The Kennedy Igneous Province (KIP) in north Queensland, Australia is host to a gold mineralising event (8.5Moz) associated with Carboniferous–Permian aged magmatism. Gold production was mainly from the shallowly emplaced (<5km) hydrothermal breccia pipe hosted gold deposits like Kidston, Mt Leyshon and Mt Wright. The Kidston and Mt Leyshon deposits share characteristics with intrusion-related gold systems of the Tintina Gold Province, Yukon and Alaska. This suggests north Queensland is prospective for intrusion-related gold deposits or intrusion-related gold systems.

The thesis focused on whether two gold occurrences, the Empire Stockworks and Douglas Creek gold mineralisation, share similarities with other intrusion-related gold systems. Empire Stockworks gold mineralisation is temporally and spatially associated with rhyolite dykes located on the eastern margin of the Empire dacite hydrothermal breccia pipe. A number of Empire Stockworks characteristics are similar to other shallow intrusion-related gold systems. The geochemistry of the Empire Stockworks rhyolite dykes suggest they are weakly to strongly oxidised (Fe₂O₃\FeO, 0.5-8), sub-alkaline ( 1, -ve Eu compared to REECN) intrusions derived from a crustal source (depleted in Ba, Nb, La, Ce, Sr, P and Ti compared to primitive mantle). The veins are associated with potassic alteration and contain <2% sulphide. The mineralising fluid was CO₂ poor with variable salinities from ~5 to 45 equivalent wt. % NaCl. The best estimate of conditions of mineralisation is ~260-437oC at 1.5kbar. This estimate is based on a primary L-V inclusion entrapment temperatures calculated using an entrapment pressure (1.5kbar) from a primary ms-L-V inclusions, in a Stage 2 quartz K-feldspar vein, that homogenised by halite disappearance. Further work is required to confirm the entrapment conditions.

Mineralisation contains gold associated with Bi-chalcogenides, although the bulk geochemistry of the vein samples suggests the correlation is generally low. Based on the timing and, the close spatial relationship between mineralised quartz veins and rhyolite dykes the mineralisation was genetically related to the rhyolite dykes. The dates were not conclusive but suggest an age of ~316Ma (Zircon, ID-TIMS) for a mineralised rhyolite dyke from Empire Stockworks. This age is comparable with the age of the Red Dome deposit, near Chillagoe. The rhyolite dyke post-dates the emplacement of the breccia pipe and provides the upper age limit of the formation of Empire Breccia Pipe complex.

The Empire rhyolite dykes are similar to other north Queensland breccia hosted gold deposits that comprise mainly oxidised intrusions (weakly to strongly). This distinguishes them from the reduced intrusions associated with intrusion-related gold deposits. Compared to the larger breccia pipe hosted gold deposits, Empire Stockworks has a number of differences in geological setting. Empire Stockworks had a lower volume of rhyolite intrusions that lack magmatic-hydrothermal transition textures (unidirectional solidification textures). At Empire Stockworks, there is no evidence of a crowded porphyry dyke phase, mineralised tuffisites, miarolitic cavities or porosity filled gold mineralisation, as observed in the larger Kidston and Mt Leyshon deposits. Unlike the larger breccia pipe hosted gold deposits the mineralised quartz veins, at Empire Stockworks were emplaced at the pipe contact and post-date the sealing of the Empire Breccia Pipe.

Empire Stockworks and the breccia pipe hosted gold deposits are distinguished from Moporphyry deposits. This is because the main commodity is gold, the tectonic setting of the Kennedy Igneous Province is back-arc with little or no juvenile mantle input, and the intrusions are high-K calc-alkaline. The breccia pipe hosted gold deposits are associated with fractionated metaluminous to peraluminous rhyolites, rather than quartz-monzonite to granodiorite plutons, despite the overlap in emplacement depth of the intrusions (1- 6km). In this respect Empire Stockworks and the breccia hosted gold deposits of north Queensland are a distinct group of deposits that have some affinities with both Mo- Porphyry deposits and intrusion-related gold systems.

The Douglas Creek gold-bismuth mineralisation, in the south eastern Hodgkinson Province, comprises gold-bismuth veins temporally and spatially association with Emerald Creek Microgranite at ~314-320Ma. Minor mineralisation is associated with pegmatite and aplite dykes and quartz-aplite veins that post-date W-skarns hosted in the metamorphic aureole of the Emerald Creek Microgranite. Geochemistry of the microgranite suggests it is a sub-alkaline ( 60wt. % Si₂O), metaluminous to peraluminous, fractionated (Rb/Sr ~1) and reduced (0.1-1 Fe₂O₃/FeO) intrusion derived from a crustal source (depleted in Ba, Nb, La, Ce, P, Zr, Eu and Ti compared to primitive mantle). The mineralising fluid temperature ranged from 100 to 300oC with salinities from ~1 to 30 equivalent wt. % NaCl and no CO₂. The occurrence is a poorly endowed intrusion-related gold system.

New age dating suggests the Douglas South Granite and the Tinaroo Granite are younger than the Emerald Creek Microgranite but older than other Late Carboniferous intrusions in the Hodgkinson Province. A consistent age of 306.6±1.6Ma (muscovite, Ar-Ar) was obtained for the Douglas South Granite and suggests the intrusion is older than rest of the Whypalla Supersuite (282±9Ma, Rb-Sr, Garrad and Bultitude, 1999) and was emplaced at about the same time as the Emerald Creek Microgranite. The Tinaroo Granite is ~ 278Ma based on a consistent relationship between a laser ablation dates of 277.8±1.2Ma and a muscovite Ar-Ar date of 277.7±1.5Ma.

There are no large gold deposits associated with the Emerald Creek Microgranite because it is a reduced intrusion with low agpaitic number and lacks volatiles such as CO₂. Sheeted vein deposits similar to Fort Knox or Dublin Gulch in Alaska and the Yukon possibly never formed, as suggested by the vein style and distribution and lack of evidence for formation of transitional hydrothermal textures in the upper carapace of the Emerald Creek Microgranite. Compared to other metamorphic aureole hosted intrusion related gold deposits (e.g. Dublin Gulch, Clear Creek) the veins are irregular in style and are variable in their orientation suggesting that they lacked a homogeneous stress field perhaps owing to variation in the Emerald Creek Microgranite contact. The broad distribution of the veins also suggests the fluid flow was not focused into one structure and a low fluid flux is suggested by the restricted distribution, low abundance and small size of the veins.

The deepest eroded portion of the Kennedy Igneous Province is in the Hodgkinson Province where intrusions were emplaced at >7km. There is low potential for deeply emplaced intrusion-related gold deposit styles of mineralisation associated with intrusions in Hodgkinson Province because they are mainly reduced S-type intrusions with low agpaitic numbers and little or no known genetically related gold mineralisation. There are no gold-bismuth occurrences associated with other I-type intrusive suites in the Hodgkinson Province.

The use of the Au-Bi-Te association in intrusion-related gold deposits for exploration was investigated at the regional to prospect scale at Pogo gold deposit, Alaska. It was found that Au-Bi-Te correlations and ratios could be used to rank regional prospects. However, the Au-Bi-Te ratio is not useful as a vector towards higher grade mineralisation within an ore zone. This is because the Au-Bi-Te ratio varies due to more than one hydrothermal process such as redox conditions, sulphidation, and cooling and late stage re-mobilisation of gold along faults. For example, the Au-Bi ratio in the Liese 1 Vein, at Pogo, is highly variable both laterally and vertically. Therefore, the Au-Bi ratio of vein could not be used to differentiate a less prospective from a prospective vein set during a prospect drilling program or to determine which direction to drill within a large mineralised vein.

The main large scale controls on formation of intrusion-related gold systems include: 1) a distal back-arc tectonic setting comprising a source region with the right range of initial oxidation states or as a result of assimilation; 2) the transfer of volatiles and metal to the crust during exposure to the asthenosphere or upper lithospheric mantle; 3) the formation of a large magmatic belt followed by production of isolated magma chambers with efficient magmatic processes to accumulate the gold.


OBJECT
Spinal extradural meningeal cysts are uncommon and rarely cause neural compression. The clinical, radiological, and histopathological characteristics of the lesions are discussed and previous reports reviewed.

METHODS
The authors describe five cases of a spinal extradural meningeal cyst (three female and two male patients, with a mean age of 47 years (range 14-75 years). Four of the cysts were located at the thoracolumbar level, the fifth at the sacral level. Radiological and neuroimaging-based diagnosis was made using a combination of magnetic resonance imaging, myelography, and/or computerized tomography (CT) myelography. A connection between the spinal subarachnoid space and the cyst cavity was demonstrated on myelography and/or CT myelography in all cases, and dural defects were confirmed visually intraoperatively. In all cases histopathological examination confirmed that the cyst wall was formed by nonspecific fibrous connective tissue without a single-cell layer of inner arachnoid lining.

CONCLUSIONS
A diagnosis of spinal extradural meningeal cyst is difficult to make based solely on histopathological examination. It is essential that the final characterization and diagnosis be based on intraoperative inspection combined with radiological and histopathological findings.


BACKGROUND
Adequate fiber intake is associated with digestive health and reduced risk of several noncommunicable diseases and is recognized as essential for human health (World Health Organization, 2003). The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a daily fiber consumption of ≥25 g, but previous studies observed a fiber intake in Brazil lower than recommended.

OBJECTIVE
We aimed to describe fiber intake among adults in Brazil and also respondents' knowledge and perceptions about their fiber intake.

