At the beginning of the twentieth century, Bertrand Russell put forward the concept of an "analytic empiricism," an approach which he held to "eliminate Pythagoreanism from the principles of mathematics, and to combine empiricism with an interest in the deductive parts of human knowledge,"1 thus overcoming the limitations of both empiricism and rationalism which he saw to be at the heart of philosophy. Taking its support from atomistic scientific approaches, such as reflex psychology, Russell's analytic empiricism attempted to present a fundamentally atomistic view of both ontology and epistemology. In contrast to this form of empiricism, which was grounded for Russell in a model of the nervous system derived from reflex psychology, Merleau-Ponty developed an ontology which had its foundations in the work of Gestalt psychology. Following on from this, Deleuze took Merleau-Ponty 's approach further, reintroducing an explicit empiricist theme which was already present, if covered over in Merleau-Ponty's work. The aim of this essay is show how, with the failure of the atomistic scientific models that supported Russell's analytic project, a move away from the modular, analytic ontology of Russell's empiricism becomes possible. Following this, Deleuze and Merleau-Ponty move from the atomistic approach to philosophy of Russell, where the world mirrors the structure of the proposition to a genetic transcendental approach to an empiricism built on a new conception of synthesis. I will conclude by showing how the empiricisms of Russell, MerleauPonty, and Deleuze are all in the end transcendental empiricisms in their different ways. Central to my approach will be the thesis put forward by Russell that "in a logically correct symbolism there will always be a fundamental identity of structure between a fact and a symbol,"2 or rather its more general correlate, that one's approach to the world must have some sort of commonality with the world itself. Russell's Analytic Empiricism After a detailed survey of the precursors of his tradition, Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy leads us to the position where philosophy, finally rid of the "mysticisms"3 of thinkers such as Bergson, is at last capable of producing theorems which, at least in its own domain, "resemble science."4 The lynch-pin of this new system is a reconfiguration of the role of mathematics within the system. According to Russell, previous empiricist systems grounded their account of rationality on the psychologistic principles of association and habit. If this is the case, however, mathematical analysis becomes problematic, as if mathematics rests on the psychological acts of the individual, mathematics itself then must find its justification in the synthetic acts of the subject, leading to the veracity of logic being doubted. The origin of Russell's supersession of this dilemma is "in the achievements of mathematicians who set to work to purge their subject of fallacies and slipshod reasoning."5 This involves the essential project of the reduction of mathematics to the field of logic. On Russell's interpretation, mathematics is an axiomatic-deductive system, and as such, sidesteps the limitations previously attributed to it by the empiricists as well as the pretensions of the rationalists. As Russell puts it, "mathematical knowledge, it is true, is not obtained by induction from experience. ... In this sense, mathematical knowledge is still not empirical. But it is also not a priori knowledge about the world. It is, in fact, merely verbal."6 It is important to note, however, that although philosophical problems may result from badly analyzed sentences, where a proper characterization of the underlying grammar would result in the solution of a problem, this is not an attempt to show the dissolution of problems under proper analytical circumstances. Hence Russell would say, in reference to the later Wittgenstein, "philosophers from Thales onwards have tried to understand the world . …


Most people envision themselves as operant agents endowed with the capacity to bring about changes in the outside world. This ability to monitor one's own causal power has long been suggested to rest upon a specific model of causal inference, i.e., a model of how our actions causally relate to their consequences. What this model is and how it may explain departures from optimal inference, e.g., illusory control and self-attribution biases, are still conjecture. To address this question, we designed a series of novel experiments requiring participants to continuously monitor their causal influence over the task environment by discriminating changes that were caused by their own actions from changes that were not. Comparing different models of choice, we found that participants' behaviour was best explained by a model deriving the consequences of the forgone action from the current action that was taken and assuming relative divergence between both. Importantly, this model agrees with the intuitive way of construing causal power as "difference-making" in which causally efficacious actions are actions that make a difference to the world. We suggest that our model outperformed all competitors because it closely mirrors people's belief in their causal power –a belief that is well-suited to learning action-outcome associations in controllable environments. We speculate that this belief may be part of the reason why reflecting upon one's own causal power fundamentally differs from reasoning about external causes.


Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. (red river gum; Myrtaceae) is an invasive tree in riparian habitats of the Western Cape, South Africa, where it replaces indigenous vegetation and affects ecosystem functioning. These invasions lead to changes in river geomorphology and reduction in stream flow. The mechanisms that drive these effects are poorly understood. The potential for allelopathic effects of aqueous extracts of E. camaldulensis tissues and of soil and litter collected beneath E. camaldulensis trees on the germination and seedling growth of four selected native plant species was investigated in a greenhouse experiment. Soils collected beneath E. camaldulensis trees were used in three treatments: untreated soils, sterilised soils and sterilised soils overlaid with a eucalypt litter layer. In addition, soils collected from underneath native species were used in two treatments: untreated soils and soils overlaid with a eucalypt litter layer. All soil treatments were watered with three E. camaldulensis leaf, bark and root aqueous treatments. Compounds present in the aqueous extracts and fresh samples were identified using gas chromatography. Soil and aqueous treatments showed varying effects on germination and seedling growth of the four native species. Germination and seedling growth of Olea europaea subsp. africana and Dimorphotheca pluvialis were significantly reduced by E. camaldulensis root and bark aqueous extracts as well as by the soils treatments. The addition of eucalypt litter to native and sterilised soils reduced shoot and root growth of all four native species. Compounds such as -phellandrene, eucalyptol, p-menth-1-en-8-ol and -pinene, which have the potential to inhibit germination and plant growth, were identified in E. camaldulensis aqueous extracts and fresh samples. Although the methods applied in this study had limitations (e.g. lack of control treatment to litter addition), the results provide an additional motivation to prioritise removal of invasive E. camaldulensis stands from riparian ecosystems. Restoration initiatives should target native species that are not negatively affected by allelopathy.


We evaluated the effects of particle size and surface charge on the algal flocculation activity of layered double hydroxides (LDHs). LDHs with different lateral sizes of 50, 250, and 2000 nm were prepared by adjusting reaction methods and parameters during co-precipitation of a metal solution under alkaline conditions. LDH particles of 2000 nm readily flocculated ∼100% of Microcystis aeruginosa within 60 min, whereas smaller LDHs did not show significant algal flocculation. We controlled the surface charge of 2000 nm LDHs to be highly positive, almost neutral, or negative using organic moiety coatings of L-serine, succinate, and citrate, respectively. Negatively coated LDHs did not flocculate algae, suggesting the importance of surface charge in the algae–LDH interaction. Taking into account the size and surface charge parameters for algal flocculation, we prepared LDHs with a lateral size of ∼500 nm and a positive surface charge from industrial waste slag, a by-product of alloy manufacturing, from an electric arc furnace. These LDHs showed ∼40% flocculating activity within 60 min, whereas the slag ground into powder showed little flocculating activity after 240 min.


This thesis studies the so-called "criticality problem", an important generalised eigenvalue problem arising in neutron transport theory. The smallest positive real eigenvalue of the problem contains valuable information about the status of the fission chain reaction in the nuclear reactor (i.e. the criticality of the reactor), and thus plays an important role in the design and safety of nuclear power stations. Because of the practical importance, efficient numerical methods to solve the criticality problem are needed, and these are the focus of this thesis. In the theory we consider the time-independent neutron transport equation in the monoenergetic homogeneous case with isotropic scattering and vacuum boundary conditions. This is an unsymmetric integro-differential equation in 5 independent variables, modelling transport, scattering, and fission, where the dependent variable is the neutron angular flux. We show that, before discretisation, the nonsymmetric eigenproblem for the angular flux is equivalent to a related eigenproblem for the scalar flux, involving a symmetric positive definite weakly singular integral operator(in space only). Furthermore, we prove the existence of a simple smallest positive real eigenvalue with a corresponding eigenfunction that is strictly positive in the interior of the reactor. We discuss approaches to discretise the problem and present discretisations that preserve the underlying symmetry in the finite dimensional form. The thesis then describes methods for computing the criticality in nuclear reactors, i.e. the smallest positive real eigenvalue, which are applicable for quite general geometries and physics. In engineering practice the criticality problem is often solved iteratively, using some variant of the inverse power method. Because of the high dimension, matrix representations for the operators are often not available and the inner solves needed for the eigenvalue iteration are implemented by matrix-free inneriterations. This leads to inexact iterative methods for criticality computations, for which there appears to be no rigorous convergence theory. The fact that, under appropriate assumptions, the integro-differential eigenvalue problem possesses an underlying symmetry (in a space of reduced dimension) allows us to perform a systematic convergence analysis for inexact inverse iteration and related methods. In particular, this theory provides rather precise criteria on how accurate the inner solves need to be in order for the whole iterative method to converge. The theory is illustrated with numerical examples on several test problems of physical relevance, using GMRES as the inner solver. We also illustrate the use of Monte Carlo methods for the solution of neutron transport source problems as well as for the criticality problem. Links between the steps in the Monte Carlo process and the underlying mathematics are emphasised and numerical examples are given. Finally, we introduce an iterative scheme (the so-called "method of perturbation") that is based on computing the difference between the solution of the problem of interest and the known solution of a base problem. This situation is very common in the design stages for nuclear reactors when different materials are tested, or the material properties change due to the burn-up of fissile material. We explore the relation ofthe method of perturbation to some variants of inverse iteration, which allows us to give convergence results for the method of perturbation. The theory shows that the method is guaranteed to converge if the perturbations are not too large and the inner problems are solved with sufficiently small tolerances. This helps to explain the divergence of the method of perturbation in some situations which we give numerical examples of. We also identify situations, and present examples, in which the method of perturbation achieves the same convergence rate as standard shifted inverse iteration. Throughout the thesis further numerical results are provided to support the theory.


