper proposes a data compression method of in-vehicle networks for remote monitoring of autonomous vehicles. Firstly, the time-series data are rearranged into a multi-dimensional signal space. Upon the arrival, for controller area networks (CAN), the new data are mapped onto a time-data two-dimensional space associated with the specific CAN identity. Secondly, the data are sampled based on differential sampling. Finally, the whole set of data are encoded using existing algorithms such as Huffman, arithmetic and codebook encoding methods. To evaluate system performance, the proposed method was deployed on an in-house built autonomous vehicle. The testing results show that the amount of data can be reduced as much as 1/7 compared to the raw data. Keywords—Autonomous vehicle, data recording, remote monitoring, controller area network.


OBJECTIVES
Open nephroureterectomy (ONU) is the current standard for muscle-invasive upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) in the European Association of Urology/Japanese Urological Association (JUA) guidelines. In this study, we compared the postsurgical survival of muscle-invasive UTUC patients treated with ONU or with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy (LNU), using the multi-institutional national database of the JUA.

METHODS
The 1509 patients with UTUC who were diagnosed at 348 Japanese institutions in 2005 were registered. We collected the clinical data of the patients in 2011. The muscle-invasive UTUC patients who underwent ONU or LNU were identified, and survival curves were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method.

RESULTS
Overall, 749 pT2≥cNxM0 patients underwent a nephroureterectomy (ONU, n = 527 and LNU, n = 222). The overall survival and cause-specific survival rates were not significantly different between the ONU and LNU groups (p = 0.1263 and p = 0.0893, respectively). In addition, 459 of the 749 (61.3%) patients experienced disease recurrence (bladder recurrence, local recurrence, or distant metastasis), with no significant difference between the ONU and LNU groups. Even when patients were stratified by pT3/pT4 and/or pN+, overall survival was not significantly different between the ONU and LNU groups (p = 0.2876). The results of a univariate analysis showed that lymphovascular invasion was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival, but the surgical approaches were not found to be associated with overall survival.

CONCLUSIONS
Our data suggest that there is no evidence that the oncologic outcome of LNU is inferior to that of ONU in muscle-invasive UTUC, when the appropriate patients are selected.


Purpose: The article's objective is to present how users evaluate automatic financial advisory services in Poland and their socio-economic characteristics. Design/Methodology/Approach: The financial services sector is undergoing a profound transformation, mainly due to technological factors, the introduction of modern financial solutions, and changes in the main channels of contact and customer service. Findings: The empirical material obtained within the first survey in Poland of robo-advice users indicates that opinions about robo-advice regarding the type of investment strategy used, along with ethicality and prospects of development, tend to be positive, and investors are, on the whole, satisfied with robo-advice. Practical Implications: Knowing the profile of users of automatic financial advice in Poland, robo-advisors can better create and direct their offer to them. The analysis of users' needs and further progress of the implementation work on roboadvice can minimize the risks, such as lack of relationship necessary in the consulting services, full automation of the process of providing services, and satisfying the complex needs of customers. Originality/value: This article deals with the subject of innovation in finance, focusing on robo-advisory services. Since automatic financial advisory services in Poland still enjoy little popularity, we decided to conduct our own research on users of robo-advice in Poland – the first study of its kind.


I was really looking forward to going to the "Food: Fact or Fiction" exhibit at the Perlow-Stevens Art Gallery, and I was disappointed when the weather interfered with our class trip. This exhibit seemed like it might be a good place to find ideas regarding the Mizzou Advantage initiative of "Food for the Future," so my friend and I decided to make our own excursion to the gallery one afternoon. We were blown away at the quality of art throughout the gallery! As far as the specific exhibit went, it was interesting to see how the assorted artists explored different food-related themes. The media varied from fibers to ceramics and glass, from oil-color paintings to photography. Some were a critique on consumer culture, while others challenged conceptions of what the essence of a particular food actually is. However, a common theme ran through the pieces: all managed to use their respective media to convert the seemingly mundane topic of food into art.


ABSTRACT The Advanced Power Extraction (APEX) program1 is exploring concepts for blanket designs that can enhance the potential of fusion while using both liquid and solid walls. In that context, an innovative blanket design of dry solid wall configuration, with potential for high neutron wall loading has been proposed. The blanket utilizes nanocomposited ferritic (NCF) steel structure (designated 12YWT), which has a maximum operating temperature of 800°C. The cooling/breeding material is Flibe (Li2BeF4), a low viscosity version of this molten salt, which has a melting temperature of 465°C and is compatible with ferritic steels up to 700°C2. The dimensions for this study have been taken from ARIES-AT3. The blanket module, which extends 0.3 m in the toroidal direction at mid-plane, is equipped with spiraling discs ramping from the bottom to the top. The coolant enters on the bottom at 500°C, then travels on the spiral discs, from the rear of the module to the front, then back to the rear, all the way to the top where it exits from the module at 590°C. On its way up, the coolant velocity is amplified at the first wall (FW) by centrifugal action, providing a high heat transfer coefficient for dissipating the high surface heating. The 3 mm thick FW is scalloped with semicircular projections inclined in the flow direction. This facilitates unimpeded smooth flow at the FW, while at the same time stiffening the FW against pressure, obviating the need for welded reinforcements. The discs are made of two halves assembled together with a Be pebble bed enclosed as a neutron multiplier. Preliminary neutronics analysis for the outboard blanket has shown a local tritium breeding ratio (TBR) of 1.36, and an energy multiplication (M) of 1.26 including contribution from a secondary module, using natural Li. The pressure drop of 0.56 MPa in the module produces a modified primary bending stress of 124 MPa where the allowable stress for this material at 750°C is 142 MPa. Without optimization, this blanket is capable of dissipating an average neutron wall loading of 6.4 MW/m2, with a peak value of 9.6 MW/m2 and a peak surface heating of 1.3 MW/m2. The coolant picks up energy in the secondary blanket exiting the reactor at 600°C. Assuming the use of a supercritical steam power cycle, an efficiency of 48% can be expected.


Therapeutic cancer vaccines that use attenuated vaccinia viruses as delivery vectors are undergoing clinical trials at dozens of sites internationally. Even in an attenuated form, these live viruses can cause severe illness if they are accidentally transmitted to immunocompromised people, pregnant women, or people with certain skin conditions. Oncology nurses should become familiar with how to manage patients' vaccine injection sites to minimize these risks to patients' close contacts and the community at large.
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Alkali-activated fly ash (AAFA) has been identified as a low-carbon alternative to Portland cement (PC). However, conventional thermal oven curing, typically at 85oC, is commonly required to firstly initiate and then accelerate the chemical reaction, which may result in more energy consumption, offsetting the environmental benefits which could be obtained from AAFA.

In this study, the potential of using microwave as an alternative low-energy thermal curing method for manufacturing AAFA has been explored. A microwave curing regime based on a control strategy using temperature feedback data was developed and evaluated in the manufacture of AAFA. The temperature profile within the AAFA sample produced under microwave curing was obtained by using an embedded optical fibre temperature sensor, which was thus used to adjust the microwave power in real-time in order to achieve a desired internal temperature. The AAFA samples manufactured by microwave curing were characterized using compressive strength, XRD, NMR, MIP and SEM, which were also compared with the samples from thermal oven curing. The results indicated that the AAFA manufactured with microwave curing not only showed an equivalent performance, similar reaction products and microstructure, but also showed dramatic reduction inenergy consumption.


Objective: This comparative study evaluated the readability and test-retest reliability of a questionnaire designed to assess the attitudes, beliefs behaviours and sources of information about HIV/AIDS among young adults recruited from universities in the United States of America (USA), Turkey and South Africa. Design/Setting: The instrument was administered on two occasions, within a two week interval, to 219 university students in the USA (n = 66), Turkey (n = 53) and South Africa (n = 100). Method: The psychometric instrument developed has five major subscales: demographic, HIV/AIDS attitudes and beliefs, HIV risk sexual behaviour, alcohol and drug use, and HIV sources of information. Results: The instrument's readability evaluation revealed a Flesch-Kincaid score (literacy difficulty level of the questionnaire) of 8.4, indicating that respondents would need an eighth grade reading level to understand the survey. The overall test-retest reliability coefficients for the items on the demographic subscale were generally high (0.893–0.997). Similarly, high test-retest reliability was obtained for the HIV risk sexual behaviour (0.738–0.996) and the alcohol and drug use (0.562–1.000) subscales. Much lower test-retest reliability was obtained for the HIV/AIDS attitudes and beliefs (0.32–0.80), and sources of information about HIV/AIDS (0.370–0.892) subscales. Conclusion: We found no discernible difference in the reliability data among the respondents from the three countries. The instrument should be of interest to clinicians and researchers investigating the HIV risk behaviours of young adults and older age groups with an eighth grade reading level. The availability of this instrument may enhance HIV population and intervention studies internationally.