METHODS
National online survey with community-dwelling Brazilian individuals. The survey was conducted during September 2018, using an online platform with closed-ended questions. A representative sample of Brazilian internet users stratified by sex, age, socioeconomic status and geographic region was adopted. Sample size was calculated using a 2% error margin and 95% confidence interval (n=2,000). Data was descriptively analyzed using measures of frequency, central tendency and dispersion.

RESULTS
Sample included 2,000 individuals who were well-balanced in terms of sex (51.2% female), with mean age of 35.9 years (most represented age group was 35-54 years, 39.6%) and from all country geographic regions (49.4% from Southeast). A total of 69.7% of them consider their usual diet as healthy and 78.4% reported consuming fibers regularly. Fibers from natural sources are consumed at least once a day by 69.5% of the sample, while daily fiber supplements were reported by 29.9%. Absence of regular fiber intake was reported by 21.7% of respondents and the most common reason was "lack of knowledge about fiber sources" (39.3%). When informed about the food sources of each type of fiber (soluble and insoluble) and asked about the regular intake, only 2.5% answered that they do not consume any of them regularly (as opposed to 21.7% before receiving information about specific fiber sources).

CONCLUSION
Our findings indicate that fiber intake in Brazil is probably insufficient with a high proportion of individuals reporting irregular or absent ingestion of fiber sources in their daily lives. Lack of knowledge about fiber sources and fiber types seems to play a role in this inadequate intake, highlighting the need for nutritional education to achieve healthy dietary patterns in the country.


This essay explores tensions surrounding television spoilers through interviews with 13 people who are paid to write or edit discourse about television. These professionals include television critics, editors, an entertainment reporter, a popular culture writer, and a television columnist. Analysis of interview transcripts revealed that varying attitudes toward television pleasure undergird the spoiler debate. After describing three divergent television pleasure attitudes, we present the second half of our analysis: interviewees' statements about the timing of their publications, the content of their writing, and the packaging of their writing. Properly packaging articles so that readers need to "opt in" was the only area of consensus among interviewees. The essay describes proper packaging through a nuisance rationale framework, one that reduces spoiler exposure for those who wish to avoid it but keeps engaging commentary available for those who actively seek it. These findings shed light on how to negotiate communicative tensions stemming from evolving media engagement patterns.


background: The human X chromosome is enriched with testis-specific genes that may be crucial for male fertility. One is the ubiquitin-specific protease 26 (USP26). Five frequent mutations have been identified: 1737G.A, 1090C . T, 370–371insACA, 494T . C and 1423C.T (with the latter three usually detected in a cluster). Their role in infertility is still controversial. This study assesses the association of the most frequent USP26 mutations with male infertility and male infertility etiology factors. methods: The study included 300 infertile and 287 fertile men. Data were collected on ethnicity (according to maternal origin) and family history of reproduction. Clinical records from 235 infertile and 62 fertile (sperm bank donors) men were available and summarized. The five mutations were investigated by bioinformatic tools and their frequencies were assessed by restriction analysis. The results were correlated with clinical findings. Segregation of the mutations in four families was analyzed. results: The five analyzed mutations were detected in 44 men from both fertile and infertile groups. The cluster and the 1090C.T mutations showed the highest frequency among Arabs and Sephardic Jews of the infertile group, respectively. Inheritance studies showed that mutations were not always associated with the infertility trait. Mutations 1090C.T and 1737G.A were significantly associated with a history of inguinal hernia (P 1⁄4 0.007 and P 1⁄4 0.043, respectively). The prevalence of inguinal hernia among men with the 1090C . T mutation was 33.3% (5/15 men), higher than that reported in infertile men (6.7%). conclusions: Mutation 1090C . T may be a new genetic risk factor for developing inguinal hernia which may be associated with impaired male fertility.


The Framework Programmes (FPs) represent one key supply-side instrument in the innovation policy mix implemented directly by the European Union (EU). Since its final goal is fostering innovation and competitiveness, it is advisable to analyze the spatial distribution of this instrument across EU regions. The main aim of this paper is to analyze the regional allocation of the coordination and participation in projects under the 6th and the 7th FPs, as well as the distribution of funds from Horizon 2020 (the 8th FP). For this purpose, a comprehensive database regionalized at NUTS 2 level was elaborated based on the data supplied by CORDIS and the Smart Specialisation Platform. Moreover, in order to tackle the relationship between FPs and regional development, NUTS 2 regions were classified into three groups: less developed regions, middle-income regions and developed regions. Our empirical evidence underlines different trends in this tool of the innovation policy mix. The general trend points to a positive correlation between the level of development and the capacity to attract FPs projects and funds. Therefore, FPs might contribute to reinforcing pre-existing innovation hubs and long-term growth disparities. Thus, coordination and participation in projects, as well as the funds allocated in the FPs are heavily concentrated in the developed regions. Middle-income regions attract more projects on average than less develop regions, although the disparities among them are not particularly high. Concerning less developed regions, there are two different groups of regions. One of them is characterized by a remarkable number of project coordinations that attract funds, even higher than some middle-income regions; while the other group shows a low number of coordinations or participations in projects. Comparing the 6th and the 7th FPs, we observe a slight reduction of the disparities, particularly due to the higher participation of regions from Spain, Portugal and Italy, which were among the hardest hit by the economic recession in Europe. This trend could be explained by the need to compensate the reduction of regional and national funds by means of being more active in capturing EU funds.


Firms build business relationships through economic activities. PageRank algorithm and motif analysis are applied to Japanese inter-firm network which consists of about one million firms and four million directed links. We show scale-free degree distribution and similarities between degree and PageRank. By comparing with randomized networks, we find that PageRank correlates significantly with the growth rate which is hardly observed with other quantities. We also find that Vshaped triads are network motifs, while feedforward and feedback loop are anti-motifs. By defining roles in the subgraph according to structural equivalence, we detect the significance profile of roles characterizing the industry sector. The taxonomy of industries obtained from the profiles is economically meaningful. These empirical findings may serve to provide an easily interpretable view of the entire inter-firm network and to improve the efficiency and safety of economic systems. Keywords– complex network, scale-free network, PageRank, hub and authority, network motif


The research purpose is to design and evaluate the Bahasa Grammar learning Portal for from two students. Developmental approach is used as a research method which consists of four phases that is need analysis, designing the Bahasa melayu grammar learning content, designing the Bahasa Melayu grammar learning Portal for from two students, implementation on the usage and evaluation on the content of the Bahasa Melayu grammar learning Portal for from two students. result of the need analysis on from two students shows that the topic on grammar needed by the students are technique in answering questions and proverbs. Result of the research enables the designing of the Bahasa Melayu grammar learning Portal for from two students. Fromative evaluation is conducted along the process of designing the learning Portal are done by two Bahasa Melayu expertise, two instructional technology experts, four Bahasa Melayu teachers and ten from two students. The improvement and revision done includes level in the grammar exercises, link at the end of the exercises, graphic and sound effect in presentations, revision on the font size and color. In evaluation phase, the research uses Stake's Countenance evaluation Model for formative evaluation. Result of interview done befour and after the implementation on the usage of the Portal shows that the intents of the from two students are achieved. For example, students learning ways in using words, proverbs, forming sentences and answering grammar exercises. The evaluation is also used for formative purpose, is to revise the learning portal. Summative evaluation done by 120 Form two students from two secondary school also shows athat majority of the Form two students agree that the interactive exercises and activities helps them in learning grammar soncept and skills in using grammar more effectively and encrease their interest in learning grammar. Therefore, it may be concluded that the learning Bahasa Melayu grammar Porlat helps students to acquire learning grammar more effectively. Finally, based on the result of evaluation, it is suggested that teachers and students use the materials in the learning portal as a supplement learing material beside enrich the knowledge about Bahasa Melayu grammar.


This letter investigates rate adaptation of network coding (NC) in a wireless network. In the network, two independent data flows intersect at a relay and a receiver can overhear the data flow of which it is not the intended destination. We propose NC schemes which actively exploit the overhearing channels by adapting the transmission rate to the direct- and overhearing-channel conditions. The proposed schemes allow a receiver to overhear only part of the data-flow by rate splitting, thus significantly improving the throughput in poor overhearing-channel conditions.


A junior doctor who improperly accessed the medical records of three hospital patients without a legitimate reason and who then lied about it to a trust investigation has been struck off the UK medical register after failing to engage with the regulatory process.

Neha Muralidharan was suspended for 10 months in July 2019, after she used her smart card at Warrington and Halton NHS Foundation Trust to access the medical records of a woman and two children. The woman complained, telling trust authorities that Muralidharan had specifically accessed her records. The trust found that Muralidharan's card had been used to obtain the records and asked her to explain. She claimed …


Among the many themes to which Joel and Ethan Coen's A Serious Man speaks so richly and suggestively, I will focus here on three that seem especially pertinent to our understandings of American Jewish identity, as well as to the academic practice of Jewish studies, and that exhibit the film's blend of complexity, clarity, and opacity. All three are closely related aspects of a larger question about the possibility of communication and, hence, of relation, but it should be useful to articulate them separately here. Each may be said to present, through the characters' interactions and the things they read and hear, its own question for judgment, but in no case does A Serious Man indicate how the viewer is to rule on that question.


This paper presents an analysis of a leakage inductance for a toroidal type flyback transformer. The equation to calculate the leakage inductance is derived using the MMF diagram of the transformer. The analysis for the different types of the cores and winding structures is also provided using the FEM simulation. The winding structures minimizing the leakage inductance are finally discussed from the simulation and experimental results.