INTRODUCTION
Patients with clinically suspect arthralgia (CSA) have, according to their rheumatologists, an increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), but their actual outcome is unexplored. This longitudinal study investigated (1) progression from CSA to clinically detectable arthritis and (2) associations of clinical factors, serological factors (among which are anticitrullinated peptide antibodies (ACPAs)) and MRI-detected subclinical inflammation with arthritis development.

METHODS
150 patients with CSA were followed for ≥6 months. At baseline, clinical and serological data were collected and unilateral 1.5 T-MRI of metacarpophalangeal (MCP), wrist and metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints was made. MRI scoring was done according to the RA MRI scoring system. Subclinical MRI inflammation was defined based on MRI results of 193 symptom-free persons.

RESULTS
During follow-up (median=75 weeks, IQR=41-106 weeks), 30 patients developed clinical arthritis; 87% did so <20 weeks after inclusion. In multivariable analyses, age, localisation of initial symptoms in small and large joints (compared with small joints only), C-reactive protein level, ACPA-positivity and subclinical MRI inflammation significantly associated with arthritis development; ACPA and MRI inflammation were most strongly associated (HR (95% CI) respectively, 6.43 (2.57 to 16.05) and 5.07 (1.77 to 14.50)). After 1-year follow-up, 31% of the patients with MRI inflammation and 71% of the ACPA-positive patients with MRI inflammation had progressed to arthritis. Forty-three per cent of the patients that developed arthritis within 1 year were ACPA-negative; 78% of them had subclinical MRI inflammation at baseline. When MRI inflammation was absent arthritis development was infrequent (6% in all patients with CSA and 3% in ACPA-negative patients with CSA).

CONCLUSIONS
Subclinical MRI inflammation precedes clinical arthritis with a few months. Subclinical MRI inflammation is, independent of other factors such as ACPA, associated with arthritis development.


Michael Daniel Jones (1822-1898) is regarded as a pioneering figure in nineteenthcentury Wales. He has been hailed not only as the `father' of the Welsh Settlement that was established in Patagonia in 1865, but also as the `founding father of modem Welsh nationalism'. As Congregational minister and principal of the Independent College in Bala, Jones also played a leading role in a widely publicized dispute concerning the future of Congregationalism in Wales.
Despite this acclaim, Michael D. Jones has been the subject of remarkably little study.
Apart from a biography, published in 1903, only a handful of articles have been written on him. Though these studies have shed some light on Jones's contribution to nineteenth-century Wales, they have not offered a portrayal that takes into account all aspects of his work and thought.
Based on thorough examination of all the available sources, this study is a reevaluation
of Michael D. Jones's life, work and thought. Four primary aspects of his
thought - religion, radicalism, identity and nationalism - are analysed carefully in
order to clarify his views and to place them within the broader context of nineteenthcentury Wales. This is followed by an examination of Jones's participation in various spheres, in particular his role in the formation of a Welsh Settlement (1856-1865), his involvement in the dispute at Bala College (1855-1892), his relationship with the Patagonian Settlement (1865-1892), and his contribution to the `national awakening' in Wales (1876-1892).
The details that emerge provide a clearer understanding of the life, work and thought of Michael D. Jones, and challenge some of the conclusions that have been drawn on
the basis of less extensive studies.


The recent transformations in the USSR are nowhere more evident than in the Soviet military. Top-level military officers have been relieved of their positions, Gorbachev has warned of lean times for the military, the symbolic role of the armed forces has been downgraded, and the concept of "military sufficiency" points to major modifications in Soviet force structure. Contrary to some who see Gorbachev as a Sir Galahad out to slay the evil military high command, Dale Herspring concludes that the relationship between the highest Soviet political and military leaders is at the moment more symbiotic than conflictual. In this first in-depth study of the evolution of civil-military relations in the Soviet Union from 1967 to the present, he shows how the views of senior military officers have varied over time: currently, even if the members of the high command do not like all Gorbachev's changes, they understand the need for them and are prepared to live with them. As Herspring looks at the personalities and politics of eight top military figures, he reveals that the most important of them, Ogarkov, was the first senior Soviet military officer to understand the value of working with the political leadership. Ogarkov believed that the arms control and dtente processes, if carefully managed, could enhance the national security of the USSR. In Gorbachev, the Soviet military has found the type of individual that Ogarkov was seeking.Originally published in 1990.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.


This paper describes a formal approach to domain-oriented software design environments, based on declarative domain theories, formal specifications, and deductive program synthesis. A declarative domain theory defines the semantics of a domain-oriented specification language and its relationship to implementation-level subroutines. Formal specification development and reuse is made accessible to users through an intuitive graphical interface that guides them in creating diagrams denoting formal specifications. Deductive program synthesis ensures that specifications are correctly implemented. This approach has been implemented in AMPHION, a generic KBSE system that targets scientific subroutine libraries. AMPHION has been applied to the domain of solar system kinematics. AMPHION enables space scientists to develop, modify, and reuse specifications an order of magnitude more rapidly than manual program development. Program synthesis is efficient and completely automatic.<<ETX>>


The polymorphism of a porous, non-covalently bonded ionic organic framework is reported. The framework is constructed by hydrogen bonding and anion⋯π interactions. In a solvatomorphic lattice, pyridine takes part in the framework formation. The role of molecular rigidity in framework construction is proven by analogous non-porous crystals, where polymorphism also appears.


While much empirical work has addressed the role of monetary policy shocks in exchange rate behavior, conclusions have been clouded by the lack of plausible identifying assumptions. We apply a recently developed inference procedure allowing us to relax dubious identifying assumptions. This work overturns some earlier results and strengthens others: i) Contrary to earlier findings of \\"delayed overshooting,\\" the peak exchange rate effect of policy shocks may come nearly immediately after the shock; ii) In every otherwise reasonable identification, monetary policy shocks lead to large uncovered interest rate parity (UIP) deviations; iii) Monetary policy shocks may account for a smaller portion of the variance of exchange rates than found in earlier estimates. While (i) is consistent with overshooting, (ii) implies that the overshooting cannot be driven by Dornbusch's mechanism, and (iii) gives reason to doubt whether monetary policy shocks are the main source of exchange rate volatility.


Although he belonged to an American generation of writers deeply influenced by the high modernist revolt "against nature" and against the self-imposed limits of realism to a palpable world, William Faulkner reveals throughout his work an abiding sensitivity to the natural world. He writes of the big woods, of animals, and of the human body as a ground of being that art and culture can neither transcend nor completely control. The eleven essays that make up this volume, including a paper written by the acclaimed novelist William Kennedy, explore the place of "the unbuilt world" in Faulkner's fiction. They give particular attention to the social, mythic, and economic significance of nature, to the complexity of racial identity, and to the inevitable clash of gender and sexuality. These essays were presented in 1996 as papers at the Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha Conference, held annually at the University of Mississippi. Included are the following: Lawrence Buell's "Faulkner and the Claims of the Natural World"; Thomas L. McHaney's "Oversexing the Natural World"; Theresa M. Towner's "Color, Race, and Identity in Faulkner's Fiction"; Jay Watson's "The Art of the Literal in Light in August"; Mary Joanne Dondlinger's "The Matter of Race and Gender in Faulkner's Light in August"; Louise Westling's "Sutpen's Marriage to the Dark Body of the Land"; Myra Jehlen's "Faulkner and the Unnatural"; Diane Roberts's "Eula, Linda, and the Death of Nature"; David H. Evans's "'The Bear' and the Incarnation of America"; Wiley C. Prewitt, Jr.'s "Hunting and Habitat in Yoknapatawpha"; and William Kennedy's "Learning from Faulkner: The Obituary of Fear." Donald M. Kartiganer, Howry Chair of Faulkner Studies in the Department of English, and Ann J. Abadie, Associate Director of the Center for the Study of Southern Culture, teach at the University of Mississippi.


Remnants of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaurs recently discovered in the vicinity of the Tyndall Glacier in the Torres del Paine National Park of southern Chile are extremely abundant and well preserved. After three field campaigns to the area, a total of 46 articulated and virtually complete ichthyosaur specimens, both adults and juveniles, were tentatively assigned to four different species of Ophthalmosauridae. Preservation is excellent and occasionally includes soft tissue and embryos. The skeletons are associated with ammonites, belemnites, inoceramid bivalves, and fishes as well as numerous plant remains. The enormous concentration of ichthyosaurs is unique for Chile and South America and places the Tyndall locality among the prime fossil Lagerstatten for Early Cretaceous marine reptiles worldwide. The deposit is Early Cretaceous (Valanginian–Hauterivian) in age and forms part of a monotonous bathyal to abyssal sequence of the Late Jurassic to late Early Cretaceous Rocas Verdes back-arc basin. In this region, the Tyndall ichthyosaur population may have profited from cold upwelling currents that caused abundant life at the shelf edge including masses of belemnites and small fish, the preferred diet of ichthyosaurs. The abundance of almost completely articulated ichthyosaur skeletons in the Tyndall area suggests that some animals fell victim to episodic mass-mortality events caused by turbidity currents traveling downslope through a submarine canyon. They lost orientation, drowned, and were dragged into the deep sea by these turbulent high-energy gravity flows. Their bodies ended up in an oxygen-deficient basin environment where they were immediately embedded by the fine turbidite suspension fallout. The Tyndall ichthyosaur locality thus combines characteristics of both concentration and conservation Lagerstatten.


