The standard PDDL language for classical planning uses several first-order features, such as schematic actions. Yet, most classical planners ground this first-order representation into a propositional one as a preprocessing step. While this simplifies the design of other parts of the planner, in several benchmarks the grounding process causes an exponential blowup that puts otherwise solvable tasks out of reach of the planners. In this work, we take a step towards planning with lifted representations. We tackle the successor generation task, a key operation in forward-search planning, directly on the lifted representation using well-known techniques from database theory. We show how computing the variable substitutions that make an action schema applicable in a given state is essentially a query evaluation problem. Interestingly, a large number of the action schemas in the standard benchmarks result in acyclic conjunctive queries, for which query evaluation is tractable. Our empirical results show that our approach is competitive with the standard (grounded) successor generation techniques in a few domains and outperforms them on benchmarks where grounding is challenging or infeasible.


We show that metric temporal logic (MTL) the extension of linear temporal logic to real time, can be viewed as linear time-invariant filtering, by interpreting addition, multiplication, and their neutral elements, over the idempotent dioid (max,min,0,1). Moreover, by interpreting these operators over the field of reals (+,x,0,1), one can associate various quantitative semantics to a metric-temporal-logic formula, depending on the filter's kernel used: square, rounded-square, Gaussian, low-pass, band-pass, or high-pass. This remarkable connection between filtering and metric temporal logic allows us to freely navigate between the two, and to regard signal-feature detection as logical inference. To the best of our knowledge, this connection has not been established before. We prove that our qualitative, filtering semantics is identical to the classical MTL semantics. We also provide a quantitative semantics for MTL, which measures the normalized, maximum number of times a formula is satisfied within its associated kernel, by a given signal. We show that this semantics is sound, in the sense that, if its measure is 0, then the formula is not satisfied, and it is satisfied otherwise. We have implemented both of our semantics in Matlab, and illustrate their properties on various formulas and signals, by plotting their computed measures.


It has been demonstrated elsewhere that the simple interaction of a two dimensional field of discrete particles traveling on a regular lattice yields large scale behavior closely approximating the continuum Navier-Stokes equations. Numerical experiments have been encouraging, yielding results that seem to represent complex flow fields accurately. Initial investigations into free surface fluid dynamics behaviour shows promise of appropriate flow field and surface wave representation. Experiments involving condensation of a dispersed gas to a free surface liquid, wave oscillations in a closed basin, and an unsteady uniform open channel flow, point out potential problems as well as opportunities.


Information Technology (IT) security is an issue which cannot be wished away by organizations and particularly Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). SMEs should embrace IT security in order to realize the benefits of IT without compromising the IT security status. Much like any other business asset, information is an asset that needs to be strategically managed and protected. It is therefore imperative that SMEs understand the value of information contained within their business systems and have a framework for assessing and implementing IT security. To address challenges faced by SMEs especially in Kenya, this research establishes an Information Technology (IT) framework that can allow Kenyan SMEs implement cost effective security measures.Particularly this work considers IT security requirements and appropriate metrics. There is evidence from the research to suggest that despite having some IT security measures in place, Kenyan SMEs still face some serious IT security challenges. In the light of the challenges faced by Kenyan SMEs, this work recommends a framework which is supposed among other things provide some metrics of evaluating the effectiveness of implemented security measures. The framework is likely to assist SME stakeholders measure the effectiveness of their security enhancing mechanisms.


1. To assess the role of the vasodepressor prostaglandin system in the antihypertensive properties of beta-adrenoceptor antagonist, we investigated the alterations of prostaglandin generation in the kidney and in the aorta when spontaneously hypertensive rats were treated with atenolol for 2 weeks. 2. The blood pressure reduction was associated with an increase in urinary sodium excretion and urinary prostaglandin E2 excretion. The sodium excretion was positively related to the prostaglandin E2 excretion. 3. Basal release of prostaglandin E2 from the sliced renal cortex was enhanced by the atenolol treatment. Prostacyclin-generating capacity in the aortic wall was also significantly increased. 4. Atenolol treatment stimulated prostaglandin synthesis in the kidney and vascular wall in a dose-dependent manner. However, atenolol per se did not directly stimulate prostaglandin synthesis in the vascular wall. 5. Inhibition of prostaglandin generation by a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, indomethacin, was associated with attenuation of the antihypertensive effects of atenolol. 6. Thus these data indicate that sub-chronic atenolol treatment stimulates vasodepressor prostaglandin generation in the kidney and in the aortic vessels, and this shares the antihypertensive effects of this drug with the mechanism of beta-adrenergic antagonism probably mediated through vasorelaxation and natriuresis.


Little is known about the specific neural mechanisms through which cognitive factors influence craving and associated brain responses, despite the initial success of cognitive therapies in treating drug addiction. In this study, we investigated how cognitive factors such as beliefs influence subjective craving and neural activities in nicotine-addicted individuals using model-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and neuropharmacology. Deprived smokers (N = 24) participated in a two-by-two balanced placebo design, which crossed beliefs about nicotine (told "nicotine" vs. told "no nicotine") with the nicotine content in a cigarette (nicotine vs. placebo) which participants smoked immediately before performing a fMRI task involving reward learning. Subjects' reported craving was measured both before smoking and after the fMRI session. We found that first, in the presence of nicotine, smokers demonstrated significantly reduced craving after smoking when told "nicotine in cigarette" but showed no change in craving when told "no nicotine." Second, neural activity in the insular cortex related to craving was only significant when smokers were told "nicotine" but not when told "no nicotine." Both effects were absent in the placebo condition. Third, insula activation related to computational learning signals was modulated by belief about nicotine regardless of nicotine's presence. These results suggest that belief about nicotine has a strong impact on subjective craving and insula responses related to both craving and learning in deprived smokers, providing insights into the complex nature of belief–drug interactions.


We provide a short report on the final year of the INQUA Shorelines Subcommission on Western Europe (2002-3). This includes a review of activities under four themes: sea-level changes in the next century; sea-level changes along a north-south transect from the uplifting coasts of Fennoseandanvia to the subsiding coasts of the North Sea and the Baltic, and the meta stable areas such as Portugal and France; comparisons between modeled and empirical observations of relative sea-level (RSL) change, and palaeo-tsunami and storm records. We conclude by providing a report on the final 2002 Annual Meeting including its field meeting at Greifswald and Mecklenburg-West Pomerania and provide a list of some recent publications by members of the INQUA Shorelines Subcommission.


We examine how owners of productive resources (e.g. public enterprises or financial capital) optimally allocate their resources among wealth-constrained operators of unknown ability. Optimal allocations exhibit: (1) shared enterprise profit--the resource owner always shares the operator's profit; (2) dispersed enterprise ownership--resources are widely distributed among operators of varying ability; (3) limited benefits of competition--the owner may not benefit from increased competition for the resource; and, sometimes (4) diluted incentives for the most capable--more capable operators receive smaller shares of the returns they generate. Implications for privatizations and venture capital arrangements are explored.


We document that an increasing fraction of jobs in the U.S. labor market explicitly pay workers for their performance using bonuses, commissions, or piece-rates. We find that compensation in performance-pay jobs is more closely tied to both observed (by the econometrician) and unobserved productive characteristics of workers. Moreover, the growing incidence of performance-pay can explain 24 percent of the growth in the variance of male wages between the late 1970s and the early 1990s, and accounts for nearly all of the top-end growth in wage dispersion (above the 80th percentile).


The structure of a comprehensive research project into mine fires applying the Ventgraph mine fire simulation software, preplanning of escape scenarios and general interaction with rescue responses is outlined. The project has ACARP funding and also relies on substantial mining company site support. This is essential and allows the approach to be introduced in the most creditable way. The outcome of the completed project will be that the Australian mining industry is in an improved position in their understanding of mine fires and the use of modern advances to preplan actions to be taken in the event of mine fires and the handling of possible emergency incidents. The essential work program of the project is described and work already undertaken at individual mines discussed as examples. The effort is built around the introduction of fire simulation computer software to the Australian mining industry and the consequent modelling of fire scenarios in selected different mine layouts. Application of the simulation software package to the changing mine layouts necessitates experience to achieve realistic outcomes. Most large Australian mines of size currently use a ventilation network simulation program. Under the project a small subroutine has been written to transfer the input data from the existing mine ventilation network simulation program to Ventgraph. This has been tested successfully. To understand fire simulation correctly the mine ventilation system must be understood correctly first. The results of the project to date are discussed.


Summary Australian stingless bees contribute to the pollination of commercially important crops. Optimum bee stocking rates have, however, yet to be established. To determine stocking rates, five pollination trials were conducted. For each trial, 50 plants of Capsicum annuum L. var. grossum (L.) Sendt cv. Aries were placed in each of two glasshouses and a colony of T. carbonaria randomly assigned to one of the two glasshouses. The other glasshouse contained no bees and acted as a control. The grade and weight of fresh fruit increased by 26% and 24%, respectively, for plants subjected to bee pollination. To determine the number of pollination events required for optimum pollination, during the final trial, 110 flowers were randomly selected and covered with organza draw-string bags. The bags were removed between 10.00 and 11.00 h on the day of assessment to allow between one to ten pollination events to occur. A pollination event was deemed to have occurred each time a bee touched the stigma. There were no significant increases in pollen grain numbers on stigmatic surfaces after three pollination events. It was therefore determined that for optimum pollination to occur, T. carbonaria needed to come into contact with C. annuum stigmatic surfaces three times. The stocking rate was calculated from number of pollen foragers per hour, the mean number of foraging hours per day, the mean number of flowers that bees visited per hour, the number of flowers per plant in anthesis at any given time and the number of pollination events required to reach optimum pollination. The mean light intensity, temperature and relative humidity for all observations were 17869 Lx, 23°C and 47%, respectively and, under these conditions, one T. carbonaria OATH hive per ~1900 C. annuum plants was optimal. This rate will, however, change depending on the ambient conditions, crop species and forager numbers.