In this thesis, the possibility of implementing an hydrogen factory in the north of Norway was studied through the simulation of the system and an optimization of the needed investment with the exclusion of the grid and in the first scenario of 10% of the production coming from electrolysis. The same study was then repeated multiple times to study how the previous results changes if the proportion of hydrogen produced by electrolysis is increased. The necessary grid upgrade to avoid rationing was also found out. The main results were that the investment in wind power was mainly at bus 9 and 8 and that even if the electrolyzer size increased approximately linearly, the storage size on the other hand does not and increase greatly after the case 40%. The possibility of investing in solar was then added to the model at a price of 3,8$/Wp and it turned out to not be profitable at this price before the case 50%. It was however found that the addition of solar power yields a positive impacts on the size of the storage needed due to advantageous seasonal effects. The next step was to study different prices in order to find when solar becomes profitable. The resulting value for the case 10% was around 0.4$/Wp much lower than the current price of 1,6$/Wp but also reasonable in a longer term as suggested by some other studies. The next study was to account for the cost of the grid expansion in different cases to see if only limiting rationing is a good criteria. The simulation was used again with different grids and it appears that limiting the rationing was often giving the cheapest result even though upgrading the grid further do not result in a big increase in cost due to a trade off between operation cost and investment cost. The last study was focused on the behaviour of the hydro system during the previous simulation cases and it highlighted some interesting seasonal effect of the different technology. As of now, solar power does not appear to be a good solution for the case of 10% of the total hydrogen coming from electrolysis due to its cost. Wind power appears to be a preferable solution even if the investment is not large and thus does no take fully advantage of the resources of the north of Norway.


A broad view of evidentiality is adopted, based on Chafe (1986) and Haviland (1987) which goes beyond the grammatical marking of the speaker's or writer's perceived sources of knowledge and reliability of these sources to encode, not only what the speaker knows and how s/he knows it, but also what can be taken to be an addressee's state of knowledge. According to this view, evidentials are contemplated as interactive devices or resources for redefining common ground between interlocutors. They go beyond referential content to signal such meanings as confrontation and contradictory assumptions. They are necessarily situated in social contexts and have an indexical function. They may also overlap with epistemic stances and with affect, ranging in the case of surely from surprise, disbelief, doubt and disapproval to persuasion and an invitation to share beliefs or to agree on future courses of action. Using data from the British National Corpus, I analyse a sample of concordances of surely with subject personal pronouns, with the aim of providing a preliminary characterisation of the range of interpersonal attitudes expressed by surely and the determining factors which trigger these apparently contradictory stances.


Scholars for a long time theorized about the role of political leaders, but empirical research has been limited by the lack of systematic data about individual leaders. Archigos is a new dataset with information on leaders in 188 countries from 1875 to 2004. We provide an overview of the main features of this data. Archigos specifically identifies the effective leaders of each independent state; it codes when and how leaders came into power, their age, and their gender, as well as their personal fate one year after they lost office. We illustrate the utility of the Archigos dataset by demonstrating how leader attributes predict other features of interest in International Relations and Comparative Politics. Crisis interactions differ depending on whether leaders face each other for the first time or have had prior interactions. Irregular leader changes can help identify political change in autocracies not apparent from data that consider only the democratic nature of institutions. Finally, transitions to democracy in the third wave are more likely to fail in instances where autocratic rulers were punished after leaving office. Our examples illustrate new empirical findings that simply could not be explored in existing data sources. Although selective, our overview demonstrates how Archigos bears considerable promise in providing answers to new and old research questions and opens up new avenues for research on individual leaders as decisionmakers.


Urban planning regeneration is a viable mechanism contributing to the urban development during complex reconstruction of the existing city space-planning structure. The dynamics of changing of urban planning theories and practices are characterized by an integral approach to city development through contradictory processes: intensification of globalization processes on the one hand; searching for identity on the other hand. Formation of hybrid spaces in urban fabric of modern cities is relevant and has significant socio-economic importance to the process of urban planning regeneration. In the context of permeability theory hybridity is determined as multi-layer, multi-functional feature of urban space, where there is no clear separation between public and private; buildings and facilities forming the structure are combined by multilevel public space where its virtual perception is also vey the important as well as its information capacity and its transformation ability. Hybrid spaces are multifunctional architectural and landscape entities, designed by applying the landscape urbanism approach and having the spatial connectivity with adjacent areas. The hybrid spaces are very importantt for the city economy, as they are development drivers to spatial, social and public changes. This research is aimed at defining modern design principles of hybrid spaces in terms of urban planning regeneration. The paper focuses on the principles of hybrid urban spaces design in the context of landscape urbanism such as the integration of dwelling areas and public spaces through the green infrastructure.


Over recent years, moves toward the inclusion of students with special needs in mainstream classrooms has brought about increasing attention to the way general education teachers perceive these students. Commensurate with this has been a growing interest in what may constitute educational success for children with special needs in mainstream classrooms, plus the ability of general education teachers to provide effective and appropriate instruction for them. It is known that teachers form beliefs about the process of teaching during their pre-service training and also that once a belief has been held for a long time, it becomes extremely difficult to change (Bandura, 1977, and Liljedahl, 2005). With learning disabilities being one of the most common disabilities in the classroom (Clark, 1997, and Clark & Artiles, 2000), it was considered that the need to further explore pre-service teachers' perceived use of instructional strategies in relation to students who have what is termed learning disabilities, is indeed critical. This study looked at the instructional strategies Australian pre-service teachers reported they would use for students with a learning disability compared to students without a learning disability. The findings show that pre-service teachers favour more direct teacher-centred instructional strategies for students with a learning disability and more learner-centred instructional strategies for students without a learning disability. The greatest discrepancy in strategy use between the two groups of students was the higher cognitive level instructional strategies within a learner-centred environment. Pre-service teachers would use these strategies more frequently with students who do not have a learning disability. Implications for future practice and recommendations for future research are presented.


PAPERBACK EDITION PUBLISHED JULY 2010 This book explores some of the developments in Stylistics since its pioneer, Roman Jakobson identified the patterning of the message as the poetic function. It analyses in turn Golding's Pincher Martin, Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone , Housman's A Shropshire Lad , Elizabeth Jennings' poem 'One Flesh', Harold Pinter's The Birthday Party , Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day , and a range of poems by John Donne. The analyses show how Jakobson's emphasis on the message gives way to emphasis on the code or on undermining the code (in the Golding and Donne chapters), on the context (in the Rowling and Golding chapters), on the reader's response (in the Housman chapter), on the relationship between the addresser's and the addressee's shared assumptions and their use of pragmatic principles (in the Pinter and Ishiguro chapters). The pivotal Jennings' chapter shows how these different stylistic perspectives can be applied variously to the same text. This collection of essays will be especially useful for students of Stylistics courses at the undergraduate and graduate level as it illustrates the use of a range of analytical tools: Systemic Functional Grammar's analysis of transitivity and theme; pragmatic theories of co-operation, politeness, presupposition and inferencing; and conceptual metaphor theory. Additionally it demonstrates central stylistic concepts such as foregrounding, and how to analyse rhythmical, lexical, grammatical and semantic patterning.


Abstract. Interacting storm surges and high water runoff can cause compound flooding (CF) in low-lying coasts and river estuaries. The large-scale CF hazard has been typically studied using proxies such as the concurrence of storm surge extremes either with precipitation or with river discharge extremes. Here the impact of the choice of such proxies is addressed employing state-of-the-art global datasets. Although they are proxies of diverse physical mechanisms, we find that the two approaches show similar CF spatial patterns. On average, deviations are smaller in regions where assessing the actual CF is more relevant, i.e. where the CF potential is high. Differences between the two assessments increase with the catchment size, and our findings indicate that CF in long rivers (catchment ≳5–10×103 km2) should be analysed using river discharge data. The precipitation-based assessment allows for considering local-rainfall-driven CF and CF in small rivers not resolved by large-scale datasets.


This research aimed to investigate Form 4 students' perception towards the KBSM English Literature Component as well as the challenges that they face in learning the literature component. It also looked into the teachers' strategies in teaching the literature component and the problems that they face in teaching the KBSM English Literature Components. This research involved sixty Form 4 students and six English teachers from SMK Abu Bakar, Temerloh, Pahang. The data was collected through two questionnaires; questionnaire for students and questionnaire for teachers. Results showed that the Form 4 students had positive perception towards the KBSM English Literature Component. They were aware of the benefits of learning literature and literature has helped them in improving their language proficiency. Even though the students were in favour of learning literature component, it was shown in the data that the students face three main challenges which were lack of proficiency in English Language, lack of background knowledge and lack of time. Findings from the teachers' responses revealed that the teachers' teaching strategies and methods were inclined towards teacher centred. Based on the results, teachers faced two major problems in teaching the KBSM English Literature Component which were insufficient teaching time and students' lack of reading habit. It is hoped that this study will motivate teachers to improve their teaching of the literature component and to ensure that the students gain more benefits from learning literature.