As doctors, nurses and public health professionals are promoted into management and leadership positions in resource-poor countries around the world, they are tasked with leading teams and managing drugs and financial and material resources. These responsibilities require a set of skills and knowledge different from that needed for their clinical work, and these skills are rarely taught in medical, nursing or public health school curricula. Health professionals are asking for training in management and leadership (Dwyer et al., 2006) but often have limited time and few resources or opportunities. This article describes effective practices in providing online, in-service training to health professionals in low-resource settings to meet these identified needs. Despite sometimes problematic Internet connectivity because of service interruptions, electricity outages or the lack of availability of computers, more than 4000 health professionals from 77 middleand low-income countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Eastern Europe have successfully participated in virtual management and leadership development programs to strengthen their skills and organizations. This article examines how blended e-learning programs for health professionals can be effectively delivered in settings with problematic connectivity, supporting participants' efforts achieve results in health.


Theoretical simulation and experiments based on a prism beam expander and an echelle grating are conducted to study the dependence of linewidth and pulse energy on incidence angle and slit width. With a larger prism incident angle or narrower slit width, the linewidth becomes narrower while the laser pulse energy becomes lower. However, the pulse energy can be improved by optimally designing the prism beam expander. In addition, a subpicometer linewidth ArF laser is obtained with a double-prism beam expander and an echelle grating.


Information management has been identified as an essential requirement for the structural engineering sector in a highly competitive AEC marketplace. In the field of structural engineering, information management represents a challenging discipline due to several factors such as a lack of clarity in the adoption of novel technologies, the multitude of different and ambiguous standards available, and the lack of human resources readiness. This research demonstrates that information quality plays a very important role in structural engineering information management as poor quality of structural engineering design information leads to reworks and failures in tendering and construction of projects. 80% to 90% of failures in buildings, bridges and other structures result from errors in design. Novel technologies and workflows have to be adopted by structural engineering organisations, which also need to improve the readiness of their human resources to enhance information management during conceptual, detailed and technical design phases. It is but natural for project teams in structural engineering organisations to expect proper quality of information during the bidding procedure, while providing documents for constructors and also while reporting to clients to make assured accurate decisions. A review of relevant literature revealed that Building Information Modelling has a contributory role in addressing the challenges of information management in various disciplines of the AEC industry. However, to ensure effective contribution of BIM on structural engineering information management, a clear determination is needed to improve information quality. Therefore, the aim of this research is to develop a conceptual framework for the adoption of BIM to enhance the quality of information in structural engineering organisations of the UK.
In this research, an interpretivism philosophical position has been adopted that understands the real world and solves related problems over interpretations provided by participants. This research triangulated case study and survey approaches to the investigation of the research objectives in order to enrich confidence in presenting findings. A qualitative and quantitative approaches (or mixed-method approach) were used to thoroughly explore factors that have a key role in developing a framework for improving information within the AEC industry. Data collection involved the use of semi-structured interviews followed by scale questionnaires that were given to design experts in the UK. The qualitative data comprised of 12 interviews with experts performing the role of structural engineers, BIM managers and design managers in two structural engineering departments of two different large multidisciplinary organisations in the UK. In the context of quantitative data collection, 125 respondents replied to the researcher within two months. Finally, both qualitative and quantitative data were analysed and conceptual framework was developed and validated.
This research points out that at present the UK structural industry is dissatisfied with the quality of structural engineering information and holds the opinion that catastrophic failure in the construction process may result from inadequacies in the information management system. From this research, it is evident that the key dimensions for structural engineering information quality can be explained by information accuracy, information accessibility, and information interoperability and information security. This research examined the key criteria that need to be considered while adopting BIM technological tools, workflows and human resources in the context of structural engineering sector. An initial conceptual framework developed by reviewing the existing literature illustrated the potential power of BIM to contribute to the level of information quality management in structural information management. Primary data collected in this research explored the role of crucial factors of BIM implementation in promoting the key dimensions of information quality management. This research contributes to knowledge by developing a conceptual framework which can be implemented in the ACE industry to improve upon information quality by assisting decision makers associated with structural engineering information management to adopt appropriate technological and workflow protocols, and also to ensure organisational human resource readiness in the contest of BIM. Avenues for further research in this area of information quality management in the structural engineering sector were also recommended by this study.


Summaries of American URSI broadcasts have appeared regularly in this Journal since the issue for December, 1930.

As set forth in this Journal for June, 1937, "The Department of Terrestrial Magnetism and the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey with the cooperation of the United States Army and the United States Navy communication-services and several amateur radio stations have undertaken to supply the American character-figure based upon the reports of the seven American-operated observatories—those of the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism at Huancayo in Peru and at Watheroo in Western Australia, and those of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey at Cheltenham (Maryland), Honolulu (Hawaii), San Juan (Puerto Rico), Sitka (Alaska), and Tucson (Arizona)." This character-figure is being designated CA, and its values for the first twelve, the second twelve, and all twenty-four hours of each Greenwich day for April to June, 1945, are given in Table 1.


Regional diversity such as Ukraine's often embodies potential for friction and conflict, in particular when it involves territorialized ethnicity and divergent historical experiences. Political elites interested in stability and conflict prevention must find ways either to accommodate or control this diversity. In the early to mid-1990s, the Western media, policymakers, and academics alike warned that Crimea was a potential center of unrest in the aftermath of the Soviet Union's dissolution. However, large-scale conflict in Crimea did not materialize, and Kyiv has managed to integrate the peninsula into the new Ukrainian polity. This book explores the factors that led to the largely peaceful transition and places the situation in the larger context of conflict-prevention studies, explaining this critical case in which conflict did not erupt despite a structural predisposition to ethnic, regional, and even international enmity.


Mark Steiner proposes one of the earliest contemporary accounts of mathematical explanation, which appeals to characterizing properties of entities referred to in proofs. Unfortunately Steiner's remarks are often quite vague, sometimes described as 'very puzzling indeed', and this lack of clarity has led to a lack of understanding and a tendency to reject Steiner's account in the philosophical literature. I argue that Steiner's account repays deeper analysis by providing a sympathetic reading that makes sense of his puzzling remarks and draws out some important questions. I focus on a simple mathematical example involving sums of number sequences and identify three key conditions that the proof must meet to count as explanatory for Steiner. I propose a suitable characterizing property and show that on my suggestion, the proof indeed  ts Steiner's account. Subsequently, I present a few potential problems relating to Steiner's focus on the generalizability of proofs, and show how my reading of generalizability helps to avoid these worries. Finally, I show how (my extension of) Steiner's proposal can account for what I take to be the primary epistemic function of an explanation, namely, to help us see why the fact to be explained is true.


In the present study, an experimental investigation was carried out to evaluate the flexural and shear capacity of near surface mounted (NSM) reinforced concrete (RC) beams using carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) rebars. A total of 16 half scale beams were tested to study the flexural and shear responses of strengthened RC beams. The CFRP rebars were manufactured at structural testing centre using locally developed twisting equipment to strengthen the RC beams. Also, new anchor system was locally developed to predict the tensile characteristics of CFRP bars using universal testing machine. To examine the flexural and shear behaviour, all beams were tested under two-point loading system. It was observed that the NSM strengthened RC beams have higher load carrying capacity than the corresponding control beam in flexure and shear by 68% and 35.6%, respectively. Typical failure modes of the beams during the experimental investigation were CFRP rupture, CFRP debonding, crushing of concrete and shear failure. Finally, a design example has been presented for better understanding in the analysis and design of NSM FRP strengthened RC beams. Further, the values obtained from the analytical study are in good agreement with the experimental values.


The current study aimed to examine whether (a) mean differences and changes in athletes' attachment style predicted psychological need satisfaction within two diverse relational contexts (coach and parent) and well-being, and (b) mean differences and changes in need satisfaction within the two relational contexts predicted well-being. One hundred and ten athletes aged between 15 and 32 years old completed a multisection questionnaire at three time points over a span of 6 months to assess the main study variables. Multilevel modeling revealed that insecure attachment styles (anxious and avoidant) predicted well-being outcomes at the within- and between-person levels. Avoidant attachment predicted need satisfaction within the parent relational context at both levels, and need satisfaction within the coach relational context at the between-person level. Need satisfaction within both relational contexts predicted various well-being outcomes at the between-person level, while need satisfaction within the paren...


In an Arab oil producing country in the Middle East such as Kuwait, Oil industry is considered as the main and most important industry of the country. This industry's importance emerged from the significant role it plays in both country's national economy and also global economy. Moreover, Oil industry's criticality comes from its interconnectivity with national security and power in the Middle East region. Hence, conducting this research in this crucial industry had certainly added values to companies in this industry as it investigated thoroughly the main components of the TQM implementation process and identified which components affects significantly TQM's implementation and its gained business results. In addition, as the Oil sector is a large sector that is known for its richness of employees with different national cultures and backgrounds. Thus, this culture-heterogeneous industry seems to be the most appropriate environment to address and satisfy a need in the literature to investigate the national culture values' effects on TQM implementation process. Furthermore, this research has developed a new conceptual model of TQM implementation process in the Kuwaiti Oil industry that applies in general to operations and productions organizations at the Kuwaiti business environment and in specific to organizations in the Oil industry, as well it serves as a good theoretical model for improving operations and production level of the oil industry in other developing and developed countries. Thus, such research findings minimized the literature's gap found the limited amount of empirical research of TQM implementation in well-developed industries existing in an Arab, developing countries and specifically in Kuwait, where there was no coherent national model for a universal TQM implementation in the Kuwaiti Oil industry in specific and Kuwaiti business environment in general. Finally, this newly developed research framework, which emerged from the literature search, was validated by rigorous quantitative analysis tools including SPSS and Structural Equation Modeling. The quantitative findings of questionnaires collected were supported by the qualitative findings of interviews conducted.


