The growing dependence of our society and economy on networked information systems makes it essential to protect our confidential data from being leaked by malicious code. Downloading and executing code (possibly from untrusted sources) has become a daily event. Modern operating systems load code for adding new functionalities; web browsers download plug-ins and applets; end-users download untrusted code for doing some useful tasks. Certification that the untrusted code respects the confidentiality of data it manipulates is essential in these situations. Thus it is necessary to analyze how information flows within that program.
This thesis presents an approach to enable end-users to determine whether untrusted mobile code will respect pre-specified confidentiality policies by statically analyzing the untrusted code for secure information flow. The approach is based on adapting of a well-known approach, proof-carrying code (PCC) to information flow security and basing the security policy of PCC on a security-type system, which enforces information flow policy, namely noninterference security policy in RISC-style assembly programs. The untrusted code is then analyzed for secure information flow based on the idea of PCC. The proofs that untrusted code does not leak confidential information are generated by the code producer and checked by the code consumer. If the proofs are valid, then the end-users (code consumer) can install and execute the untrusted mobile code safely. The proposed approach benefits from distinctive features that make it a very appropriate for security checking. First, it operates directly on object code produced by general-purpose off-the-shelf compilers. Second, it exploits the benefits that both type systems and proof-carrying code approaches offer and combines their strengths. Type systems provide an appealing option for implementing security policies, and thus represent a natural enabling technology of proof-carrying code. Meanwhile, proof-carrying code is an efficient approach for assembly code verification. Third, the explicit machine-checkable proofs serve as a certificate to distrustful users and give them more confidence in the security approach. The proposed security approach represents one point in the design space for mobile code security systems; it is well suited to typical Internet users. It enforces information flow policy with low preparation cost on the part of the code producer and no runtime overhead cost on the part of the code consumer. The security approach provides end-users with an adequate assurance of protecting the confidentiality of their confidential data.


Abstract Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-α), a multifunctional cytokine responsible for providing resistance against infections, inflammation, and cancers. TNF-α has emerged as a promising drug target against several autoimmune and inflammatory disorders. Several synthetic antibodies (Infliximab, Etanercept, and Adalimumab) are available, but their potential to cause severe side effects has prompted them to develop alternative small molecules-based therapies for inhibition of TNF-α. In the present study, combined in silico approaches based on pharmacophore modeling, virtual screening, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics studies were employed to understand significant direct interactions between TNF-α protein and small molecule inhibitors. Initially, four different small molecule libraries (∼17.5 million molecules) were virtually screened against the selected pharmacophore model. The identified hits were further subjected to molecular docking studies. The three potent lead compounds (ZINC05848961, ZINC09402309, ZINC04502991) were further subjected to 100 ns molecular dynamic studies to examine their stability. Our docking and molecular dynamic analysis revealed that the selected lead compounds target the TNF receptor (TNFR) and efficiently block the production of TNF. Moreover, in silico ADMET (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion and Toxicity) analysis revealed that all the predicted compounds have good pharmacokinetic properties with high gastrointestinal absorption and a decent bioavailability score. Furthermore, toxicity profiles further evidenced that these compounds have no risk of being mutagenic, tumorigenic, reproductive and irritant except ZINC11915498. In conclusion, the present study could serve as the starting point to develop new therapeutic regimens to treat various TNF- related diseases. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma


A large mode area Yb-doped rod-type photonic crystal fiber design with a low refractive index ring in the core is proposed to provide an improved suppression of the first higher-order mode compared to the case of uniform core doping, in a way which is more robust against fluctuations in the refractive index value. After applying a scalar step-index model for a first parameter optimization of the proposed design, a full-vector modal solver based on the finite element method has been exploited to analyze the guided mode overlap and effective area for the most promising fibers identified. Finally, a spatial and spectral amplifier model has been considered to study the gain competition among the fundamental and the first higher-order mode guided in the Yb-doped rod-type fibers. Results have demonstrated the effectiveness of the low refractive index ring in suppressing the higher-order mode, thus providing an effectively single-mode behavior for the rod-type fibers.


The crystalline structures in thin films of polystyrene-b-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO) diblock copolymers were studied in dependence on the degree of supercooling. Atomic force microscopy showed that the crystalline domains (lamellae) consist of grains, which are macroscopic at low and intermediate degrees of supercooling, but of submicrometer size for strong supercooling. Using grazing-incidence wide-angle x-ray scattering, we could determine the grain orientation distribution function which shows that the chain stems are perpendicular to the lamellae at low supercooling, but tilted at intermediate and strong supercooling. These results suggest that, at intermediate and strong supercooling, the crystalline PEO lamellae do not grow homogeneously, but by the formation of small crystallites at the growth front.


A question at rest in most nations, but not yet in the United States, is how one gains citizenship as of right. Clearly the right, in the United States as elsewhere, is gained at birth, as a birthright. The open question is: What are the circumstances of birth that give rise to citizenship? Case law is thin and scholarly commentary is divided. One claim is that birth on United States soil by itself confers citizenship. This metric is said to be historically determined, according to the (royalist) measure of "subject-ship" (jus soli per Calvin's Case) that preceded the American Revolution. The competing claim considers (as does most of the world) that a purely geographically determined citizenship is arbitrary, in that it requires no meaningful relation with the US as condition to citizenship. This second claim would dispel arbitrariness by positing a substantial relation with the US as an element of birthright citizenship, which relation is identified as one of "allegiance and consent". The history that underlies our supposed adoption of jus soli has its flaws. And as the second claim requires that birth be within a substantial relation with the United States, this claim better meets the conditions set by constitutional text, that of the Fourteenth Amendment as it provides citizenship to "All persons born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof". As shown by ordinary heuristics, the "subject to the jurisdiction" condition entails a meaningful affiliation with the United States. This affiliation, though, is not well determined by allegiance and consent. These terms are not consistent with the leading case nor are they entirely consistent with baseline notions respecting the obligations of a sovereign to those who would be citizens. The appropriate baseline is better seen as one of "fairness", of fairness as reciprocity. Fairness as thus determined does not consist of a deontologically determined set of obligations and rights. Rather, fairness is more flexibly and generously built out of some better parts of human nature, parts essential to what recent scholarship identifies as the "civic minimum" in the liberal democratic state.


This licentiate thesis is based on two papers, a comparative LCA case study paper and a paper on energy issues in LCA. A case study was done in order to investigate which of two compared technologies for chemical recovery in the pulp industry (recovery boiler, RB, or black liquor gasification, BLG) is environmentally favourable. The chemical recovery processes by themselves are not the dominant contributors to the life cycle environmental effects. Instead, the production chains of the chemical and energy inputs to the processes dominate. An analysis based on current LCIA environmental performance indices gives an unequivocal answer to the main question, although the strength of the answer varies between different impact assessment methods. However, the BLG process is better for the environment. If the BLG process would switch from oil to biofuel in its causticising plant, it would become clearly superior. The energy paper analyses and elucidates some problems with the way energy is treated in LCA methodology. For most products and production processes, several quite different forms of energy are involved in different stages in the life cycle. There is no indisputable general method for comparing and aggregating these energy forms when performing an LCI, nor is there any general method for the valuation needed for the weighting in an LCIA. Some possibilities for and limitations on resolving these problems are discussed.


The diffusive regime of double-diffusive convection generates staircases consisting of thin high-gradient interfaces sandwiched between convectively mixed layers. Simultaneous microstructure measurements of both temperature and conductivity from the staircases in Lake Kivu are used to test flux laws and theoretical models for double diffusion. Density ratios in Lake Kivu are between one and ten and mixed layer thicknesses on average 0.7 m. The larger interface thickness of temperature (average 9 cm) compared to dissolved substances (6 cm) confirms the boundary-layer structure of the interface. Our observations suggest that the boundary-layer break-off cannot be characterized by a single critical boundary-layer Rayleigh number, but occurs within a range of O(10(2)) to O(10(4)). Heat flux parameterizations which assume that the Nusselt number follows a power law increase with the Rayleigh number Ra are tested for their exponent . In contrast to the standard estimate =1/3, we found =0.200.03 for density ratios between two and six. Therefore, we suggest a correction of heat flux estimates which are based on =1/3. The magnitude of the correction depends on Ra in the system of interest. For Lake Kivu (average heat flux 0.10 W m(-2)) with Ra=O(10(8)), corrections are marginal. In the Arctic Ocean with Ra=O(10(8)) to O(10(12)), however, heat fluxes can be overestimated by a factor of four.


The production of continuously reinforced profiles by use of aluminum as base material and a reinforcement made of steel or carbon offers a great potential for modern lightweight constructions. Within this scope, they present the potential for an increase in usage of space frame constructions in automotive or aerospace engineering. But the insertion of reinforcement in the material flow of the extrusion process leads to a significant local perturbation inside of the forming tool: while the velocity of the base material increases due to the increasing press ration the velocity of the reinforcement remains constant at the profiles out-coming velocity. These effect leads in the compound zone to the induction of tensile stresses into the reinforcement which result in failures like cracking during the extrusion process. By use of a coupled thermo-mechanical finite element simulation with the commercial fe-codes Superform from MSC and HyperXtrude from Altair the velocity fields of an extrusion process with and without reinforcement were calculated and the resulting stress components were analysed. Based on these results, a process optimisation to reduce stresses on the reinforcement has been carried out, for example by a modification of the tool geometry. The numerical results went along with experiments to verify the calculated failures and the optimised process.