STUDY OBJECTIVE--The aim was to investigate risk factors for cancer of the buccal and labial mucosa in Kerala, southern India. DESIGN--The investigation was a case-control study. SETTING--Regional Cancer Centre, Trivandrum, Kerala, and local teaching hospitals. PARTICIPANTS--Cases were all those registered with oral cancers at the Regional Cancer Centre during 1983 and 1984 (n = 414). Controls (n = 895) were selected from admissions to the cancer centre who were found to have non-malignant conditions, or from patients attending outpatients in teaching hospitals of Trivandrum medical college with non-malignant conditions. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS--The risk in males of the following habits was investigated: pan (betel)-tobacco chewing, bidi and cigarette smoking, drinking alcohol, and taking snuff. Only pan-tobacco chewing was investigated in females as very few indulged in other habits. Among males predisposing effects were found for pan-tobacco chewing (p less than 0.001), bidi smoking (p less than 0.001), drinking alcohol (p less than 0.001), and taking snuff (p less than 0.01). As in males, pan-tobacco chewing also had a predisposing effect in females (p less than 0.001). Duration of use was a better predictor of risk than either daily frequency of use or total lifetime exposure, both for pan-tobacco chewing (especially if the habit started before age 21 years) and bidi smoking. However, there were also very high risks associated with the current occasional use of both factors. Pan-tobacco chewing was the most important risk factor, with relative risk of 13.24 with 31-40 years' use, and 37.75 with greater than 40 years' use among males. Corresponding relative risks in females were 21.30 and 54.93. No effect of cigarette smoking was observed (relative risk 0.64, p greater than 0.1). CONCLUSIONS--A substantial majority of cases of buccal and labial cancers are attributable to chewing pan-tobacco. This has obvious implications for instituting preventive measures.


The Zambezi river basin, one of the largest in Africa, holds significant hydropower potential, which has yet tobe exploited. To make the most of this opportunity and address the challenges it poses, local Stakeholders must coordinate efforts, politically, institutionally, and technically. While recent progress on these fronts has been remarkable, legitimate concerns regarding data ownership, maintenance, and analysisstill need to be addressed. This paper presents the African Dams Project's (ADAPT) water resources database, which relies on open source technology and is based on three key ideas: the total empowerment of stakeholders; the association of valuable analysis tools and data; and, an adaptable and simple architecture.


Malware, short for malicious software, is used as a general term for computer viruses, Trojan horses, worms, and other harmful software or code. Malware authors try to obfuscate their code in order to evade antiviral programs. Different analysis techniques are used by antiviral programs in order to detect different encryption and obfuscation methods. Survivability of malware becomes the main concern for an attacker since the malware should usually be able to spread to other computers; use resources of victim's computer; and create new copies of itself. In this thesis, inspired by Darwin's theory of natural selection and the selfish gene concept explained by Richard Dawkins, we propose novel methods which increase the chance of survivability for malware. We implement selfishness, altruistic behavior, mimicry, group selection, and similar behavior models into our experimental malware and we also test our techniques against existing solutions. We develop tools in order to enhance existing malware with features presented in this thesis. Effectiveness of proposed techniques are presented and an experimental test is carried out with a dataset containing more than 300.000 malware samples. Group behavior models are also introduced and methods proposed for enhancing botnets to have better stability (Evolutionarily stable botnet).


Epicuticular wax forms an outer coating on the aerial surfaces of many crop plants and is implicated in tolerance to several environmental stresses including drought. Advances in knowledge of biosynthesis and secretion of these leaf surface waxes could lead to improvements in crop-stress tolerance. To study the genetics of epicuticular wax deposition, we screened for bloomless (bm) and sparse-bloom (h) mutants with reduced glaucousness of abaxial sheath surfaces within chemically mutagenized populations of Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench. We screened over 3974 segregating M 2 head rows with over 160,000 plants and identified 38 putative recessive epicuticular wax mutant alleles. We grouped 31 of these into allelic groups associated with one existing and 18 new epicuticular wax loci. The overall epicuticular wax mutation frequency was 0.88%. In addition, analysis of the mutant segregation frequencies within the M 2 rows allowed us to calculate the existence of five target meristem cells in a dormant (M 0 ) seed embryo. The high epicuticular wax mutation rate and identification of 19 epicuticular wax loci indicate the presence of a complex genetic system of epicuticular wax production in sorghum as has been shown in other species. The new bloomless and sparse-bloom mutants identified here have a wide range of phenotypes and constitute a valuable resource for studies of the genetics and biosynthesis of epicuticular waxes and their effects on tolerance to environmental stresses such as drought.


Reliably predicting dye penetrant wettability for fluorescent crack inspections hinges on understanding surface cleanliness prior to penetrant application. Validating the efficacy of a parts washer using water contact angle measurements is a non-destructive method for quantifying surface cleanliness and can ensure complete wetting of the penetrant across a substrate. For this study, surface energies of washed and un-washed aluminum parts were characterized via water contact angle measurements and subsequently correlated with dye penetrant wettability. Penetrant was applied to the surface via cotton swab and allowed to wet the surface for 15 minutes before obtaining a visual inspection of wetting pattern; a smooth, uniform distribution of penetrant indicated sufficient wettability while a blotchy, nonuniform distribution indicated insufficient wettability. Freshly washed samples displayed low contact angles and yielded acceptable penetrant wettability while unwashed parts displayed high contact angles and displayed unacceptable penetrant wettability. Water contact angle can be used to determine surface readiness prior to penetrant application.


As ways of knowing move beyond the limitations of twentieth century modernism, Qualitative researchers are embarking on the depth of understanding that can come from first‐person research methods. These include Autoethnography (Ellis, 2004), Heuristic Inquiry (Moustakas, 1990), Narrative Inquiry and some approaches to Performance Ethnography. This paper recognises that although quantitative methods remain vital for information about the what, how many and where of an inquiry, the why is often better served through qualitative indicators, including first‐person research methods. Soliloquy is a methodology for doing research within one's own experience. Informed by the pure phenomenology of Edmund Husserl, Soliloquy aspires to be a systematic research application of Husserl's philosophical phenomenology. It presents a step‐by‐step model for reflective inquiry, which uses arts‐based methods for data collection, analysis and also for the presentation of research outcomes. It is a research approach that is highly suited to artists and entrepreneurs. In the paper, Soliloquy: A Methodology for First‐Person Research, the key notion of apodictic truth is explained, and used to account for the possibility of credible, intersubjective truths emerging from highly subjective and personal data. Rather than seeking themes from second‐hand descriptions, researchers are invited to prepare the way for archetypal objects to emerge through unconscious synthesis of data – like in a dream, or through arts practice ‐ thus potentially creating universal insights into the research question. Furthermore, the specific methods of Experiencing, Epoche retreat, Epiphany, Explication and Examination are explained, and illustrated with examples from previously published research, through which Soliloquy has been trialed and refined.


Clinical guidelines highlight the importance of dyslipidaemia management for reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. While statins represent the main focus of therapy, there is increasing evidence that the addition of a fibrate such as fenofibrate provides further reduction in risk. Fenofibrate also offers a number of benefits beyond lipid modification; these are mediated by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha (PPARα) activation and appear to be independent of effects of glucose and lipid metabolism. Furthermore, as shown by the Fenofibrate Intervention for Event Lowering in Diabetes (FIELD) study, fenofibrate treatment has promising effects in preventing progression of diabetes-related microvascular complications. PPARα is critical to lipid metabolism in the liver. Recent findings which showed that pioglitazone, a PPARγ agonist with weak PPARα activity, improved fatty liver disease in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes have prompted interest in whether more potent PPARα agonists, such as fenofibrate, may have a role in the management of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The combination of fenofibrate and a statin is well tolerated, with no apparent increase in the risk of myopathy, unlike gemfibrozil-statin combination therapy. In overview, the available evidence indicates that the combination of fenofibrate with a statin is a useful approach for optimising reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome, as well as delaying the progression of diabetes-related microvascular complications. Data are awaited from the ongoing Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) study to evaluate the outcome benefits of this approach.


"Traditional Micronesian Societies" explores the extraordinary successes of the ancient voyaging peoples who first settled the Central Pacific islands some two thousand years ago. They and their descendants devised social and cultural adaptations that have enabled them to survive-and thrive-under the most demanding environmental conditions. The dispersed matrilineal clans so typical of Micronesian societies ensure that every individual, every local family and lineage, and every community maintain close relations with the peoples of many other islands. When hurricanes and droughts or political struggles force a group to move, they are sure of being taken in by kin residing elsewhere. Out of this common theme, shared patterns of land tenure, political rule, philosophy, and even personal character have flowed. To describe and explain Micronesian societies, the author begins with an overview of the region, including a brief consideration of the scholarly debate about whether Micronesia actually exists as a genuine and meaningful region. This is followed by an account of how Micronesia was originally settled, how its peoples adapted to conditions there, and how several basic adaptations diffused throughout the islands. He then considers the fundamental matters of descent (ideas about how individuals and groups are bound together through ties of kinship) and descent groups and the closely interlinked subjects of households, families, land, and labor. Because women form the core of the clans, their roles are particularly respected and their contributions to social life honored. Socio-political life, art, religion, and values are discussed in detail. Finally, the author examines a number of exceptions to these common Micronesian patterns of social life.


This paper describes one of the reference trajectory tracking guidance algorithms using L1 adaptive controller for the hypersonic glide vehicle in the glide phase. The nonlinear dynamic model of glide flight containing uncertain parameters and time-varying disturbances is built. Then L1 adaptive control is used to get onboard reference trajectory fast tracking capability in the presence of large uncertainties, un-modeled dynamics and disturbances. Besides, the deflection command is constraint by amplitude saturation. Finally the numerical simulation results demonstrate the feasibility and advantage of the proposed tracking scheme.