Purpose: To assess the anatomic variation with the frequency, location, and morphology of mandibular lingual foramina using Cone Beam Computed Tomography. Methods: A retrospective study from CBCT examination of 200 subjects was conducted. The canal frequency (number), location, and travel direction were assessed by selecting images of the mandible. Also, linear dimensions such as the diameter of lingual foramina (D), the distance between the alveolar crest and the lingual foramina (L1), the distance between the tooth apex and the lingual foramina (L2) and the distance between the mandibular inferior border to the lingual foramina (L3) were examined. The differences in gender and age with respect to lingual foramina were also evaluated. Results: High frequency of lingual foramina (99.5%) in 200 subjects have been noted. Most subjects had two canals (44%) with mostly Medial Lingual Canal (97.14%). 2.57% canals were vertical in direction. 6.29% foramina were >1mm in diameter. In 14.85% subjects, the distance from apical crest to the lingual canal (L1) was found to be <12mm. No significant difference was found between various age groups in values of L1 and L2 and in the diameter of lingual foramina in male and female subjects (p>0.05). Conclusion: As the variations were shown in lingual foramina characteristics, it is mandatory to be aware of the structures present in anterior mandible to prevent the surgical complications. CBCT plays a pivotal role during the surgical phase of implant placement.


Municipal solid waste composition studies are essential to proper management of
waste for a variety of reasons including a need to identify sources of component
generation, to facilitate design of processing equipment, also to estimate physical,
chemical, and thermal properties of the waste. The study was conducted at UiTM
Pulau Pinang for the purpose on identifying the physiochemical characteristics of
solid waste generated here. This report focuses on solid waste generation from
Baiduri College, Perdana Complex, UiTM Hotel and Cafeteria. The methodology has
been divided into three phases: fieldwork; sampling and manual sorting, laboratory
work; ultimate analysis and data interpretation. Manual sorting used to separate the
waste by composition such as food waste, paper, plastic, tin cans etc. Analysis on
ultimate analysis, energy content and methane generation also been carried out in this
research. The major component of solid waste is paper (35%), and followed by food
waste (26%), and plastics (21%). The moisture content is influence by weather and
the characteristics of solid waste. The energy produced is influenced by moisture
content which is low moisture will increased the energy to resource recovery energy.
The most recyclable waste produce is paper and plastic with the highest value is
70.3% from total weight of sample on particular week. The result of this study shows
the level of awareness and 3Rs practice is low.
Keyword – physical characteristics, chemical characteristics, municipal solid waste,
solid waste management, recycling


Modified activated Syringodium Isoetifolium leaves nano carbon (ASI-NC) has been applied for removal of the malachite green dye from aqueous environments. The effect of pH, contact time, initial concentration and amount of adsorbent were considered. In order to investigate the mechanism of the adsorption process, several kinetic models including pseudo-first order, pseudo-second order and intra-particle diffusion were used. In addition, equilibrium data was fitted with Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Dubinin-Radushkevich, Hurkins-Jura, Halsay, RadlichPeterson, Jovanovic and BET isotherm models. Results showed that the adsorption of the malachite green was enhanced with increasing initial dye concentration, pH and contact time. The optimum pH was 9. The qmax for adsorption of malachite green dye from the Langmuir model was 15.87 mg/g. considering the values of R (0.999) and χ, Freundlich isotherm model and pseudo-second order kinetic model had the best fitness. This study has demonstrated that the modified activated Syringodium Isoetifolium leaves nano carbon (ASI-NC) with H2SO4 can be employed as effective and inexpensive adsorbent for the removal of malachite green from aqueous environments.


The latest trend towards performance asymmetry among cores on a single chip of a multicore processor is posing new software engineering challenges for developers. A key challenge is that for effective utilization of these performance-asymmetric multicore processors, code sections of a program must be assigned to cores such that the resource needs of a section closely matches resource availability at the assigned core. Determining this assignment manually is tedious, error prone, and it significantly complicates software development. We contribute a transparent and fully-automatic program analysis, which we call phase-based tuning, to solve this problem. Phase-based tuning adapts an application to effectively utilize performanceasymmetric cores of a processor. Our technique does not require any changes in the compiler or operating system, thus it is easy to deploy in existing tool chains. It does not require any input from the programmer except the application. Furthermore, it is independent of the characteristics (performance-asymmetry) of the target multicore processor, which has two benefits. First, it avoids the need to create multiple customizations of the binary for each target architecture, and second it relieves the programmer of the burden of anticipating the target architecture. Last but not least, our technique significantly improves performance. Compared to the stock Linux scheduler, our best technique shows 36% average process speedup, while maintaining fairness and with negligible overheads.


HATHAWAY BROWN, the oldest surviving private girls' school in the Cleveland area, was founded in 1876 as an adjunct to the BROOKS MILITARY SCHOOL, the foremost private school for boys at the time. Its original name was the Brooks School for Ladies. The school was proprietary in nature and had several owners, including Miss Anne Hathaway Brown. Although Brown sold the school after only four years (in 1890), during her tenure the school developed a reputation for providing quality education for young women. The school continued to prosper under the direction of other headmistresses, including Miss Mary Elizabeth Raymond (1912-38) and Miss Ann Cutter Coburn (1938-68).The school's early mission was two-fold: to prepare upper-class women for a career in society and to equip them with well-trained minds. Grades kindergarten through twelve were offered. The most prominent of its early buildings was erected in 1905 on Logan (East 97th) Street through a substantial gift by FLORA STONE MATHER. In 1927, the school moved to its present location at 19600 North Park Boulevard in SHAKER HTS.. The move was made at the behest of the VAN SWERINGEN brothers, who hoped that Hathaway Brown and other private schools would help attract upper class residents to their new community.At present (2007), the school offers a coeducational Early Childhood Program for three, four, and five-year-olds. Hathaway Brown's educational program emphasizes college preparation, offering Advanced Placement and college level coursework in math, science, English, history, and art, still closely following the school's original motto, non scholae sed vitae dicimus ("we learn not for school, but for life"). One hundred percent of its graduates attend four-year colleges or universities after graduation. Since 1985, the school has received the prestigious "Excellence in English" Award several times, and the Exemplary Foreign Language Award. The school established a fully equipped woodworking laboratory in 1993, a new middle school complex in 2001, and the Carol and John Butler Aquatic Center in 2005. The current Head of School is H. William Christ. Needham, Ruth Crofut, and Ruth Strong Hudson. The First Hundred Years: Hathaway Brown School (1977).


Computing Handbook, Third Edition: Computer Science and Software Engineering mirrors the modern taxonomy of computer science and software engineering as described by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the IEEE Computer Society (IEEE-CS). Written by established leading experts and influential young researchers, the first volume of this popular handbook examines the elements involved in designing and implementing software, new areas in which computers are being used, and ways to solve computing problems. The book also explores our current understanding of software engineering and its effect on the practice of software development and the education of software professionals. Like the second volume, this first volume describes what occurs in research laboratories, educational institutions, and public and private organizations to advance the effective development and use of computers and computing in todays world. Research-level survey articles provide deep insights into the computing discipline, enabling readers to understand the principles and practices that drive computing education, research, and development in the twenty-first century.


With the improvement of the aircraft performance, the design of load carrying structures becomes more and more complicated. The input load should be distributed properly to the load carrying structure by the design of load path, which is of vital importance to make full use of load carrying capacity of the material, save the structural weight and ensure the load carrying capacity of the structure. For this reason, the purpose of this paper is to propose a new continuum structure topology optimization method that controls the output loads precisely. Under given input loads and boundary conditions, the magnitudes of the output loads are precisely designed to demanding values. To have a convenient modelling of the output load, we propose to apply some artificial bar elements at the output positions instead of standard boundary conditions. The constraints on output loads are then equivalently transferred to the constraints on nodal displacements of the bars, which are much simpler to be controlled. These constraints, as well as the design objective of minimizing structural compliance and the material volume constraints, formulate a new density based topology optimization model. Numerical examples tested in this paper have validated the effect of the proposed optimization scheme. The influence of the material usage, constraint bounds and ratio of output loads on the optimized design are also analyzed in details.