This research work took a critical look at the information environment of Theatre and Media Arts Students of Federal University of Oye-Ekiti Ekit State. The study adopted was descriptive survey. The population was drawn from the undergraduate of Theatre and Media Arts with a population of 200. The study used the whole population as its sample size. Out of the 200 questionnaires administered, 190 copies were returned and found fit for analysis. The data were analysed using Statistical Percentage for Social Science. Findings of the study revealed that Theatre and Media Arts Students of FUOYE have information needs relating to academics assignment, preparation for theatrical performance and information on learning and research coupled with the fact that the students depend majorly on internet and cybercafé for their information needs. Other findings revealed that FOUYE students do visit library and information centres as well as internet and cybercafé in seeking the needed information. The research also observed that the FUOYE students faced with economic and financial constraints. It was recommended that that the library should be well funded and equipped with recent and up-to-date e-resources for the betterment of the students' performance. The library staff should as a matter of policy ensure to provide assistance to the aforementioned students, especially those who may have difficulties in searching for needed information using library facilities. Libraries should be provided with proper hardware and software and on-line access to e-resources. Management at both senate and departmental level should organize workshops as means of educating and training students regarding the various e-information sources available to explore in the library.


Background Food insecurity, uncertainty about the ability to acquire adequate food, is associated with cardiometabolic disease in pregnant women. Whether food insecurity interventions improve cardiometabolic health is unknown. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of women who visited the obstetrics clinic in a community health center from 2013 through 2015. Patients could be referred to the Food for Families (Food for Families) program, which connects food insecure women to food resources. We hypothesized that participation in Food for Families would be associated with better blood pressure and blood glucose trends during pregnancy. We used a propensity score–matched design to reduce bias from differential entry into Food for Families. Results Eleven percent of women who visited the obstetrics clinic were referred to Food for Families. In propensity score–matched analyses, we found no difference in baseline systolic blood pressure (SBP) between those who were referred and enrolled in Food for Families (113.5 mm Hg), those who were referred and did not enroll in Food for Families (113.9 mm Hg), and those who were not referred to Food for Families (114 mm Hg) (P = .79). However, during pregnancy, women who were referred to and enrolled in Food for Families had a better SBP trend (0.2015 mm Hg/wk lower, P = .006). SBP trends did not differ between women who were referred and did not enroll in Food for Families and those who were not referred. We observed no differences in blood glucose trends between groups (P = .40). Conclusions Food for Families participation was associated with better blood pressure trends in pregnant women but no differences in blood glucose trends. Food insecurity reduction programs may improve cardiovascular health for vulnerable pregnant women, and this topic deserves further study incorporating randomized program entry.


Throughout the 20 century it was widely accepted that a light microscope relying on conventional optical lenses cannot discern details that are much finer than about half the wavelength of light (200-400 nm), due to diffraction. However, in the 1990s, the viability to overcome the diffraction barrier was realized and microscopy concepts defined, that can resolve fluorescent features down to molecular dimensions. In this lecture, I will discuss the simple yet powerful principles that allow neutralizing the limiting role of diffraction. In a nutshell, feature molecules residing closer than the diffraction barrier are transferred to different (quantum) states, usually a bright fluorescent state and a dark state, so that they become discernible for a brief period of detection. Thus, the resolution-limiting role of diffraction is overcome, and the interior of transparent samples, such as living cells and tissues, can be imaged at the nanoscale.


Since the " closure debate " of the 1980s it is well known that comparative static derivatives in analytical macro models are highly sensitive to the closure rule selected. This led Keynesians to conclude that Keynesian closures were superior to those favored by the orthodoxy and vice-versa. It is argued that with the advent of agent-based or multi-agent systems, the closure debate is superseded. While elements of both Keynesian and neoclassical models survive the transition to the more synthetic environment, an agent-based approach eliminates the need for drastic simpli…cation that was at the root of the debate from the beginning.


The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and morphological characteristics of the frontal sinus in an adult population. This study was conducted retrospectively on paranasal CT scans in the axial and coronal planes of 300 cases (123 male and 177 female). The mean age was 40.74 ± 13.34 (range 20–83). Measurements of the width, height and anteroposterior length for each sinus and total width were obtained from CT scans. Measurements were compared statistically with relation to side and sex. The cases were divided into subgroups according to age for each sex and each measurement parameter was also compared among the subgroups. All measurements tended to be larger on the left side and were significantly larger in males than females. There was a significant difference in the anteroposterior lengths of right and left sides in both males and females and height for males and width for females. In both sexes, the highest values of measurements were usually observed at the 31–40 age group and there was a tendency to decrease with aging. The larger diameters of the left frontal sinus imply that it may be more possibly violated during surgical interventions. Morphometric features differed significantly in the two sexes at different ages and comparison with previous studies presented great regional variability. The size of the frontal sinus was seen to be related to age and sex. The knowledge provided in the present study is useful for some surgical procedures and widens the anthropometric knowledge of humanity. Clin. Anat. 21:287–293, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Physical activity is beneficial for human physical health and well‐being. Accordingly, the association between physical activity and mood in everyday life has been a subject of several Ambulatory Assessment studies. This mechanism has been studied in children, adults, and the elderly, but neglected in adolescents. It is critical to examine this mechanism in adolescents because adolescence plays a key role in human development and adolescents' physical activity behavior translates into their behavior in adulthood. We investigated adolescents' mood in relation to distinct physical activities: incidental activity such as climbing stairs; exercise activity, such as skating; and sports, such as playing soccer. We equipped 134 adolescents aged 12‐17 years with accelerometers and GPS‐triggered electronic diaries to use in their everyday life. Adolescents reported on mood repeatedly in real time across 7 days, and these data were analyzed using multilevel‐modeling. After incidental activity, adolescents felt better and more energized. After exercise, adolescents felt better but less calm. After sports, adolescents felt less energized. Analyses of the time course of the effects confirmed our findings. Physical activity influences mood in adolescents' everyday life, but has distinct effects depending on the kind of physical activity. Our results suggest incidental and exercise activities entail higher post‐bout valence compared to sports in competitive settings. These findings may serve as an important empirical basis for the targeted application of distinct physical activities to foster well‐being in adolescence.


Communicating & Relating offers an account of how relating with one another emerges in communicating in everyday interacting. Prior work has indicated that human relationships arise in human communicating, and some studies have made arguments for why that is the case. Communicating & Relating moves beyond this work to offer an account of how both relating and face emerge in everyday talk and conduct: what comprises human communicating, what defines human social systems, how the social and the individual are linked in human life, and what comprises human relating and face. Part 1 develops the Conjoint Co-constituting Model of Communicating to address the question "How do participants constitute turns, actions, and meanings in everyday interacting?" Part 2 argues that the processes of constituting what is known cross-culturally as "face" are the processes of constituting relating, and develops Face Constituting Theory to address the question "How do participants constitute relating in everyday interacting?" The answers to both questions are grounded in evidence from everyday talk and conduct. Communicating & Relating is an invitation to engage its alternative account in research on communicating, relating, and face in language and social interaction. Like other volumes in the Foundations of Human Interaction series, Communicating & Relating offers new perspectives and new research on communicative interaction and on human relationships as key elements of human sociality.


We propose an opinion dynamics model that combines processes of vanity and opinion propagation. The interactions take place between randomly chosen pairs. During an interaction, the agents propagate their opinions about themselves and about other people they know. Moreover, each individual is subject to vanity: if her interlocutor seems to value her highly, then she increases her opinion about this interlocutor. On the contrary she tends to decrease her opinion about those who seem to undervalue her. The combination of these dynamics with the hypothesis that the opinion propagation is more efficient when coming from highly valued individuals, leads to different patterns when varying the parameters. For instance, for some parameters the positive opinion links between individuals generate a small world network. In one of the patterns, absolute dominance of one agent alternates with a state of generalised distrust, where all agents have a very low opinion of all the others (including themselves). We provide some explanations of the mechanisms behind these emergent behaviors and finally propose a discussion about their interest


Purpose: This thesis aims to explore if and how professionals' participation in professional development enhances the quality of education for autistic students, including the perspectives of autistic students, their parents, and professionals in pre- and primary school. Furthermore, the thesis directs attention to how professional development may lead to the development of accommodations in the learning environment to support autistic students. Four studies have been conducted to fulfil the aim, which in combination answer the research questions addressed in this thesis. The four studies comprise one systematic review and three empirical studies. Study I, the systematic research review, explored adaptations and modification strategies. Study II investigated how a professional development intervention designed as a lesson study changed attitudes and practices amongst preschool professionals. Studies III–IV were developed from study II, and used professional development to explore changes in the preschool (study III) and primaryschool (study IV) practice. In these studies, multiple stakeholders were included; professionals (teachers, pre- and school management), autistic students, and their parents. Theoretical frameworks: Pragmatism is used as the umbrella framework capturing the methodology and methods, in combination with Communities of Practice (CoP) and Landscapes of Practice (LoP), are used to explain and discuss the results of the thesis. Design/Approach/Methods: A multilevel mixed methods research design was applied in this thesis. Following the concept of mixed methods, the integration was applied in three phases: research design, methods, interpretation and reporting. In the three empirical sub-studies, variants of mixed methods were alsoused in the designs. The results of the sub-studies are synthesized with a narrative synthesis. Findings: The results from the synthesized sub-studies indicate that professional development contributes to changes in professionals' attitudes, increased knowledge, and strategies to accommodate, the latter more vaguely. Professionals could identify more changes than parents and autistic students. Barriers to implementation were found, such as lack of resources and physical environment. Enabling factors were identified as participation (collaborative aspects). Discrepancies were detected across participants and contexts. Conclusions: Based on the results of the included studies and the synthesized result, it is possible to conclude that professional development can contribute to changes, most prominent when exploring professionals' views. The more distinct changes resided in changes and development in attitudes contributing to changes in mindset and increased knowledge. Furthermore, a lack of prerequisites, such as resources, may hinder the sustainability of professional development and, on a larger scale, inclusive education, which needs to be addressed further. To conclude equity for autistic students is a challenging issue for the Swedish school context, and is not yet fulfilled for this student group. Originality/Value: This thesis offers insights into a complex area, includes multiple stakeholders and provides a comprehensive understanding of the phenomena. Including young autistic students as active participants could be considered to be of great value. The findings could be of interest to both the research community and school practice.