Backgorund: Composite bone substitute materials have been raising more interest as an alternative for autologous transplants and pure xenogenic materials in oral surgery for last few years. These not immunogenic and completely resorbable biomaterials may become the basis for complete and predictable guided bone regeneration. In the majority of cases the deciding factor is ease of application of the material by a surgeon.

Objectives: The main objective of our project was to design and fabricate an osteoconductive, injectable and well tolerated by human tissues biomaterial for guided bone regeneration.

Materials and methods: For this purpose, a self-setting composite consisting of chitosan/tricalcium phosphate microparticles and sodium alginate was formulated. The obtained material was characterized as far as microsphere, agglomerates morphology and microstructure are concerned. Physical properties relating to setting time and mechanical properties were precisely investigated. Our material was evaluated according to EN ISO 10993 Biological evaluation of medical devices. Then, the implantation tests on small and big animal model were performed. Results: The tested material showed high degree of cytocompatibility, fulfilled the requirements of the International Standards, confirmed its osteoconductivity after implantation and seems to be a "user friendly" material for oral, orthopedics and neurosurgeons.

Conclusions: On the basis of positive in vitro and in vivo test results an attempt at introducing new biotechnology was made.


The traffic-handling capability of a communication system used for aircraft control during airport traffic control, ground-controlled approach, and ground-controlled landing is studied. The system is treated as a multiloop servomechanism which includes both ground and airborne equipment. The factors which affect the location of the communications link in the system are discussed. These include message rate, airborne equipment or ground measurements necessary, flight geometry, and flight safety. It is shown that the minimum message rate is possible if the quantity transmitted is the same as the flight motion desired. Several methods are presented for increasing the traffic-handling capability by reducing the message rate. One of these introduces controlled blacklash into the outermost feedback loop and automatically determines the minimum message rate while navigating to a point. A dynamic analysis is used to determine the limitations of the method. The methods presented are illustrated by showing their application to automatic flight control during ground-controlled approach and ground-controlled landing.


Sustainable access to energy for a growing population is a global challenge. Our society is dependent on a stable supply of energy; industry (including agriculture, mining, manufacturing and construction), transport and heating can only work if sufficient energy is available. Over 80% of the current global use of energy is based on fossil fuels: oil, coal and gas. In addition to the potentially devastating climate effects of burning two billion years of stored hydrocarbons within a century, fossil fuels will eventually run out and we will be left with less than one fifth of the current energy supply which will clearly not be enough. Thus the energy system of the world will have to change dramatically to replace the fossil fuels with existing and new sustainable sources. This is a major global challenge for mankind.
But it is not only a technological challenge; there are also important political dimensions: we need international agreements, a stable economy and a long-term view (over several decades). The kind of global restructuring needed requires local as well as international agreements. Already now we are facing tensions due to the uneven distribution of energy production (mainly "mining" of oil, coal and gas) and consumption. Access to strategically important regions is causing conflicts and as fossil fuels run scarce, increasing prices may lead to increasing tension. Even if we disregard open conflicts, the sheer size of the energy sector makes it a major force in the global economy and with the uneven distribution of producers and consumers this force is destabilizing. The transformation towards sustainable energy solutions will take decades, so a major political challenge is long-term commitment (over several elections). In democracies this requires a voting population which is aware of the energy problem and willing to support the transition. Policymakers around the world, and their voters, need access to comprehensible and trustworthy information about potential energy sources and ways to change our strong dependence on energy.


Background For football referees supervision of a match means significant mental burden. Referees experience higher level of anxiety and fear1 which are typical manifestations of negative pre-match states.2 As a result of a completed match levels of components of depression and exhaustion increase.1 Our goal was to verify the correlation between these two components. Methods Our research sample consisted of 26 male football referees who supervise football competitions in one of the 14 regions of the Czech Republic. For evaluation of their subjective psychological experiences and states the standardised questionnaire SUPSO3 was used. The questionnaire was filled in twice: before the match and immediately after the match. Ratio of predominant temperament components was evaluated using standardised Belov's temperament test.4 In the statistical analysis Spearman's coefficient of rank correlation and partial correlation coefficient were used. Results Pre-match values of anxiety and fear component statistically significantly correlate with the values of component of depression and exhaustion. This serial dependence remained stastically significant even after exclusion of implications of referees' temperament. Conclusions Negative pre-match mental states of football referees worsen their ability to cope with the supervised match on a psychological level. "Pre-match fever" can lead to premature exhaustion, while apathy can lead to insufficient activation. Regulation of these negative pre-match states can improve coping with mental burden during a football match. Pre-match preparation should therefore focus more on regulating the referees' actual mental state ("pre-start mental state").


Managing farming inputs in wheat production technologies is an issue of paramount importance to attain optimum profitable production. To examine how varying the farming inputs affects the nutrients uptake and productivity of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars and to determine the economic efficiency of various cultivation technologies, three-year field experiments were laid out at the Russian Research Institute of Agriculture, during the 2015 2017 growing seasons. Experiments were conducted once a year using randomized complete block arranged in a split plot experimental design with three replications, with the cultivation technology treatments (basic, intensive and high intensive technology) as the main plots, and spring wheat cultivars (Zelata, Lubova, Liza and Ester) as the sub-main plots. The highest grain yield (10.8 t ha-1), harvest index (42.9%), gluten content (39.45%) and gluten index (71.17%) observed for spring wheat cultivar Lubova with the moderate application of farming inputs as an intensive cultivation technology. Highest protein content (18.02%) was attained for both intensive and high intensive cultivation technology with the cultivar Lubova, and the highest 1,000 grains weight (46.32 g) was recorded by cultivar Lubova in basic cultivation technology. Applying moderate amount of inputs as an intensive cultivation technology resulted in highest wheat yield and net income.


Lepton colliders are considered as options to complement and to extend the physics programme at the Large Hadron Collider. The Compact Linear Collider (CLIC) is an e+e− collider under development aiming at centre-of-mass energies of up to 3 TeV. For experiments at CLIC, a hadron sampling calorimeter with tungsten absorber is proposed. Such a calorimeter provides sufficient depth to contain high-energy showers, while allowing a compact size for the surrounding solenoid. A fine-grained calorimeter prototype with tungsten absorber plates and scintillator tiles read out by silicon photomultipliers was built and exposed to particle beams at CERN. Results obtained with electrons, pions and protons of momenta up to 10 GeV are presented in terms of energy resolution and shower shape studies. The results are compared with several GEANT4 simulation models in order to assess the reliability of the Monte Carlo predictions relevant for a future experiment at CLIC.


Introduction: In this study was designed to investigate pain and depression status, relation between pain and depression, and influential factors in the elderly residing in a nursing home. Materials and Method: This investigation was performed in a nursing home that is linked to Social Services and Society for the Protection of Children between the dates October the 5th 2007 December the 29th 2007 in Istanbul. The sample included 95 elderly who agreed to participate in interviews and who could be contacted to. Data were collected by a questionnaire, Numeric Pain Scale and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) during face-to-face interviews. Results: The prevalence of pain in old people that live in nursing home has determined as 57.9%. The prevalence of depression risk in old people is 66.3%. There is no statistically significant correlation between the severity of pain and the averages of depression risk scores (r=0.01; p=0.89). The average GDS scores of the elderly people who feel pain in whole day and who feel tingling pain have been determined higher than the others, and this is statistically significant (p<0.01). Conclusion: No statistically significant difference between presence of pain and average scores in GDS was determined (p>0.01). Keys words: , Depression, Pain, Pain Scale, Nursing Home. ARAfiTIRMA


As the rapid development of broadband Internet access services continues, particularly fiber to the home (FTTH) services, the digital divide between provincial and urban areas is becoming a big social issue in Japan. We classify the issue into two problems: access to high-speed Internet, and service utilization of high-speed Internet access. We focus on the latter problem by quantitatively and qualitatively investigating whether a digital divide problem exists based on Internet service utilization. Consequently, we discover that willingness to pay (WTP) for public services over FTTH is almost identical between provincial and urban areas. Furthermore, territorial digital broadcasting over FTTH accounts for a large part of WTP in provincial areas, while tele-working and tele-education are also important as public services over FTTH in urban areas.


The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the Professional Identity Development Program on the professional identity, job satisfaction and burnout levels of registered nurses. This study was conducted as a quasi-experimental one with 63 nurses working in a university hospital. Data were gathered using the Personal Information Questionnaire, the Professional Self Concept Inventory, Minnesota Job Satisfaction Inventory and the Maslach Burnout Inventory. The Professional Identity Development Program which consists of ten sessions was implemented to the study group once a week. The Program significantly improved the professional identity of the nurses in the study group compared to that of the control group. During the research period, burnout levels significantly decreased in the study group while those of the control group increased. The programme did not create any significant differences in the job satisfaction levels of the nurses. The programme had a positive impact on the professional identity of the nurses. It is recommended that the programme should be implemented in different hospitals with different samples of nurses, and that its effectiveness should be evaluated.