Why is it that so many people in our world still lack access to a toilet? Many developing countries have met their Millennium Development Goal target for access to clean water but still lag far behind their goal for access to improved forms of sanitation, especially in the rural and unplanned peri-urban settlements that are inhabited by the poorest of the poor. A great deal of thinking, funding, and time has been invested recently in developing clever new toilets, but there is also a need to better understand and get the most out of the sanitation facilities to which many poor people already have access, such as basic pit latrines. There is an urgent need for longer lasting, sustainable sanitation solutions, but this should look beyond just new toilet designs and include providing sanitation services, enabling community leadership in sanitation programmes, and training the in-country sanitation specialists of the future. Achieving sustainable sanitation for all is not just an engineering challenge, nor is it only for economists and social scientists; multi-disciplinary efforts are critical to achieving successful outcomes. As sanitation needs expand and justification is sought for large-scale infrastructure projects, especially in booming urban areas, greater recognition is needed that investment in sanitation infrastructure is not only about improving health, but will also ultimately lead to significant economic returns.


One aim of Spatial Augmented Reality is to visually integrate synthetic objects into real-world spaces amongst physical objects, viewable by many observers without 3D glasses, head-mounted displays or mobile screens. In common implementations, using beam-combiners, scrim projection, or transparent self-emissive displays, the synthetic object's and real-world scene's light combine additively. As a result, synthetic objects appear low-contrast and semitransparent against well-lit backgrounds, and do not cast shadows. These limitations prevent synthetic objects from appearing solid and visually integrated into the real-world space. We use a transparent LCD panel as a programmable dynamic mask. The LCD panel displaying the synthetic object's silhouette mask is colocated with the object's color image, both staying aligned for all points-of-view. The mask blocks the background providing occlusion, presents a black level for high-contrast images, blocks scene illumination thus casting true shadows, and prevents blow-by in projection scrim arrangements. We have several implementations of SAR with LCD masks: 1) beam-combiner with an LCD mask, 2) scrim projection with an LCD mask, and 3) transparent OLED display with an LCD mask. Large format (80" diagonal) and dual layer volumetric variations are also implemented.


A numerical hybrid method was developed to model elastic wave propa gation. This algorithm was implemented with both the pseudo-spectrum and the finite-element methods. The pseudo-spectrum is currently a popu lar numerical method in earthquake seismology studies due to its high effi ciency and accuracy. On the other hand, its most significant drawback is the difficulty of implementing a free surface or absorption boundary owing to the nature of its periodic boundary. In addition, since the grid space must be defined globally within a model to prevent grid dispersion depend ing on the region of strong velocity contrasts, computations may become very expensive. However, these drawbacks can be overcome with a hybrid of the pseudo-spectrum and the finite-element techniques. With the imple mentation based on the finite-element formulation, grid spacing can be de termined according to local velocity within a velocity model. In so doing, the coding of the boundary conditions becomes much easier as well. The advantages of this proposed hybrid method consist of both reducing the amount of computational time and memory needed and obtaining both ac curate and stable results during calculation. Some examples are shown to demonstrate the advantages of the hybrid method. This method can also be easily expanded to 3-D situations with minor modifications. (


The paper examines the relationship between interest rates and stock market returns for seven African countries. Cointegration tests indicate a long-run relationship between interest rate and stock prices for Kenya and South Africa. The short-run dynamic Vector Error Correction Model Granger causality shows unidirectional causality from stock returns to interest rate in Kenya and bidirectional causality in South Africa. Responses to shocks from impulse response functions have long lasting effects in Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria and Tunisia and are short-lived in Mauritius.


Many interactional issues with Flight Management Systems (FMS) in modern flight decks have been reported. Avionics designers are seeking for ways to reduce cognitive load of pilots with the aim to reduce the potential for human error. Academic research showed that touch screen interfaces reduce cognitive effort and provide an intuitive way of interaction. A new way of interaction to manipulate radio frequencies of avionics systems is presented in this paper. A usability experiment simulating departures and approaches to airports was used to evaluate the interface and compare it with the current system (FMS). In addition, interviews with pilots were conducted to find out their personal impressions and to reveal problem areas of the interface. Analyses of task completion time and error rates showed that the touch interface is significantly faster and less prone to user input errors than the conventional input method (via physical or virtual keypad). Potential problem areas were identified and an improved interface is suggested.


Background: Dracocephalum moldavica L is a traditional Uygur medicine for centuries, total flavonoids extracted from Dracocephalum moldavica are the major active ingredients of herbs, which possesses significant medicinal values to treat coronart disease and hypertension, due to the glycosyl group on the ring, total flavonoids of Dracocephalum moldavica has low hydrophilic and poorly absorbed after oral administration, so one way is the formulation of poorly water soluble and permeabledrugs with lipids containing formulations such as Composite phospholipid liposomes to improve the absorption profile of drug. Objectives: To prepare composite phospholipid liposome (CPL) encapsulatetotal flavonoids extract from Dracocephalum moldavica (TFDM), determine its physicochemical properties,investigate its in-vitro release and evaluate the pharmacokinetics in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats to increase the bioavailability of TFDM-CPL. Material and Methods: The TFDMCPL was prepared by the method of ammonium sulfate transmembrane gradients. The CPL and TFDM were separated by Sephadex-G50 chromatography. The concentration of TFDM in the CPL was detected by HPLC, then the entrapment efficiency (EE) was evaluated. And the shape, particle size, zeta potential, drug release in vitro of TFDMCPL were investigated, and the pharmacokinetics was evaluated by rat jugular vein intubation tube in SD rats. Results: The EE of TFDM was 84.17±2.2%, mean size of TFDMCPL was 136.2±3.7nm, polymey disperse index (PDI) was 0.158±0.015 and zeta potential was -19.8±1.2mV. TFDM-CPLwere found to enhance the release of drugs more effectively than TFDM based on the in vitro model and Following oral administration of TFDM, the plasma exposures of TFDM-CPL was significantly extended, and the mean concentration of TFDM-CPL was significantly higher compared to TFDM-solution . TheCmax, t1/2, AUC0-12 h values of TFDM for group of TFDM-CPL were siginificantly increased. Conclusion: The method of ammonium sulfate transmembrane gradients is suitable for preparingTFDM-CPL. And TFDM-CPL have potential to be used to improve the bioavailability of poorly soluble drugs after oral administration. Abbreviations Used: CPL: composite phospholipid liposome.; TFDM: Total Flavonoids Extract from Dracocephalum moldavica ; SD:Sprague-Dawley; EE:entrapment efficiency; PDI: polymey disperse index; TFDM-CPL: Total flavonoid extract from Dracocephalum moldavica – composite phospholipid liposome; DM:Dracocephalum moldavica L.; SPC: Soybean phospholipid; HSPC: Hydrogenated soya phosphatide; PBS: phosphate buffered saline; HPLC: high performance liquid chromatography; TEM: transmission electron microscopy; CMC-Na: Carboxy Methyl Cellulose-Natrium; AUC: area under the curve


During the course of history, the world have come to see powerful nations rise and fall, religions spread and diminish – and all too often there have been violent struggles between religious groups and secular forces, a fact that we still see in our world today. In the West, we often hear about the violent and fundamental dimensions of Islam. Buddhism is rarely a part of the equation in a western context, regarding violence. A common perception is the picture of Buddhism as a guardian of non-violent principles and values. The central theme of this essay circuits around views on violence and warfare in the Sri Lankan context, where religion and violence have come to be intertwined, often with political overtones. With different theoretical frameworks and angles I have illustrated and analyzed how the historical development can be linked to classical buddhist sources and how some singalease buddhists make use of a mythical glorious past to justify violence and warfare against the tamil minority population. But like all religious traditions there are also counterforces and exceptions that diverge from the mainstream, which I have found importnant to illuminate. Religious phenomena can be a complex matter to investigate and trying to see the variations within a religious tradition can be difficult but one way to adress theese issues (when it comes to religion and violence in Sri Lanka) is to give diverse and multifaceted pictures of the conflict for when it comes to religion, there are never one-sided answers.


Since November 2013, numerous sinkholes have been forming in the Armala area of Pokhara Valley, Central Nepal, posing serious threat to local residents. In order to provide measures aimed at reducing sinkhole risk, investigations into the cause and features of the sinkholes are crucial. This paper presents early research results based on two damage surveys conducted in June 2014 and November 2014 in the Armala area. Comparison of photos, taken in the two surveys, clearly indicates not only the formation of new sinkholes, but also the re-activation of filled sinkholes. By means of dynamic cone penetration tests and surface wave method investigations, qualitative characterization of the soil profile was attained, and shallow weak soil layers which are believed to be the location for future sinkholes could be identified. On the basis of the field investigation results, possible sinkhole formation mechanisms are identified for the Armala area. Furthermore, results of a reconnaissance survey conducted in the Armala area in early May 2015 (following the 2015 Gorkha Nepal Earthquake, which occurred on April 25th) are also reported. Although the epicentral distance to Pokhara was closer than Kathmandu, which suffered from severe damage, no major apparent effects of the earthquake were observed in the sinkhole damaged area.