During erythrocyte invasion, Plasmodium falciparum merozoites use multiple receptor-ligand interactions in a series of coordinated events, but current knowledge of these interactions is limited. Using real-time imaging of invasion, we established that heparin-like molecules block early, and essential, events in erythrocyte invasion by merozoites. All P falciparum isolates tested, and parasites using different invasion pathways were inhibited to comparable levels. Furthermore, it was not possible to select for heparin-resistant parasites. Heparin-like molecules occur naturally on the surface of human erythrocytes, where they may act as receptors for binding of merozoite surface proteins. Consistent with this, we demonstrated that MSP1-42, a processed form of merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP1) involved in invasion, bound heparin in a specific manner; furthermore, binding was observed with the secondary processing fragment MSP1-33, but not MSP1-19. We defined key structural requirements of heparin-like molecules for invasion inhibition and interactions with MSP1-42. Optimal activity required a degree of sulfation more than or equal to 2, disulfation of the N-acetylglucosamine or hexuronic acid residue, and a minimum chain length of 6 monosaccharides. These findings have significant implications for understanding P falciparum invasion of erythrocytes and the development of novel therapeutics and vaccines.


This report is a ten credit degree project and is aimed at technically skilful personnel at Volvo Aero Corporation and at the University West. The goal of the project is to create a robot program that can manufacture a part by Metal Deposition from a 3-D CAD model (Unigraphics) via a CAM module and a CAR program (IGRIP) to an ABB robot. Metal Deposition is a method to build new parts, add material to an existing part and repair components that have been damaged in earlier processes. The method can be used with different kinds of welding with powder or welding wire as the additive material. Three reference geometries were used; two bosses and a circular sweep. UG/CAM is used to create the CLS (Cutter Location Source) data. Different milling operations are used to emulate welding.The program which imports the coordinates from the CLS data to IGRIP, as well as the export program, was written in GSL (Graphics Simulation Language). GSL is a Pascal-like programming language used to control the behaviour of simulation models. The import program reads linear movement coordinates line by line until the whole CLS file has been converted into IGRIP. UG/CAM should only use linear movement when using this program. If circular movements are used, a feature that converts those has to be added to the import program.


Security concerns have given rise to immerging an active area of research due to the many security threats that many organizations have faced at present. Addressing these issues requires getting confidence from user for cloud applications and services. In this paper, we have cast light over the major security threats of cloud computing systems, while introducing the most suitable countermeasures for them. We have also cited the aspect to be focused on when talking about cloud security. We have categorized these threats according to different viewpoints, providing a useful and little-known list of threats. After that some effective countermeasures are listed and explained.


Recent statistical information indicates that Indonesia embraces a huge resource of anguillid eels in its western region, especially the areas in Sumatra Island and Java that face the Indian Ocean. There are a number of anguillid eel species in Indonesia, nine of which are the most common, i.e. Anguilla bicolor bicolor, Anguilla bicolour pacifica, Anguilla nebulosa nebulosa, Anguilla marmorata, Anguilla celebesensis, Anguilla borneensis, Anguilla interioris, Anguilla obscura, and Anguilla megastoma. The anguillid resources of Indonesia are being exploited mostly by smallscale fishers who are mostly temporary fishers, fishing eels from evening to midnight and doing other jobs in the morning until noon. Anguillid eels are traded as glass eels or yellow eels where they have high potentials for export to the regional market. The demand of eel products in Indonesia is still low as it is not a food preferred by the local people, although processed eel products are now being developed and promoted in the country. In order to sustain the fisheries and management of the anguillid eel resources, it is deemed necessary that capacity building is promoted for the sustainable capture fisheries and aquaculture of anguillid eels, advocacies initiated for the conservation of the eel resources, and human resource enhanced in product processing and development, and marketing of anguillid eels.


Two studies utilizing sparse aperture-masking (SAM) interferometry and Hα differential imaging have reported multiple Jovian companions around the young solar-mass star, LkCa 15 (LkCa 15 bcd): the first claimed direct detection of infant, newly formed planets ("protoplanets"). We present new near-infrared direct imaging/spectroscopy from the Subaru Coronagraphic Extreme Adaptive Optics (SCExAO) system coupled with Coronagraphic High Angular Resolution Imaging Spectrograph (CHARIS) integral field spectrograph and multi-epoch thermal infrared imaging from Keck/NIRC2 of LkCa 15 at high Strehl ratios. These data provide the first direct imaging look at the same wavelengths and in the same locations where previous studies identified the LkCa 15 protoplanets, and thus offer the first decisive test of their existence. The data do not reveal these planets. Instead, we resolve extended emission tracing a dust disk with a brightness and location comparable to that claimed for LkCa 15 bcd. Forward-models attributing this signal to orbiting planets are inconsistent with the combined SCExAO/CHARIS and Keck/NIRC2 data. An inner disk provides a more compelling explanation for the SAM detections and perhaps also the claimed Hα detection of LkCa 15 b. We conclude that there is currently no clear, direct evidence for multiple protoplanets orbiting LkCa 15, although the system likely contains at least one unseen Jovian companion. To identify Jovian companions around LkCa 15 from future observations, the inner disk should be detected and its effect modeled, removed, and shown to be distinguishable from planets. Protoplanet candidates identified from similar systems should likewise be clearly distinguished from disk emission through modeling.


It is well known that North American grassland bird populations appear to be declining (Igl and Johnson 1997, Sauer et al. 2004). Most of these birds breed and winter in North America, so declines are likely associated with continental processes (Knopf 1994). Scientists have also observed parallel declines among species that have overlapping breeding ranges but disparate wintering distributions (Igl and Johnson 1997). These patterns suggest declines may be linked to problems on the breeding grounds. Across the Great Plains, the breeding grounds for many of these species, one primary land-use is grazing by domestic cattle. Before European settlement, most of this region was grazed by freeranging herbivores, particularly bison (Hartnett et al. 1997). With settlement, bison were mostly extirpated from the region, and cattle grazing systems were established. This species replacement may have transformed the landscape because bison and cattle grazing regimes differ somewhat (Harnett et al. 1997). Bison and cattle possess slightly different foraging preferences and patterns (Hartnett et al. 1997), and cattle herds are spatially constrained whereas historic bison herds roamed freely (Steuter and Hidinger 1999). Moreover, grassland fire is usually suppressed and rarely prescribed in modern cattle-managed systems, yet during the time of the bison, naturally occurring fires burned at varying frequencies in the Great Plains (Steuter and Hidinger 1999). Today, some land managers are trying to reestablish this ecological condition by reintroducing smaller bison herds to various locations in the region, along with prescribed fire (Hartnett et al. 1997, Griebel et al. 1998). Given this recent trend, it is an opportune time to compare how a widespread, modern land-management regime and a re-created historic regime affect breeding grassland birds. Only Zimmerman (1997) and Griebel et al. (1998) have compared effects of bison and cattle grazing regimes on birds, in tallgrass prairie and sandhills prairie, respectively. Moreover, only Griebel et al. (1998) studied the effects of a bison regime that included fire. Thus, our study is the first to compare effects of these regimes in mixed-grass prairie. Of these 3 studies, ours is also unique because we estimate bird densities using distance sampling. We evaluated bird population densities and their habitats under cattle and bison management regimes in mixedgrass prairie. Our objectives were to 1) determine the influence of these different range-management regimes on habitat structure, composition, and heterogeneity; and 2) determine whether bird breeding densities differ between regimes.