Apolonia Dangzalan, a Filipino resident of Watsonville, California, was interviewed on April 27, 1977 by Meri Knaster, an editor at the Regional History Project, as part of a series of oral histories documenting local agricultural and ethnic history. Dangzalan was born in February 1896 in San Nicolas, Ilocos Sur, northwest of Manila, on the largest of the Philippine islands. Her family owned some land on which rice and corn was cultivated by sharecroppers. Her uncle was the president of San Nicholas. Dangzalan attended school for five years but was unable to continue due to illness. Her father died when she was five years old and her mother died when she was seventeen. In 1923, at age 27, she married. A year later she and her husband immigrated to Oahu, Hawaii. Her husband worked in the sugar cane fields and Dangzalan began a small business in her house sewing clothes for the Filipino community. This was the first of many small businesses she would run throughout her long life. In 1925 she and her husband moved to San Francisco, and then to Stockton, California, where her husband worked as a laborer in the asparagus fields. Dissatisfied with her marriage, in 1926 Dangzalan divorced her husband and moved to Marysville, California, where she bought and managed a pool hall and restaurant frequented by Filipinos, Mexicans and Anglo Americans. Although she enjoyed this work, business was not too good. She heard that Watsonville and Salinas were much better places to be in business because they attracted a large Filipino community that came to work in the fruit orchards. So after five months in Marysville, Dangzalan joined her nephew, Frank Barba, in Watsonville, California. (Frank Barba is also the subject of an oral history published by the Regional History Project.) Dangzalan opened a boarding house for Filipino agricultural workers on Bridge Street in Watsonville, California, where she became known as Mama Dangzalan. After a few years, her nephew, Frank Barba, took over the Watsonville boarding house and Dangzalan opened another boarding house on Salinas Road in 1930. Most of the workers she housed were working for the Gary Company, and Dangzalan also served as a labor contractor, hiring men to work in the company's fields. Dangzalan was one of very few women engaged in labor contracting. Dangzalan engaged in diverse business activities besides labor contracting. She also opened a liquor store, dancing club, and pool hall on Main Street in Watsonville in 1936. During World War II she owned a house of prostitution on Union Street in Watsonville. She hired an American woman to manage it for her. In 1950 Dangzalan stopped working as a labor contractor and went into business for herself as a farmer, primarily growing strawberries. After four years of this she was tired. In 1952 Dangzalan was operated on for kidney cancer. She withdrew from all of her businesses except for the International Groceries and Liquors store on lower Main Street, which she was still running at the time of this oral history interview in 1977. At age 81 Dangzalan was still working in the liquor store until 2:30 in the morning. In her field notes, interviewer Meri Knaster described Dangzalan as a very spry and active eighty-one year old . Dangzalan continued to operate the liquor store until 1982. She died in 1992, at the age of 96.


Many community water supply systems in Nepal are suffering from non-functionality. For various reasons, the communities responsible are unable to manage their water assets. External support is needed to improve water asset management. The required external supports were analyzed based on the life cycle curve. Subsequently a new management concept of debugging, servicing and refurbishing of the rural water supply system has been proposed. Debugging decreases the duration of the burn in period, servicing increases the useful life period and refurbishment revitalizes the system at the end of its design life.


Abstract When traffic safety statistics in less developed countries (even those where enormous progress has been made in the last years) are compared with those of more advanced countries, it is evident that there is still a great deal to be done. Using Chile as a case study, we propose a set of measures to significantly reduce fatalities in the short term. A simple methodology is proposed to guide the process of selecting the most promising measures, taking into account their cost‐effectiveness. Eight such measures are identified and their potential benefits and costs of implementation are estimated for our case study. Special care is taken in choosing measures aimed at protecting vulnerable road users who represent around 50% of road fatalities in Chile. The plan we propose has the potential to reduce 460 fatalities per year (i.e. 21%), as a conservative estimate. A discussion on the transferability of these results to other developing nations is offered.


This article analyzes the environmental effects of resource consumption at a subnational level (by Cardiff, the capital city of Wales), using the Ecological Footprint as a measure of impact assessment. The article begins by providing a short critique of the Footprint methodology and the limitations of methods traditionally used to calculate national Footprint accounts. We then describe the Footprint methodology developed by the Stockholm Environment Institute to overcome some of these problems and used as the basis of the Reducing Wales' Ecological Footprint project, of which the Cardiff study has been a part. The main portion of this article focuses on presenting and discussing the Footprint results for Cardiff. The Ecological Footprint of household consumption in Cardiff will be presented using the international Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose (COICOP). Based on the results, we found that the areas of consumption that are a priority for Cardiff in terms of reducing resource use are food and drink, passenger transport (car and aviation), domestic fuel consumption, waste, and tourism. We also discuss how these findings have been presented to the Cardiff Council. We report on the initial reactions of policy officers to the Footprint results and how the Council plans to use them to influence policy decisions relating to sustainability. Finally, in the Conclusions section, we briefly explain the value of applying the Ecological Footprint at a subnational level and its value as an evidence‐based tool for sustainability decision making.


Objective: To characterize the behavior of gastric cancer, by educational level, area of residence (rural/urban), age group and mortality in the Mexican population that attended the IMSS from 2005 to 2015.
Material and methods: by means of registration of Family Medical Units and data platform Non-Communicable Disease Analysis System (SANENT) we analyzed the patients with registry according to ICD-10: C16; The general characteristics of the population (sex, schooling and type of housing), the incidence and mortality in the years included were described. Statistical analysis: We calculated the average and standard deviation of quantitative variables and proportions for qualitative variables. To compare the incidence and mortality rates between the years analyzed, and the characteristics of the population was by Chi square test. SPSS v.17.0 was used for statistical analysis.
Results: In the period from 2005 to 2015, which equals 10 years, a total of 21,761 deaths secondary to gastric cancer with an average death rate of 8.1 × 100,000 members of the IMSS. The overall mortality rate of gastric cancer has declined steadily (year 2005: rate 8.08 × 100,000 vs. 2015: rate of 6.9 × 100,000 p<0.001). This decline has been at the expense of the decline in the mortality rate in women, while in men the mortality rate remained high from 2005 to 2015 (8.2 and 8.5 × 100,000 affiliated to the IMSS, respectively). With regard to educational level, and rural or urban housing, it was consistently demonstrated in 2005, 2010 and 2015 that there was a greater proportion of deceased subjects with a low school level and living in an urban environment.
Conclusions: A decline in the overall mortality rate was observed, men were the sex most affected in the mortality rate, and did not change over time. It is essential to continue and implement national programs for the timely detection of this disease, with a greater focus on males because they are the most affected and have an impact on the mortality rate.


A growing body of evidence supports a multi-level view of visual word recognition incorporating representations at an intermediate level where multiletter units can be activated directly by supraletter features (e.g. Drewnowski & Healy, 1977). In the present study, priming in an alphabetic decision task was exploited to investigate the existence of directly activated multiletter units. Subjects were required to make a discrimination response to test stimuli that could be targets or foils. Targets were single letters or consonant-bigrams that were present or absent in an immediately preceding word, and foils were single keyboard characters or a character plus a letter. Experiment I verified an earlier finding that responses to consonantbigrams are facilitated when they appear in a prime word, whereas responses to the constituent letters of those bigrams are not facilitated (Greenberg & Vellutino, 1988). In addition, responses to primed bigrams were faster than responses to primed single letters. Experiments 2 to 4 revealed that bigram priming in the absence of letter priming occurs only when both primes and targets appear in lower-case type. It is concluded that separable multiletter units are represented in the visual word recognition system and are directly activated by supraletter visual features. The findings are discussed in the context of current theories of visual word recognition.


The Public Oversight Board (2000) has raised concerns over the underreporting of time on audit engagements, noting that the practice can negatively affect audit quality and lead to other unethical behaviors which lead to increased audit risk. While the practice is prohibited by audit firm policies, if underreporting by engagement staff is tacitly rewarded by the audit managers evaluating staff work, an environment is created in which underreporting time may be necessary for staff to succeed and advance within the firm. Our study considers the role of audit managers in perpetuating the practice of underreporting by examining the extent to which, and under what conditions, managers accept (i.e., implicitly reward) such behavior in their audit staff. Utilizing an experiment in which engagement staff appear to have worked more hours than were budgeted, we manipulate staff reporting accuracy (underreporting hours worked in order to meet budget versus accurately reporting exceeding the budget) and managers' personal preference for the client (high versus low). We find that staff reporting accuracy and managers' personal preferences for the client interact disordinally to affect managers' performance evaluations of staff, with the highest evaluations going to staff who underreport when the manager's preference for the client is high, and the lowest going to staff who accurately report that they have exceeded budget when the manager's preference for the client is high. Further, we find that managers are more likely to request an underreporter on a different engagement, regardless of their preference for the current client. These results are consistent with agency theory and suggest that managers' own incentive structures influence how they evaluate their audit staff, contributing to an environment that implicitly rewards underreporting of time even though firm policy explicitly prohibits the behavior.


Abstract : This report describes results from two recent surveys conducted by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) to collect information about the measurement and analysis activities of software systems development organizations. Representatives of organizations appraised at maturity levels 4 and 5 completed the survey in 2008. Using a variant of the same questionnaire in 2009, certified high maturity lead appraisers described the organizations that they had most recently coached or appraised for the achievement of similar high maturity levels. The replies to both surveys were generally consistent even though the two groups are often thought to be quite different. The results of the surveys suggest that the organizations understood and used CMMI-based process performance modeling and related aspects of measurement and analysis a great deal. Both the organizational respondents in 2008 and the appraisers in 2009 reported that process performance models were useful for the organizations. The respondents in both surveys also judged process performance modeling to be more valuable in organizations that understood and used measurement and analysis activities more frequently and provided organizational resources and management support. In addition, results from the 2009 survey of lead appraisers indicate that organizations that achieved their appraised high maturity level goals also found measurement and analysis activities more useful than those organizations that did not achieve their targets.