Chromatographic method development for pharmaceutical analysis can benefit from in silico steered serial coupling of column segments containing different stationary phases of varying length. Contrary to column coupling through trial and error, in stationary-phase optimized selectivity (SOS)-based chromatography the retention of all solutes is predicted for all possible column combinations allowing a rational selection of the optimal column combination. The possibilities of the strategy now surpass the initial usage in isocratic high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) on dedicated commercial column segments, and allow applications in gradient-, green-, preparative-, and in supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) on conventional column hardware. Current possibilities, pharmaceutical applications, a downloadable algorithm, and weaknesses of the approach are discussed to allow broader implementation of this methodology in separation science.


Direct numerical simulation (DNS) and inviscid linear analysis (LIA) are used to study the interaction of a normal Mach 1.5 shock wave and isotropic turbulence. The influence of the nature of the incoming turbulence on the interaction is emphasized. The presence of upstream entropy fluctuations enhance the amplification of the turbulent kinetic energy and transverse vorticity variance across the shock compared to the solenoidal (pure vorticity) case. More reduction of the transverse Taylor microscale is also observed in the vorticity-entropy case while no influence can be seen on the longitudinal microscale. When acoustic and vortical fluctuations are associated upstream, less amplification of the turbulent kinetic energy, less reduction of the transverse microscale and more amplification of the transverse vorticity variance are observed through the discontinuity. All the DNS results are in good qualitative agreement with LIA.


The role that thromboxane A2 plays in contractions induced by leukotriene D4 in guinea-pig isolated lung parenchyma was investigated under equilibrium conditions. Lung tissue generated thromboxane A2 and prostacyclin spontaneously as evidenced by the slow accumulation of their biologically inactive metabolites, thromboxane B2 and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha, in the bathing buffer. Challenge of guinea-pig lung parenchyma with a high concentration (EC90 for tension generation) of leukotriene D4 (200 nM) produced a biphasic contraction of the tissue that consisted of an initial rapid increase in isometric tension followed by a slowly developing, well-sustained contracture. In addition, leukotriene D4 (200 nM) effected a transient increase (over basal) in the generation of thromboxane A2 and prostacyclin that lagged significantly behind the tension response. Kinetic analysis of the mechanical and eicosanoid-generating effect of leukotriene D4 revealed that tension development could be suitably fitted to a biexponential function, whilst the release of both eicosanoids from the lung occurred monoexponentially. Pretreatment of the lung with the cyclooxygenase inhibitor, flurbiprofen, which effectively abolished both the spontaneous and the leukotriene D4-stimulated eicosanoid biosynthesis, significantly reduced both the first order rate coefficient of the first exponent and the maximum amplitude of this function with respect to control. This change in the kinetics describing leukotriene D4-induced contractions was explained by the fact that the initial rate of tension development was markedly reduced following pretreatment of the lung with flurbiprofen. Neither the inhibitor of thromboxane synthetase, dazmegrel, which selectively inhibited (by 95%) leukotriene D4-stimulated thromboxane A2 formation, nor blockade of 11 alpha,9 alpha-epoxymethano-prostaglandin H2 (U-46619)-sensitive (thromboxane A2) receptors with either AH 23848 or EP 092 affected the profile of leukotriene D4-induced tension development in guinea-pig lung. It is concluded that a high concentration of leukotriene D4 (200 nM) contracts guinea-pig lung by both a direct and indirect mechanism. Initially, a rapid short-lived contraction of the lung is manifest which is dependent, in part, upon the synthesis and release of cyclooxygenase product(s) other than thromboxane A2. This initial response occurs coincidently with, and is subsequently followed by, the development of a tonic well-sustained contracture that is the result of a direct action of leukotriene D4 on the contractile cells that comprise the lung.


Wildland fires in the contiguous United States (CONUS) have increased in size and severity, but much remains unclear about the impact of fire size and burn severity on water supplies used for drinking, irrigation, industry, and hydropower. While some have investigated large-scale fire patterns, long-term effects on runoff, and the simultaneous effect of fire and climate trends on surface water yield, no studies account for all these factors and their interactions at the same time. In this report, we present critical new information for the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy—a first-time CONUS-wide assessment of observed and potential wildland fire impacts on surface water yield. First, we analyzed data from 168 fire-affected locations, collected between 1984 and 2013, with machine learning and used climate elasticity models to correct for the local climate baseline impact. Stream gage data show that annual river flow increased most in the Lower Mississippi and Lower and Upper Colorado water resource regions, however they do not show which portion of this increase is caused by fire and which portion results from local climate trends. Our machine learning model identified local climate trends as the main driver of water yield change and determined wildland fires must affect at least 19 percent of a watershed >10 km2 to change its annual water yield. A closer look at 32 locations with fires covering at least 19 percent of a watershed >10 km2 revealed that wildfire generally enhanced annual river flow. Fires increased river flow relatively the most in the Lower Colorado, Pacific Northwest, and California regions. In the Lower Colorado and Pacific Northwest regions, flow increased despite post-fire drought conditions. In southern California, post-fire drought effects masked the flow enhancement attributed to wildfire, meaning that annual water yield declined but not as much as expected based on the decline in precipitation. Prescribed burns in the Southeastern United States did not produce a widespread effect on river flow, because the area affected was typically too small and characterized by only low burn severity. In the second stage of the assessment, we performed full-coverage simulations of the CONUS with the Water Supply Stress Index (WaSSI) hydrologic model (88,000 HUC-12-level watersheds) for the period between 2001 and 2010. This enables us to fill in the gaps of areas with scarce data and to identify regions with large potential increases in post-fire annual water yield (+10 to +50 percent): midto high-elevation forests in northeastern Washington, northwestern Montana, central Minnesota, southern Utah, Colorado, and South Dakota, and coastal forests in Georgia and northern Florida. A hypothetical 20-percent forest burn impact scenario for the CONUS suggests that surface yield can increase up to +10 percent in most watersheds, and even more in some watersheds depending on climate, soils, and vegetation. The insights gained from this quantitative analysis have major implications for flood mitigation and watershed restoration, and are vital to forest management policies aimed at reducing fire impact risk and improving water supply under a changing climate.


We tell the story of Roe v. Wade for a forthcoming volume in the Foundation Press Law Stories series. To those who support abortion rights, Roe demonstrates the Court's crucial role in protecting individual rights in the face of determined political opposition. For its critics, Roe was the work of an "unelected" Court creating new constitutional rights; supposedly, by deciding matters properly left to democratic determination, the Court inflamed conflict over abortion and riled our politics.
We explain the origins of the abortion right and conflicts over it differently. The story we tell is not simply a litigation history of a landmark case, but as importantly a story about the democratic foundations of our constitutional law. We start our account of the abortion conflict before Supreme Court litigation begins. Conflict enters the picture well before the courts do, as people argue over the Constitution's meaning in their everyday lives. We recount how citizens who lacked power in any conventional sense were able over time to change the way the nation and its courts understood longstanding guarantees of liberty, of equality, and of life.
Roe itself, filed in federal district court in Dallas in March 1970, was one of many cases in the late 1960s and early 1970s that invoked the Constitution to challenge the century-old regime of criminal abortion statutes; Roe just happened to be first in line on the Supreme Court's docket. These cases emerged from principled and heated dialogue among powerful social movements that initially did not even have courts in view. The story of Roe v. Wade is the story of conflict born in democratic politics that engendered the rights claims that the Court would ultimately recognize. The conflict continues to this day, even as advocates and their arguments have changed as few would have expected.
This framework offers a fresh context for reading Roe. Enlarging our perspective in this way allows us to recover claims for and against abortion rights to which the Court's opinion in Roe responded, as well as claims that the Court ignored—claims for women's equality and for protecting potential life that played an important role in reshaping the abortion right nearly twenty years later in Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey.
The account of Roe's history the chapter offers can inform both normative and predictive debate about Roe's future.


Hip fracture is one of the most common injuries in the elderly population. Delay in operating on patients with hip fracture is associated with greater mortality and morbidity. A retrospective review of medical charts of patients who underwent primary total hip replacement (THR) for neck of femur fractures at our tertiary care level 1 trauma was carried out. Data was collected from the patients' charts and analysed for 30-day mortality and morbidity. A total of 96 patients were included in the study. Out of the 36 patients in the delayed THR group, mortality within 30 days was observed in 4 (11.1%) patients while none was noted in the early THR group. The difference was statistically significant with a P-value of 0.008. With regards to post-operative complications, significantly higher percentage of patients were noted to have developed electrolyte imbalances (P = 0.003), postoperative psychosis (P = 0.02), and acute kidney injury (AKI) (P = 0.02) in the delayed THR group compared to the early THR group. Delay in surgery for neck of femur fracture is associated with increased 30-day mortality and postoperative complications.