The book examines the evolution of one of the most important technologies that has emerged in the last fifty years: biotechnology - the use of living organisms, or parts thereof to create useful products and services. The most important application of biotechnology has been in medicine, in the development of new drugs. The central purpose of the book is to explain how firms based in the US took the lead in commercialising the technology, and why it has been so difficult for firms in other countries to match what the leading American companies have achieved. The book looks at the institutions and policies which have underpinned US success in biotechnology. This is the US innovation "ecosystem," and it is made up of several interlocking elements which constitute a powerful competitive advantage for US biotechnology firms. These include, a higher education system which has close links with industry, massive support from the Federal government for biomedical research, and a financial system which is well equipped to support young entrepreneurial firms in a science-based industry. In the light of US experience the book examines in detail the performance of UK biotechnology firms over the past forty years, starting with the creation of the UK's first dedicated biotech firm, Celltech, in 1980. The book shows how the UK made a promising start in the 1980s and 1990s but failed to build on it. Several leading firms failed, and after an initial burst of enthusiasm investors lost confidence in the British biotech sector. It is only the last few years that the sector has staged a revival, attracting fresh investment from the US as well from the UK. The story told in this book, based on extensive interviews with industry participants, investors, and policy makers in the UK, Continental Europe, and the US, sheds new light on one of the central issues facing governments in the advanced industrial countries - how to create and sustain new science-based industries.


This paper seeks to articulate the perspectives from Bangladesh as an aid recipient country on the evolving international aid system and more particularly on the Accra agenda. Based on secondary information from various sources including the Economic Relations Division, Ministry of Finance (MoF), OECD DAC Survey and Economic Review of the Ministry of Finance this paper briefly discusses the changing aid scenario in the context of Bangladesh and highlights some of the key issues related to aid effectiveness during the run up to the Accra HLF3. The paper also draws information from interviews of Development Partners working in Bangladesh to understand their perspectives on the bottlenecks of implementation of Paris Declaration on aid effectiveness in Bangladesh.


The tourism environment is becoming increasingly competitive, dynamic and impacted by various global issues. Key factors such as changing consumer preferences, the increasing involvement of host communities, safety and health concerns, globalisation of the airline industry, technological innovation and environmental pressures are changing the face of international tourism and by implication are posing new challenges to tourism destinations in Africa.
Against this background, this article focuses on the changing shape and direction of international tourism; Africa's current and future tourism position and potential; the key role of tourism in addressing Africa's key challenges, including poverty alleviation; and then proposes a sustainable destination competitiveness model that can be used as a frame of reference to enhance Africa's tourism competitiveness.
The competitiveness model that is proposed is based on an analysis of leading international tourism destination development and marketing strategies so as to determine key "best practice" trends and destination competitiveness success indicators. Furthermore, key destination competitiveness models, including recent models developed by Crouch & Ritchie (2000), Kim (2000) and Dwyer (2001) were evaluated, and where appropriate, elements of these models were also included in the proposed competitiveness model.
The longer-term benefits of the development and further refinement of this model along with an associated set of indicators that enables identification of the relative strengths and weaknesses of different tourism destinations, is that it could be used by Governments and industry at large to increase tourism numbers, expenditure and positive social, economic and environmental impacts.


The interplay between regions of high and low hydraulic conductivity, degree of aquifer stratification, and rate‐dependent geochemical reactions in heterogeneous flow fields is investigated, focusing on impacts of kinetic sorption and local dispersion on plume retardation and channeling. Human health risk is used as an endpoint for comparison via a nested Monte Carlo scheme, explicitly considering joint uncertainty and variability. Kinetic sorption is simulated with finely resolved, large‐scale domains to identify hydrogeologic conditions where reactions are either rate limited (nonreactive), in equilibrium (linear equilibrium assumption is appropriate), or are sensitive to time‐dependent kinetic reactions. By utilizing stochastic ensembles, effective equilibrium conditions are examined, in addition to parameter interplay. In particular, the effects of preferential flow pathways and solute mixing at the field‐scale (marcrodispersion) and subgrid (local dispersion, LD) are examined for varying degrees of stratification and regional groundwater velocities (v). Results show effective reaction rates of kinetic ensembles with the inclusion of LD yield disequilibrium transport, even for averaged (or global) Damköholer numbers associated with equilibrium transport. Solute behavior includes an additive tailing effect, a retarded peak time, and results in an increased cancer risk. The inclusion of LD for nonreactive solutes in highly anisotropic media results in either induced solute retardation or acceleration, a new finding given that LD has previously been shown to affect only the concentration variance. The distribution, magnitude, and associated uncertainty of cancer risk are controlled by the up scaling of these small‐scale processes, but are strongly dependent on v and the source term.


The public debate surrounding the General Data Protection Regulation's (GDPR) "right to explanation" has sparked a global conversation of profound social and economic significance. But from a practical perspective, the debate's participants have gotten ahead of themselves. In their search for a revolutionary new data protection within the provisions of a single chapter of the GDPR, many prominent contributors to the debate have lost sight of the most revolutionary change ushered in by the Regulation: the sweeping new enforcement powers given to European data protection authorities (DPAs) by Chapters 6 and 8 of the Regulation. Unlike the 1995 Data Protection Directive that it replaced, the GDPR's potent new investigatory, advisory, corrective, and punitive powers granted by Chapters 6 and 8 render DPAs de facto interpretive authorities of the Regulation's controversial "right to explanation." Now that the DPAs responsible for enforcing the right have officially weighed in, this Article argues that at least one matter of fierce public debate can be laid to rest. The GDPR provides a muscular "right to explanation" with sweeping legal implications for the design, prototyping, field testing, and deployment of automated data processing systems. The protections enshrined within the right may not mandate transparency in the form of a complete individualized explanation. But a holistic understanding of the interpretation by DPAs reveals that the right's true power derives from its synergistic effects when combined with the algorithmic auditing and "data protection by design" methodologies codified by the Regulation's subsequent chapters. Accordingly, this Article predicts that algorithmic auditing and "data protection by design" practices will likely become the new gold standard for enterprises deploying machine learning systems both inside and outside of the European Union.


This work consists in a systematic revision of upper Miocene Mediterranean hermatypic scleractinian corals, concerning the whole perimediterranean area. An abundant material allowed an accurate and reliable analysis of the taxonomic characters. Eighteen specific attributions, belonging to eight genera, are proposed. Nomenclatural revisions were required because of the abundant, dispersed and qualitatively diverse literature on this subject. Comparisons with older works were made difficult because of ancient identifications and datations by precedent authors. The biogeographic and stratigraphic distributions are detailed. Discussions about paleoecological features allow a better understanding of this coral fauna evolution, particularly regarding the so-called "salinity crisis" that affected the Mediterranean area at the end of the Miocene.


Although the induction of senescence in cancer cells is a potent mechanism of tumor suppression, senescent cells remain metabolically active and may secrete a broad spectrum of factors that promote tumorigenicity in neighboring malignant cells. Here we show that androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), a widely used treatment for advanced prostate cancer, induces a senescence-associated secretory phenotype in prostate cancer epithelial cells, indicated by increases in senescence-associated β-galactosidase activity, heterochromatin protein 1β foci, and expression of cathepsin B and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3. Interestingly, ADT also induced high levels of vimentin expression in prostate cancer cell lines in vitro and in human prostate tumors in vivo. The induction of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype by androgen depletion was mediated, at least in part, by down-regulation of S-phase kinase-associated protein 2, whereas the neuroendocrine differentiation of prostate cancer cells was under separate control. These data demonstrate a previously unrecognized link between inhibition of androgen receptor signaling, down-regulation of S-phase kinase-associated protein 2, and the appearance of secretory, tumor-promoting senescent cells in prostate tumors. We propose that ADT may contribute to the development of androgen-independent prostate cancer through modulation of the tissue microenvironment by senescent cells.


Discussions on climate change increasingly emphasize the contribution of agricultural activities to anthropogenic greenhouse gases emissions. In this paper, we investigate from a supply to demand side perspective the stress between food demand and climate change challenges up until 2030. We examine how more stringent climate change mitigation policies could alter agricultural markets and put at risk the nutrition possibilities of populations. We use for this purpose GLOBIOM, an applied partial equilibrium model covering, at the world scale and a fine grid resolution, the main land-based sectors: agriculture, forestry and bioenergy. For this exercise, the model is fully linked to a semi-flexible endogenous demand system with non-linear Engel's curves. Our results show that although forest related measures could be efficiently deployed without harming food security, a scenario of massive development of bioenergy would have more tangible impacts on food availability. Our most constraining option is a decrease in emissions from cattle, which would impose a reduction in the consumption of ruminant meat and milk. We illustrate that considering the current dynamic of consumption patterns, these latter policies, if implemented on the supply side directly, could have very uneven effects to the world's diet and harm primarily developing countries.