Honesty is regarded as a basic ethical value in all educational programmes, and academic integrity is of undisputed importance in educational environments. The literature reviewed revealed that academic dishonesty is wide-ranging and also encountered in the nursing education environment. This phenomenon is of concern to the nursing fraternity because of the proven positive correlation between unethical academic practices and future unethical professional behaviour. Limited research data regarding academic dishonesty at nursing education institutions in South Africa and this correlation motivated the present study. The purpose was to examine the status of academic integrity amongst nursing students at a nursing education institution in the Western Cape. Formulated objectives guided investigation of several variables which impact upon academic integrity, for example the incidence of and student perceptions around academic dishonesty. A quantitative, descriptive survey design was used, with a self-reported questionnaire (based on literature review and study objectives) designed to obtain information about academic dishonesty. Provision was also made for qualitative input from the respondents by including three open-ended questions. It was found that academic dishonesty was a reality at the nursing education institution where this study was done. Cheating associated with plagiarism and assignments was identified as the main problem area. An unacceptably high level of dishonesty in completion of practical records was also an area of concern. The main recommendations are development and implementation of a code of honour and implementation of comprehensive academic integrity policies at the nursing education institution, with practical measures aimed at combating cheating in tests and examinations.


This wide-ranging, thorough and superbly illustrated study of Freemasonry's influence on Western culture, especially in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, follows Professor Curl's previous book, The Art and Architecture of Freemasonry (1991), which was hailed at the time not only as "an immensely useful, and sane, introduction to a field often fraught with speculative sensationalism", but as "a mine of information", and one of the most "original and important" contributions towards a greater understanding of the Enlightenment published in recent times. It won the coveted Sir Banister Fletcher Award as Best Book of the Year in 1992. Now, building on his earlier work, Curl has hugely expanded his investigations, showing how aspects of Masonic ideas have permeated the design of buildings, parks, gardens, and cemeteries, as well as much else. His Glossary outlines some of the complex ideas and iconography of the Craft (notably the symbolic and moral significance of the Architect's and Mason's instruments and tools), and the extensive Bibliography contains an enormous amount of material to stimulate further research, not least into the curious phenomenon of antipathy towards Freemasonry by authoritarian closed minds and totalitarian bigots. The illustrations are exceptional, and are accompanied by detailed captions (themselves as illustrated history of elements found in Freemasonry). It is a curious fact that many historians have avoided Freemasonry through prejudice and timidity, but in this work Professor Curl has grasped the nettle, and shows there is a hugh wealth of material available (much unaccountably hidden from view or deliberately ignored for reasons that defy analysis), some of which will whet the most jaded of appetites.


The American West is as varied in its inhabitants as in its landforms. Yet what has come to stand for "Western" writing is the myth of the wagon train and the lone gunman. In the Portable Wester Reader, William Kittredge has assembled stories, poems, essays, and excerpts that transcend the Western myth and explore the vast range of Western experience. With selections from more than seventy authors, and an introduction and headnotes by William Kittredge. The Portable Western Reader redefines the Western literary landscape.


The idea for "Philosophy in a Time of Terror" was born hours after the attacks on 9/11 and was realized just weeks later when Giovanna Borradori sat down with Jurgen Habermas and Jacques Derrida in New York City, in separate interviews, to evaluate the significance of the most destructive terrorist act ever perpetrated. This book marks an unprecedented encounter between two of the most influential thinkers of our age as here, for the first time, Habermas and Derrida overcome their mutual antagonism and agree to appear side by side. As the two philosophers disassemble and reassemble what we think we know about terrorism, they break from the familiar social and political rhetoric increasingly polarized between good and evil. In this process, we watch two of the greatest intellects of the century at work."


Dutch Minister Reviews Renewed Holocaust-Assets Restitution De Romantische Boekhouder (The Romantic Bookkeeper), by Gerrit ZaIm, Uitgeverij Balans, 2009, 402 pp. [Dutch] Reviewed by Manfred Gerstenfeld Unless there were a compelling reason to do so, one would not usually review a book that devotes only 6 of its 400 pages to a Jewish subject. In this case, the memoirs of the liberal politician Gerrit ZaIm, the longestserving Dutch finance minister (1994-2002 and 2003-2007) and deputy prime minister (2003-2007), contain disclosures of historical importance. This book concludes with a short section titled "Minister for Jewish Affairs" (390-396). The main issue ZaIm raises here is the renewed restitution discussions with the Dutch Jewish community at the end of the last century. This process constitutes a most important chapter in the history of postwar Dutch Jewry. During World War II the Germans plundered most Dutch Jewish possessions, using the Lippmann Rosenthal Sarphatistraat bank (LIRO) as an agency that they fashioned especially for this purpose. At the end of the postwar liquidation of the assets of this institution, some minor items - mainly jewelry and costly personal accessories - remained in the possession of an agency of the Finance Ministry. ZaIm tells how shocked he was when he learned from a television report that, in the early 1960s, employees of this body had held a raffle to decide who could buy which item on the basis of an assessed taxation value of many years earlier. Because this took place at the ministry for which he was responsible, and even though it occurred long before his term as minister, ZaIm considered resigning. Senior ministry officials convinced him that this would be an overreaction. The late Dutch Jewish historian Isaac Lipschits noted that, after a discussion of the LIRO affair, ZaIm met him in the parliament building. He said he wanted to present his personal apologies. Lipschits remarked, "But Minister, when this happened you were still going around in short trousers." ZaIm replied: "I am a successor of postwar finance minister Pieter Lieftinck and thus responsible for what happened then."1 Lieftinck, a neophyte socialist, was the first postwar finance minister (1945-1952). His major aim was to hasten the economic revival of the Dutch economy, which had been hard hit by the war. In this frame of mind, he favored the interests of the Amsterdam security traders, who had collaborated with the German occupiers at the expense of the Jews whose possessions had been looted. One of the commissions of inquiry before the turn of the century investigated the postwar restitution details and condemns his behavior in this matter.2 ZaIm also tells how apprehensive he was before his first meeting at the ministry with the representatives of the CJO, the Dutch Jewish umbrella organization for external affairs, as in his view "the Finance Ministry is in the dock of the accused." To his relief the CJO chairman, Henri Markens, opened by telling a joke. …


Dr. Allen is the director of C-SIM at ECU and the co-director of ECU's Center for Geographic nformation Science. He is interested in understanding spatial and temporal change in the atural environment particularly vegetation and related environmental processes in order to nform human actions. His research therefore emphasizes the development of geospatial echnologies such as satellite remote sensing geographic information systems (GIS) and lobal positioning systems (GPS). His primary areas of study are coastal and mountain environments f North America Central America and Fennoscandia. His current research projects nclude spatial analysis of coastal barrier morphodynamics; mapping mangroves and oastal change in Costa Rica; developing new algorithms for satellite remote-sensing monitoring nd change detection; remote sensing and GIS data fusion for characterizing estuarine rocesses; and investigating biophysical patterns and processes in subarctic alpine nd mountain environments.


The intertwined fates of bone and bone marrow are tightly coupled with haematopoiesis –defined as the production of all blood cells in the body. Multipotent haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are central to this process as they are responsible for replenishing the entire haematopoietic system. Interestingly, HSCs have not been definitively identified and challenges remain in preserving their functionality ex vivo. The HSCs referred to in current literature are in actuality, heterogeneous populations of cells, as they are prospectively isolated based on expression of collective panels of different cell surface markers.

HSCs reside in and are regulated at specialised microenvironments or niches, and one such example is the endosteal niche. The endosteal niche localises to the interface between the bone and bone marrow. The intimate, functional and reciprocal relationship shared between the bone and bone marrow extends beyond their anatomical juxtaposition. Indeed, there are emerging evidence to support the role of bone cells in regulating various aspects of haematopoiesis such as HSC proliferation and differentiation. However, one of the most riveting and relatively unexplored questions is, when does bone begin to play an instrumental role in haematopoietic development?
To address this question, one would consider the interface between the bone and bone marrow. In an established or adult setting, this microenvironment may be described as an intricate tapestry composed of a myriad of cells, growth factors, signalling molecules and the extracellular matrix. The complexity of this system poses a significant challenge in investigating when bone begins to modulate haematopoiesis. This thesis exploits the tissue regenerative capacity of an acellular biological scaffold, known as demineralised bone matrix (DBM), in two models to study adult haematopoiesis. The first model investigates the spatial and temporal events leading up to the genesis of ectopic bone and bone marrow. The second model (vascularised chamber model) develops and characterises an entire bone and bone marrow unit that is henceforth referred to as the organoid.

Three key findings can be inferred from the ectopic model. Firstly, neovascularisation is an important event for the subsequent cellular repopulation of the matrix. Secondly, cartilage mineralisation precedes the detection of haematopoietic progenitors within the nodule. Thirdly, as the matrix remodels, new bone forms and it eventually encompasses a centralised bone marrow cavity within the mature nodule. Collectively, these results suggest that both cartilage and bone may play instrumental roles in shaping the haematopoietic microenvironment at different developmental stages.

Four principal findings can also be extrapolated from the vascularised chamber model. Firstly, the model highlights the importance of neovascularisation and demonstrates that the repopulating cells are of blood-borne origin. Secondly, the incorporation of an osteogenic growth factor to the acellular DBM results in a concomitant expansion of both bone and bone marrow compartments within the organoid, accompanied by augmented production of haematopoietic progenitors. Thirdly, the developed bone and bone marrow organoid demonstrates responsiveness to systemic pathophysiological changes by expanding the pool of haematopoietic progenitors within its own marrow. Finally, the transplanted organoid demonstrated functionality as evidenced by peripheral blood chimerism and modest haematopoietic recovery of irradiated recipients.

Taken together, the findings reported in this thesis provide a deeper insight into the interwoven fates of blood and bone.