Since its founding in 1888, Morgan Construction Company has been a leader in the manufacture of rod and bar mills for rolling both ferrous and non-ferrous products. Although, Morgan's first experience with metrication came in the 1920's, it was not until 1970 that a concentrated effort was made to convert its design and manufacturing operations to the metric system. The decision to "go metric" resulted in part from a desire to accommodate foreign licensees; the major pressure for change, however, came from an increasing foreign market. In August of 1970, Morgan set up a twenty-man task group, representing a cross section of its drafting talent, to start a pilot program converting an existing design from traditional inch dimensions to metric. The task was not easy. There was no single set of standards for metric design; instead, there was a proliferation of standards. The first step was to catalog existing metric standards, and develop a single interim metric standard for use at Morgan. The conversion processes started concurrently with the development of standards. After some trial and error, it was determined that the most effective method of converting an existing inch drawing to metric is to: photographically generate an undimensioned copy of the inch drawing; calculate new dimensions in millimeters; round off calculations in accordance with the interim standards; and then add the new dimensions to the photographic copy to make a new drawing. The finished metric drawing is then checked and processed in the same manner as inch drawings. New drawings with no inch drawing equivalent are developed entirely in the metric system. Manufacturing from metric drawings progressed well; however, there were problems working with machine tools with inch readouts. All new machine tools have been purchased with both inch and metric readouts to simplify the problem. Metric gearing can be cut on existing gear cutting machines, but metric threads required new tools. The inspection department uses instruments with metric readouts. Continuing problems include the availability of metric components; the lack of standard metric structural shapes and plate thicknesses; a lack of English-language reference books; and the variety of existing metric standards. The people problem remains as a major hurdle. Draftsmen, long accustomed to thinking in inches, have difficulty thinking in millimeters; and, once a draftsman has become adjusted to metric standards, he frequently has difficulty reverting to inch standards. Overall, Morgan has made many crucial decisions that have led to a relatively smooth transition to both metric design and manufacture. Morgan has not solved all the problems of converting to metrics, but has now produced more than 10 000 metric drawings that have been used to manufacture and install 16 mills in seven countries successfully.


The special drawing rights (SDRs)--the International Monetary Fund's unit of account--could emerge as a rival to the US dollar as an international reserve currency. Williamson questions the assertion of Cato Institute's Swaminathan Aiyar that the SDR is not a currency and can never be one and the relevance of the fact that the IMF has no GDP and no taxing capacity and so lacks the fundamental requirements for creating a currency. It is true that only central banks accept SDRs in settlement of debts. But to the extent that they are so accepted, Williamson argues, they are money and could play a far more central role in the international monetary system than they have so far. Large SDR allocations could be a mechanism to ensure consistency in balance of payments objectives sought by countries around the world, one that ensures a much fairer distribution of gains from seigniorage--profit that accrues to whoever issues money. In the case of the SDRs, the IMF would be the issuer, and the seigniorage gains would be distributed in proportion to IMF quotas, which determine the proportion of allocations. For most countries, there is a clear advantage in boosting the role of the SDR and achieving a portion of the seigniorage gains. The interests of major reserve-currency countries, like the United States and potentially China, in displacing the dollar's reserve role can be disputed, but these countries too would benefit from an enhanced role of the SDR, depending on the evaluation of advantages and disadvantages.


Uracil phosphoribosyltransferase (UPRT) catalyzes the conversion of uracil and 5-phosphoribosyl-α-1-pyrophosphate (PRPP) to uridine 5′-monophosphate (UMP) and pyrophosphate (PPi). UPRT plays an important role in the pyrimidine salvage pathway since UMP is a common precursor of all pyrimidine nucleotides. Here we describe cloning, expression and purification to homogeneity of upp-encoded UPRT from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MtUPRT). Mass spectrometry and N-terminal amino acid sequencing unambiguously identified the homogeneous protein as MtUPRT. Analytical ultracentrifugation showed that native MtUPRT follows a monomer-tetramer association model. MtUPRT is specific for uracil. GTP is not a modulator of MtUPRT ativity. MtUPRT was not significantly activated or inhibited by ATP, UTP, and CTP. Initial velocity and isothermal titration calorimetry studies suggest that catalysis follows a sequential ordered mechanism, in which PRPP binding is followed by uracil, and PPi product is released first followed by UMP. The pH-rate profiles indicated that groups with pK values of 5.7 and 8.1 are important for catalysis, and a group with a pK value of 9.5 is involved in PRPP binding. The results here described provide a solid foundation on which to base upp gene knockout aiming at the development of strategies to prevent tuberculosis.


The enormous velocity of development and advancement in Information Communication Technology (ICT) to date has remarkably transformed the educational system which incorporates aspects of teaching, knowledge delivery and training. Language testing or measurement at the present time is employing conventional method to measure the academic performance of the students. With the advent of ICT, it has initiated the new innovative approach of assessing student's performance. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of online and conventional mode of Malaysian English Competency Test (MECT) among undergraduates of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), focusing on reading test. The test is intended to test four components of English language; listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. This quantitative research involved a total of 43 students and was randomly divided into two groups. These groups were tested on paper test of Malaysian English Competency Test (MECT) and Electronic Malaysian English Competency Test (E-MECT). Apart from the tests, the respondents were also given a set of questionnaire to obtain the data on their computer literacy level, online reading test, and also knowledge and experience of using E-MECT online test. The results showed that there were no marked differences in terms of student's performance even though their marks were higher in the online version. Other features such as user friendliness, interface design, interactivity and time management play important role in the success of online test. Recommendations to administer and adapt the online test are put forth at the end of the report. It could be concluded that the study has significant implications for not only the students, but also the teachers and programmer as well. Additionally, this study helps both the students and teachers in taking online language testing in a conducive and convenient way. In fact, this could also sharpen the students' computer literacy in using the computer. Key words: Language; Information Communication Technology; Online test, Conventional test; Reading skill


Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) image coregistration is a key procedure before interferometric SAR (InSAR) time-series analysis can be started. However, many geophysical data sets suffer from severe decorrelation problems due to a variety of reasons, making precise coregistration a nontrivial task. Here, we present a new strategy that uses a pixel-offset series of detected subimage patches dominated by point-like targets (PTs) to improve SAR image coregistrations. First, all potentially coherent image pairs are coregistered in a conventional way. In this step, we propose a coregistration quality index for each image to rank its relative "significance" within the data set and to select a reference image for the SAR data set. Then, a pixel-offset series of detected PTs is made from amplitude maps to improve the geometrical mapping functions. Finally, all images are resampled depending on the pixel offsets calculated from the updated geometrical mapping functions. We used images from a rural region near the North Anatolian Fault in eastern Turkey to test the proposed method, and clear coregistration improvements were found based on amplitude stability. This enhanced the fact that the coregistration strategy should therefore lead to improved InSAR time-series analysis results.


Abstract. The Marine Ice Sheet Instability (MISI) is a dynamic feedback that can cause
an ice sheet to enter a runaway collapse. Thwaites Glacier, West Antarctica,
is projected to be the largest individual source of future sea level rise and
may have already entered MISI. Here, we use a suite of coupled quasi-2-D
ice–ocean simulations to explore whether targeted geoengineering using
either a continuous artificial sill or isolated artificial pinning points
could counter a collapse. Successful interventions occur when the floating
ice shelf regrounds on the structure, increasing buttressing and reducing ice
flux across the grounding line. Regrounding is more likely with a continuous
sill that is able to block warm water transport to the grounding line. The
smallest design we consider is comparable in scale to existing civil
engineering projects but only has a 30 % success rate, while larger designs
are more effective. There are multiple possible routes forward to improve
upon the designs that we considered, and with decades or more to research
designs it is plausible that the scientific community could come up with a
plan that is both effective and achievable. While reducing emissions remains
the short-term priority for minimizing the effects of climate change, in the
long run humanity may need to develop contingency plans to deal with an ice
sheet collapse.


The once secret world of the sneaker collector has exploded into popular culture, with a whole army of fans hungry for the rarest shoes, the latest designs or reissued classics in a never-ending myriad of colourways and materials. "Sneakers" is the indispensable and definitive guide to the very best and most collectible sneaker designs. It features: over 550 specially taken colour photographs; over 180 sneaker designs from eleven leading brands, chosen for the mark they have made on sneaker culture worldwide, and a selection of shoes from unforgettable and up-and-coming brands; comprehensive collectors information, with an invaluable introduction, brand histories and practical tips on how to create and care for your collection; a fully illustrated glossary and chronology; and, a directory for collectors shops, resources and websites. This encyclopaedic book will appeal to both the novice collector and the hardcore sneaker freak.


Objectives : To determine the effects of β -adrenoceptor and muscarinic agonists on the contractile rate of isolated right atria of rats fed a high fructose diet with or without rosiglitazone (RSG). Materials and Methods : Male Sprague Dawley rats were assigned to four groups and given ad libitum access to one of the following diets: standard chow, standard chow supplemented with 4 mg/kg/day RSG, a high fructose diet and a high fructose diet with 4 mg/kg/day RSG. All the groups were maintained on these regimens for three weeks with weekly measurements of systolic blood pressure and body weight. At the end of the three weeks, the rats were exsanguinated and the hearts were rapidly removed following which blood glucose, insulin and lipid profiles were estimated. The right atria were isolated from the heart and their responsiveness to sympathetic and parasympathetic agonists was studied.
 Results : Basal, spontaneous, isolated atrial pacemaker rate was diminished in fructose-fed rats. The maximum pacemaker rate to isoproterenol or norepinephrine was unchanged in fructose-fed rats. Further, the increase in atrial rate and half maximal effective concentration values for each agent were also unaffected. The sensitivity to negative chronotropic action of acetylcholine was enhanced in fructose fed rats, whereas the response to carbachol was unchanged. The increased sensitivity to acetylcholine was restored by RSG treatment.
 Conclusion : High fructose diet induced insulin resistance and hypertension with alterations in basal spontaneous pacemaker, enhanced sensitivity to cholinergic agonist without any changes in the response to adrenergic and cholinergic receptor activation. Treatment with insulin sensitizer rosiglitazone was able to prevent all these changes. The present study suggests that rosiglitazone may have effect on the cardiovascular system in addition to the insulin sensitising action.