The regret bound of dynamic online learning algorithms is often expressed in terms of the variation in the function sequence (V_T) and/or the path-length of the minimizer sequence after T rounds. For strongly convex and smooth functions, Zhang et al. (2017) establish the squared path-length of the minimizer sequence (C*_{2,T}) as a lower bound on regret. They also show that online gradient descent (OGD) achieves this lower bound using multiple gradient queries per round. In this paper, we focus on unconstrained online optimization. We first show that a preconditioned variant of OGD achieves O(min{C*_T,C*_{2,T}}) with one gradient query per round (C*_T refers to the normal path-length). We then propose online optimistic Newton (OON) method for the case when the first and second order information of the function sequence is predictable. The regret bound of OON is captured via the quartic path-length of the minimizer sequence (C*_{4,T}), which can be much smaller than C*_{2,T}. We finally show that by using multiple gradients for OGD, we can achieve an upper bound of O(min{C*_{2,T},V_T}) on regret.


The legal grounds for the self-determination processes of two different indigenous peoples in Peruvian Amazonia reveal how the social relationships they establish with nonhumans enable them to exercise their current rights as "indigenous peoples" in international law. After examining the scope of the recent 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples both in this regard and from a historical perspective, I analyze in particular the notion of "spirituality" used in international law to qualify the relationship between humans and nonhumans among indigenous peoples. Finally, I argue that this recent change in the rights of indigenous peoples, considered as human rights, is the sign of a more widespread change in the nature of a subject of law.


The Arabian–Nubian Shield evolved through a sequence of tectonomagmatic cycles, which took place during Neoproterozoic time (1000–540 Ma). Dyke emplacement constitutes one of the conspicuous features of the Arabian–Nubian Shield, with mafic dykes being the most abundant. The investigated dykes represent the youngest Neoproterozoic mafic dykes and have been dated in Jordan at 545 ± 13 Ma. Geochemically the studied dykes are mildly alkaline, are enriched in large ion lithophile elements (LILE) and high field strength cations (HFSC), show moderate enrichment of REE, and lack Nb anomaly. These features are consistent with a predominantly extensional continental tectonic setting. Crystallization temperatures of the suite fall between 1050 and 800 °C to as low as 650 °C as deduced from pyroxene thermometry. The investigated dykes were derived from a metasomatized lithospheric mantle by 5 % modal batch partial melting of phlogopite-bearing spinel lherzolite, according to geochemical modelling. The intra-suite geochemical features are explicable by 64 % fractional crystallization of olivine, pyroxene, plagioclase and titanomagnetite and possibly other accessories like apatite at a later stage. The cumulate produced from this fractionation of the investigated dyke suite contributed to the formation of the mafic lower crust of the Arabian–Nubian Shield. Elemental ratios and petrographic evidence indicate possible minor crustal contamination of the suite. The youngest mafic dykes show striking geochemical similarities to the same generation of dolerite dykes in the adjacent countries, to transitional young basalt suites of the Main East African Rift, and to Quaternary Jordanian basalts. The youngest mafic dyke suite, the rhyolites of the Aheimir suite, and St Katherina rhyolites of Sinai represent the last igneous activity in the Arabian–Nubian Shield before the onset of the Cambrian at about 545 Ma ago.


The accurate spatial location of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) is crucial for both producing a detector response matrix (DRM) and follow-up observations by other instruments. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) has the largest field of view (FOV) for detecting GRBs as it views the entire unocculted sky, but as a non-imaging instrument it relies on the relative count rates observed in each of its 14 detectors to localize transients. Improving its ability to accurately locate GRBs and other transients is vital to the paradigm of multi-messenger astronomy, including the electromagnetic follow-up of gravitational wave signals. Here we present the BAyesian Location Reconstruction Of GRBs ({\tt BALROG}) method for localizing and characterising GBM transients. Our approach eliminates the systematics of previous approaches by simultaneously fitting for the location and spectrum of a source. It also correctly incorporates the uncertainties in the location of a transient into the spectral parameters and produces reliable positional uncertainties for both well-localized sources and those for which the GBM data cannot effectively constrain the position. While computationally expensive, {\tt BALROG} can be implemented to enable quick follow-up of all GBM transient signals. Also, we identify possible response problems that require attention as well as caution when using standard, public GBM DRMs. Finally, we examine the effects of including the variance in location on the spectral parameters of GRB 080916C. We find that spectral parameters change and no extra components are required when these effects are included in contrast to when we use a fixed location. This finding has the potential to alter both the GRB spectral catalogs as well as the reported spectral composition of some well-known GRBs.


The corrosion resistance of dark green passivation films on zinc-plated steel sheet was studied by polarization curve measurement, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and neutral salt spray test. The passivated sample features a more positive corrosion potential and much lower corrosion current density as compared to non-passivated sample in 5% (mass fraction) NaCl solution. The Nyquist plots of the samples with and without passivation was characterized as two complete capacitive arcs, indicating that the corrosion is controlled by electrochemical process. The radii of capacitive arcs of the passivated sample are larger than that of non-passivated sample, because the passivation film formed on the surface of sample increases the reaction resistance in corrosion process, thus the corrosion resistance of the sample is improved. The anti-white rust time of the passivation film in neutral salt spray test is 400 h.


Time-limited dispatch (TLD) allows the dispatch of aircraft with faults present in their control systems for limited time periods. In order for TLD to be applied to an aircraft system it is first necessary to demonstrate that the relevant safety and certification requirements are being met by modelling the system in question. To do this existing modelling techniques use variations of fault tree analysis and Markov analysis with various simplifying assumptions, made to assist in the analytical process. Monte Carlo simulation is presented here as an alternative method of analysis, which can deal well with the potential difficulties that may present themselves when modelling TLD, such as the complex architectures of aircraft systems and dependencies that are introduced when applying TLD. In this paper a simple example system is introduced and the application of TLD to it is modelled using the existing variation of Markov analysis and a Monte Carlo simulation technique. The results obtained using the different techniques are seen to differ and a number of reasons are suggested for this difference.


Investing in companies that create social, environmental and economic value is a trend that has been increasing worldwide. This type of triple-bottom-line investing is commonly called impact investing, a market estimated to be worth $60bn worldwide in 2014 and up to $1-trillion by 2020. With 22% of global-impact enterprises located in Sub-Saharan Africa, much of the opportunity lies on this continent. The time is ripe for fund managers, asset managers, financial portfolio managers and foundation management to educate themselves about the impact investment market and how they can participate not only in creating wealth for a few, but creating opportunities for millions of Africans as well.


Of all powers given to local governments, the power to zone is one of the most significant. Zoning dictates everything that gets built in a locality — and thus effectively dictates all of the key activities that take place within it. Nationwide, most zoning codes were adopted in the first half of the twentieth century. Many, including the zoning codes of New York City and Chicago, were significantly revised in the 1960s. While these codes have been revised piecemeal, just a few American cities have undergone a comprehensive revision: replacing the old code with a completely new one.

A comprehensive rezoning can allow a city to remake itself by casting off outdated requirements and codifying community priorities such as equity, sustainability, and vibrancy. Comprehensive revisions have the most promise in cities where growth is stagnant or where the economy is depressed. In those places, a zoning overhaul can signal a fresh start to attract new development and provide opportunities for creative place-making.

Given the struggling state of many American cities, it is surprising that so few have thrown off the shackles of their outdated zoning codes. And given the promise of comprehensive rezonings, it is surprising that not a single law review article deals squarely with the topic. This Article provides the first law review treatment of this critically important issue.

Delving deeply into recent zoning reforms of Hartford, Connecticut, this Article seeks to illustrate the power of zoning as a critical legal tool for urban revitalization. Part II provides the context for comprehensive rezonings, identifying why they may be desirable, which communities have adopted them, and what procedural and substantive issues may arise. Part III then covers four central goals that many cities share: economic growth, environmental sustainability, access and mobility, and food security. Part III also describes how Hartford used its zoning code to directly advance these goals. (In the process of rezoning, Hartford has been recognized with awards and national attention for several key decisions — including virtually eliminating parking minimums citywide.) Finally, Part IV describes some lessons learned during the rezoning process. This Article aims to encourage academics to delve further into this area of law — and to encourage policymakers to usher in new rules that promote equity, sustainability, and vibrancy.


Measuring gaze allocation during scene perception typically faces a dilemma: full control over the stimulus requires comparably constrained scenarios, while realistic tasks leave the visual input hard to control. We propose to capture the full (4pi) light-field of an oce space, while participants perform typical oce tasks. Using a wearable eye-tracking device ("EyeSeeCam"), gaze, head and body orientation are measured along with subjective well-being and performance. In the present study, 52 participants performed four oce tasks ("input", "reflection", "output", "interaction"), each with three dierent tools (phone, computer, paper) under varying lighting conditions and outside views. We found that eye and head were fundamentally differently affected by view and that this dependence was modulated by task and tool, unless participants' task was related to reading. Importantly, for some tasks head movements rather than eye movements dominated gaze allocation. Since head and body movements frequently remain unaddressed in eye-tracking studies, our data highlight the importance of unconstrained settings. Beyond assessing the interaction between top-down (task-related) and bottom-up (stimulus-related) factors for deploying gaze and attention under real-world conditions, such data are inevitable for realistic models of optimal workplace lighting and thus for the well-being of an occupant's workplace.