The purpose of this paper is to propose a mathematical index to measure the resilient capability of drought-prone desert communities in Tharparkar, Pakistan. The paper analyses the constructs and definitions of the term resilience, describes the concept and practical applications of the integrated programming approach, present key findings of the integrated vulnerability and capacity assessment at the community level and provides a unique method for measuring disaster resilient communities following the process and output indicators. Ten process and eight outcome standards with 50 and 94 resilience indicators respectively were applied to measure the resilience capability of the community. The overall resilience index of the community was 51%. The overall process value of the community was 56% whereas the outcome value was 45%. This method of resilience measurement can be used for comparing the resilience status of the communities, progress monitoring and impact evaluation of any disaster risk reduction and resilience building interventions. The research findings provide a unique method for measuring community resilience capability in any hazard prone areas. The overall resilience index is site and context specific and should not be loosely used. However, the overall method and the mathematical index can be widely applicable. The tool can be used for baseline survey, progress monitoring and final evaluation of a disaster risk reduction interventions at the community level and final evaluation. The tool is simple, participatory, less time and cost consuming and requires less sophisticated data for the calculation. A wide application of the tool in various hazards and different social-economic and cultural contexts is recommended


In many of embedded systems, particularly for those with high data computations, the delay of memory access is one of the major bottlenecks in the system's performance. It has been known that there are high variations in memory access delays depending on the ways of designing memory configurations and assigning arrays to memories. Furthermore, embedded DRAM technology that provides efficient access modes is actively developed, possibly becoming a main-stream in future embedded system design. In that context, in this paper the authors proposed an effective solution to the problem of (embedded DRAM) memory allocation and mapping in memory access code generation with the objective of minimizing the total memory access time. Specifically, the proposed approach, called MACCESS-opt, solves the three problems simultaneously: (i) determination of memories, (ii) mapping of arrays to memories, and (iii) scheduling of memory access operations, so that the use of DRAM access modes is maximized while satisfying the storage size constraint of embedded system. Experimental data on a set of benchmark designs are provided to show the effectiveness of the proposed integrated approach. In short, MACCESS-opt reduces the total memory access latency by over 18%, from which we found that our memory mapping and scheduling techniques in MACCESS-opt contribute about 12% and 6% reductions of total memory access latency, respectively.


Abstract. High Mountain Asia (HMA) – encompassing the Tibetan Plateau and surrounding mountain ranges – is the primary water source for much of Asia, serving more than a billion downstream users. Many catchments receive the majority of their yearly water budget in the form of snow, which is poorly monitored by sparse in situ weather networks. Both the timing and volume of snowmelt play critical roles in downstream water provision, as many applications – such as agriculture, drinking-water generation, and hydropower – rely on consistent and predictable snowmelt runoff. Here, we examine passive microwave data across HMA with five sensors (SSMI, SSMIS, AMSR-E, AMSR2, and GPM) from 1987 to 2016 to track the timing of the snowmelt season – defined here as the time between maximum passive microwave signal separation and snow clearance. We validated our method against climate model surface temperatures, optical remote-sensing snow-cover data, and a manual control dataset (n = 2100, 3 variables at 25 locations over 28 years); our algorithm is generally accurate within 3–5 days. Using the algorithm-generated snowmelt dates, we examine the spatiotemporal patterns of the snowmelt season across HMA. The climatically short (29-year) time series, along with complex interannual snowfall variations, makes determining trends in snowmelt dates at a single point difficult. We instead identify trends in snowmelt timing by using hierarchical clustering of the passive microwave data to determine trends in self-similar regions. We make the following four key observations. (1) The end of the snowmelt season is trending almost universally earlier in HMA (negative trends). Changes in the end of the snowmelt season are generally between 2 and 8 days decade−1 over the 29-year study period (5–25 days total). The length of the snowmelt season is thus shrinking in many, though not all, regions of HMA. Some areas exhibit later peak signal separation (positive trends), but with generally smaller magnitudes than trends in snowmelt end. (2) Areas with long snowmelt periods, such as the Tibetan Plateau, show the strongest compression of the snowmelt season (negative trends). These trends are apparent regardless of the time period over which the regression is performed. (3) While trends averaged over 3 decades indicate generally earlier snowmelt seasons, data from the last 14 years (2002–2016) exhibit positive trends in many regions, such as parts of the Pamir and Kunlun Shan. Due to the short nature of the time series, it is not clear whether this change is a reversal of a long-term trend or simply interannual variability. (4) Some regions with stable or growing glaciers – such as the Karakoram and Kunlun Shan – see slightly later snowmelt seasons and longer snowmelt periods. It is likely that changes in the snowmelt regime of HMA account for some of the observed heterogeneity in glacier response to climate change. While the decadal increases in regional temperature have in general led to earlier and shortened melt seasons, changes in HMA's cryosphere have been spatially and temporally heterogeneous.


Abstract. We present results from a study of the behavior of the auroral electrojet indices following abrupt southward turnings of the IMF Bz. The auroral electrojet indices are calculated from observations made by more than 100 ground based stations provided by the SuperMAG collaborators. Based on three simple criteria we selected 73 events. In each event the interval of analysis started at the time of the IMF Bz southward turning and ended 45 minutes later or at the onset of any abrupt energy unloading event in the magnetosphere, regardless of size. We refer to this period as the "pre-unloading phase". To isolate the dependence of the auroral electrojets on the solar induced ionospheric conductivity during this phase we separated the standard AU/AL indices into two new sets of indices defined by the upper and lower envelope of the north-south component for all sunlit stations (AUs/ALs) and for all stations in darkness (AUd/ALd). Based on events and statistical analyses we can conclude that following a southward turning of the IMF Bz the AUd/ALd indices show no measurable response while the AUs/ALs indices clearly intensify. The intensifications of AUs/ALs are dependent on the intensity of the solar wind driver (as measured by IMF Bz or the Akasofu e parameter). The lack of AUd/ALd response does not depend on the intensity of any subsequent substorm. We find that during these isolated events the ionospheric current system is primarily confined to the sunlit ionosphere. This truncated version of the classical global DP-2 current system suggests that auroral electrojet continuity is not maintained across the terminator. Because of its conductivity dependence on the solar zenith angle, this truncated global current pattern is expected to be highly dependent on UT and season and thus can be asymmetric between hemispheres. Thus we argue that the global two-cell DP-2 current system is not a consequence only of a southward turning of the IMF but requires also the reduction of the conductivity gradient at the terminator.


Hardware architectures composed of resistive cross-point device arrays can provide significant power and speed benefits for deep neural network training workloads using stochastic gradient descent (SGD) and backpropagation (BP) algorithm. The training accuracy on this imminent analog hardware, however, strongly depends on the switching characteristics of the cross-point elements. One of the key requirements is that these resistive devices must change conductance in a symmetrical fashion when subjected to positive or negative pulse stimuli. Here, we present a new training algorithm, so-called the "Tiki-Taka" algorithm, that eliminates this stringent symmetry requirement. We show that device asymmetry introduces an unintentional implicit cost term into the SGD algorithm, whereas in the "Tiki-Taka" algorithm a coupled dynamical system simultaneously minimizes the original objective function of the neural network and the unintentional cost term due to device asymmetry in a self-consistent fashion. We tested the validity of this new algorithm on a range of network architectures such as fully connected, convolutional and LSTM networks. Simulation results on these various networks show that the accuracy achieved using the conventional SGD algorithm with symmetric (ideal) device switching characteristics is matched in accuracy achieved using the "Tiki-Taka" algorithm with non-symmetric (non-ideal) device switching characteristics. Moreover, all the operations performed on the arrays are still parallel and therefore the implementation cost of this new algorithm on array architectures is minimal; and it maintains the aforementioned power and speed benefits. These algorithmic improvements are crucial to relax the material specification and to realize technologically viable resistive crossbar arrays that outperform digital accelerators for similar training tasks.


Globalization or McLuhan's "Global Village" concept is increasingly getting a clearest shape. Along with globalization, communication mediums are also developing. They have the qualities of being digital, interactive, and virtual and are thus "new" mediums of communication. Due to these qualities, communication mediums are changing form and are being used by network societies. These mediums also influence individual creativity due to their interactive use. Individuals can create and share their own visual designs, especially when employing social networks. Creativity differs from person to person, as it does from region to region. In this study, visual designs created with new media will be examined and the concept of vernacular creativity will be defined and explained. The social network istockphoto will be used as an example for analysis. According to this example, this study will be delivered with qualitative and quantitative methods.


PART OF THE JONES & BARTLETT LEARNING INFORMATION SYSTEMS SECURITY & ASSURANCE SERIES Revised and updated with the latest information from this fast-paced field, Fundamentals of Information System Security, Second Edition provides a comprehensive overview of the essential concepts readers must know as they pursue careers in information systems security. The text opens with a discussion of the new risks, threats, and vulnerabilities associated with the transformation to a digital world, including a look at how business, government, and individuals operate today. Part 2 is adapted from the Official (ISC)2 SSCP Certified Body of Knowledge and presents a high-level overview of each of the seven domains within the System Security Certified Practitioner certification. The book closes with a resource for readers who desire additional material on information security standards, education, professional certifications, and compliance laws. With its practical, conversational writing style and step-by-step examples, this text is a must-have resource for those entering the world of information systems security. New to the Second Edition: - New material on cloud computing, risk analysis, IP mobility, OMNIBus, and Agile Software Development. - Includes the most recent updates in Information Systems Security laws, certificates, standards, amendments, and the proposed Federal Information Security Amendments Act of 2013 and HITECH Act. - Provides new cases and examples pulled from real-world scenarios. - Updated data, tables, and sidebars provide the most current information in the field.