In heterogeneous aquifers, imaging preferential flow paths, and non-Gaussian effects is critical to reduce uncertainties in transport predictions. Common deterministic approaches relying on a singlemodel for transport prediction show limitations in capturing these processes and tend to smooth parameter distributions. Monte-Carlo simulations
give one possible way to explore the uncertainty range of parameter value distributions needed for realistic predictions. Joint heat and solute tracer tests provide an innovative option for transport characterization using complementary tracer behaviors. Heat tracing adds the effect of heat advection-conduction to solute advection-dispersion. In this contribution, a joint interpretation of heat and solute tracer data sets is proposed for the alluvial aquifer of the Meuse River at the Hermalle-sous-Argenteau test site (Belgium). First, a density-viscosity dependent flow-transport model is developed and induce, due to the water viscosity changes, up to 25% change in simulated heat tracer peak times. Second, stochastic simulations with hydraulic conductivity (K) random fields are used for a global sensitivity analysis. The latter highlights the influence of spatial parameter uncertainty on the resulting breakthrough curves, stressing the need for a
more realistic uncertainty quantification. This global sensitivity analysis in conjunction with principal component analysis assists to investigate the link between the prior distribution of parameters and the complexity of themeasured data set. It allows to detect approximations done by using classical inversion approaches and the need to consider
realistic K-distributions. Furthermore, heat tracer transport is shown as significantly less sensitive to porosity compared to solute transport. Most proposed models are, nevertheless, not able to simultaneously simulate the complementary heat-solute tracers. Therefore, constraining the model using different observed tracer behaviors necessarily comes with the requirement to use more-advanced parameterization and more realistic spatial distribution of hydrogeological parameters. The added value of data from both tracer signals is highlighted, and their complementary behavior in conjunction with advanced model/prediction approaches shows a strong uncertainty reduction potential.


Cloud Computing and Social Network Services (SNS) are some of the most controversially discussed IT developments in recent years. Huge expectations exist for Cloud Computing, providing lower costs of computing while increasing employment. However, Cloud Computing as well as Social Network Services may come with a substantial risk of losing data privacy. The project conducted on Cloud Computing Services and Social Network Sites addressed the potential and impacts of these technologies. The project report showed that (1) adequate data security and privacy are critical but difficult to achieve, that (2) more consumer protection is needed and that (3) the market for Cloud Computing is not growing as fast as initially forecast, resulting in a lower than expected increase of employment and lower contribution to GDP growth. The study was carried out between 2012 and 2013 on behalf of the European Parliament's Science and Technology Options Assessment Panel (STOA) by the Danish Board of Technology (DBT), the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI), the Institute of Technology Assessment of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ITA), the Irish Centre for Cloud Computing and Commerce at Dublin City University (DCU/IC4), and ITAS. In this article, we highlight findings from interviews, literature reviews, and case studies. In addition, selected contributions from a project workshop under the auspices of the 5th European Innovation Summit are presented, conclusions drawn, and finally key policy options presented.


In this paper, a method of treatment of swelling of expansive soil is presented. The method is simply based on the embedment of a geogrid (or a geomesh) in the soil. The geogrid is extended continuously inside the volume of soil where the swell is required to be controlled and orientated in the direction of swell. Soils with different swelling potentials are employed; bentonite "which is mainly composed of montmorillonite" base-Na and bentonite base-Ca in addition to kaolinite mixed with bentonite. To investigate the swell, swell-partial shrinkage and other phenomena for untreated soils in comparison with their counterparts treated soils, small scale tests were carried out in ASTM CBR (California Bearing-Ratio) mould. Each soil sample was compacted at dry side of the compaction curve using static compaction test. Swelling and consolidation tests were carried out on each sample. Geogrid columns of different diameters; 20, 30 and 50 mm were inserted through the swelling soil and filled either with the same clay or with sand.

A considerable effect of geogrid was observed on the restriction of swelling in the soil. The dependence of swell on reinforcement stiffness substantiates the anticipation that soil-reinforcement bond would be so strong that the clay cannot expand unless the reinforcement is extended. Swell increases with the column diameter. The gradual increase in the diameter of geogrid reinforced column provides the cylinder with the largest surface area that supports the increase of the interlocking interface with the soil. Using sand as a fill material in the geogrid reinforced columns is more effective than using the same treated soil since sand is more permeable and less compressible than clays.


Much that has happened in the world since 1989 gives cause for elation, but there is also much that gives reason for alarm. The euphoria that attended the dismantling of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of communism has been compromised by tragic events in recent years, such as the bitter ethnic rivalries in Yugoslavia, the civil war in Rwanda, and the terrorist bombings in New York City and Oklahoma City. In Search of Germany seeks to accomplish three purposes: to initiate a review of the whole of the post-World War II period and consider what actually happened in the Federal Republic and in the German Democratic Republic during those forty years; to acknowledge that the present "age of anxiety" did not originate in 1989; and to see that Europe today is indeed in trouble and the difficulties that the world is experiencing have social, political, and intellectual roots. In Search of Germany is an augmented and enlarged collection derived from a special issue of Daedalus. Additions that have been made to the book include a chapter by Timothy Garton Ash entitled "Germany's Choice," a concluding section by the editors, and an index. While the book focuses on Germany, it serves a wider purpose as well by also studying Europe, democracy, and modernity. The prejudices and fears of Germany, precisely because they are specific to and yet not peculiar to Germany, tell a great deal of why an earlier European (and American) optimism has been lost, and why so much contemporary political discourse avoids explicit consideration of really sensitive issues. Half a century after the end of World War II, there is interest not only in the policies pursued by the Nazi regime, the crimes it perpetrated throughout Europe, and the suffering it inflicted on hundreds of millions, but also on what preceded that unprecedented tragedy and what has followed it. In Search of Germany is a timely and significant analysis of contemporary world politics and will be necessary reading for political scientists, historians, and scholars of international studies.


In this dissertation, we focus on extracting and understanding semantically meaningful relationships between data items of various modalities; especially relations between images and natural language. We explore the ideas and techniques to integrate such cross-media semantic relations for machine understanding of large heterogeneous datasets, made available through the expansion of the World Wide Web. The datasets collected from social media websites, news media outlets and blogging platforms usually contain multiple modalities of data. Intelligent systems are needed to automatically make sense out of these datasets and present them in such a way that humans can find the relevant pieces of information or get a summary of the available material. Such systems have to process multiple modalities of data such as images, text, linguistic features, and structured data in reference to each other. For example, image and video search and retrieval engines are required to understand the relations between visual and textual data so that they can provide relevant answers in the form of images and videos to the users' queries presented in the form of text. We emphasize the automatic extraction of semantic topics or concepts from the data available in any form such as images, free-flowing text or metadata. These semantic concepts/topics become the basis of semantic relations across heterogeneous data types, e.g., visual and textual data. A classic problem involving image-text relations is the automatic generation of textual descriptions of images. This problem is the main focus of our work. In many cases, large amount of text is associated with images. Deep exploration of linguistic features of such text is required to fully utilize the semantic information encoded in it. A news dataset involving images and news articles is an example of this scenario. We devise frameworks for automatic news image description generation based on the semantic relations of images, as well as semantic understanding of linguistic features of the news articles.


The major task of policy makers and practitioners when confronted with a resource management problem is to decide on the potential solution(s) to adopt from a range of available options. However, this process is unlikely to be successful and cost effective without access to an independently verified and comprehensive available list of options. There is currently burgeoning interest in ecosystem services and quantitative assessments of their importance and value. Recognition of the value of ecosystem services to human well-being represents an increasingly important argument for protecting and restoring the natural environment, alongside the moral and ethical justifications for conservation. As well as understanding the benefits of ecosystem services, it is also important to synthesize the practical interventions that are capable of maintaining and/or enhancing these services. Apart from pest regulation, pollination, and global climate regulation, this type of exercise has attracted relatively little attention. Through a systematic consultation exercise, we identify a candidate list of 296 possible interventions across the main regulating services of air quality regulation, climate regulation, water flow regulation, erosion regulation, water purification and waste treatment, disease regulation, pest regulation, pollination and natural hazard regulation. The range of interventions differs greatly between habitats and services depending upon the ease of manipulation and the level of research intensity. Some interventions have the potential to deliver benefits across a range of regulating services, especially those that reduce soil loss and maintain forest cover. Synthesis and applications: Solution scanning is important for questioning existing knowledge and identifying the range of options available to researchers and practitioners, as well as serving as the necessary basis for assessing cost effectiveness and guiding implementation strategies. We recommend that it become a routine part of decision making in all environmental policy areas.