Written Reliquaries: The resonance of orality in medieval English texts establishes the linguistic component of orality and oral tradition. The relics it examines are traces of spoken performance, artifacts of linguistic and cultural processes. Seven case studies animate verbal acts of making promises, quoting proverbs, pronouncing curses, speaking gibberish, praying Pater Nosters, invoking saints, and keeping silence. The study of their resonance is enabled by a methodological conjunction of historical pragmatics and oral theory. Insights from oral theory enlighten spoken traditions which in turn may be understood in the larger historical-pragmatic context of linguistic performance. The inquiry ranges across broad as well as narrow planes of reference to trace a complex set of cultural and linguistic interactions. In this way it reconstructs relevant discursive contexts, giving detailed accounts of underlying assumptions, traditions, and conventions. Doing so, the book demonstrates that an integrated methodology not only allows access to oral discourse in both Old English and Middle English but also provides insight into the fluid medieval interchange of literacy and orality.


The release engineering process is the process that brings high quality code changes from a developer's workspace to the end user, encompassing code change integration, continuous integration, build system specifications, infrastructure-as-code, deployment and release. Recent practices of continuous delivery, which bring new content to the end user in days or hours rather than months or years, have generated a surge of industry-driven interest in the release engineering pipeline. This paper argues that the involvement of researchers is essential, by providing a brief introduction to the six major phases of the release engineering pipeline, a roadmap of future research, and a checklist of three major ways that the release engineering process of a system under study can invalidate the findings of software engineering studies. The main take-home message is that, while release engineering technology has flourished tremendously due to industry, empirical validation of best practices and the impact of the release engineering process on (amongst others) software quality is largely missing and provides major research opportunities.


A golden garment? A preliminary report of textile fragments from the Pafos 'Erotes' Sarcophagus Diana Wood Conroy and Adriana Garcia Remnants of very fine gold thread and reddish fibre were found among bone fragments in the 'pillow' end of the interior of the Pafos marble sarcophagus in 2001. The placement of the threads suggested a cloth laid over the upper part of the body. The excavator, Dr Eustathios Raptou has described how the sarcophagus had been looted in antiquity, leaving only one jewel and a finial from what must have been rich funerary goods. The textile fragments demonstrated the opulence of the burial, but because of their very fragmentary condition needed microscopic analysis to place them in an accurate context. After examining the fragments in the Pafos Museum in 2008, Diana Wood Conroy applied to the Department of Antiquities in Nicosia for an export licence to take small samples of the mixed gold thread, reddish fibre, bone and dust residues to the University of Wollongong in Australia for analysis under a stereo microscope, and a scanning electron microscope. At present, little is known of Hellenistic to Late Roman textiles from excavations in Cyprus, although the island was famed in historical times for its textile crafts. In her catalogue of known gold fabrics from the Mediterranean, Margarita Gleba found no examples from Cyprus, making the discovery of the Pafos gold fragments significant (Gleba, 2008 'Auratae vestes' in Purpurae Vestes 11, 69, 70-75 and 2008 Textile Production in Pre-Roman Italy 80-82). It is obvious that the level of skill needed to produce the extremely fine threads demonstrated in the gold textile would be inaccessible to contemporary western hand weavers. The fragments in the Pafos sarcophagus may offer a compelling clue to sophisticated and highly developed textile and funerary traditions. This preliminary report outlines the findings of analyses completed in 2008 and 2009 with Professor Diana Wood Conroy and Dr Adriana Garcia, Honorary Fellow and scientist in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Wollongong.


Graph partitioning, a well studied problem of parallel computing has many applications in diversified fields such as distributed computing, social network analysis, data mining and many other domains. In this paper, we introduce FGPGA, an efficient genetic approach for producing feasible graph partitions. Our method takes into account the heterogeneity and capacity constraints of the partitions to ensure balanced partitioning. Such approach has various applications in mobile cloud computing that include feasible deployment of software applications on the more resourceful infrastructure in the cloud instead of mobile hand set. Our proposed approach is light weight and hence suitable for use in cloud architecture. We ensure feasibility of the partitions generated by not allowing over-sized partitions to be generated during the initialization and search. Our proposed method tested on standard benchmark datasets significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art methods in terms of quality of partitions and feasibility of the solutions.


The CMS muon system includes in both the barrel and endcap region Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC). They mainly serve as trigger detectors and also improve the reconstruction of muon parameters. Over the years, the instantaneous luminosity of the Large Hadron Collider gradually increases. During the LHC Phase 1 ( ∼ first 10 years of operation) an ultimate luminosity is expected above its design value of 1034 cm−2s−1 at 14 TeV. To prepare the machine and also the experiments for this, two long shutdown periods are scheduled for 2013-2014 and 2018-2019. The CMS Collaboration is planning several detector upgrades during these long shutdowns. In particular, the muon detection system should be able to maintain a low-pT threshold for an efficient Level-1 Muon Trigger at high particle rates. One of the measures to ensure this, is to extend the present RPC system with the addition of a 4th layer in both endcap regions. During the first long shutdown, these two new stations will be equipped in the region |η| < 1.6 with 144 High Pressure Laminate (HPL) double-layer RPCs operating in avalanche mode, with a similar design as the existing CMS endcap chambers. Here, we present the upgrade plans for the CMS RPC system for the fist long shutdown, including trigger simulation studies for the extended system, and details on the new HPL production, the chamber assembly and the quality control procedures.


This study examines the effects of incentive contract framing on misreporting and entitlement. I conduct a 2 × 2 between-subjects experiment, manipulating incentive contract framing (Bonus/Penalty) and the awareness of the opportunity to misreport (Before Effort/After Effort). I predict and find that (1) penalty contracts cause a higher rate and degree of misreporting, and (2) this greater misreporting occurs due to a greater sense of entitlement to the incentive funds. Collectively, this study's theory and results indicate that while penalty contracts can sometimes increase effort relative to bonus contracts, they also encourage greater dishonesty in reporting when that effort is not successful.
 Data Availability: Contact the author.


We have constructed a comprehensive grid of 1540 metal line-blanketed, NLTE, plane-parallel, hydrostatic model atmospheres for the basic parameters appropriate to early B-type stars. The BSTAR2006 grid considers 16 values of effective temperatures, 15,000 K ≤ Teff ≤ 30,000 K with 1000 K steps, 13 surface gravities, 1.75 ≤ log g ≤ 4.75 with 0.25 dex steps, six chemical compositions, and a microturbulent velocity of 2 km s-1. The lower limit of log g for a given effective temperature is set by an approximate location of the Eddington limit. The selected chemical compositions range from twice to one-tenth of the solar metallicity and metal-free. Additional model atmospheres for B supergiants (log g ≤ 3.0) have been calculated with a higher microturbulent velocity (10 km s-1) and a surface composition that is enriched in helium and nitrogen and depleted in carbon. This new grid complements our earlier OSTAR2002 grid of O-type stars (our Paper I). The paper contains a description of the BSTAR2006 grid and some illustrative examples and comparisons. NLTE ionization fractions, bolometric corrections, radiative accelerations, and effective gravities are obtained over the parameter range covered by the grid. By extrapolating radiative accelerations, we have determined an improved estimate of the Eddington limit in absence of rotation between 55,000 and 15,000 K. The complete BSTAR2006 grid is available at the TLUSTY Web site.


The constellation language-logic in medieval philosophy (2): Duns Scotus to De Rivo. This second in a series of two articles continues the attempt to provide an in-depth overview of some of the most prominent – and some of the most underpublished - medieval thinkers' stances on the constellation of language and logic, thus as a combined and condensed problem in western philosophy between the 5th and 15th centuries. The two articles form part of a rehabilitating series of modern-critical articles on understated and marginalised themes, texts and figures in medieval philosophy. The positions of the well-known philosophers that are covered in the two articles, St Augustine, Peter Abelard, St Thomas Aquinas, John Duns Scotus and William of Ockham, are juxtaposed with some less familiar philosophical positions, amongst others those of Boethius, Peter of Spain, John Wyclif and Peter de Rivo.


Background Large-scale cancer genomics initiatives and next-generation sequencing for transcriptome profiling allow for detailed molecular characterization of tumors, and provide opportunities for clinical tools to improve diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment decisions. Laboratory information, data management, and data sharing in large-scale genomics projects is a challenge. Aiming to introduce such technologies in a clinical setting offer additional challenges associated with requirements of short lead-times and specialized tracking of biomaterials, data, and analysis results. Results Using the free open-source BioArray Software Environment (BASE) and extension package Reggie we have implemented a laboratory information management system and an automated RNAseq data analysis pipeline that successfully manage a large regional cancer genomics initiative. The system manages enrolled cancer patients, tumor biopsies, extraction of nucleic acid, and whole transcriptome RNA-sequencing through to data analysis and quality control. The implementation offers integration of laboratory equipment and operating procedures, and information tracking in a module based fashion enabling efficient and flexible use of personnel resources. The system provides two-factor authentication and transaction control and seamless integration of freely available software for RNAseq analysis such as Tophat, Cufflinks, and Picard. As of February 2016 more than 8000 patients and over 6000 tumor biopsies have been successfully processed. Lead-time from biopsy arrival to summarized reports based on RNAseq data is less than 5 days, in line with regional clinical requirements. BASE and Reggie are freely available and released as open-source under the GNU General Public License and GNU Affero General Public License, respectively. Conclusion Using free open-source software together with BASE and a customized extension package, Reggie, we have implemented a system capable of managing large collections of quality controlled and curated material for use in research and development and tailored to meet requirements for clinical use. Featuring high degree of automation and interactivity the system allows for resource efficient laboratory procedures and short lead-times with demonstrated use of RNAseq data analyses in a clinical setting.