Background: People living with HIV (PLWH) commonly report marijuana use for chronic pain, although there is limited empirical evidence to support its use. There is hope that marijuana may reduce prescription opioid use. Our objective was to investigate whether marijuana use among PLWH who have chronic pain is associated with changes in pain severity and prescribed opioid use (prescribed opioid initiation and discontinuation). Methods: Participants completed self-report measures of chronic pain and marijuana use at an index visit and were followed up for 1 year in the Center for AIDS Research Network of Integrated Clinical Systems (CNICS). Self-reported marijuana use was the exposure variable. Outcome variables were changes in pain and initiation or discontinuation of opioids during the study period. The relationship between exposure and outcomes was assessed using generalized linear models for pain and multivariable binary logistic regression models for opioid initiation/discontinuation. Results: Of 433 PLWH and chronic pain, 28% reported marijuana use in the past 3 months. Median pain severity at the index visit was 6.3/10 (interquartile range 4.7–8.0). Neither increases nor decreases in marijuana use were associated with changes in pain severity, and marijuana use was not associated with either lower odds of opioid initiation or higher odds of opioid discontinuation. Conclusions: We did not find evidence that marijuana use in PLWH is associated with improved pain outcomes or reduced opioid prescribing. This suggests that caution is warranted when counseling PLWH about potential benefits of recreational or medical marijuana.


Contributions to this edition of Computer Methods have been extensively revised and contain much new material--updating the proceedings of a conference held in 1964 at the Joint Center for Urban Studies of MIT and Harvard University. In this conference social scientists experienced in computer use compared notes on the problems and benefits encountered in their studies with beginners in computer analysis. Initiated by the preparation and release of the 1-1,000 sample tape of the U.S. census, the conference provided a means by which social scientists, deluged with data, could master the great influx of information.Three major themes emerge in this collection of papers: control over the computer processes by the social scientists (a unifying theme throughout the book), the implications of time (complex feedback relationships), and the level of aggregation (individual and aggregate theories) in the interpretation of social science data. The book raises important substantive issues as social scientists and other "applications" people attempt to develop procedures for greater control over the computer.


Evidence exists of an increasing prevalence of chronic conditions within developed and developing nations, notably for priority population groups. The need for the collection of geospatial data to monitor the health impact of rapid social-environmental and economic changes occurring in these countries is being increasingly recognized. Rigorous accuracy assessment of such geospatial data is required to enable error estimation, and ultimately, data utility for exploring population health. This research outlines findings from a field-based evaluation exercise of the SOMAARTH DDESS geospatial-health platform. Participatory-based mixed methods have been employed within Palwal-India to capture villager perspectives on built infrastructure across 51 villages. This study, conducted in 2013, included an assessment of data element position and attribute accuracy undertaken in six villages, documenting mapping errors and land parcel changes. Descriptive analyses of 5.1% (n = 455) of land parcels highlighted some discrepancies in position (6.4%) and attribute (4.2%) accuracy, and land parcel changes (17.4%). Furthermore, the evaluation led to a refinement of the existing geospatial health platform incorporating ground-truthed reflections from the participatory field exercise. The evaluation of geospatial data accuracies contributes to understandings on global public health surveillance systems, outlining the need to systematically consider assessment of environmental features in relation to lifestyle-related diseases.


Intrusion detection systems (IDS) have often been used to analyse network traffic to help network administrators quickly identify and respond to intrusions. These detection systems generally operate over the entire network, identifying "anomalies" atypical of the network's normal collective user activities. We show that anomaly detection could also be host-based so that the normal usage patterns of an individual user could be profiled. This enables the detection of masquerading intruders by comparing a learned user profile against the current session's profile. A prototype behavioural IDS applies the concept of anomaly detection to user behaviour and compares the effects of using multiple characteristics to profile users. Behaviour captured within the system consists of application usage, application performance (CPU and memory), the websites a user visits, the number of windows a user has open, and their typing habits. The results show that such a system is entirely feasible, that characteristics physically related to the user are more relevant to profiling behaviour and that the combination of characteristics can significantly decrease the time taken to detect an intruder.


Abstract Research was initiated to develop a pheromone-based monitoring system for the tropical sod webworm, Herpetogramma phaeopteralis (Guenée). A laboratory rearing procedure was developed to produce individuals for field tests and behavioral bioassays. Virgin females placed in Unitraps in the field attracted and captured males for 8 d, while no males were captured in unbaited traps. Total male capture ranged from 1 to 24, and there was a slight decrease in capture as females aged. Laboratory mating behavior studies suggested that mating occurs later in the scotophase. Males responded to virgin females in a linear olfactometer throughout the dark period (scotophase), although there was a trend for higher male activity late in scotophase. There was no observed calling behavior, and adults exhibit simple mating behavior. Lack of both calling posture among virgin females and periodicity of male response will make it difficult to determine the optimal time periods for pheromone production, which would facilitate the collection and subsequent identification of pheromone components.


Required capacity may be used in Connection Admission Control, Network Resource Management or for purposes of planning and dimensioning. From the well-known loss probability formula for the bufferless fluid ow model, an implicit formula for the required capacity for a given QoS per connection may be derived which turns into a closed formula when it is evaluated in a special way. This formula, whose complexity is comparable to that of the original loss probability formula, allows for a quick and exact evaluation of required capacity. Differences to other possibilities of required capacity evaluation are shown, and potential problems affecting the use of the formula are discussed. Finally, the suitability of the equivalent bandwidth in COST-242 for required capacity evaluations is demonstrated.


This dissertation is an investigation into the representation of mourning and melancholia in the work of Elizabeth Smart, Evelyn Lau, Siri Hustvedt, Sarah Sheard and Kathryn Harrison. The thesis addresses women's historic exclusion from the discourse of melancholia from a feminist perspective. It will consider the political and theoretical implications of women's absence from this discursive field by focusing on the cultural legacy of their devalorised status. Freud's essay, 'Mourning and Melancholia', first published in 1917, is cited as an important conceptual model exercising considerable influence over subsequent theoreticians working within this area. My thesis builds on Freud's attempt to establish a clear-cut binary division between the twinned states of mourning and melancholia. The thesis reveals how Freud's construction of melancholia as a pathological condition, shadowing the normative state of mourning, has been linked with psychoanalytic constructions of femininity by leading feminist theorists such as Irigaray, Silverman and Kristeva. The first chapter provides an overview of melancholia as a gendered discourse privileging male practitioners; the subsequent chapters provide symptomatic readings of five novels written by five contemporary North American women. The psychoanalytic interpretation of these readings, ranging from blocked or postponed mourning to the ideological loss of a father through incest, illustrate the close epistemological relationship between the construction of femininity and melancholia within Western historical and philosophical traditions.This thesis is not concerned with merely re-interpreting Western cultural prejudices related to the discourse of melancholia from a late twentieth century postfeminist perspective. Instead, the thesis demonstrates how contemporary women writers are engaged in a revisionary approach to the representation of loss within their work, by insistently inscribing their active, desiring bodies on the discourses of heterosexual femininity and melancholia. By refusing to disappear from the margins of the melancholic text, I show how the resisting melancholic daughter produces a counter-discourse that destroys the conventional dynamics of the family romance within Western literary traditions. The 'writing cure' replaces the 'talking cure' in this context. By removing the patriarchal figurehead from the text, and the psychoanalytic confessional discourse surrounding it, women writers challenge misogynist constructions of femininity within contemporary literature.


The Lie derivation of multivector fields along multivector fields has been introduced by Schouten (see (10, 11)), and studdied for example in (5) and (12). In the present paper we define the Lie derivation of differential forms along multivector fields, and we extend this con- cept to covariant derivation on tangent bundles and vector bundles, and find natural relations between them and other familiar concepts. Also in spinor bundles, we introduce a covariant derivation along multivector fields and call it the Clifford covariant derivation of that spinor bundle, which is related to its structure and has a natural relation to its Dirac operator.


This article describes a 3-year research demonstration project originally funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and now funded in part by the Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. This project, which was conducted in the Bronx, New York, examined the efficacy of 3 models of intensive in-home services as alternatives to hospitalization for children experiencing serious psychiatric crises. All programs were 4- to 6-week interventions. The first, Home-Based Crisis Intervention (HBCI), was modeled on the Homebuilders model of family preservation; the second, Enhanced HBCI (HBCI+), added respite care, flexible service money, parent advocate and support services, and additional staff training in cultural competence and violence management. Crisis Case Management, the third model, used case managers to assess child and family needs and link them to services, as well as respite care and flexible money. The specific features of the 3 program models, the research design, and data collection measures are described. The intake data on the children and families are presented, and implications for providing services and for future research are discussed.


This study investigated the use of interdisciplinary learning activity task to construct students' knowledge in Mathematics, specifically on the topic of scale drawing application. The learning activity task involved more than one academic discipline, which is Mathematics, English Language, Art, Geography and integrating the Brunei Darussalam national philosophy of the Malay Islamic Monarchy. A quantitative method using a pre-experimental design focusing on one-group pre- and post-test design was used for this study. The participants were selected from a convenient sample of 43 Year 9 students in one of the secondary schools in Brunei. The findings were also triangulated with the students' collected reflective journal artifact documents. Each student journal was analyzed using the identified learning activity stages within the RBC-model, where the R denotes Recognizing , B is Building with and C means Constructing . The results showed an improvement in the students' achievement, and they were able to construct the mathematics knowledge by means of collaboration among group members. Based on the findings, it is recommended that Mathematics teachers be encouraged and supported to design authentic and interdisciplinary learning activity that are learner centered catering to the different needs of our students and also to meet the 21 st century skills demand.