The northern Tyrrhenian Sea and the inner northern Apennines are classically regarded as a late Miocene–Pleistocene back-arc system developed as a consequence of slab rollback along active subduction zones. We present new geological and structural data on the Gavorrano antiform, a key sector of the inner northern Apennines. Lying close to the northern Tyrrhenian Sea, it provides clear evidence of Pliocene shortening deformation and magma emplacement. The orientation of σ1 (N50°E–N80°E) derived by fault slip data inversion is consistent with a general ENE–WSW shortening direction. Furthermore, this ENE–WSW-trending orientation of σ1 is compatible with the compressive deformation recorded in coeval sedimentary basins. On this basis we suggest that the inner northern Apennines were affected by crustal shortening during the Pliocene. This scenario matches well geophysical data suggesting that since the Late Messinian (6–5 Ma) subduction rollback and back-arc extension strongly decreased in the northern Tyrrhenian Sea, whereas they continued as active processes in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea.


The importance of climate change in the 21st century has become ever more urgent, which has resulted in more stringent energy efficiency measures being developed. This is shown with the UK's legal commitment to reduce CO² by 80 % by 2050. Therefore, the ever pressing question is whether historic buildings need to become more energy efficient despite their historic and architectural significance. This research paper will critique the decision making process, it will review the perspectives of conservation officer's views on matters such as subjectivity, sustainability and views regarding the availability policies and guidance in implanting sustainable development. The method used for the collection of data was qualitative, as there was validity in the opinion of the conservation officers working within the planning system. The collection of such data was performed by a well-informed structured interview. The research showed that there was correlation between both the literature review and interview answers. However, both literature and interview answers showed that sacrificing an element of high significance to improve the energy performance will not be acceptable. According #3 the LBCA act 1990 (s66) states that the 'greatest weight will be afforded statutory duty in relation to preservation of a heritage asset'. Finally, the findings show that the decision making process is subjective in natural. However, it is actually a combination of subjectivity and a well informed decision using heritage principles and guidance. It was derived from the research paper that there is relevant information in relation to upgrading of listed building and how to maintain them. However, there is a vague understanding to what extent sustainable development must be met, if a listed building significance is affect. Furthermore, this is confirmed with the ADL giving exemption where the significance of a designated
asset would be affected. Therefore, this decision then lies with the decision makers to determine a suitable method. It is thus the writers believe that more information is required in relation to the extent to which designated assets need to contribution to the Co² reduction required by 2050. However, due to the nature of listed building this can be difficult as no one listed building can be defined as exactly the same as the next, thus must be determined on individual basis by conservation officers.


The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of some operational parameters on the efficiency of ozonation and Fenton's process for decolorization and COD removal. Acid Red 337 and Reactive Orange 16 dye solutions and the effluents of acid and reactive dye-bath effluents were used in the experiments. The influence of ozone dose and pH for color and COD removal from the wastewater were studied. Increasing the ozone dose increased the rate constants, and color and COD removal efficiencies. Ozone consumption ratio per unit color and COD removal at any time was found to be almost the same while the applied ozone dose was different. pH did not significantly affect color and COD removal from the wastewater by ozonation. In spite of having high color removal efficiencies (60–91%), limited COD removal efficiencies between 9–17% at 30 minutes ozonation time were obtained. In the Fenton oxidation experiments, the effects of pH, temperature, dosage of ferrous sulfate and hydrogen peroxide, and the proper ratio of Fe(II)/H2O2 were studied. The result indicates that up to 99% color removal and 82% COD removal can be obtained by Fenton's oxidation. While Fenton's oxidation was greatly affected by the pH value, temperature of wastewater did not significantly affect the Fenton process for color removal. Increasing the dose of both hydrogen peroxide and ferrous sulfate enhanced the removal efficiencies of color and COD. Suitable ratios of Fe(II)/H2O2 were found to be between 0.5 and 0.83.


Online courses may be criticized for failing to engage students. Faculty members teaching in the classroom often employ a number of strategies that capture the interest of students, but may find the migration to the online environment a daunting prospect. This paper describes the transitioning of two common strategies to engage students in the classroom – jigsaw groups and problem-based learning – from face-to-face to online courses in sociology and soil science, respectively. The paper discusses the challenges and opportunities that were found to be common to the implementation of both these strategies online, and provides suggestions for faculty considering this transition.


Can local governments play a critical role in saving the global environment? Professor Robert R.M. Verchick argues that they are already. Drawing upon his experiences as a Major Group Delegate at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, Professor Verchick explains how acting out of their own self-interest, local governments have begun to see that thinking and acting locally not only improve local conditions, but also contributes substantially to national and international environmental goals. Concluding that only through the coordination of international, national and local efforts to improve the environment will sustainable development be possible, Professor Verchick's article is a forceful argument for the need for local action in confronting a global problem.


Abstract The Western Granite is the largest of several granitic bodies around the margin of the Rum Central Igneous Complex. We report palaeomagnetic and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) data that bear on the emplacement and deformation of the Western Granite. The collection includes samples from 27 sites throughout the Western Granite, five sites in adjacent feldspathic peridotite, and two sites in intermediate to mafic hybrid contact aureole rocks. Palaeomagnetic data from 22 of the 27 sites in the granite provide an in situ group mean D = 213.2°, I = −69.5°, α95 = 5.5° that is discordant to an early Paleocene reverse polarity expected field (about 184°, −66°, α95 = 4.3°). The discrepancy is eliminated by removing an inferred 15° of northwest-side-down tilting about a best fit horizontal tilt axis trending 040°. Data from the younger peridotite and hybrid rocks of the Rum Layered Suite provide an in situ group mean of D = 182.6°, I = −64.8°, α95 = 4.0°, which is statistically indistinguishable from an early Paleocene expected field, and imply no post-emplacement tilting of these rocks since remanence acquisition. The inferred tilt recorded in the Western Granite, which did not affect the younger Layered Suite, suggests that emplacement of the ultrabasic rocks resulted in roof uplift and associated tilt of the Western Granite to make space for mafic magma emplacement. Magnetic fabric magnitude and susceptibility parameters yield two subtle groupings in the Western Granite AMS data set. Group 1 data, defined by rocks from exposures to the east and south, have comparatively high bulk susceptibilities (Kmean, 29.51 × 10−3 in SI system), stronger anisotropies (Pj, 1.031) and oblate susceptibility ellipsoids. Group 2 data, from rocks in the west part of the pluton, have lower values of Kmean (15.89 × 10−3 SI) and Pj (1.014), and triaxial susceptibility ellipsoids. Magnetic lineations argue for emplacement of the granite as a tabular sheet from the south–southeast toward the north and west. Moderate to steeply outward-dipping magnetic foliations, together with deflection of the country rock bedding in the north, are consistent with doming accompanying magma emplacement.


Clinical microbiology diagnosis became objectively possible at the end of 19th century with the seminar contributions of researchers such as Louis Pasteur, Robert Koch and other colleagues. The concept of diagnosis then was the 'culture and isolate' paradigm, which accelerated to a large extent the growth of bacteriology, as a number of bacteria were able to fulfill the Koch's postulates, but delayed the growth of other fields of microbiology most especially virology because viruses were not culturable outside of host cells. This paradigm, together with the application of micros-copy, serology and the use of animal models in research in the early 20th century, constituted the 'first revolution' in the field of microbiology that is referred to as the conventional microbiological diagnosis. Although this conventional diagnosis has remained valuable, assessments have shown that many of the conventional techniques are not demonstrably 'fit for purpose' in the 21st century. This has necessitated the consideration of complementary or alternative technologies, the molecular diagnosis, which has ushered in a 'second revolution' in microbiology that is as profound as the first in its impact on our understanding of the microbe-human interactions in health and disease. In this mini-review, an overview of the technologies underlying molecular diagnosis in microbiology is presented. The application of these molecular methods in clinical microbiology laboratory to ensure accurate, reliable and timely release of microbiological test results for better patients' management and outcome is highlighted.