【A number of components installed in the secondary system of nuclear power plants are exposed to aging mechanisms such as FAC (Flow-Accelerated Corrosion), Cavitation, Flashing, and LDIE (Liquid Droplet Impingement Erosion). Those aging mechanisms can lead to thinning of the components. In April 2013, one (1) inch small bore piping branched from the main steam line experienced leakage resulting from wall thinning in a 1,000 MWe Korean PWR nuclear power plant. During the normal operation, extracted steam from the main steam line goes to condenser through the small bore piping. The leak occurred in the downstream of an orifice. A control valve with vertical flow path was placed on in front of the orifice. This paper deals with UT (Ultrasonic Test) thickness data, SEM images, and numerical simulation results in order to analyze the extent of damage and the cause of leakage in the small bore piping. As a result, it is concluded that the main cause of the small bore pipe wall thinning is liquid droplet impingement erosion. Moreover, it is observed that the leak occurred at the reattachment point of the vortex flow in the downstream side of the orifice.】


Traditionally, little attention has been focused on the systematic verification of operational hydrologic forecasts. This paper summarizes the results of forecast verification from 15 river basins in the United States. The verification scores for these forecast locations do not show improvement over the periods of record despite a number of forecast process improvements. In considering a root cause for these results, the authors note that the current paradigm for designing hydrologic forecast process improvements is driven by expert opinion and not by objective verification measures. The authors suggest that this paradigm should be modified and objective verification metrics should become the primary driver for hydrologic forecast process improvements.


The first authoritative, comprehensive historical dictionary of Poland in English, this volume includes over 2,000 entries on people, events, places, and terms important to Poland's history from 966 to 1945. Entries include English and Polish language bibliographic sources. The student of Polish history seeking specific information on a person or event in medieval times, the troubled era leading to the late 18th century partitions of Poland, and the Polish nationalist struggles before 1919, reborn Poland in the interwar years, or the trauma of World War II will be amply rewarded by the accurate, concise information provided in this unique historical dictionary. Each of the alphabetically arranged entries is followed by pertinent bibliographic sources in both English and Polish languages. A list of abbreviations, a note on the Polish alphabet, and a series of historical maps precede the entries. Helpful cross-references are provided throughout the text and in the index. A general bibliography precedes the index. After five years of work, George Lerski completed the original manuscript in 1992, shortly before his untimely death. The special editing subsequently undertaken preparatory to publication has remained faithful to the original work, its concept, organization, and purpose.


Extracted from text ... 6 Rival Views of Organised Crime
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This monograph represents one output of a two year studentship provided by
the Leverhulme Trust, whom the author would like to thank for their generous
support. In addition, the author would like to thank all those at the ISS office in
Cape Town, and especially Peter Gastrow, for providing a stimulating and welcoming
work environment.
LIST OF TABLES
TABLE 1
Properties of four models of criminal coordination 18
TABLE 2
Police perceptions in SADC countries of top three transnational
organised crime threats 47
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
The question that forms the ..


An examination was made of the ecological factors causing the changes in
dominance between six eucalypt species; E. delegatensis, E. coccifera and E.
pulchella (subgenus Monocalyptus); and E. gunnii, E. unigera and E. johnstonii
(subgenus Symphyomyrtus) which formed a mosaic within and surrounding a
shallow depression on a subalpine plateau (approximately 600 m in altitude) at
Snug Plains, southern Tasmania. The populations of the six species at the
1 square kilometre study area were in most cases lower altitude ecotypes of
subalpine species. However, morphometric studies of foliar samples from field
trees and glasshouse grown seedlings of the one lowland species, E. pulchella,
suggested that the Snug Plains E. pulchella population was of hybrid origin
("phantom hybrid") with E. coccifera and E. pulchella as the putative parents.
Reciprocal transplant trials established in six locations in the field at
Snug Plains demonstrated that the key factors influencing seedling survival in
the low lying sites were: severity of frost, waterlogging and phytophagous
insect attack. Differences in soil nutrition and texture had little influence on
seedling growth and seedlings in elevated, well drained sites grew rapidly.
There was also a strong tendency in the field transplant trials for the species
naturally dominant at the site to become dominant or show greatest growth on
a relative basis at its site of origin.
A record frost, with an absolute minimum temperature of -22°C at the
radiating surface, was recorded at Snug Plains in June 1982. Temperature
measurements made in a transect across the study area indicated a marked
vertical stratification of the air body occurred (up to 9°C/m) and a steep
gradient in minimum temperature (7 .3°C over 200 m) was established between
the base of the depression and the ridge top. The natural distributions of the
six species studied were closely related to the minimum temperature recorded.
Frost damage incurred by mixed pole stands on the margins of the. depressions
was, in places, severe. Interspecific differences in frost hardiness were in the
order (from greatest to least): E. gunnii > E. coccifera > E. johnstonii > f.:
d~legatensis > E. pulchella. The severe frosts caused marked changes in
dominance in mixed stands, even though they resulted in few deaths.
Exceptional frosts like those of June 1982 may have an important effect on the
distributions of subalpine eucalypts. In the reciprocal transplant trials, growing
season frosts of -.5.5°C inflicted severe damage on the unhardened seedlings of
all species except ~nnii, which exhibited outstanding frost resistance in the
unhardened state. Winter frost of -10.5°C caused markedly less damage which suggests that growing season frosts may play an important role in determining
the distribution of subalpine eucalypts. Frost chamber experiments confirmed
the importance of hardening pretreatment on relative frost resistance of the
species studied, and demonstrated a significant interactive effect of
waterlogging on frost resistance. The Monocalyetus species were more
susceptible to frost in waterlogged soils, whereas no such relationship existed
for the .sxmphyomyrtus species.
Damage inflicted on seedlings in the transplant trials during a frost free
period when waterlogged conditions prevailed, indicated that the
sxmphxomyrtus species E. gunnii, E. urnigera and E. johnstonii were more
waterlogging tolerant than the Monocalxptus species E. pulchella, E. coccifera
and E. delegatensis. This was confirmed. by glasshouse based trials which
showed marked differences existed between the subgenera in tolerance to
waterlogging. After 30 days of waterlogging the sxmehxomyrtus species had
significantly higher midday stomatal conductances and water potentials than
the Monocalxpt~? species. Further, Sxmphxomyrtus species exhibited stem
hypertrophy and developed extensive, aerenchymatous, adventitious root
systems. The Monocalxptus species demonstrated no such morphological
adaptations. The results suggest that the Monocalyetus species will be absent
from waterlogged sites, which agrees with the distributions of the species and
measurements of soil moisture-status in the field.
Phytophagous insect attack which affected 3 transplant trials caused
severe damage to E. gunnii, E. urnigera and E. johnstonii seedlings (up to 75%
leaf' loss) but only slight damage to E. delegatensis, and E.
pulchella (up to 10% leaf loss). This suggests that selective insect grazing may
have an important effect on the dominance patterns in regenerating mixed
eucalypt stands at Snug Plains.
Glasshouse based drought trials suggested differences in drought
resistance existed between the subgenera. The Monocalyptus species
maintained higher relative water contents (R.W.C.) at low water potentials than
the Symphyomyrtus species. Therefore, low tolerance to drought might b.e an
important factor in explaining the absence of sxmphyomyrtus species from the
ridge tops at Snug Plains. During the 1982-83 summer season south-eastern
Tasmania was exposed to a drought of near record severity. As the drought
developed dawn to dusk measurements of stomatal conductance and water
potentials made in a mixed stand of the three Monocaly:ptus species on a ridge
top at Snug Plains showed these species differed only slightly in water potential down to -4.3 MPa. The leaf water potentials of all species reflected the soil
water potential. However, measurements of R. W .C. demonstrated that E.
2_ulchella maintained a higher R.W.C. (61%) than either E. coccifera (55%) or E.
delegatensis (48%) at these low water potentials. E. pulchella also exhibited
less crown damage than the other two species during the drought and, after the
first effective rains, demonstrated more rapid restoration of high R. W .C. and
recommencement of shoot extension. Anatomical and morphological characters
such as linear leaves and recovery from drought via epicormic buds near the
branch tips also favoured E. pulchella in survival during and recovery after
drought. An investigation of soil depths in the field, and glasshouse trials
including drought treatments confirmed that differences in drought tolerance
were not due to interspecific differences in root pattern or depth. It was
concluded that superior drought resistance was the primary reason for the
presence of E. pulchella on the ridgetop sites. The relative drought resistance
of the other two Monocalyptus species may also have influenced the positions
they occupy on the rocky ridges at Snug Plains.
The breadth of the ecological study conducted allowed the ecological
niche occupied by each of the species studied to be defined in some detail, and
the main factors involved in the changes in dominance between species to be
outlined. Furthermore, the study provided strong evidence of morphological
and physiological differences between the subgenera Monocalyptus and
Symphyomyrtus which may help to explain differences in the ecological
positions occupied by the subgenera in allopatry and the niche differences of
the subgenera in sympatry.


Major issues and challenges encountered in modeling and analyzing agricultural and trade policy reforms are reviewed. We focus on modeling approach and pay special attention to the type and scope of models, calibration of a realistic baseline scenario, representation of the reform agreement, use of extramodel information, choice of metrics to measure reform impacts, and emerging issues in policy modeling. Existing solutions and unresolved issues are examined. We stress the complementarity of various modeling approaches in assessing policy reforms and the importance of helping users understand the limitations of the chosen approach.