Displays without associated computing devices are increasingly more popular, and the binding between computing devices and displays is no longer one-to-one but more dynamic and adaptive. Screencast technologies enable such dynamic binding over ad hoc one-hop networks or Wi-Fi access points. In this paper, we design and conduct the first detailed measurement study on the performance of state-of-the-art screencast technologies. By varying the user demands and network conditions, we find that Splashtop and Miracast outperform other screencast technologies under typical setups. Our experiments also show that the screencast technologies either: (i) do not dynamically adjust bitrate or (ii) employ a suboptimal adaptation strategy. The developers of future screencast technologies are suggested to pay more attentions on the bitrate adaptation strategy, e.g., by leveraging cross-layer optimization paradigm.


This article questions the validity of stockholder-proposed bylaws that attempt to limit the managerial power of boards of directors of Delaware corporations. The authors conclude that certain bylaw proposals violate both the letter and spirit of Delaware corporation law because they would allow a faction of stockholders (who do not owe fiduciary duties to advance the interests of their fellow stockholders) to prevent director fiduciaries from managing the corporation for the benefit of all stockholders. To support their conclusion, the authors discuss their concerns with three types of bylaw proposals urged by stockholder activists: bylaws that limit a board's power to adopt or continue a stockholder rights plan, bylaws that require a board to reimburse a stockholder for expenses incurred in conducting a proxy contest for director elections, and bylaws that require the board to include stockholder nominees on a corporation's proxy materials.


In this first English-language study of popular and scientific responses to tuberculosis in nineteenth-century France, David Barnes provides a much-needed historical perspective on a disease that is making an alarming comeback in the United States and Europe. Barnes argues that French perceptions of the disease--ranging from the early romantic image of a consumptive woman to the later view of a scourge spread by the poor--owed more to the power structures of nineteenth-century society than to medical science. By 1900, the war against tuberculosis had become a war against the dirty habits of the working class. Lucid and original, Barnes's study broadens our understanding of how and why societies assign moral meanings to deadly diseases.


Plant nutrients are essential to the food, feed, fiber, and fuel supply. Additionally, plant nutrients, no matter the form, can be lost from the plant root zone as water moves through the system. In recent decades, plant nutrients have become the focus of concerns linked to water quality, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, and supply chain sustainability. For on farm productivity and profitability, as well as the concerns listed above, a common goal is to reduce nutrient movement from the root zone and to further reduce loss from the cropping system with supporting conservation practices. Through significant outreach, education, and engagement, the fertilizer industry and other stakeholders have created significant awareness of 4R nutrient stewardship. The 4Rs are a suite of best management practices linked to the right nutrient source, applied at the right rate, the right time, and in the right place (Lawrence et al. 2014). While practices such as cover crops, conservation tillage, and drainage water management can be instrumental in retaining applied nutrients within the crop production system, the 4Rs are a key place to start. Survey data indicate that while the use of 4R practices is on the rise, opportunities for improvement remain. Practice adoption in…


Since 2009, the European Union has developed strategies for the Baltic Sea, Danube, Adriatic-Ionian and Alpine macro-regions. These macro-regional strategies represent a new tool of European Union governance that seeks to combine the community's territorial cooperation and cohesion policy repertoire with intergovernmental 'regional cooperation' involving European Union member and partner countries. By establishing comprehensive governance architectures for cross-sectoral and trans-boundary policy coordination in areas such as transport infrastructure and environmental protection, macro-regional strategies seek to mobilise European Union member and non-member states alike in promoting and harmonising territorial and trans-governmental cooperation. Both the macro-regional strategies and the macro-regions themselves have been met with increasing interest across several disciplines, including geography, regional planning, political science and public administration, triggering questions and debates on issues such as their impacts on existing practices of territorial cooperation and their relation to previously established forms of regional cooperation. Authored by scholars based in the above-mentioned fields of study, this contribution seeks to take stock of research on the subject to date, reflect on conceptual starting points and highlight new directions for future research in the political sciences.


Globalization has been largely influenced and spread due to advancement of technology of communication. There has been emphasis in developing countries to seek public opinion on various aspects of globalization. The trend of globalization has opened up doors for country like Pakistan to explore opinion of its intellectuals on this particular dimension. A study was conducted on this particular issue of international importance. For this purpose, a scale was constructed on the attitude of professors of universities, educationists and the members of Chamber of Commerce and Industries of Pakistan. Initially, a likert scale of twenty five items was constructed and tried out to the respondents. After a comprehensive analysis, the scale was redefined and cut down to sixteen items for administration at larger scale at national level. This study provided an ample opportunity for item's analysis and exploring the opinions about globalization of education and perspectives of social changes. It was found that respondents generally look in favor of globalization. The result of the t-test showed that no statistically difference exist between opinion of the university professors and educationists whereas there was a statistically significant differences noted between university professors and members of Chambers of Commerce and Industries and similarly between the opinion of educationists and the members of Chamber of Commerce and Industries. There was statistical significance noted at p<0.05 level in academic performance for the two groups F (1. 58) = 5.5351 p=.001 as result of one-way ANOVA. A two-way between-groups ANOVA was also conducted to see the impact of globalization on university professor's subjects they teach in the category of management sciences, economics/commerce, and natural sciences and the years of experiences they possess. The interaction effect between the subject they teach and their experience was not statistically significant, F (3,94) = .563, p = .471. The main effect for the subject areas, F (3, 96) = .152, p = .736; and the experience of professors possess, F (3, 96) = 1.241, p=.138 did not reach the statistical significance. The results of the study can be viewed in Pakistani perspectives and need to be explored further in regional context.


The ability to predict the occurrence and the intensity of an algal bloom in resources is critical for effectiveness of the water treatment process and also for any short term remedial measures needed in the water body itself. The major negative impacts of algae concerning both water quality parameters and operational issues are the following: - Regarding the water quality algae have strong incidence on pH, dissolved oxygen, level of chlorophyll a, biodegradable dissolved organic carbon, turbidity, increase of disinfectant demand, presence of Cyanotoxins and taste and odour causing compounds (Geosmin, MIB). - On operational side algae cause disruption in settling (coagulant demand, pH, sludge behaviour), filter clogging, membrane fouling. The objective of this study is to establish an operational strategy to predict, quantify and overcome the problem of algae and metabolites on plants treating surface waters. The expected outcomes of this work are: - Operational strategy to control and minimize algae growth problem. - Recommendations to optimize and adapt treatment technologies to remove algae and associated micro-pollutants. - Improved treatment reliability and guaranty for compliance with current and future targets both on quantity and quality of produced water. - Improvements in customer satisfaction (taste and odour).


Identifying DNA sequences is very useful in forensic area. Currently, there
are a lot of computational biology approaches (bioinformatics) in solving the
molecular biology. The variation, complexity, and incompletely-understood
nature of sequences make it impractical to hand-code algorithm by applying
the human ability and laboratory equipments in identifying the sequences.
Artificial neural network (ANN), which is one of the commonly used machine
learning technique, might be preferable to form its own descriptions of genetic
concepts. Thus, it is applied in developing a prototype to identify the living
organism whether it is human (Malay or India) or non-human. A multi-layer
backpropagation algorithm of one hidden layer with 5 neurons was used. It is
the constant representation whereby it produces one output. The training set
was composed of 7 types of organisms from randomly selected DNA
nucleotide sequences. The result of this prototype shows that it successfully
can train the sequence of non-human. The reason it cannot train the human
sequence probably because the way of massaging the data. By using the
different sequences from the same types of organisms, the network
successfully can identify. The training epoch and time can be accelerated if
the network is included with the momentum.


The Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome encodes a polyprotein that is processed co- and posttranslationally. Incomplete processing at the E2/p7 junction generates the E2p7 product. Using a recombinant system, we analysed the processing, localization and topology of E2p7. By immunoprecipitation of proteins expressed by metabolically labelled cells, we confirm that E2p7 is a precursor of E2. E2p7 forms a native-like heterodimer with E1, and it is localized entirely to the endoplasmic reticulum, in contrast to fully processed E2 and p7 that leak to the plasma membrane. No
change in the topology of p7 was observed upon processing of E2p7, indicating that incomplete
cleavage at the E2/p7 site is not regulated by changes in p7 membrane topology.


This study investigated communication patterns and behavior in problem-solving groups in a graduate online course. An inductive qualitative analysis method was employed to analyze 732 messages that were retrieved from small group forums. The current study identified a temporal pattern of group development was in comparison with existing theoretical models: the traditional group development model (Tuckman, 1965; Tuckman & Jensen, 1977) and the punctuated equilibrium model (Gersick, 1988; 1991). All the groups had two working phases and three decision-making points. The temporal pattern of group behavior was close to the phase transition concept of Gersick's model. Some groups tended to undergo Tuckman's stages, but their development stages were not necessarily sequential or hierarchical. Thus, it is concluded that Gersick's model could be more useful for researchers and instructors to better understand and assist online students in problem solving collaborative activities.