In this work, we describe the latest results for the measurements of the hyperfine structure of antiprotonic 3He. Two out of four measurable super–super-hyperfine (SSHF) transition lines of the (n, L) = (36, 34) state of antiprotonic 3He were observed. The measured frequencies of the individual transitions are 11.125 48(08) GHz and 11.157 93(13) GHz, with the increased precisions of about 43% and 25%, respectively, compared to our first measurements with antiprotonic 3He (Friedreich et al 2011 Phys. Lett. B 700 1–6). They are less than 0.5 MHz higher with respect to the most recent theoretical values, still within their estimated errors. Although the experimental uncertainty for the difference of 0.032 45(15) GHz between these frequencies is large as compared to that of theory, its measured value also agrees with theoretical calculations. The rates for collisions between antiprotonic helium and helium atoms have been assessed through comparison with simulations, resulting in an elastic collision rate of γe = 3.41 ± 0.62 MHz and an inelastic collision rate of γi = 0.51 ± 0.07 MHz.


Until recently, consumer policy researchers have concentrated almost exclusively on the competitive market, with little attention to the market failure scenario. This study investigates consumer protection behaviour of national enterprises. It does this by exploring the factors which determine or influence consumer policy decisions when the competitive market mechanism is hindered, and the dilemma facing management in such bounded marketing environments. Fundamentally, two basic approaches to structuring consumer protection have been identified. These relate to, (a) private enforcement, ic. market processes, and (b) public enforcement, ic. political processes. These perspectives were systematically collapsed into Hirschman's Exit/Voice theory and explored using qualitative methodology. Our findings did not broadly uphold the basic configuration of the Exit/Voice paradigm. It is intellectually flawed to insist that decisions about improving enterprises' performance on consumer protection should be impelled by strategies based on those dichotomous perspectives. Strengthening means for consumer advocacy or introducing and protecting competition in the hope that they will concomitantly protect consumers can not, in themselves, assure genuine consumer protection. Consumer protection came through as a discretionary agenda item. It is neither exclusively located in the political process nor in the market mechanism. It is a dependent variable whose behaviour is shaped by variations in management practices. At the enterprise-consumer interface, consumer protection becomes an explicit challenge of management. In terms of institutional arrangements for consumer protection, we did not observe any optimal structure. However, we did observe that the differing approaches that management can adopt can be classified and appraised in relation to four variables. These variables are, (i) Sensitivity (pro-active/reactive), (ii) Definition (consumer/company centered), (iii) Measurement (formal/informal) and, (iv) Implementation (tasks/responsibilities). These variables arc not independent. Their interrelationships lead to a method for evaluating the different approaches in terms of management response to the challenge of consumer protection.


Use of hollow trees as diurnal resting shelter by Lutzomyia shannoni Dyar was studied on Ossabaw Island, Chatham County, GA. This species was collected in large numbers from constrictive openings (tree holes) leading into living hardwood trees that contained larger internal hollows. Laurel oak ( Quercus laurifolia Michaux) and live oak ( Q. virginiana Miller) were the most commonly used species. Regression analysis demonstrated no significant correlation between mean number of sand flies trapped from individual tree holes and six environmental variables: tree species, crown class, and diameter of the trees containing the holes; and area, compass bearing, and height above ground of tree holes from which flies were collected. The mean number of sand flies captured from individual hollow trees in 1990 was similar to and significantly correlated with the mean number of sand flies collected from the same trees in 1988, indicating that the tree-hole niche is stable for sand flies over time at this site.


Many studies have underlined the existence of clear and persistent differences in the levels of political interest among European citizens. In this report these differences and developments in political involvement and political apathy are described and analysed, and conventional explanations in terms of socio-demographic characteristics of individuals (education, gender, age and date of birth) are reviewed. Although the general level of political involvement remains more or less stable, the level of political apathy declines in the last decades. Socio-demographic characteristics still count for differences in political interest, but their impact has declined in several countries since the early 1970s. Especially a waning of gender-related differences can be observed among the youngest cohorts, accounting at least partially for a decline in political apathy across Europe. This conclusion does not defy the observation of persistent and substantial cross-national differences in Europe. Besides, all results underline that political involvement and political apathy cannot be treated as simple complementary concepts


Initial reclamation practices affect the early development and future recovery trajectories of tree and understory species on reclamation sites. In this thesis I explored the effects of yellow sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis) as a cover crop on tree performance and competition control in forest floor material which was salvaged and directly placed at two different depths (15 cm and 40 cm). Sweet clover supressed the establishment of some competing species; however total vegetation cover was not impacted and total mortality of planted Populus tremuloides, Pinus contorta, and Picea glauca seedlings was greater in sweet clover plots. Tree seedlings had better annual growth and lower mortality in the 40 cm salvage and placement depth treatment, potentially due to a more diluted seed bank which decreased dominance of competitive species. In a second study, I assessed the impact of four fertilizer treatments (control, 250 kg/ha immediately available fertilizer (IAF), 500 kg/ha IAF, and 670 kg/ha controlled release fertilizer) applied to two different capping materials (forest floor material (FFM) and a peat-mineral mix (PMM)) on initial forest vegetation development. The application of fertilizer did not affect average species richness in either capping material; however fertilization promoted increased cover of grasses in the FFM. Over time the number of annuals/biennials as well as non-native species decreased in both capping materials and the number of desirable forest understory species increased in the FFM.


A robust stability criterion is derived for a class of higher order consensus algorithms. In distinction to the standard consensus problem where the dynamics of all individual agents are the same and of low dimension, the criterion for reaching consensus now depends on the full spectrum of the communication graph and not only the largest nonzero eigenvalue. The new consensus criterion is posed as a Nyquist-like criterion that provides a clear separation between the individual dynamics and the spectrum of the graph. Our results are illustrated on a formation control problem for a target encircling task.


Abstract
 Bucklandiella angustissima Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra is described as a new species. It is known in Australasia from the southern cool-temperate zone of the South Island of New Zealand and its offshore islands including the Auckland and Campbell Islands, as well as subantarctic Macquarie Island, and in South America from the northern Andes of Ecuador. The new species belongs to Bucklandiella Roiv. sect. Emersae (Bednarek-Ochyra) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra and is allied to Australasian B. emersa (Müll. Hal.) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra. It is a saxicole readily distinguished from all its congeners in having very small, subglobose to ovoid or obloid capsules, 0.5–0.8 mm long, on fairly stout and very short setae, only 0.8–1.2 mm. These are the smallest capsules and the shortest setae in the large genus Bucklandiella. Additionally, the species has very short peristome teeth, 200–220 µm long, and a very narrow costa, 40–60 µm wide, with only two enlarged adaxial epidermal cells throughout its entire length. The taxonomic status of Racomitrium crispipilum (Taylor) A. Jaeger var. brevifolium Thér., which is known only in sterile condition from a single altimontane site in Ecuador, is briefly assessed and this variety is considered to be identical to Bucklandiella angustissima. Five new combinations are made: Bucklandiella subsect. Andicola (Bednarek-Ochyra) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra, B. subsect. Depressae (Bednarek-Ochyra) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra, B. depressa (Lesq.) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra, B. dichelymoides (Herzog) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra, and B. subcrispipila (Müll. Hal.) Bednarek-Ochyra et Ochyra. The latter name is neotypified.


Since its enactment and ratification, savvy observers have viewed the Fourteenth Amendment as a vindication of the military experience of the Civil War. Bullets and bayonets in wartime led to peacetime citizenship in Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment and to peacetime ballots that were first protected in Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment and then bolstered in the Fifteenth Amendment. But there is another story to tell as well, one in which the Fourteenth Amendment is not the beginning of a new constitutional story, or at least not only the beginning of a new story, but also a betrayal and an ending. In important respects the Fourteenth Amendment helped to close out the righteous form of power that had emerged in the antebellum era as a solution to the glaring injustice of slavery. This crucial authority was the federal government's war power. Stories of vindication and of new beginnings are not wrong. But they make it all too easy to miss the Fourteenth Amendment's role as part of a complicated denouement of the wartime experience, one that embodied the war's triumphs but also blunted their force and pace. The Fourteenth Amendment abandoned a vital chapter of American history even as it occasioned a new one whose results are still unfolding.


Gaining Public Acceptance (GPA) was a strategic priority recommended in the final report of the World Commission on Dams (WCD). GPA remains a central, thorny challenge for all parties interested in how society makes decisions about the development of water resources, the provision of energy, and the maintenance of ecosystems, whilst striving for social justice. The WCD's GPA is largely about issues of procedural justice (e.g. inclusion and access) and proposes process-related principles. Distributional justice is also important (e.g. equitable sharing of benefits; and, avoiding unfair and involuntary risk-bearing). Several key lessons are emerging from past initiatives to gain public acceptance through participatory exercises. Differences in development and sustainability orientations are obvious in debates on dams and need to be explicitly considered and not glossed over. Politics and power imbalances pervade participatory processes, and require much more attention than they receive. Ultimately, the accountability and legitimacy of state and nonstate actors are crucial but complex as there are many ways to build public trust. To earn legitimacy and more likely acceptance of important public decisions we suggest a comprehensive set of 'gold standard' state-society attributes for improving governance. Multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) can help deliberation to become routine, enabling complex water issues to be more rigorously examined. The combination of increased public trust, earned by the state, and high-quality MSPs to assist more informed negotiations, we see as being key to the gaining of public acceptance.