Any precise version of H-D needs to handle various problems, most notably, the problem of selective confirmation: Precise formulations of H-D should not have the consequence that where S confirms T, for any T', S confirms T&T'. It is the perceived failure of H-D to solve such problems that has lead John Earman to recently conclude that H-D is "very nearly a dead horse". This suggests the following state of play: H-D is an intuitively plausible idea that breaks down in the attempt to give it a precise formulation. Indeed I think that fairly captures the view among specialists in the field of confirmation theory. Here I argue that the truth about H-D is largely the reverse: H-D can be given a precise formulation that avoids the longstanding technical problems, however, it relies on a fundamentally unsound philosophical intuition. The bulk of this paper involves reviewing the problems affecting previous attempts at giving precise formulations of H-D and displaying some recent versions that can handle these problems. It then briefly explains why the basic intuition behind H-D is itself unsound, namely, because H-D involves a tacit assumption of inductive scepticism. Finally, the historical relation between H-D and the positivists' quest for a criterion of empirical significance will be reconsidered with the surprising result that having glossed H-D as fundamentally unsound it is concluded that a sound version of the criterion of empirical significance is now available. The demarcation criterion, the positivists' philosopher's stone that serves to separate claims with empirical significance from claims lacking empirical significance having finally been found, it is argued that we should regard empirical significance as just one among a variety of virtues and not follow the positivists in taking it to be a sin qua non for all meaningful statements.


The tsunami simulation software TsunAWI is based on unstructured finite element meshes, utilizing a linear Lagrange conforming and non-conforming finite element numerical discretization method. TsunAWI is used for scenario computations in the German-Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System (GITEWS) as well as for hazard assessment studies for local disaster management authorities in Indonesia. The early warning system, developed in the GITEWS framework is introduced under the special focus of the role of simulation. Starting from the non-linear shallow water equations for wave propagation, the discretization method in TsunAWI is described. Some remarks on mesh generation and the inundation scheme follow. The evaluation of an operational model, like TsunAWI, is an important issue and is outlined by examples. Finally some applications like hazard assessment for Padang and inundation mapping for Bali are given.


Past work by McLean and others demonstrated that energy absorbing headwear for car occupants might be effective in reducing the numbers of head injuries sustained by car occupants. They estimated that the benefits were greater than the estimated benefits of padding of the upper interior of vehicles to the requirements of the US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 201. This paper describes the development of head protection for car occupants (the RARU Headband) that would protect the head of an occupant in a crash. The development process included the testing of candidate materials, the construction of prototypes and ultimately the evaluation of the prototypes according to test methods outlined in FMVSS 201. The evaluation was made by attaching the headband to a free motion headform, and firing the headform at 24 km/h at an unpadded beam that had similar characteristics to a vehicle A-pillar, simulating a frontal collision. Three beams of varying stiffness were used to examine the protective effect of the headband over a range of impact severities. The protective effect was measured by comparing the impact severity between impacts with and without the headband present. Results showed that the headband produced marked reductions in the Head Injury Criterion value compared to the unprotected headform. In beams that produced severe impacts with the unprotected headform, that exceeded the threshold set by FMVSS 201, the headband reduced the severity to safe levels. This study showed that head impact severities can be markedly reduced for car occupants by the use of moderate amounts of head protection in frontal impacts. Further evaluation is required for other impact directions. This study was completed for the Australian Transport Safety Bureau. Language: en


&NA; The pathophysiology of cold injury is still controversial. An inflammatory process has been implicated as the underlying mechanism and certain anti‐inflammatory substances such as ibuprofen and acetylsalicylic acid have been used in the clinical treatment of frostbite injury. It has been postulated that the progressive ischemic necrosis is secondary to excessive thromboxane A2 production, which upsets the normal balance between prostacyclin (prostaglandin I2) and thromboxane A2. It was aimed to clarify the pathophysiology of cold injury in this study. Twenty‐one New Zealand White rabbits, each weighing 1.2 to 2.9 kg, were divided into control (n = 10) and frostbitten (n = 11) groups the randomly. The rabbit ears in the frostbitten group were subjected to cold injury, and the levels of thromboxane A2 (as thromboxane B2) and of prostaglandin I2 (as 6‐keto‐prostaglandin F1&agr;) and the number of inflammatory cells (polymorphonuclear leukocytes and mast cells) were measured in normal and frostbitten skin of rabbit ears. The levels of 6‐keto prostaglandin F1&agr; and thromboxane B2, the stable metabolites of prostaglandin I2 and thromboxane A2, respectively, were increased in a statistically significant way (p < 0.002) by frostbite injury; however, thromboxane B2 increased more than 6‐keto prostaglandin F1&agr;. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes and mast cells, absent in normal skin, were present in the frostbitten skin. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.01) correlation between the time a rabbit ear was maintained at below ‐ 10°C and skin survival and between the weights of rabbits and skin survival (p < 0.024). All these findings suggest that inflammation is involved in frostbite injury; a decrease in prostaglandin I2/thromboxane A2 ratio could be one of the factors leading to necrosis; the bigger the animal, the better its ability to counter frostbite. (Plast. Reconstr. Surg. 101: 1881, 1998.)


The application behind the subject of this thesis are multiscale simulations on highly heterogeneous particle-reinforced composites with large jumps in their material coefficients. Such simulations are used, e.g., for the prediction of elastic properties. As the underlying microstructures have very complex geometries, a discretization by means of finite elements typically involves very fine resolved meshes. The latter results in discretized linear systems of more than \(10^8\) unknowns which need to be solved efficiently. However, the variation of the material coefficients even on very small scales reveals the failure of most available methods when solving the arising linear systems. While for scalar elliptic problems of multiscale character, robust domain decomposition methods are developed, their extension and application to 3D elasticity problems needs to be further established.

The focus of the thesis lies in the development and analysis of robust overlapping domain decomposition methods for multiscale problems in linear elasticity. The method combines corrections on local subdomains with a global correction on a coarser grid. As the robustness of the overall method is mainly determined by how well small scale features of the solution can be captured on the coarser grid levels, robust multiscale coarsening strategies need to be developed which properly transfer information between fine and coarse grids.

We carry out a detailed and novel analysis of two-level overlapping domain decomposition methods for the elasticity problems. The study also provides a concept for the construction of multiscale coarsening strategies to robustly solve the discretized linear systems, i.e. with iteration numbers independent of variations in the Young's modulus and the Poisson ratio of the underlying composite. The theory also captures anisotropic elasticity problems and allows applications to multi-phase elastic materials with non-isotropic constituents in two and three spatial dimensions.
Moreover, we develop and construct new multiscale coarsening strategies and show why they should be preferred over standard ones on several model problems. In a parallel implementation (MPI) of the developed methods, we present applications to real composites and robustly solve discretized systems of more than \(200\) million unknowns.


The femtosecond open-aperture Z-scan of standard sample CS(2) at 800 and 780 nm is present here by using thinner sample length and an integrating sphere. The open-aperture Z-scan signal is verified to arise mainly from nonlinear scattering, not from two- or three-photon absorption as reported in literature. And the two- and three-photon absorption coefficients of CS(2) are negligible. Therefore, around 800 nm the femtosecond open-aperture Z-scan of CS(2) cannot be used to calibrate Z-scan measurement system, but the closed-aperture Z-scan is capable.