This study is a socio-pragmatic analysis of persuasive strategies used by the participants in "al-ittijāh al-muʿākis", "The Opposite Direction", on the Al-Jazeera TV channel. An ethnographic approach was adopted in the research; the analysis focused on the use of politeness strategies and face-saving and face-threatening interactions in order to find out their persuasive factors. I observe that religious citations, prophetic sayings, proverbs, and metaphor are used predominantly by the participants in communicating various political issues. I argue that the persuasiveness of these rhetorical strategies stems from their aesthetic influence in establishing moral credibility and in evoking emotional responses. I also argue that these rhetorical strategies are speech acts that indirectly provoke responses and/or aim at saving the speakers' and/or addressees' face. The study concludes that persuasiveness is facilitated in part by transferring socio-pragmatic meanings through the use of some politeness and figurative devices such as honorific modes, metaphors and proverbs.


For over a half a century, researchers have been aware of the fact that the physical and chemical characteristics of microenvironments in soils strongly influence the activity, growth and metabolism of microorganisms. However, many aspects of the effect of soil physical characteristics, such as the pore geometry, remain poorly understood. Therefore, the objective of the present research was to determine the influence of soil pore characteristics on the spread of bacteria, observed at the scale relevant to microbes. Pseudomonas fluorescens was introduced in columns filled with 1–2 mm soil aggregates, packed at different bulk densities. Soil microcosms were scanned at 10.87 μm voxel resolution using X‐ray computed tomography (CT) to characterize the geometry of pores. Thin sections were prepared to determine the spread and colonization of bacteria. The results showed that average bacterial cell density was 174 cells mm−2 in soil with bulk density of 1.3 g cm−3 and 99 cells mm−2 in soil with bulk density of 1.5 g cm−3. Soil porosity and solid‐pore interfaces influence the spread of bacteria and their colonization of the pore space at lower bulk density, resulting in relatively higher bacterial densities in larger pore spaces. The study also demonstrates that thin sectioning of resin‐impregnated soil samples can be combined with X‐ray CT to visualize bacterial colonization of a 3D pore volume. This research therefore represents a significant step towards understanding how environmental change and soil management impact bacterial diversity in soils.


Despite the consensus among ecologists and conservationists of the importance of maintaining scavenger feeding patterns based primarily on natural prey sources, human-mediated feeding remains a widely used management tool for threatened wildlife. Thus, it is important to understand the key factors favoring certain species and age-groups at supplementary feeding sites. Through a detailed videomonitored experiment of carrion inputs at different locations in the Iberian Peninsula (home of >90% of European vultures), we assessed how variables related to weather, time, demography, management and alternative food availability influenced the occurrence patterns of different age-classes of vultures at feeding sites. The most threatened and less gregarious species (bearded vulture Gypaetus barbatus and Egyptian vulture Neophron percnopterus) attended to earlier inputs, thus reducing interspecific competition with the Eurasian griffon vulture Gyps fulvus. The bearded vulture was favored by a larger biomass supply at the feeding sites during the chick-rearing period, while the Egyptian vulture preferred frequent and abundant inputs. Non-adult cinereous vultures Aegypius monachus were favored at times of lower abundance of natural resources and in the densest networks of feeding sites, while adults preferentially attended sites with periodic inputs close to breeding colonies in areas with lower availability of other natural prey. Finally, the Eurasian griffon vulture showed a preference for continued and periodic inputs, and for feeding sites with numerous other feeding sites in the surroundings. Our results help to inform the management of supplementing food provision with the aim of enhancing its value to reverse the unfavorable conservation status of endangered species and to mitigate the negative effects of the current global threats impacting them.


P.F. Strawson's Individuals (1959) contains a condensed version of an ontology of art. According to this ontology, musical and literary compositions are similar to types. They are abstract entities, instantiated in the performances of the piece of music or the copies of the literary work. Musical and literary compositions are "well-entrenched", Strawson says – we cannot eliminate these abstractions, or perhaps we have no need to do so. Strawson's ontology of art forms an integral part of what he calls his "descriptive metaphysics", and his resistance to the elimination of types and type-like entities is one example of his reservations against "revisionary metaphysics". Nowadays, Strawson's name is seldom mentioned in connection with the philosophy of art. Yet the general view of the ontology of art advocated in Individuals is still probably the one most widely held in analytical aesthetics today. Thus, for example, Stephen Davies adopts the same general position as Strawson in his article "Ontology of Art" (2003), the best informed contemporary overview of the complex of problems surrounding the mode of existence of works of art. Unlike Strawson, Davies also adduces explicit reasons why concepts of musical and literary compositions cannot be successfully eliminated. Critically reviewing Strawson's and Davies' standpoints and arguments, I maintain that concepts of artworks can in fact be successfully eliminated, and that the bracketing of such notions leads to a better theoretical perspective on musical and literary communication. Throughout the paper, I speak for an open-minded approach to conceptual revision.


In this thesis, transnational adoption is used as an illustrative example to address the tension between caring and differentiating aspects of the discursive practice of Swedish welfare. Drawing mainly upon postcolonial conceptualizations of nation and family, the discursive constitution of transnational adoption, transnational adoptees, and transnational adoptive families as objects of knowledge is explored. The analysis focuses on how national and familial belonging and difference are constructed. The empirical material consists of political reports, research reports, social work handbooks and educational material, published between 1997 and 2008. As the relationship between discourse and knowledge is of particular interest, Michel Foucault's archeology is used as a methodological perspective. While the knowledge produced on transnational adoption could be read as well-intended concern, it may at the same time be read as a process where normalization and racialization come into effect, and where a particular image of Sweden is constructed. I suggest a reading that can be summarized in terms of the logic of blood and roots. Transnational adoptees are racialized through essentialist notions of national, cultural and ethnic belonging. They are ascribed a split identity, and are advised to cultivate their belonging to their birth families and birth places. Transnational adoptees of color are ascribed a difference in relation to their adoptive families as well as the Swedish national family, both imagined as white. Within the adoptive family, the assumed lack of family resemblances is portrayed as a continuous source of problems. These problems are naturalized by the way this knowledge on transnational adoption is institutionalized. Seeking psychological counseling is constructed as a responsible parental act. In the discursive practice of Swedish welfare, the national inclusion of the adoptive family is conditioned by a differentiating logic.


We present a new approach to more deeply understand the mind of consumers with respect to food products, using a combination of artificial intelligence to provide the ideas, Mind Genomics to understand how consumers respond to these ideas, uncovering Mind-Sets, and statistical assignment of new people to these newly uncovered Mind-Sets using the PVI, personal viewpoint identifier. We illustrate the approach in detail with yogurt, and then present data from other studies about yogurt, milk, and cheese, to reveal new knowledge about emergent Mind-Sets for conventional dairy products. The key benefits of the approach are the scope (many ideas from artificial intelligence), discipline (experimental design to uncover what is important), actionability findings, mind-types, speed (within 2 or 3 days), and cost (low because of automation).


Spider silk is an interesting biomaterial for medical applications. Recently, a method for production of recombinant spider silk protein (4RepCT) that forms macroscopic fibres in physiological solution was developed. Herein, 4RepCT and MersilkTM (control) fibres were implanted subcutaneously in rats for seven days, without any negative systemic or local reactions. The tissue response, characterised by infiltration of macrophages and multinucleated cells, was similar with both fibres, while only the 4RepCT-fibres supported ingrowth of fibroblasts and newly formed capillaries. This in vivo study indicates that 4RepCT-fibres are well tolerated and could be used for medical applications, e.g., tissue engineering.


Background and Purpose— Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL) is a hereditary angiopathy caused by mutations in Notch3. Cerebral microvessels show an accumulation of granular osmophilic material in the vicinity of degenerating vascular smooth muscle cells. In this study, we measured the arteriovenous cerebral transit time (CTT) to identify changes related to the microangiopathy in CADASIL. Methods— CTT is the time that a contrast agent needs to pass from a cerebral artery to its corresponding vein. CTT was measured in 17 CADASIL individuals (mean age, 50.2±12.3 years) and an equal number of age- and sex-matched control subjects (mean age, 48.9±13.0 years) with transcranial color-coded duplex sonography. The intensity curves were recorded in the P2 segment of the posterior cerebral artery and the vein of Galen after injection of the ultrasound contrast agent Levovist. Results— CTT was significantly prolonged in individuals with CADASIL (4.4±1.9 seconds) compared with control subjects (1.3±0.5 seconds, P <0.0001). This difference was also significant when only nondisabled CADASIL individuals (Rankin score=0, n=9) were analyzed (P <0.0001). There was a nonsignificant trend for a correlation between Rankin score and CTT (r =0.39, P =0.11). Conclusions— The prolonged CTT likely reflects microvascular changes in CADASIL. Measurements of the CTT may be used clinically to disclose small-vessel disease. Studies comparing CADASIL subjects with other patient populations seem warranted to determine possible differences in CTT between different types of small-vessel disease.


The call for Climate Justice promises a renewed grassroots response to the climate crisis. This emerging movement is rooted in land-based and urban communities around the world that have experienced the most severe impacts of global climate changes. Climate Justice highlights the social justice and human rights dimensions of the crisis, using creative direct action to press for real, systemic changes. Toward Climate Justice explains the case for Climate Justice, challenges the myths underlying carbon markets and other false solutions, and looks behind the events that have obstructed the advance of climate policies at the UN and in the US Congress. This fully revised edition includes numerous updates on current climate science and politics worldwide. Drawing on more than three decades of political engagement with energy and climate issues, author Brian Tokar shows how the perspective of social ecology can point the way toward an ecological reconstruction of society.


Markov Random Fields (MRFs) can be used for a wide variety of vision problems. In this paper we focus on MRFs with two-valued clique potentials, which form a generalized Potts model. We show that the maximum a posteriori estimate of such an MRF can be obtained by solving a multiway minimum cut problem on a graph. We develop efficient algorithms for computing good approximations to the minimum multiway, cut. The visual correspondence problem can be formulated as an MRF in our framework; this yields quite promising results on real data with ground truth. We also apply our techniques to MRFs with linear clique potentials.