Objective: Loneliness is a well-established risk factor for poor physical health. Much less is known about how loneliness affects patient-reported outcomes (PROs), such as somatic symptoms, which are increasingly important for guiding symptom management and assessing quality of patient care. The current study investigates whether (a) loneliness and social isolation predict cold symptoms independent of each other, and (b) whether loneliness is a more robust risk factor than objective social isolation for experiencing cold symptoms. Method: As part of a larger parent study, 213 healthy participants completed the Short Loneliness Scale (LON) and the Social Network Index (SNI) at baseline. They were given nasal drops containing rhinovirus 39 (RV39; i.e., a common cold virus), then quarantined for 5 days during which they reported on subjective cold symptoms in addition to being monitored for objective indicators of infection. Data from 160 of the participants (who were infected with the virus) were used in the present analyses. Results: A hierarchical multiple regression revealed that baseline loneliness predicted self-reported cold symptoms over time (assessed via area under the curve), over and above demographic variables, season of participation, and depressive affect. Interestingly, social network size and diversity did not predict cold symptoms. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the perception of loneliness is more closely linked to self-reported illness symptoms than objectively measured social isolation. Assessing psychosocial factors such as loneliness when treating and evaluating the common cold could contribute to health care practitioners' understanding of their patients' experiences with acute illness.


"Yellowstone holds a special place in America's heart. As the world's first national park, it is globally recognized as the crown jewel of modern environmental preservation. But the park and its surrounding regions have recently become a lightning rod for environmental conflict, plagued by intense and intractable political struggles among the federal government, National Park Service, environmentalists, industry, local residents, and elected officials. The Battle for Yellowstone asks why it is that, with the flood of expert scientific, economic, and legal efforts to resolve disagreements over Yellowstone, there is no improvement? Why do even seemingly minor issues erupt into impassioned disputes? What can Yellowstone teach us about the worsening environmental conflicts worldwide? Justin Farrell argues that the battle for Yellowstone has deep moral, cultural, and spiritual roots that until now have been obscured by the supposedly rational and technical nature of the conflict. Tracing in unprecedented detail the moral causes and consequences of large-scale social change in the American West, he describes how a 'new-West' social order has emerged that has devalued traditional American beliefs about manifest destiny and rugged individualism, and how morality and spirituality have influenced the most polarizing and techno-centric conflicts in Yellowstone's history. This groundbreaking book shows how the unprecedented conflict over Yellowstone is not all about science, law, or economic interests, but more surprisingly, is about cultural upheaval and the construction of new moral and spiritual boundaries in the American West"--


This document specifies the encapsulation of IP and other network layer protocols over X.25 networks, in accordance and alignment with ISO/IEC and CCITT standards. It is a replacement for RFC 877, "A Standard for the Transmission of IP Datagrams Over Public Data Networks" [1].


Indoor tracking is a variant of wireless tracking. It is an excellent way to monitor and track the location of people or valuable objects within a specific area, such as a building, hospital etc. where no other positioning technology works like GPS. Bluetooth Low Energy(BLE) is the newly emerged technology in the context of indoor tracking. Indoor tracking can be achieved when scattering BLE device such as iBeacons, which is attached to particular asset in various location of particular area. The Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) is the parameter used as basis for the positioning and tracking approaches.With an iBeacon tag attached on asset, it is possible to track asset by various RSSI algorithms and techniques. The Web-Application or Android Application can be introduced to analyze the result of asset tracking.


In the absence of commercial foundry technologies offering silicon-on-insulator (SOI) photonics combined with Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) transistors, monolithic integration of conventional electronics with SOI photonics is difficult. Here we explore the implementation of lateral bipolar junction transistors (LBJTs) and Junction Field Effect Transistors (JFETs) in a commercial SOI photonics technology lacking MOS devices but offering a variety of n- and p-type ion implants intended to provide waveguide modulators and photodetectors. The fabrication makes use of the commercial Institute of Microelectronics (IME) SOI photonics technology. Based on knowledge of device doping and geometry, simple compact LBJT and JFET device models are developed. These models are then used to design basic transimpedance amplifiers integrated with optical waveguides. The devices' experimental current-voltage characteristics results are reported.


Sexual harassment is a complex and evolving practice. The emergence of sexually discriminatory behavior in cyberspace is only one of the most recent and most striking examples of the phenomenon's increasing complexity. Sexual harassment law, however, has not kept pace with this evolution. Discrimination law has not been adequately "updated" to address new and amplified practices of sex discrimination. Its principal limitation is that it assumes sexual harassment to be a "single-setting" phenomenon, i.e. that the harassing activity and its resulting harms occur in the same protected setting. By contrast, this Article proposes a "multiple-setting" conception of sexual harassment that recognizes how harassing activity can take place in one setting – for instance, an online message board – and have effects in another setting – for instance, in a victim's place of employment. In order to address multiple-setting harassment, a third-party liability regime similar to that of traditional sexual harassment law should be introduced into other contexts. In the context of online abuse, liability for sexual harassment should attach to website operators. This will create an incentive for website operators to adopt preemptive, self-regulatory measures against online sexual harassment, much as employers and school administrators have done in the offline setting.


In this article, I discuss several inquiries into the meaning of expressions of quantity. It is to some extent received wisdom that quantifiers are not expressions that stand proxy for amounts, quantities, frequencies, etc. In cognitive psychology, a common observation is that quantifiers express perspectives on quantity. I will argue that while this result bears some relation to notions known from formal semantics, the dominant theoretical framework, generalised quantifier theory, nevertheless falls short of providing a unifying approach to logical, linguistic and psychological aspects of quantity expressions. The upshot is that the many diverse ways in which quantity information may be worded should be reflected in a variety of analyses. In other words, quantifiers need to be approached on a case by case basis.


The authors present the formulation of the indirect boundary element method (IBEM) for an axisymmetric Stokes flow with a free surface in the presence of gravity. The formulae of the fundamental solutions of the Stokes equations are found for velocities and tractions in the axisymmetric case. These expressions are written in the cylindrical coordinate system and contain the elliptic integrals of the first and second kind. For the integral equations discretization the constant elements are used. The necessary integrals are evaluated numerically except for the singular ones. The analytical formulae are obtained for them. Two boundaryvalue problems with mixed conditions are considered. The problem of the Poiseuille flow of a viscous fluid in a round tube with the exact solution was calculated to verify the IBEM algorithm and to demonstrate its approximation convergence. Another problem of the cylindrical tube filling by a viscous fluid with a free surface was calculated to prove the IBEM in the case of a moving boundary. The simulation in a steady-state formulation showed that the stationary advancing front shapes exist in both cases when the gravity acts against the flow (Stokes number St<0) and aids the flow (0<St≤0.94). In the case of the Stokes parameter values greater than 1 the fountain flow was replaced by a jet flow. The stationary advancing front shapes were calculated in the range -400≤St≤0.94 and compared with the famous data.


Using cointegration tests, this paper analyzes the existence of long-run relationships among Baltic stock markets and major international stock markets, including the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France. Bivariate and multivariate cointegration tests indicate a common trend linking Latvia to European markets. Evidence indicates that the German market dominates this long-run relationship. In general, short-term Granger causality indicates causality running from the European markets to the Baltic markets, as well as among the Baltic states, excepting Latvian and Lithuanian short-term effects on the Estonian market. Overall, the results suggest that international investors can obtain diversification benefits given a long-term investment horizon because of the low degree of integration between the Baltic and international capital markets.


The article processing charge (APC) is currently the primary method of funding professionally published open access (OA) peer‐reviewed journals. The pricing principles of 77 OA publishers publishing over 1,000 journals using APCs were studied and classified. The most commonly used pricing method is a single fixed fee, which can either be the same for all of a publisher's journals or individually determined for each journal. Fees are usually only levied for publication of accepted papers, but there are some journals that also charge submission fees. Instead of fixed prices, many publishers charge by the page or have multi‐tiered fees depending on the length of articles. The country of origin of the author can also influence the pricing, in order to facilitate publishing for authors from developing countries.


Abstract Tracking active transcription with the nuclear run-on (NRO) assays has been instrumental in uncovering mechanisms of gene regulation. The coupling of NROs with high-throughput sequencing has facilitated the discovery of previously unannotated or undetectable RNA classes genome-wide. Precision run-on sequencing (PRO-seq) is a run-on variant that maps polymerase active sites with nucleotide or near-nucleotide resolution. One main drawback to this and many other nascent RNA detection methods is the somewhat intimidating multi-day workflow associated with creating the libraries suitable for high-throughput sequencing. Here, we present an improved PRO-seq protocol where many of the enzymatic steps are carried out while the biotinylated NRO RNA remains bound to streptavidin-coated magnetic beads. These adaptations reduce time, sample loss and RNA degradation, and we demonstrate that the resulting libraries are of the same quality as libraries generated using the original published protocol. The assay is also more sensitive which permits reproducible, high-quality libraries from 104–105 cells instead of 106–107. Altogether, the improved protocol is more tractable allows for nascent RNA profiling from small samples, such as rare samples or FACS sorted cell populations.