associations rather than an aetiological I Johnson RH, Robinson BJ. Local autonomic failure affecting a limb. J Neurol Neurosurg explanation. Psrchiatrrv 1987;50:738-42. References 2 Ross AT. Progressive selective sudomotor denervation. Neurology 1958;8:809-17. Faden Al, Chan P, Mendoza E. Progressive 3 Bonnin M, Skinner SL, Whelan RF. Holmesisolated segmental anihidrosis. Arch Neurol Adie syndrome with progressive autonomic 1982;39:172-5. degeneration. Aust Ann Med 1961;10:304-7. 2 Low PA, Felaey RD, Sheps SG. Su WPD, 4 Petajan JH, Danforth RC, D'Allesio D, Lucas Trautmann JC, Kuntz NL. Chronic idioMD. Progressive sudomotor denervation pathic anhidrosis. Ann Neurol and Adie's syndrome. Neurologr 1985;18:344-8. 1961;15:172-6. 3 Johnson RH. Autonomic failure and the eyes. 5 Lucy DD, Van Allan MW, Thomson HS. In: Bannister R. ed. Autonomic Failure. Holmes-Adie syndrome with segmental Oxford: University Press 1983:508-42. hypohidrosis. Neurology 1967;17:763-9. 4 Johnson RH, McLellan DL, Love DR. Ortho6 Hardin WB, Gay AJ. The phenomenon of static hypotension and the Holmes-Adie benign hyporeflexia. Review of the Holmessyndrome: a study of two patients with Adie syndrome with case reports and a study afferent baroreceptor block. J Neurol Neuof the Achilles reflex Neurologl rosurg P.sr(chiatrv 1971;34:562-70. 1965;15:61 3-21. Local autonomic failure affecting one limb Johnson replies.: The point of our article Local Autonomic Sir: The cases of autonomic failure affecting Failure in a Limb was to draw attention to one limb described by Drs Johnson and isolated local autonomic failure causing Robinsont are of particular interest because sweating loss and change of temperature in all the cases affected by failure of sweating in the affected limb. In company with the the left arm. In the third case there was assoauthors of two other reports of similar ciated normal vasomotor function in the


The discrete and continuous graph labeling problem are discussed. A basis for the continuous graph labeling problem is presented, in which an explicit connection between the discrete and continuous problems is made. The need for this basis is argued by noting conditions which must be satisfied before solutions can be pursued in a formal manner. Several cooperative solution algorithms based on the proposed formulation and results of the application of these algorithms to the problem of extracting line drawings are presented.


Chronic opiate use represses expression of Brain-derived neurotrophic factor through changes in histone modifications. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mediates changes in neural plasticity induced by opiates, such as morphine, and stimulants, such as cocaine. One of the neural circuits affected by both opiates and stimulants is the brain's mesolimbic dopamine system, which consists of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and its contacts with the nucleus accumbens (NAc). In the mouse, cocaine induces BDNF signaling and neural plasticity in the VTA-NAc circuit, whereas opiates, such as morphine, repress Bdnf expression in the VTA. Koo et al. found that, compared with controls, the abundance of Bdnf transcripts was reduced in VTA samples from human heroin addicts, from heroin self-administering rats, and from rats and mice treated chronically with morphine. The authors used quantitative chromatin immunoprecipitation (qChIP) analysis to compare histone modifications and transcription factor binding at the Bdnf locus in VTA cells from chronically morphine-treated and control rodents. Chronic morphine treatment caused RNA polymerase II to stall in the coding region of Bdnf and induced various changes in histone modifications at the Bdnf promoter, including an increase in the abundance of histone 3 trimethylated at Lys4 (H3K4me3). The abundance of H3K4me3 also increased in the promoter of Nuclear receptor–related 1 (Nurr1), which encodes a transcription factor that promotes Bdnf expression. Both Nurr1 and Bdnf are targets of the cAMP response element–binding protein (CREB), and the increased abundance of H3K4me3 correlated with reduced binding of activated CREB to these promoters in vivo. Furthermore, overexpression of the enzyme that catalyzes the H3K4me3 modification reduced activated CREB binding to the Bdnf promoter in the absence of morphine treatment. Overexpressing NURR1 in the VTA induced Bdnf expression, blocked morphine reward, and rescued a hyperlocomotive phenotype caused by morphine readministration after withdrawal. These findings highlight the complexity of epigenetic control of neural plasticity, though the mechanisms by which morphine induces histone modifications remain unidentified. J. W. Koo, M. S. Mazei-Robison, Q. LaPlant, G. Egervari, K. M. Braunscheidel, D. N. Adank, D. Ferguson, J. Feng, H. Sun, K. N. Scobie, D. M. Damez-Werno, E. Ribeiro, C. J. Peña, D. Walker, R. C. Bagot, M. E. Cahill, S. A. R. Anderson, B. Labonté, G. E. Hodes, H. Browne, B. Chadwick, A. J. Robison, V. F. Vialou, C. Dias, Z. Lorsch, E. Mouzon, M. K. Lobo, D. M. Dietz, S. J. Russo, R. L. Neve, Y. L. Hurd, E. J. Nestler, Epigenetic basis of opiate suppression of Bdnf gene expression in the ventral tegmental area. Nat. Neurosci. 18, 415–422 (2015). [PubMed]


In a previous article, we compared the trend in U.S. average yield per harvested acre for the 1940-1995 and 1996-2011 periods. The year 1996 was the first year that biotech varieties of crops were commercially adopted in the U.S. The analysis included 14 crops, 3 biotech crops (corn, cotton, and soybeans) and 11 crops for which adoption of biotech varieties is limited. This article specifically examines the deviation of average U.S. yield from its trend-line yield. The objective is to provide information concerning the commonly-expressed argument that biotechnology has reduced yield variability.


Currently, diabetic case as a degenerative disease has widely known that it can be cure by insulin.  A remain puzzle is proliferation do not found in rest Beta cells, so insulin injection has to be applied entire life of diabetic patient. So far, there is no diagnostic approach that expresses such of thing which may indicate an early anomaly on glucose metabolism process. The aim of this research to get case model of hyperglycemic rat that has long period in process.


Theoretically, to fully describe the change in the medium around a point one needs three components of translation, six components of strain, and three components of rotation. It is expected that collocated measurements of translations and rotations may help (1) correcting translation signals recorded by classical seismometers for contamination by ground rotations, (2) extracting additional information on earthquake source properties, soil-structure interactions, and properties of the subsurface, and (3) providing additional ground motion information to earthquake engineers for seismic design. Thus, in addition to translations and strains, the rotational part of ground motions should also be recorded. However, the lack of instrumental sensitivity did not allow seismologists to observe rotational motions for decades. Recently, ring laser technology has provided the means to develop instruments that allow in principle the observation of rotational motions in a wide frequency band and epicentral distance range.

Here we present the observations of rotational ground motions around a vertical axis in the P coda (the section between the onsets of direct P- and S- waves) of tele-seismic signals on a ring laser sensor at the Fundamental Observatory Wettzell, southeast Germany. The studies focus on finding the explanation for the observed P coda rotations as well as the way to extract additional information from the use of co-seismic rotational motions. First, the effects of co-seismic tilts on ring laser measurements are quantified based on magnitude-amplitude relations and translation derived tilts. Then the phenomenon of scattering assuming three dimensional random media and topography that may generate the observed P coda rotations is investigated through analysis of observations and forward modelling. The partitioning of P and S energy indicated by the stabilization of the ratio of energies of the two is used to constrain scattering properties. Finally, an analytical approach focusing on the solution of plane waves in linear elastic anisotropic media is used to quantify the anisotropic behavior through the variations of rotational wavefield. The focus is on quasi-P waves and transverse isotropic media. Kelvin-Christoffel equation and the Thomson parameters, descriptive of the degree of anisotropy, are used. The obtained results show that 1) P-SH scattering in the random crust is the main cause of the P-coda observations; and 2) rotational motions contain additional information (at least) about scattering properties and anisotropic coefficients and that joint measurements of translational and rotational motions at only one point allow the extraction of additional information. The results demonstrate the potential benefit not only of measurements of co-seismic rotational ground motions but also of the use of the amplitude content of seismic signals.


A recently developed computer program which simulates the evolution, growth, and movement of a submerged delta in reservoirs was tested for Spencer Dam and Reservoir in Nebraska. The code, called DELTA, fits a vertical shock face to an aggrading channel as the bed progressively steepens. The vertical shock face separates the computational field into two distinct zones, just as in a reservoir: upstream and downstream of the delta. Spencer Reservoir completely filled with sediment in twenty to thirty years after closure in 1927. The DELTA code predicted a thirty-two year filling time using data from streamflow records, topographic maps, aerial photographs, and measured grain size distributions. Preliminary comparisons with results from the computer code HEC-6 shows that DELTA is a useful tool for reservoir sediment simulations.


This paper responds to Carolyn Miller and Dawn Shepherd's proposal (2004) that the personal blog acts upon an exigence of self-cultivation and validation. I turn to situational rhetoric (Bitzer 1968; 1980) to further contextualize bloggers' motives and illustrate how the blog's presentation of self is constituted rhetorically. Engaging Michael Warner's theory of publics (2002) and Anne Freadman's concept of uptake (2002), I argue that bloggers who write public posts about a public event, Canada Reads , participate in two situations—the blog and the event—and their resulting social actions accommodate exigencies belonging to both. By directing attention to the post, we glimpse the intentionality of each mediated self, seen in the varying publics engaged, situations defined, interpretants selected, and exigencies affected.