Evaluation of regional public infrastructure projects is needed to ensure the effective and efficient use of scarce taxpayer funds. There are several methods used to evaluate public infrastructure projects, including cost benefit analysis (CBA) and economic impact analysis (EIA). CBA is widely used by governments to estimate the real social value of a project. However, CBA does not necessarily account for regional impacts such as the effects on employment and growth and, thus, may not be adequate to properly measure regional impacts against related government policy objectives. Governments can use EIA to capture these impacts as an adjunct to CBA. This paper reviews the pros and cons of both CBA and EIA and presents an empirical analysis of both appraisal approaches. Both approaches are applied to a case study of the proposed South West Illawarra Rail Link (SWIRL), which is a $1.6 billion infrastructure project designed to improve the railway connectivity between Greater Sydney and the Illawarra region.


Robotic vehicles (RVs) are cyber-physical systems that operate in the physical world under the control of software functions. They are increasing in adoption in many industrial sectors. RVs rely on sensors and actuators for system operations and navigation. Control algorithm based estimation techniques have been used in RVs to minimize the effects of noisy sensors, prevent faulty actuator output, and recently, in detecting attacks against RVs. In this paper, we propose three kinds of attacks to evade the control-based detection techniques and cause RVs to malfunction. We also propose automated algorithms for performing the attacks without requiring the attacker to expend significant effort or know specific details of the RV, making the attacks applicable to a wide range of RVs. We demonstrate these attacks on ArduPilot simulators and two real RVs (a drone and a rover) in the presence of an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) using control estimation models to monitor the runtime behavior of the system. We find that the control models are incapable of detecting our stealthy attacks, and that the attacks can have significant adverse impact on the RV's mission (e.g., cause the RV to crash or deviate from its target significantly).


STUDY OBJECTIVE To compare the efficacy and cost effectiveness of alternative strategies for the evaluation and medical management of diarrhea in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). DESIGN Medical decision analysis using a decision tree. METHODS Three management strategies were compared: full evaluation, which included stool culture, ova and parasite examination, stain for protozoa, blood cultures, esophagogastroduodenoscopy with biopsy, and colonoscopy with biopsy; limited evaluation, which included stool culture, ova and parasite examination, stool stain for protozoa, and blood cultures; and minimal evaluation, which included only a stool culture. Treatment was based on the outcome of the diagnostic workup. Patients without a specific diagnosis were treated symptomatically with diphenoxylate hydrochloride. Nonrespondents to initial symptomatic treatment and patients with recurrent diarrhea after specific therapy were given the full evaluation. Average probabilities of diagnostic and therapeutic success were calculated from previous reports. Costs were compiled based on diagnostic and therapeutic expenditures. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Under baseline assumptions, the remission rates for diarrhea were 75.2%, 74.8%, and 74.8% in patients undergoing the full, limited, and minimal evaluations, respectively. The respective costs of the three strategies were $5419, $1997, and $1700 per patient in remission. A sensitivity analysis showed that the differences in efficacy and cost among the full, limited, and minimal strategies remained unchanged over a broad range of possible rates of diagnostic or therapeutic success. CONCLUSIONS The minimal evaluation in all patients, with the full evaluation reserved only for nonrespondents to symptomatic treatment, is efficacious and is the most cost-effective strategy for managing AIDS-related diarrhea.


Pathways that reduce cholesterol in atherosclerosis also suppress increased immune cell numbers associated with the disease. Leukocytosis—an elevated white blood cell count—contributes by unknown mechanisms to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and associated coronary heart disease. Now, Yvan-Charvet et al. (see the Perspective by Hansson and Björkholm) show that the ATP-binding cassette transporters ABCA1 and ABCG1 are critical suppressors of atherosclerosis-associated leukocytosis. Mice deficient in both transporters in blood-producing hematopoietic cells possessed increased levels of hematopoietic stem and multipotential progenitor cells and accelerated atherosclerosis. ABCA1 and ABCG1 protect against atherosclerosis by promoting cholesterol efflux from cholesterol-laden macrophage foam cells to lipid-poor high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and apolipoprotein A-1. The leukocytosis and atherosclerosis in ABCA1- and ABCG1-deficient mice were reversed in the presence of high amounts of HDL. Thus, signaling already known to inhibit atherosclerosis by reducing cholesterol in atherosclerotic plaques also reduces atherosclerosis-associated leukocytosis. L. Yvan-Charvet, T. Pagler, E. L. Gautier, S. Avagyan, R. L. Siry, S. Han, C. L. Welch, N. Wang, G. J. Randolph, H. W. Snoeck, A. R. Tall, ATP-binding cassette transporters and HDL suppress hematopoietic stem cell proliferation. Science 328, 1689–1693 (2010). [Abstract] [Full Text] G. K. Hansson, M. Björkholm, Tackling two diseases with HDL. Science 328, 1641–1642 (2010). [Summary] [Full Text]


Values-based investors (like other investors) have been advised to consider alternative investments as a source of uncorrelated returns, but we lack a framework within which to assess the "values" content of such investments. The types of relationships that may exist between an investor, the instrument, and related parties are analyzed. Using this analysis, a preliminary framework is constructed to assess and rank the ethical content of traditional and nontraditional investments in the form of an ethical scoring matrix


This work deals with the numerical modeling of laser surface treatments, particularly laser remelting (a laser beam melts part of a moving work piece) and laser cladding (injection of powder in the melt pool produces a thin metallic layer on the work piece). A two-dimensional stationary model is presented for laser cladding. This model takes into account the solid-liquid phase change process and the important velocity field in the melt pool. A pure thermal problem is studied, which corresponds to a laser remelting model when the liquid particles movements are neglected. The enthalpy variable is introduced and thus the model reduces to solving the so-called stationary Stefan problem (a diffusion-convection equation, degenerated on the phase change interface). We present a Finite Element discretization for the corresponding regularized problem and give some a priori and a posteriori estimates. An efficient adaptive mesh algorithm is then presented. Finally we solve the complete laser cladding model (the two phase change and hydrodynamic problems) using a Finite Element Method and discuss some numerical results.


"How to Tell a True War Story" first appeared in October 1987 in Esquire. It later came to hold a central position in Tim O'Brien's book The Things They Carried, published in 1990. An interesting combination of recalled events and editorial commentary, the story received critical attention at its first publication. Indeed, nearly every reviewer and critic who treats O'Brien's work singles out this story for special commentary. The story in many ways provides a map to the rest of The Things They Carried. By trying to characterize what constitutes a true war story, but never really achieving this feat, O'Brien introduces the most important themes of his book, including memory, imagination, epistemology (the study of the nature of knowledge), and truth. In addition, O'Brien uses the very technique he would later use in creating The Things They Carried, interspersing anecdotes and stories with commentary about the roles of fiction and storytelling. As D. J. R. Bruckner stated in the New York Times in an early review of The Things They Carried,' 'How to Tell a True War Story'' is "at least as much about storytelling as about men at war." Certainly, by having his fictional characters tell stories and then recant the truth of those stories, O'Brien calls into question the possibility of ever telling a true war story. The result of this technique is that the story is both fragmentary and cohesive: the stories within the larger framework are fragments held together by a narrative voice determined to "get it right." Certainly, any student wishing to begin a study of Tim O'Brien


The early Badenian interval in the Central Paratethys realm is characterized by a major marine transgression into the Pannonian and Carpathian Foredeep basins. In the western part of the Polish Carpathian Foredeep, Badenian sedimentation started generally with conglomerates (Debowiec Formation) passing into a thick succession of claystones and mudstones with rare sandstone interbeds (Skawina Formation). Profiles containing a full sequence of lower Badenian strata are relatively rare, and are mainly known from boreholes. In this paper, we present new results on samples taken from such a borehole (Kaczyce K2/07) located near the town of Cieszyn. We focus on reconstructing the chronology of the lower Badenian marine sediments at the beginning of the transgression in the Carpathian Foredeep (lower Skawina Fm.) using radio-isotopic dating ( 40 Ar/ 39 Ar) of a volcanoclastic layer (tuff and tuffite) and biostratigraphy of calcareous nannoplankton and foraminifera.The weighted mean 40 Ar/ 39 Ar age for sanidine separates from the tuff provided an age of 14.27 ± 0.03 Ma. This age is consistent with the NN5 and MNN5a nannofossil zones determined in this study. Our foraminiferal assemblages show that the basal beds of the Skawina Formation up to the tuffites correspond to the Orbulina suturalis–Praeorbulina glomerosa Zone (according to Cicha et al., 1975) and cover the interval of the Lower Lagenidae Zone–lowermost Upper Lagenidae Zone (Grill, 1941). The petrographic data from the tuffite allow correlation of the tuffite from the Kaczyce K2/07 borehole to the level of the Chelmek Tuffite Bed (Alexandrowicz, 1997) providing a regional correlation horizon for future studies.


Purpose: To contribute for the ongoing discussion about associations between art education and citizenship education, presenting Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed, as a theatre method that exercises active democracy by means of promoting epistemological development merging Art, Citizenship and Education. Design: Drawing form a selected set of relevant concepts and data in the fields of psychology, education, arts and performance studies, amongst others, the advantages and limitations of the artistic practice of theatre are analyzed in terms of its impact in epistemological and socio-cognitive development. Findings: A literature review shows several studies that evidence the benefits of artistic practices, namely theatre, in several indicators. Despite these evidences formal educative contexts, rooted in traditional pedagogic paradigms, resist to the entrance of arts, such as the performative, in school curricula, as well as other interactive practices indispensable in the promotion of participative citizenship. Research implications: Present existing methods alternative to formal education, exemplified by the method of the theatre of the oppressed, that aim to develop art, education and citizenship in one same practice. Practical implications: Evidence the need to reconsider formal education curricula with the objective of enhancing epistemological development, empowerment, autonomy and active citizenship.