BACKGROUND
Natural disasters are frequently associated with increases in risk factors for suicide, yet research indicates that suicide rates tend to stay the same or decrease in the wake of disasters (e.g., Krug et al., 1999).

AIMS
The present research sought to shed light on this counterintuitive phenomenon by testing hypotheses derived from Joiner's (2005) interpersonal-psychological theory of suicidal behavior, which proposes that the desire to die by suicide is the result of feeling like one does not belong and feeling like one is a burden on others. During natural disasters, community members often pull together in volunteering efforts, and it was predicted that such behaviors would boost feelings of belonging and reduce feelings that one is a burden.

METHODS
The present study tested these predictions in a sample of 210 undergraduate students in Fargo, North Dakota, following the 2009 Red River Flood.

RESULTS
Consistent with prediction, greater amounts of time spent volunteering in flood efforts were associated with increased feelings of belongingness and decreased feelings of burdensomeness.

CONCLUSIONS
The findings in the current study are consistent with the notion that communities pulling together during a natural disaster can reduce interpersonal risk factors associated with the desire for suicide.


Existing simulation methods are not able to determine in detail the wave loads on and the motions of a complex subsea structure when it is passing through the splash zone. To determine these loads and motions, model tests are necessary. Otherwise only simplified formulations or empirical relations for added mass and damping can be used. The improved Volume Of Fluid (iVOF) method presented in this paper is capable of predicting the behaviour of a subsea structure in the splash zone. The simulated flow around and through the structure looks very realistic and shows a strong resemblance with observations from model tests. The quantitative comparison of the load variations in the hoist wire of the subsea structure shows that the total load levels and dynamics of the subsea structure are well predicted. This good comparison shows the potential of the improved Volume Of Fluid (iVOF) method for the simulation of the behaviour of subsea structures in the splash zone. However, significant further development is needed before long simulations in irregular waves can be carried out. At the moment, the method is limited to short runs (regular waves) because of the long simulation times required at the moment.Copyright © 2006 by ASME


The Fourth Amendment's prohibition of "unreasonable searches" is one of the most storied constitutional commands. Yet after decades of Supreme Court jurisprudence, a coherent definition of the term "search" remains surprisingly elusive. Even the justices know they have a problem. Recent opinions only halfheartedly apply the controlling "reasonable expectation of privacy" test and its wildly unpopular cousin, "third-party doctrine," with a few justices in open revolt.

These fissures hint at the Court's openness to a new approach. Unfortunately, no viable alternatives appear on the horizon. The justices themselves offer little in the way of a replacement. And scholars' proposals exhibit the same complexity, subjectivity, and illegitimacy that pervade the status quo.

This Article proposes a shift toward simplicity. Buried underneath the doctrinal complexity of the past fifty years is a straightforward constitutional directive. A three-part formula, derived from the constitutional text, deftly solves the Fourth Amendment "search" conundrums that continue to beguile the Court. This textualist approach offers clarity and legitimacy, both long missing from "search" jurisprudence. And by generating predictable and sensible answers, the proposed framework establishes clear boundaries for police investigation while incentivizing legislators to add additional privacy protections where needed.


The oxygen evolving complex (OEC) of the natural photosynthesis system II (PSII) oxidizes water to produce oxygen and reducing equivalents (protons and electrons). The oxygen released from PSII provides the oxygen source of our atmosphere; the reducing equivalents are used to reduce carbon dioxide to organic products, which support almost all organisms on the Earth planet. The first photosynthetic organisms able to split water were proposed to be cyanobacteria-like ones appearing ca. 2.5 billion years ago. Since then, nature has chosen a sustainable way by using solar energy to develop itself. Inspired by nature, human beings started to mimic the functions of the natural photosynthesis system and proposed the concept of artificial photosynthesis (AP) with the view to creating energy-sustainable societies and reducing the impact on the Earth environments. Water oxidation is a highly energy demanding reaction and essential to produce reducing equivalents for fuel production, and thereby effective water oxidation catalysts (WOCs) are required to catalyze water oxidation and reduce the energy loss. X-ray crystallographic studies on PSII have revealed that the OEC consists of a Mn4CaO5 cluster surrounded by oxygen rich ligands, such as oxyl, oxo, and carboxylate ligands. These negatively charged, oxygen rich ligands strongly stabilize the high valent states of the Mn cluster and play vital roles in effective water oxidation catalysis with low overpotential. This Account describes our endeavors to design effective Ru WOCs with low overpotential, large turnover number, and high turnover frequency by introducing negatively charged ligands, such as carboxylate. Negatively charged ligands stabilized the high valent states of Ru catalysts, as evidenced by the low oxidation potentials. Meanwhile, the oxygen production rates of our Ru catalysts were improved dramatically as well. Thanks to the strong electron donation ability of carboxylate containing ligands, a seven-coordinate Ru(IV) species was isolated as a reaction intermediate, shedding light on the reaction mechanisms of Ru-catalyzed water oxidation chemistry. Auxiliary ligands have dramatic effects on the water oxidation catalysis in terms of the reactivity and the reaction mechanism. For instance, Ru-bda (H2bda = 2,2'-bipyridine-6,6'-dicarboxylic acid) water oxidation catalysts catalyze Ce(IV)-driven water oxidation extremely fast via the radical coupling of two Ru(V)═O species, while Ru-pda (H2pda = 1,10-phenanthroline-2,9-dicarboxylic acid) water oxidation catalysts catalyze the same reaction slowly via water nucleophilic attack on a Ru(V)═O species. With a number of active Ru catalysts in hands, light driven water oxidation was accomplished using catalysts with low catalytic onset potentials. The structures of molecular catalysts could be readily tailored to introduce additional functional groups, which favors the fabrication of state-of-the-art Ru-based water oxidation devices, such as electrochemical water oxidation anodes and photo-electrochemical anodes. The development of efficient water oxidation catalysts has led to a step forward in the sustainable energy system.


This article compares two different approaches to the humanities in general and to anthropology in particular, represented by two renowned French scholars, Claude Levi-Strauss (1908–2009) and Germaine Tillion (1907–2008). While Levi- Strauss emphasized the importance of an objective stance in the humanities and wanted to eliminate all subjectivity, Tillion desired to reserve an exclusive role for subjectivity, preferring human individuals to abstractions. The article suggests looking for the reason for these opposite positions within the disparate experiences the two scholars had during World War II: an American university life for Levi-Strauss, and "humanist classes" in a German concentration camp for Tillion. A person who had been through the schooling at Ravensbruck could not arrive at the same conception of the field as another whose experiences came from the campus of an American university.


Project aim and objectives To implement, test and evaluate a structured, evidence-based, collaborative approach to continuous quality improvement in healthcare and explore its wider potential as a model for improvement. Actions taken (including methods used) Patient Journey Action Research (PJAR) improvement project implemented and evaluated in an acute NHS Hospital Trust. The action researcher/project facilitator was external to the Trust but worked in close collaboration with NHS management; a core PJAR project team of 25 interdisciplinary NHS staff; 11 patients with peripheral vascular disease and 6 care partners. Supplementary methods included qualitative interviews with patients and care partners; mapping of Vascular Patient Journey; matrix sampling; PJAR project team meetings. Evaluation through qualitative interviews and/or questionnaire. Measures and Outcomes Measures included • Monitoring via a PJAR Steering Group comprising NHS Trust Management; NHS Executive Committee/Trust Board, Ethical and Research & Development Governance Committees and Bournemouth University. • PJAR meeting notes and 'Issues and Solutions' change document - audit trail of improvement. Outcomes: • Poignant catalysts for evidence-based change were quickly identified and effectively implemented where resources supported this. • By also inviting feedback from participants about what worked well, a more balanced approach to service review was achieved. This was reported to enhance team morale and motivation for initiating change and sustaining continuous quality improvement. Learning outcomes and conclusions Strengths; • The ARPJ achieves results as a collaborative, evidence-based and balanced approach to improvement that involves people with first-hand knowledge and experience. • Real involvement - patient and care partner participants valued the opportunity to be actively involved and able to 'make a difference' through their contributions. Limitations: • Requires significant buy-in from NHS Trust management and ARPJ team participants. • Time • Dependent on the qualities, attributes, knowledge and people skills of the ARPJ facilitator. Conclusions: • The ARPJ offers as a generic model for healthcare and services review and evidence-based improvement. • The outcomes may have wider reaching impact. For example the potential to "shift thinking" about how clinical care pathways are reviewed and what services are "like from the patient perspective"; and to trigger "cultural shift across the whole hospital".


Before 1650, only a few hundred Scots had trickled into the American colonies, but by the early 1770s the number had risen to 10,000 per year. A conservative estimate of the total number of Scots who settled in North America prior to 1785 is around 150,000.Who were these Scots? What did they do? Where did they settle? What factors motivated their emigration? Dobson's work, based on original research on both sides of the Atlantic, comprehensively identifies the Scottish contribution to the settlement of North America prior to 1785, with particular emphasis on the seventeenth century.


