Excerpt] Many employers offer some type of health or retirement package, but their provisions vary considerably from employer to employer. Knowing the details of the types of coverage available affords a better understanding of benefits in the workplace. For example, health plans may be prepaid (health maintenance organizations, or HMOs) or fee for service (such as preferred provider organizations, or PPOs), and may or may not offer dental coverage. Defined contribution plans may be structured around company matches on employer contributions or may consist of non-elective employer contributions alone. The Bureau of Labor Statistics refers to these details as plan provisions. This Beyond the Numbers article describes the prevalence with which people working for private employers in the United States are given the opportunity to enroll in health and retirement plans with various provisions—the extent to which they have access to those provisions. But note: just because a worker has access to a given plan does not mean that he or she participates in the plan. Once given access, the worker often must affirmatively enroll in the plan in order to be counted as a participant (and to receive and enjoy the plan's benefits laid out in its provisions). The rate at which workers enroll in plans to which they are given access is known as the takeup rate. Often, the takeup rate for a plan is less than 100 percent, perhaps because enrolling in the plan requires that the worker incur some cost or because the worker also has access to several alternative plans. As a result, the participation rate—the extent to which workers in the economy participate in plans—is often lower than the corresponding access rate. The analysis that follows explores this dynamic by presenting participation and takeup rates for plan provisions alongside the access rates


Different strategies have been used to overcome the difficulties to produce antimicrobial peptides. Here we used Intein Mediated Purification with an Affinity Chitin-binding Tag (IMPACT-System, New England Biolabs) for the expression of the antimicrobial peptide cecropin to reduce its sensitivity to intracellular proteases and use its inducible self-cleaving capability to remove the carrier. Cecropin was cloned into suitable expression vector pTYB11, and expression induced by IPTG in Escherichia coli ER2566. The use of 22oC induction allowed the expression of cecropin with its intein carrier in soluble form. Cell extracts were purified by chitin affinity chromatography and intein-mediated splicing of the target protein was achieved by thiol addition, obtaining a final yield of 2.5 mg cecropin/l. Cecropin cleaved from the intein had its proper biologically active form, showing a micromolar antimicrobial activity against Vibrio ordalii , Vibrio alginolyticus and Escherichia coli.


The Democratic Peace thesis suggests that the absence of war between major powers since 1945 is caused by the spread of democracy. The Capitalist Peace thesis emphasizes trade and the rise of knowledge economies as the forces driving peace. Complementing these interpretations, we present empirical evidence of a cultural change that is making peace more desirable to the publics of most societies around the world. Analyzing public opinion data covering 90% of the world's population over three decades, we demonstrate that improving existential conditions elevate the life opportunities of growing population segments and lead them to become increasingly tolerant of diversity and place growing emphasis on self-realization. In recognition of life's rising opportunities, people's valuation of life changes profoundly: readiness to sacrifice one's life gives way to an increasing insistence on living it, and living it the way one chooses. Hence, pro-choice values rise at the same time as willingness to sacrifice lives in war dwindles. Historical learning based on the specific experiences of given societies has also changed their publics' willingness to fight in wars. This transformation of worldviews places interstate peace on an increasingly solid mass basis.


It is a well-known empirical result that self-finance is an important option for people when financing entrepreneurship. It is, however, not entirely clear what the theoretical explanations for this might look like. In fact, the leading entrepreneurial theories even seem to indicate that questions about the existence and extent of entrepreneurship more or less are disconnected from the question of self-finance. The purpose of this paper is to clarify and distill some distinctive theoretical arguments for why self-finance is so important and to clarify what the barriers to self-finance look like. The decisive theoretical argument is that problems related to individual differences in information, perception, interpretation and implementation always will arise as soon as external financing is considered; such problems will not arise when entrepreneurs are able to rely on self-finance. However, there are barriers to self-finance and they fall into two wide categories, (1) barriers to the building up of privately held wealth, regardless of magnitude, and (2) barriers to the preservation of privately held wealth. Many of these barriers are created by political means and can therefore – here they differ from the problems related to external financing – also be alleviated by political means. The conclusions have clear policy implications. JEL: B53; D14; D82; G24; G32; G38; H20; L2; M13


Long-term management planning for conservation-reliant migratory songbirds is particularly challenging because habitat quality in different stages and geographic locations of the annual cycle can have direct and carry-over effects that influence the population dynamics. The Neotropical migratory songbird Kirtland's warbler Setophaga kirtlandii (Baird 1852) is listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and Near Threatened under the IUCN Red List. This conservation-reliant species is being considered for U.S. federal delisting because the species has surpassed the designated 1000 breeding pairs recovery threshold since 2001. To help inform the delisting decision and long-term management efforts, we developed a population simulation model for the Kirtland's warbler that incorporated both breeding and wintering grounds habitat dynamics, and projected population viability based on current environmental conditions and potential future management scenarios. Future management scenarios included the continuation of current management conditions, reduced productivity and carrying capacity due to the changes in habitat suitability from the creation of experimental jack pine Pinus banksiana (Lamb.) plantations, and reduced productivity from alteration of the brown-headed cowbird Molothrus ater (Boddaert 1783) removal programme. Linking wintering grounds precipitation to productivity improved the accuracy of the model for replicating past observed population dynamics. Our future simulations indicate that the Kirtland's warbler population is stable under two potential future management scenarios: (i) continuation of current management practices and (ii) spatially restricting cowbird removal to the core breeding area, assuming that cowbirds reduce productivity in the remaining patches by =41%. The additional future management scenarios we assessed resulted in population declines. Synthesis and applications. Our study indicates that the Kirtland's warbler population is stable under current management conditions and that the jack pine plantation and cowbird removal programmes continue to be necessary for the long-term persistence of the species. This study represents one of the first attempts to incorporate full annual cycle dynamics into a population viability analysis for a migratory bird, and our results indicate that incorporating wintering grounds dynamics improved the model performance.