1. Metabolic acidosis was induced by feeding ammonium chloride to rats which were maintained on a carbohydrate diet for 48 h. 2. Fasting blood glucose was the same in acidotic and control animals, but there was an increase in liver glycogen in the former. Muscle glycogen was unchanged. 3. In vitro glycogenolysis was the same in liver slices from normal rats when incubated at a range of pH from 6·90 to 7·40. 4. The peak blood glucose in response to intraperitoneal injections of glucagon was the same in control and acidotic rats. The rate of disappearance of glucose was slower in acidotic rats both after the glucagon induced hyperglycaemia and after intravenously injected glucose. 5. Liver phosphorylase, total glycogen synthetase and the I form of this enzyme were unchanged in acidosis. 6. The data are compatible with the hypothesis that in the acidotic rat there is a block in glycolysis—possibly at the phosphofructokinase step.


This paper proposes a complex system optimization method to solve economic emission load dispatch. First, a real-world economic emission load dispatch is modeled as a complex system problem, and the optimization objectives include economic load dispatch, emission load dispatch and transmission network loss. Then a called BBO/complex method is introduced, which extends biogeography-based optimization to a multi-archipelago environment to suit the structure of complex systems. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the economic emission load dispatch, and the results show that it can obtain good performance for economic emission load dispatch studied in this paper, and it is a competitive algorithm for solving complex system optimization problem.


To decrease the performance difference between the actual microscanning thermal imager and the theoretical value, a germanium lens (placed at a certain angle between the infrared focal plane array and infrared lens) dip angle model of flat optical component microscanning is introduced in this letter. The model is the basis for choosing the dip angle of the germanium lens, which is used in the microscanning thermal imager. In addition, the actual dip angle of the germanium lens is chosen according to the model, the infrared lens parameters of the thermal imager, and the germanium lens parameters of manufacture and installation. Only in this manner can the optimal performance of the microscanning thermal imager based on the flat optical component be obtained. Results of the experiments confirm the accuracy of the conclusions above.


Abstract : This report discusses simulation methodologies used to analyze large deflection static and dynamic behavior of foam-insulated concrete sandwich wall panels. Both conventionally reinforced cast-on-site panels and precast/prestressed panels were considered. The experimental program used for model development and validation involved component-level testing as well as both static and dynamic testing of full-scale wall panels. The static experiments involved single spans and double spans subjected to near-uniform distributed loading. The dynamic tests involved spans up to 30 ft tall that were subjected to impulse loads generated by an external explosion. Primary modeling challenges included: (1) accurately simulating prestressing initial conditions in an explicit dynamic code framework, (2) simulating the concrete, reinforcement, and foam insulation in the high strain rate environment, and (3) simulating shear transfer between wythes, including frictional slippage and connector rupture. Correlation challenges, conclusions and recommendations regarding efficient and accurate modeling techniques are highlighted. The modeling methodologies developed were used to conduct additional behavioral studies and help to assess single-degree-of-freedom prediction methodology developed for foam-insulated precast/prestressed sandwich panels for blast loads.


Here we report on the structural and magnetic properties of Ni0.2Mn3.2Ga0.6 melt-spun ribbons. The as-spun ribbons were found to exhibit mixed cubic phases that transform to non-cubic structure upon annealing. Additionally, an amorphous phase was found to co-exist in all ribbons. The SEM images show that minor grain formation occurs on the as-spun ribbons. However, the formation of extensive nano-grains was observed on the surfaces of the annealed ribbons. While the as-spun ribbons exhibit predominantly paramagnetic behavior, the ribbons annealed under various thermal conditions were found to be ferromagnetic with a Curie temperature of about 380 K. The ribbons annealed at 450 °C for 30 minutes exhibit a large coercive field of about 2500 Oe. The experimental results show that the microstructure and associated magnetic properties of the ribbons can be controlled by annealing techniques. The coercive fields and the shape of the magnetic hysteresis loops vary significantly with annealing conditions. Exchang...


We consider the problem of learning a structured multi-task regression, where the output consists of multiple responses that are related by a graph and the correlated response variables are dependent on the common inputs in a sparse but synergistic manner. Previous methods such as l1/l2-regularized multi-task regression assume that all of the output variables are equally related to the inputs, although in many real-world problems, outputs are related in a complex manner. In this paper, we propose graph-guided fused lasso (GFlasso) for structured multi-task regression that exploits the graph structure over the output variables. We introduce a novel penalty function based on fusion penalty to encourage highly correlated outputs to share a common set of relevant inputs. In addition, we propose a simple yet efficient proximal-gradient method for optimizing GFlasso that can also be applied to any optimization problems with a convex smooth loss and the general class of fusion penalty defined on arbitrary graph structures. By exploiting the structure of the non-smooth ''fusion penalty'', our method achieves a faster convergence rate than the standard first-order method, sub-gradient method, and is significantly more scalable than the widely adopted second-order cone-programming and quadratic-programming formulations. In addition, we provide an analysis of the consistency property of the GFlasso model. Experimental results not only demonstrate the superiority of GFlasso over the standard lasso but also show the efficiency and scalability of our proximal-gradient method.


Abstract. It has been claimed for more than a century that atmospheric new particle formation is primarily influenced by the presence of sulfuric acid. However, the activation process of sulfuric acid related clusters into detectable particles is still an unresolved topic. In this study we focus on the PARADE campaign measurements conducted during August/September 2011 at Mt Kleiner Feldberg in central Germany. During this campaign a set of radicals, organic and inorganic compounds and oxidants and aerosol properties were measured or calculated. We compared a range of organic and inorganic nucleation theories, evaluating their ability to simulate measured particle formation rates at 3 nm in diameter (J3) for a variety of different conditions. Nucleation mechanisms involving only sulfuric acid tentatively captured the observed noon-time daily maximum in J3, but displayed an increasing difference to J3 measurements during the rest of the diurnal cycle. Including large organic radicals, i.e. organic peroxy radicals (RO2) deriving from monoterpenes and their oxidation products, in the nucleation mechanism improved the correlation between observed and simulated J3. This supports a recently proposed empirical relationship for new particle formation that has been used in global models. However, the best match between theory and measurements for the site of interest was found for an activation process based on large organic peroxy radicals and stabilised Criegee intermediates (sCI). This novel laboratory-derived algorithm simulated the daily pattern and intensity of J3 observed in the ambient data. In this algorithm organic derived radicals are involved in activation and growth and link the formation rate of smallest aerosol particles with OH during daytime and NO3 during night-time. Because the RO2 lifetime is controlled by HO2 and NO we conclude that peroxy radicals and NO seem to play an important role for ambient radical chemistry not only with respect to oxidation capacity but also for the activation process of new particle formation. This is supposed to have significant impact of atmospheric radical species on aerosol chemistry and should be taken into account when studying the impact of new particles in climate feedback cycles.


Abstract Carbonate microbialites provide a window to understand microbe–mineral interactions in modern environments and in the geological record. Unraveling microbial versus physicochemical controls and biogeochemical signatures is not always straightforward. Environmental and laboratory studies have shown that microbial activity can play a central role in calcium carbonate precipitation. Most studies have focused on the effects of Bacteria and Archaea activity on carbonate precipitation processes (e.g., cyanobacteria, sulfate-reducing bacteria, sulfide-oxidizing bacteria and iron-reducing bacteria). The influence of eukaryotic activity, such as diatoms and other microalgae, on carbonate precipitation and microbialite formation has been the focus of less attention. This study explores carbonate mineralization in active diatom-rich microbial mats developed in a high-altitude groundwater-fed hypersaline lake in the Puna region of Catamarca, Argentina. Previous work has focused on the texture, mineralogy, and stable-isotope chemistry of the subfossil oncoidal and laminar microbialites. Here, using 16S rDNA Bacteria diversity analysis, confocal scanning laser microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmitted-light microscopy, we explore the Bacteria and diatom diversity in the microbial mats and the related carbonates textures and make comparisons with similar textures in the associated oncoidal microbialites. Diatom-rich subspherical aggregates, which have not been previously described in the literature, show a diverse microbial community with abundant exopolymeric substances (EPSs) where carbonate precipitation takes place. These aggregates are a main component of the Laguna Negra microbial mats and show anhedral micritic calcite in the EPS matrix as the main mineral component. Similar calcite micrite textures are also preserved as one lamina type in the associated oncoids. On the other hand, where EPS are absent, carbonate precipitation, related to pennate diatom blooms, is represented by euhedral aragonite needles suggesting different mechanisms and controls. Changes in the microbial communities are recorded in the oncoids as different lamina types, providing a link between the currently active mats and the subfossil oncoidal structures. This is a first survey of these previously unexplored diatom-rich microbial mats developed under extreme environmental conditions in the Laguna Negra. Understanding the effect that the interaction between diatoms and prokaryotic communities has on carbonate precipitation may provide some insight on the evolution of microbialite textures and fabrics, and on the change from prokaryote-dominated systems to mixed eukaryotic–prokaryotic systems.


Take just about any exercise in social mapping and it is the hybrids, those that straddle categories, that are missing. Take most arrangements of multiculturalism and it is the hybrids that are not counted, not accommodated. So what? This article is about the recognition of hybridity, in-betweenness. The first section discusses the varieties of hybridity and the widening range of phenomena to which the term now applies. According to anti-hybridity arguments, hybridity is inauthentic and 'multiculturalism lite'. Examining these arguments provides an opportunity to deepen and fine-tune our perspective. What is missing in the antihybridity arguments is historical depth; in this treatment the third section deals with the longue durÈeand proposes multiple historical layers of hybridity. The fourth section concerns the politics of boundaries, for in the end the real problem is not hybridity – which is common throughout history – but boundaries and the social proclivity to boundary fetishism. Hybridity is a problem only from the point of view of essentializing boundaries. What hybridity means varies not only over time but also in different cultures and this informs different patterns of hybridity. Then we come back to the original question: so what? The importance of hybridity is that it problematizes boundaries.