Seaweed (fresh, dry) or its products (extracts, composts, soil conditioners) have been long used in agriculture to enhance plant growth and productivity. In this study, we evaluated the effects that seaweed composts at different doses and degree of maturation had on the yield of tomatoes (Licopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. platense) grown on a horticultural soil in northeastern Patagonia. We used 10 tomato plants per treatmentplot set in a randomized block design. Treatments were: 1) soil without amendment, control (S); 2) 5 kg m−2 of compost aged 9 months (C9-5); 3) 10 kg m−2 of compost aged 9 months (C9-10); 4) 5 kg m−2 of compost aged 20 months (C20-5); and 5) 10 kg m−2 of compost aged 20 months (C20-10). Total weight and number of tomatoes, and aerial plant biomass (excluding fruits) were significantly higher for the compost treatments than those of the control. Also, compost treated plants bore mature fruits, in average, 9 days earlier and presented higher resistance to diseases than controls. The weight of tomatoes per plant grown in C20 was significantly higher than that of C9, differences that could be attributed to the lower salinity of compost C20 (C20 and C9 electrical conductivities were 1.5 and 15 dS m−1, respectively). The increased yield and resistance to diseases on tomato plants by addition of seaweed compost appear to be related to a complex number of factors not yet fully understood. It seems, however, that a combination of higher nutrient availability (mainly P) due to slight increases in pH of the soil amended, together with increases in readily available K and an improvement in soil physical conditions (increase in pore size and probably amelioration of hydric conditions), may have been responsible for the higher production of seaweed amended plots as compared to the control.


Corresponding millennial‐scale climate changes have been reported from the North Atlantic region and from east Asia for the last glacial period on independent timescales only. To assess their degree of synchrony we suggest interpreting Greenland ice core dust parameters as proxies for the east Asian monsoon systems. This allows comparing North Atlantic and east Asian climate on the same timescale in high resolution ice core data without relative dating uncertainties. We find that during Dansgaard‐Oeschger events North Atlantic region temperature and east Asian storminess were tightly coupled and changed synchronously within 5–10 years with no systematic lead or lag, thus providing instantaneous climatic feedback. The tight link between North Atlantic and east Asian glacial climate could have amplified changes in the northern polar cell to larger scales. We further find evidence for an early onset of a Younger Dryas‐like event in continental Asia, which gives evidence for heterogeneous climate change within east Asia during the last deglaciation.


The potential use of vegetable oil derived industrial oils continues to be of great interest because vegetable oils are relatively non-toxic, biodegradable, and a sustainably produced basestock alternative to petroleum oil, a non-renewable basestock. For the conservation of the environment, bio-mass materials, such as vegetable oils, are desirable as substitutes for petroleum oil in heat treatment. Therefore, it is expected that these basestock materials will continue to be of increasing interest in the heat treatment industry. However, the fatty ester components containing conjugated double bonds of the triglyceride structure of vegetable oils typically produce considerably poorer thermal oxidative stability than that achievable with petroleum basestocks under typical use conditions. This is especially true when a vegetable oil is held in an open tank with agitation and exposure to air at elevated temperatures for extended periods of time (months or years). Furthermore, when used as quenchants, furnace loads of hot steel (850 °C) are typically rapidly immersed and cooled to approximately 50 °C to 60 °C bath temperatures for steel hardening applications. Clearly, for this application, reasonable thermal-oxidative stability is essential. This paper reviews the work completed thus far in screening various vegetable oils as potential steel quenchants both with and without antioxidants. Particular focus is placed, where possible, on comparing pressure differential scanning calorimetry as a potential screening method with the more commonly used (for this application) modified Indiana Stirring Oxidation Test. In addition, the general impact of oxidation on the quenching performance of the better vegetable oil candidates is shown.


The present document is in some parts additional and complementary information to D.1.1. The need to share a common vocabulary with similar terms having different meanings leads us to give and define the usual technical words used in the power electric system and computer science (the reader will find a glossary of some terms). The direction of the works in WP 1.3 and also in other CRISP tasks leads to the definition of more concepts about the transmission and distribution system operation: ways to regulate frequency and voltage (ancillary services), benefits of distributed generation at the distribution level, current indices to qualify the system operation. These questions are defined and detailed to fix a baseline in order to define the robustness criteria which limit the DG insertion. These robustness criteria and indices are proposed and they evaluate the system when faced to major contingencies. They take into account the static limits of the system, the amount of DG insertion, possible load shedding and the dynamic stability. Thus, the indices give an idea about the state of the system and warn the operator to take remedial in a preventive step in order to avoid catastrophic consequences. One main goal of the work involved in WP 1.3 is to demonstrate the improvement of the system robustness when faced to major events, these major events are defined and some specific events caused by DG and susceptible to provoke a catastrophic event are specially detailed. This increase of the robustness is not always enabled by the DG because its dynamic characteristics. Therefore, different scenarios of DG performance are analysed in order to define an appropriate amount of insertion and the limiting factors. These scenarios of DG performance analyse the influence of different parameters such as: DG disconnection protection, intermittence, participation to the frequency control and to the voltage control. The system robustness would be enhanced if DG stands the system in critcal situations, one possibility to increase the robustness it is the islanding operation at transmission and/ or distribution. The ability of islanding is commented and the new required distributed intelligence is detailed. On other side, one critical point to create islands is the protection system which is sited. Finally, special attention is paid to communication and control aspects related to DG integration. A new architecture based on an IP network is proposed to integrate all the services of utilities in a unique network. Then other concepts such as observability, dispatchability, control and coordination are briefly commented e.g: it is necessary an increase of the observability of distribution networks which it is not today the common practice.


This paper describes an investigation into the factors influencing the occurrence and duration of the wing-spreading behaviour of the Cormorant. It was found to occur only after a period in the water (that is, when the plumage was wet), and its duration to be inversely related to wind speed and the length of time spent in the water. In addition birds tended to face into the wind during wing-spreading and, at low wind speeds, away from the sun. The extent to which the wings were spread was also inversely related to, wind speed. The results are discussed with respect to five proposed functions of wing-spreading (wing-drying, thermoregulation, balancing, intraspecific signalling and as an aid to swallow fish) and it is concluded that they support overwhelmingly the wing-drying (or more generally plumage-drying) explanation, with the ultimate goal of conserving metabolic energy. Rose Cottage, Ragnall Lane, Walkley Wood, Nailsworth, Glos. GL6 ORU, United Kingdom.


BACKGROUND
Prediabetes has been related to an increased risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD).

AIM
The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of the Mediterranean diet on diabetes and CVD risk in subjects with impaired fasting glucose (IFG, i.e. fasting plasma glucose 100-125 mg/dl).

METHODS
During 2001-2002, 3042 men and women (>18y) were enrolled for the study. The participants showed no clinical evidence of CVD or any other chronic disease, and were living in the greater Athens (Greece) area. In 2011 and 2012, the 10-year follow-up examinations were performed, including a working sample of n = 1875 participants without diabetes at baseline. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet at baseline evaluation was assessed using the MedDietScore (range 0-55).

RESULTS
The prediabetic subjects (n = 343) had a significantly higher incidence of diabetes (25% vs. 10%, p < 0.001) and CVD (17.8% vs. 12.3%, p = 0.007) compared with subjects with normal glucose values. A significant trend towards lower diabetes and CVD incidence was observed with medium and high adherence to the Mediterranean diet compared with low adherence (p < 0.001). High adherence to the Mediterranean diet (>35/55 score) was associated with lower 10-year incidence of diabetes and CVD. In multiple logistic regression models, participants with high levels of adherence to the Mediterranean diet were significantly less affected by diabetes and CVD than those with low adherence levels.

CONCLUSION
High adherence to the Mediterranean diet is associated with a low risk of developing diabetes and CVD in prediabetic subjects.


We ask juries to make important decisions that have a profound impact on people's lives. We leave these decisions in the hands of groups of laypeople because we hope that the diverse range of experiences and knowledge in the group will lead to more thoughtful and informed decisionmaking. Studies suggest that diverse groups of jurors have different perspectives on evidence, engage in more thorough debate, and more closely evaluate facts. At the same time, there are a variety of problems associated with group decisionmaking, from the loss of individual motivation in group settings, to the vulnerability of groups to various cognitive biases and errors. Moreover, jurors are often at a disadvantage because most of them have never served on a jury and many of them have never worked with a group to reach a decision about a complex problem. Compounding these issues, jurors are not typically given instructions or training on working in a group or on effective decisionmaking strategies.Although there is an extensive literature examining juries and jury deliberations, "All Together Now" is the first law journal article to consider all of the major scientific studies that examine training in group decisionmaking and apply them to jury decisionmaking. Many studies have examined group processes and group deliberations in the fields of social psychology, organizational psychology, business administration, advertising, and a variety of related areas. Moreover, countless studies examine group decisionmaking and recommend the use of training to improve group performance. Yet almost none of this interdisciplinary knowledge of group dynamics and the efficacy of training on group performance have been applied to one of the most fundamental group decisionmaking bodies — the jury. We can use this literature to create effective juror training procedures and give jurors strategies to more effectively deliberate and reach better group decisions.