This paper characterizes the equilibrium dynamics in an economy facing an aggregate debt ceiling. This borrowing limit is intended to capture an environment in which foreign investors base their lending decisions predominantly upon macro indicators. Individual agents do not internalize the borrowing constraint. Instead, a country interest-rate premium emerges to clear the financial market. The implied equilibrium dynamics are compared to those arising from a model in which the debt ceiling is imposed at the level of each individual agent. The central finding of the paper is that the economy with the aggregate borrowing limit does not generate higher levels of debt than the economy with the individual borrowing limit. That is, there is no overborrowing in equilibrium.


Lisa Lindquist Dorr tells the story of the vast smuggling network that brought high-end distilled spirits and, eventually, other cargoes (including undocumented immigrants) from Great Britain and Europe through Cuba to the United States between 1920 and the end of Prohibition. Because of their proximity to liquor-exporting islands, the numerous beaches along the southern coast presented ideal landing points for smugglers and distribution points for their supply networks. From the warehouses of liquor wholesalers in Havana to the decks of rum runners to transportation networks heading northward, Dorr explores these operations, from the people who ran the trade to the determined efforts of the U.S. Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies to stop liquor traffic on the high seas, in Cuba, and in southern communities. In the process, she shows the role smuggling played in creating a more transnational, enterprising, and modern South.


Purpose: People with fibromyalgia (FM), a medically unexplained illness, habitually experience widespread pain and fatigue. While some qualitative research has aimed to understand the experiences of people with FM, studies from a specific narrative perspective are particularly lacking. This review argues that future research could be significantly enhanced by studies which analyse the narratives of people with FM. Method: This argument is made through reference to an examination of the extant qualitative literature on the experience of FM and theories and narrative studies on chronic illnesses and identity. Results: The empirical literature is reviewed from a narrative perspective; this assumes that the stories people tell reveal much about their identities and social worlds. As such, it is proposed that narrative analysis is particularly well suited for exploring issues of self and culture and for appreciating how meanings evolve over time. Further, it is also argued that consideration of these issues is particularly relevant for understanding the experience of FM given the enigmatic nature of the syndrome and its chronic course. Conclusions: The review concludes by emphasizing that narrative analysis is a valuable method which offers the potential for uncovering novel insights about the illness experience for these individuals. Implications for Rehabilitation Fibromyalgia is a chronic syndrome characterised by pain and fatigue. Previous research has neglected the social context within which experience of fibromyalgia develops. Narrative studies have the potential to reveal how people make sense of illness. It is important for health professionals to acknowledge and validate the uncertainly of the illness experience in fibromyalgia.


In railway networks, stations are probably the most critical points for interconnecting trains' routes: in a restricted geographical area, a potentially large number of trains have to stop according to an official timetable, with the concrete risk of accumulating delays that can then have a knockout effect on the rest of the network. In this context, in-station train dispatching plays a central role in maximising the effective utilisation of available railway infrastructures and in mitigating the impact of incidents and delays. Unfortunately, in-station train dispatching is still largely handled manually by human operators in charge of a group of stations.

In this paper we make a step towards supporting the operator with some automatic tool, by describing an approach for performing in-station dispatching by means of automated planning techniques. Given the mixed discrete-continuous nature of the problem, we employ PDDL+ for the specification of the problem, and the ENHSP planning engine enhanced by domain-specific solving techniques. Results on a range of scenarios, using real-data of a station of the North West of Italy, show the potential of our approach.


If a set of colorants is to be used in making large numbers of specified colors, a calibration of the relationship between colorant composition and colorimetric specifications provides a very efficient means of procedure. In the case discussed, samples exemplifying the Munsell renotation were painted from such a calibration. A set of six chromatic paints plus black and white was first chosen on the basis of color gamut, fastness, and other physical properties. Since mixtures of two chromatic paints plus black and white provide three degrees of freedom, such mixtures are sufficient to obtain any color within the gamut of the chosen paints. The required calibration, therefore, must relate the ratios of chromatic paints, black, and white to colorimetric specifications within the gamut. This calibration was made by painting samples of a constant ratio type colorant mixture system, determining the CIE and Munsell specifications, then establishing graphs of the relation between colorant ratios and color coordinates. The mixture formulas for the desired Munsell renotation samples were then read from these graphs.


BACKGROUND
Recent studies have reported detection of simian virus 40 (SV40) DNA in tumor tissues from 15%-43% of U.S. non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) patients. SV40 accidentally contaminated U.S. poliovirus vaccines that were widely administered from 1955 through 1962. However, epidemiologic data linking SV40 with NHL are lacking.

METHODS
We obtained serum samples from 724 incident NHL case patients and 622 control subjects from a population-based U.S. case-control study. SV40 serostatus was analyzed by two independent laboratories (designated A and B) using similar virus-like particle (VLP) enzyme immunoassays. Associations with serostatus were assessed with logistic regression, adjusting for sex, race, birth year, and study site. VLPs for the human polyomaviruses BK and JC were used in competitive inhibition experiments to assess the specificity of SV40 reactivity. Statistical tests were two-sided.

RESULTS
SV40 antibody results from the two laboratories were correlated (R = 0.59; P<.001). Laboratories A and B detected SV40 seropositivity in 7.2% and 9.8% of NHL case patients, respectively, and in 10.5% and 9.6% of control subjects, respectively. SV40 seropositivity was not associated with increased NHL risk (laboratory A: adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.68, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.46 to 1.00; laboratory B: adjusted OR = 1.02, 95% CI = 0.71 to 1.47). SV40 seropositivity was not associated with NHLs of any specific histology or site. Among subjects born before 1963, 1.0%-1.6% showed SV40-specific reactivity, i.e., SV40 reactivity confirmed in competitive inhibition experiments, whereas (based on limited data) none born subsequently demonstrated SV40-specific reactivity.

CONCLUSIONS
In persons born before 1963, the presence of SV40-specific antibodies, although rare, could reflect exposure to SV40-contaminated vaccines. Nevertheless, NHL risk was unrelated to serologic evidence of SV40 exposure or infection.


Given the increased use of terrorist tactics in ethnic conflict and separatist movements over the past decade, an understanding of the causes of both ethnic conflict and separatism have become vital to the protection of innocent lives. This study focuses on ten republics in the Caucasus region, since it is a highly conflictual region in a small area, with both a strong Muslim and Orthodox Christian presence. While some literature suggests that a high Muslim population or the presence of a jihadist movement causes extremely violent forms of separatism, other research indicates that in the Caucasus region, past grievances, a high percentage of the titular minority group, and external support contribute much more to both separatist movements and ethnic conflict. This article is available in Res Publica Journal of Undergraduate Research: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/respublica/vol15/iss1/ 10


The implementation of drought management plans contributes to reduce the wide range of adverse impacts caused by water shortage. A crucial element of the development of drought management plans is the selection of appropriate indicators and their associated thresholds to detect drought events and monitor their evolution. Drought indicators should be able to detect emerging drought processes that will lead to impacts with sufficient anticipation to allow measures to be undertaken effectively. However, in the selection of appropriate drought indicators the connection to the final impacts is often disregarded. This paper explores the utility of remotely sensed data sets to detect early stages of drought at the river basin scale, and how much time can be gained to inform operational land and water management practices. Six different remote sensing data sets with different spectral origin and measurement frequency are considered, complemented by a group of classical in situ hydrologic indicators. Their predictive power to detect past drought events is tested in the Ebro basin. Qualitative (binary information based on media records) and quantitative (crop yields) data of drought events and impacts spanning a period of 12 years are used as a benchmark in the analysis. Results show that early signs of drought impacts can be detected up to some 6 months before impacts are reported in newspapers, with the best correlation-anticipation relationships for the Standard Precipitation Index (SPI), the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Evapotranspiration (ET). Soil Moisture (SM) and Land Surface Temperature (LST) offer also good anticipation, but with weaker correlations, while Gross Primary Production (GPP) presents moderate positive correlations only for some of the rainfed areas. Although classical hydrological information from water levels and water flows provided better anticipation than remote sensing indicators in most of the areas, correlations were found to be weaker. The indicators show a consistent behaviour with respect to the different levels of crop yield in rainfed areas among the analysed years, with SPI, NDVI and ET providing again the stronger correlations. Overall, the results confirm remote sensing products' ability to anticipate reported drought impacts and therefore appear as a useful source of information to support drought management decisions.