Water storage tanks and reservoirs are a critical component of distribution systems, yet they can pose a significant challenge for water utilities as they often have a negative impact on water quality. Water quality problems can develop due to low turnover and/or inadequate mixing resulting in short-circuiting. While the benefits of maximizing tank turnover to minimize water age are generally understood, it is only recently that extensive research on mixing characteristics of storage tanks has been undertaken that has provided insight on what causes water quality problems and expertise in designing inlet/outlet pipe configurations, or mixing systems, to achieve complete mixing and maintain water quality. This paper discusses the science of mixing applicable to all styles of storage tanks including circular and rectangular reservoirs, standpipes, and elevated tanks. Mixing characteristics of storage tanks are quite complex due to the closed geometry of the tank, the effect of inlet flow momentum, and the effect of buoyancy differences caused by temperature differentials. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Physical Scale Models are utilized to illustrate the effect of various inlet configurations, inlet momentum, and temperature differentials on the mixing processes within storage tanks. The modeling results demonstrate how water quality problems develop, and how they can be corrected with a properly designed piping/mixing system.


The tsunami early warning and mitigation systems are typically used to detect the tsunami inundation before the impact so that vulnerable communities can be alerted and the damage can be minimized. These systems typically entail upstream and downstream processes, starting from the detection of tsunami wave and finishing with safe evacuation of people. There is an interface between upstream and downstream mechanisms where the warning is issued and the decision to evacuate people are taken. In individual countries, the system by which the information is disseminated from a national point to individual communities varies significantly. Due to the complex nature of different administrative systems, it is difficult to understand who takes the decision to evacuate, at which point and how is it taken. This paper is the first part of a more extensive study undertaken to understand and evaluate the interface between the upstream and downstream mechanisms of the tsunami early warning system. The objective of the paper is to present the findings of a literature review conducted as an initial step to the above study and to understand state of the art and practices related to the interface of an end-to-end tsunami warning and mitigation system. The literature is grouped and analyzed using the conceptual analysis method, in order to understand the concepts related to the tsunami early warning system, mainly focusing on the issues pertaining to the interface. Through the literature review, a conceptual framework is developed, presenting nine concepts and their relationships within the interface. This conceptual framework will serve as a strong theoretical foundation for the future steps to be taken under the above study.


Physical and chemical aspects of the interaction of low energy electrons with organic polymers and polymer precursors have been investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS or ESCA). Electron mean free paths have been determined over a substantial kinetic energy range using TiKα and CuLα excitation sources employing the substrate overlayer technique for poly (paraxylylene) films on gold substrates. The ability of the Ti source to probe deep lying core levels in conjunction with the use of a CuLα source enabled a square root dependence of mean free path on kinetic energy to be formulated over the energy range 0.5 → 4.4 keV such that at 4.4 keV mean free path is ~4OA. In view of technological interest in the radiation modification of polymers the interaction of low energy electron beams with fluoropolymers, specifically PTFE and PVF(_2), has been investigated. In both cases defluorination of the surface regions has been shown to take place which increases with radiation dose and dose rate leading to the formation of an unsaturated carbonaceous network. The reaction is, however, independent of electron beam energy. In the initial states of irradiation inhomogeneities in the surface region occur in the case of PTFE but not PVF(_2), but the depth of modification in both cases being beyond the ESCA sampling depth using MgKα radiation. The irradiation of condensed fluorobenzenes results in the formation of films of involatile polymeric material whose composition is a function of starting material and shows greater defluorination with applied dose. Under controlled conditions the films closely resemble those obtained by plasma polymerisation illustrating the similarity in electron beam and plasma processes. As an extension to this idea MNDO-SCF-MO calculations have been carried out on the structural isomers of the perfluorodiazabenzenes in an attempt to interpret previous experimental observations relating to their plasma polymerisation, which may also be relevant to their electron beam polymerisation.


Background/Aim: Recently, AT-rich interactive domain-containing 1A protein (ARID1A) has been identified as a novel tumor suppressor gene in gastric cancer (GC) and colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the clinicopathologic value of ARID1A mutation or protein level in GC and CRC patients is controversial. Hence, we conducted a meta-analysis on the relationship between ARID1A aberrations and clinicopathologic parameters in GC and CRC. Materials and Methods: Relevant published studies were selected from PubMed and EMBASE. The effect sizes of ARID1A mutation or level on the patient's clinicopathologic parameters were calculated by prevalence rate or odds ratio (OR) or hazard ratio (HR), respectively. The effect sizes were combined using a random-effects model. Results: The frequency of ARID1A mutation and loss of ARID1A protein expression in GC patients was 17% and 27%, respectively. The loss of ARID1A protein expression of GC patients was significantly associated with advanced tumor depth (OR = 1.8, P = 0.004), lymph node metastasis (OR = 1.4, P = 0.001), and unfavorable adjusted overall survival (HR = 1.5, P < 0.001). ARID1A mutation of GC was significantly associated with microsatellite instability (MSI) (OR = 24.5, P < 0.001) and EBV infection (OR = 2.6, P = 0.001). The frequency of ARID1A mutation and ARID1A protein expression loss in CRC patients was approximately 12–13%. Interestingly, the loss of ARID1A protein expression in CRC patients was significantly associated with poorly differentiated grade (OR = 4.0, P < 0.001) and advanced tumor depth (OR = 1.8, P = 0.012). Conclusion: Our meta-analysis revealed that ARID1A alterations may be involved in the carcinogenesis of GC by EBV infection and MSI. The loss of ARID1A protein expression may be a marker of poor prognosis in GC and CRC patients.


In recent years, several authors have underlined the need for a critical approach to Translation Studies in order to explore power struggles in both source and target languages and cultures. Norman Fairclough 's model of discourse analysis offers textual and interpretative procedures for the analy-sis of linguistic features of texts and their societal implications that can be successfully applied for this purpose. In this article we shall study the representations of languages and cultures in contact in the American situation comedy Frasier, one of the world's greatest television successes of the 1990s. We shall cover two distinct uses of languages in contact. In our first section, we shall examine the use of other languages in the primary English discourse of the protagonists, notably French and Spanish, and their different representational and ideational implications, before proceeding to analyse the Spanish and French target versions to ascertain whether the ideological components are maintained or transformed. In the second sec-tion, we shall analyse the scenes where two or more languages are involved and the transformative acts performed by the characters. As in the first sec-tion, the target versions in French and Spanish will then be examined in order to identify the translational strategies used to maintain or tone down the ideological components. The final section will discuss the last dimension of Fairclough's model, that is, sociocultural practice or explanation.


Variation in gonadal somatic indices (GSI) and fatty acid signatures of 2 contrasting Scottish west coast populations of the echinoid Psammechinus miliaris were examined. P. miliaris was sampled from both the shallow subtidal and at the upper limit of its distribution in the intertidal. The intertidal population had a significantly higher GSI than the subtidal at both locations. Multivariate analysis (ANOSIM) of the fatty acid signature showed significant variation between the 2 depths as well as between sex and location. SIMPER analysis indicated a complex pattern of variation between location and depths. Both 20:4(n-6) and 20:5(n-6), associated with brown algae, were found in higher levels in subtidal populations, while levels of 22:6(n-3) were higher in the intertidal at one site, and 18:4(n-3) higher at the other. Of these acids, 22:6(n-3) is associated with filter feeding invertebrates, and 18:4(n-3) with green algae. Omnivorous diets in urchins have been associated with increased gonadal growth and the results from this study strongly suggest that the observed differences in GSI between intertidal and subtidal P. miliaris result from a higher quality diet in the intertidal, consisting of invertebrates and green algae.


This study surveys 103 academics from the USA and Australia to determine the motiva-tions for designing and creating e-courses. Using readably available lists of information systems academics, the overwhelming majority of respondents have created only one or two e-courses, took up the challenge out of personal desire or a personal need to add value to an already existing course, and that pecuniary compensation was not the main personal motivation. The data suggests that not all e-courses are as successful as one would expect, for almost 20% of the respondents are neutral in their overall satisfaction with the e-course experience. Seventy-one percent of respondents spent more time teach-ing an e-course than a traditional course, and 89% report it taking more time to prepare an e-course. The survey concludes that students appear to learn only slightly more in an e-course than a traditional one.


The research reported here follows previous articles in this special issue which detail a national study involving a team of researchers across four higher education institutions in New Zealand. A key theme that emerged from a collection of questionnaire, interview and observational data was the central importance of teacher–student and student–student relationships, as part of the learning communities. Both teachers and students highlighted the value of developing a personal dimension to their relationships that engendered a greater sense of access and loyalty to that community. Contextual factors such as approachability of teachers, class size and teaching environment appeared to be important to relationship building and enculturation in higher education science and engineering learning communities.


Inhibition of autophagy is a characteristic of ovarian cancer. We determined whether inhibition of autophagy by vaginal fluid could provide a non‐invasive test for cancer risk stratification in women presenting with an adnexal mass. Vaginal fluid supernatants from 90 women undergoing evaluation for a suspicious adnexal mass were incubated with peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) obtained from healthy women under conditions that induce autophagy. Rapamycin, an autophagy inducer, was added to some cultures. After 48 hr the cells were collected, lysed and assayed by ELISA for intracellular p62 concentration. p62 is a cytoplasmic protein that is consumed during autophagy induction. Its concentration is inversely proportional to the extent of autophagy induction. Clinical information including pathological diagnoses was obtained after completion of laboratory studies. Mean p62 levels were 9.4 ng/ml in the 21 women with a subsequent malignant diagnosis, 4.5 ng/ml in the eight women with a borderline tumor diagnosis and 3.6 ng/ml in the 61 women with benign disease (p < 0.0001, malignant vs. others). When rapamycin was added to the vaginal fluid‐PBMC co‐incubation, p62 levels in samples from women with a malignant diagnosis decreased to 3.3 ng/ml, a level comparable to what was observed with the nonmalignant samples. Vaginal fluid inhibition of autophagy can differentiate between women with malignant and benign adnexal masses.