The WTO is often criticized as promoting global injustice. Critics of many such protests against the WTO may firstly dismiss the objections as 'category mistakes', holding that standards of justice cannot apply to entities such as the WTO system. A second line of response would be that even granting that there are such risks, several reform proposals are ill-founded. To alleviate whatever injustice the WTO system is complicit in, less radical changes than fundamental treaty changes may suffice. The present chapter challenges the first of these counter-arguments, and supports the second, as regards WTO and global distribute justice. The chapter leaves urgent issues of the environment and many human rights concerns aside – though some of the arguments are also relevant for some of these issues. The focus is on the WTO dispute settlement mechanism (DSM, 'Mechanism'), especially the adjudicatory panels and the Appellate Body ('AB').
This article has three main objectives. It firstly defends the diagnoses that the WTO system contributes to global distributive injustice, against some potentially devastating criticisms. The substantive contents of the principles of global justice are not central to the arguments, but to fix ideas the next section of this introduction sketches the contours of such principles.
The second objective is to challenge the prescriptions many critics hitherto have promoted, for two main reasons. Section 4 argues that principles of global justice for the GBS as a whole drastically underdetermine reform proposals for the Mechanism. Furthermore, many critics underestimate the scope of discretion international judges and panel members enjoy in interpreting and specifying treaties. The upshot is that broad scale reforms may be neither possible nor effective – but also not necessary. Radical treaty changes are unlikely since many of them require consensus among states. Instead, the AB may change its interpretative practice to make significant moves toward a more just WTO system. The third contribution, in sections 5 and 6, is to start to explore ways that the existing WTO system may become more just if members of the panels and of the AB develop their interpretive standards in one or more of four ways.


Despite a well-established literature on the economics of World War Two, to this day reliable statistics on overall raw material supplies for Nazi Germany are lacking. The operations of shell companies, the special de jure status of occupied areas, and the Wehrmacht practice to "live off the land" have led to a significant underestimation of de facto resource endowments of the Third Reich. For the example of rubber—one of the prime "scarce war commodities"—this article demonstrates the extent and sources of deficiencies, and offers new data. On this basis, and in contrast to recent arguments that view raw materials as a "basic constraint" of the German economy, it is shown that surprisingly comfortable supplies existed between December 1941 and May 1944, during which Nazi-controlled Europe seemed ready to allow a realization of Hitler's 'Lebensraum' designs. The failure to realize those designs originated in military setbacks—which subsequently impacted economic performance as a secondary effect.


Rapeseed (Brassica napus L. ssp. oleifera D.C.) is one of the main melliferous plants due to its nectar secretion and important number of flowers per plant, but especially due to its flowering in a critical period for honey bees, when important quantities of pollen and nectar are required. Although the nectar secretion of the rapeseed flowers is very important for the good development of the honey bees families in the spring and for obtaining some commercial honey yield by the beekeeper, and is playing an important role in the attractiveness of the honey bees as pollination agent for the rapeseed crops, there is still a lack of information concerning the nectar secretion by the rapeseed flowers. Under these circumstances, researches were carried out regarding the nectar secretion and honey production of different rapeseed crops located in different places from South Romania in the years 2009 and 2010. The nectar determination was completed by rapeseed plant characteristics such as plant high, average number of plants per square metre, average number of inflorescences per plant, average number of flowers per inflorescence, and average number of flowers per plant.


This dispatch concentrates on a review of the first Italian ruling on the legal status of six platform workers who demanded to be reclassified as employees of the food-delivery company Foodora. Last April, the Employment Tribunal of Turin rejected their claims on the basis of the freedom they enjoyed in deciding if and when to work and even to disregard previously agreed shifts. The case note is organised as follows. Section I describes the main facts underlying the legal dispute, according to the judge's description. Section II offers a context analysis of the Italian legal framework by clarifying the differences between the notions of employment and self-employment. Particular attention is paid to the most recent legislative interventions aimed at extending labour protections to independent workers whose personal activity is organised by the client. By arguing that the judge failed to consider the specificities of the digital work model, section III criticises the reasoning relying on a too narrow and formalistic understanding of the notion of subordination as well as the conclusive relevance attributed to the riders' presumed flexibility. Section IV closes by summarising the main rulings decided in a set of European countries and providing some reflections on the possibility of applying the current legislation to platform worker. In sum, the dispatch advocates that, in order to properly classify the nature of the actual activity performed by platform workers, judges should assess the role of digital tools when it comes to organising, monitoring and disciplining the workforce, rather than merely focusing on discontinuity and flexibility that are key features of these non-standard work arrangements enabled by technology.


Historically, electricity consumption has been largely insensitive to short term spot market conditions, requiring the equating of supply and demand to occur almost exclusively through changes in production. Large scale entry of demand response, however, is rapidly changing this paradigm in the electricity market located in the mid-Atlantic region of the US, called PJM. Greater demand side participation in electricity markets is often considered a low cost alternative to generation and an important step towards decreasing the price volatility driven by inelastic demand. Recent experience in PJM, however, indicates that demand response in the form of a peaking product has the potential to increase energy price level and volatility. Currently, emergency demand response comprises the vast majority of demand side participation in PJM. This is a peaking product dispatched infrequently and only during periods of scarcity when thermal capacity is exhausted. While emergency demand response serves as a cheaper form of peaking resource than gas turbines, it has recently contributed to increases in energy price volatility by setting price at the $1,800/MWh price cap, substantially higher than the marginal cost of most thermal generation. Additionally, the entry of demand response into the PJM capacity market is one of primary drivers for capacity prices declining by over fifty percent. This study investigates the large penetration of emergency demand response in PJM and the implications for the balance between energy and capacity prices and energy price volatility. A novel model is developed that dynamically simulates generation entry and exit over a long term horizon based on endogenously determined energy and capacity prices. The study finds that, while demand response leads to slight reductions in total generation cost, it shifts the bulk of capacity market revenues into the energy market and also vastly increases energy price volatility. This transition towards an energy only market will send more accurate price signals to consumers as costs are moved out of the crudely assessed capacity charge and into the dynamic energy price. However, the greater volatility will also increase the risk faced by many market participants. The new market paradigm created by demand response will require regulators to balance the importance of sending accurate price signals to consumers against creating market conditions that decrease risk and foster investment.


The U.S. Prohibition experience shows a remarkable policy reversal. In only 14 years, a drastic shift in public opinion required two constitutional amendments. I develop and estimate a model of endogenous law enforcement, determined by beliefs about the Prohibition-crime nexus and alcohol-related moral views. In turn, the policy outcomes shape subsequent learning about Prohibition enforcement costs. I estimate the model through maximum likelihood on Prohibition Era city-level data on police enforcement, crime, and alcohol-related legislation. The model can account for the variation in public opinion changes, and the heterogeneous responses of law enforcement and violence across cities. Results show that a 15% increase in the homicide rate can be attributed to Prohibition enforcement. The subsequent learning-driven adjustment of local law enforcement allowed for the alcohol market to rebound to 60% of its pre-Prohibition size. I conclude with counterfactual exercises exploring the welfare implications of policy learning, prior beliefs, preference polarization, and alternative political environments. Results illustrate the importance of incorporating the endogenous nature of law enforcement into our understanding of policy failure and policy success.


This book reveals the hitherto hidden history of inter-missionary dispute that split the first LMS mission to Madagascar. Focussing on David Griffiths, whose pivotal role was concealed by the LMS, it suggests that Welsh-English rivalry moulded the mission's destiny.


Wear of food contact surfaces through abrasion may increase the surface roughness and introduce different topographical features. Both of these properties may enhance retention of soil and microorganisms and affect the surface cleanability. To test this hypothesis, stainless steel surfaces with topographical features and surface roughness (Ra) values simulating those of worn in-use surfaces were prepared. Surfaces were imaged and Ra values determined using atomic force microscopy (AFM). These ranged from 23 to 900 nm. Surfaces were sprayed with standardized cell suspensions of Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Staphylococcus aureus and allowed to air dry and were then cleaned using a nonionic detergent delivered via a manual linear cleaning device. There was a 2-log reduction in numbers attached after cleaning, but there was no significant difference (P > 0.05) between the cleanability of the surfaces in terms of the numbers of cells per unit area remaining after cleaning, although cells appeared to be retained within topographical features. Thus, the simulated effect of wear of a hygienic food contact surface did not affect its cleanability after a one-off microbiological soiling event. AFM provided hitherto unavailable information on the topography of worn stainless steel surfaces. In future work, the surfaces will be repeatedly challenged with an organic soil-microorganism mixture after cleaning events, to provide a more rigorous, realistic test.


The only form of monumental artistic expression practiced from antiquity to the Enlightenment, allegory evolved to its fullest complexity in Dante's Commedia and Spenser's Faerie Queene. Drawing on a wide range of literary, visual, and critical works in the European tradition, Gordon Teskey provides both a literary history of allegory and a theoretical account of the genre which confronts fundamental questions about the violence inherent in cultural forms.Approaching allegory as the site of intense ideological struggle, Teskey argues that the desire to raise temporal experience to ever higher levels of abstraction cannot be realized fully but rather creates a "rift" that allegory attempts to conceal. After examining the emergence of allegorical violence from the gendered metaphors of classical idealism, Teskey describes its amplification when an essentially theological form of expression was politicized in the Renaissance by the introduction of the classical gods, a process leading to the replacement of allegory by political satire and cartoons. He explores the relationship between rhetorical voice and forms of indirect speech (such as irony) and investigates the corporeal emblematics of violence in authors as different as Machiavelli and Yeats. He considers the large organizing theories of culture, particularly those of Eliot and Frye, which take the place in the modern world of earlier allegorical visions. Concluding with a discussion of the Mutabilitie Cantos, Teskey describes Spenser's metaphysical allegory, which is deconstructed by its own invocation of genealogical struggle, as a prophetic vision and a form of warning.