The skyline query is used for multi-criteria searching, and returns the most interesting points of a potentially very large data set with respect to any monotone preference function. The skycube consists of the skylines for all possible non-empty subsets of dimensions. Existing work has almost exclusively focused on efficiently computing skylines and skycubes on one or more CPUs, ignoring the high parallelism possible on Graphics Processing Units. Furthermore, current algorithms scale badly for large, high-dimensional data since the amount of computations needed grows exponentially. In this thesis we investigate the challenges of efficient skyline and skycube computations that exploit the computational power of the GPU. We also study the limitations and strength of both the CPU and the GPU to determine how fully utilize both. We present a sorting based, data-parallel skyline algorithm which runs efficiently on the GPU, and discuss it properties. We then use this algorithm as a basis for developing several efficient GPU based skycube algorithms, each of which shows the impact of different optimization opportunities in the domain of data-parallel skycube computations. In a thorough experimental evaluation, we demonstrate that our algorithms are substantially faster and scale much better than the state-of-theart algorithms on large, high-dimensional datasets.


The Columbia River Treaty, concluded in 1961 and ratified in 1964, split hydropower and flood control regulation of the river between Canada and the United States. Some of its provisions will expire in 2024, and either country must give ten years notice of any desired alteration or termination. "The Columbia River Treaty Revisited, " with contributions from historians, geographers, environmental scientists, and other experts, is intended to facilitate conversation about the impending expiration. It allows the reader, through the close inspection of the Columbia River Basin, to better grasp the uncertainty of water governance. It aids efforts, already underway, to understand changes in the basin since the treaty was passed, to predict future changes, and to determine whether alteration of the treaty is ultimately advisable. "The Columbia River Treaty Revisited "will appeal to those interested in water basin management scholars, stakeholders, and residents of the Columbia River basin alike. A Project of the Universities Consoritum on Columbia River GovernanceThe Universities Consortium on Columbia River Governance, with representatives from universities in the U.S. and Canada, formed to offer a nonpartisan platform to facilitate an informed, inclusive, international dialogue among key decision-makers and other interested people and organizations; to connect university research to problems faced within the basin; and to expose students to a complex water resources problem. The Consortium organized the symposium on which this volume is based."


ABSTRACT The explosion of map use in the past few decades as part of everyday activities, accelerated through the digital production and dissemination of maps and the availability of low-cost, location-aware devices, has made the job of cartographers and map display designers more challenging. Yet, how do these recent changes affect effective map design? Can we accurately predict which designs will work for a given context? We investigate the concepts of design transferability and context and their potential to help us create map design outcomes that are effective for varying map use situations. We then present a model for operationalizing map use context to support evaluating map design transferability and pose several open research questions that need to be answered to support operationalizing map use context. This is followed by a research agenda that identifies research opportunities related to key research needs that will underpin transferable map design.


In this paper, we formulate a novel graph-based learning problem, multi-graph classification (MGC), which aims to learn a classifier from a set of labeled bags each containing a number of graphs inside the bag. A bag is labeled positive, if at least one graph in the bag is positive, and negative otherwise. Such a multi-graph representation can be used for many real-world applications, such as webpage classification, where a webpage can be regarded as a bag with texts and images inside the webpage being represented as graphs. This problem is a generalization of multi-instance learning (MIL) but with vital differences, mainly because instances in MIL share a common feature space whereas no feature is available to represent graphs in a multi-graph bag. To solve the problem, we propose a boosting based multi-graph classification framework (bMGC). Given a set of labeled multi-graph bags, bMGC employs dynamic weight adjustment at both bag- and graph-levels to select one subgraph in each iteration as a weak classifier. In each iteration, bag and graph weights are adjusted such that an incorrectly classified bag will receive a higher weight because its predicted bag label conflicts to the genuine label, whereas an incorrectly classified graph will receive a lower weight value if the graph is in a positive bag (or a higher weight if the graph is in a negative bag). Accordingly, bMGC is able to differentiate graphs in positive and negative bags to derive effective classifiers to form a boosting model for MGC. Experiments and comparisons on real-world multi-graph learning tasks demonstrate the algorithm performance.


Hemp is a broad term used to describe the many varieties of Cannabis sativa L. that produce less than 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The crop is globally significant, but only recently allowed to be grown again in the United States. Varieties have been selected and are currently grown with a wide range of cannabinoid profiles. Cannabinoids are of interest for their putative medical and therapeutic role in humans and pets. Cannabidiol (CBD) and THC are the two cannabinoids of primary interest. THC is of interest because it determines whether the final product is considered hemp (0.3% THC). CBD is of interest because of its potential therapeutic properties and its legal status across many states. Currently, there is no information available regarding adaptability or cannabinoid production of these varieties in Kansas. In 2019, Kansans were allowed to apply for research licenses to grow industrial hemp. It was assumed the crop would grow well throughout Kansas since there are wild remnant populations of C. sativa flourishing at numerous locations across the state. However, controlled variety trials are necessary to determine which varieties are best adapted to Kansas. Currently, growers must rely on information generated from other states with vastly different growing conditions than Kansas. Variety selection is vital in CBD hemp production considering that environmental conditions strongly influence cannabinoid ratios and ultimately, total cannabinoid content. The objective of this study was to evaluate commercially available varieties of CBD hemp in south-central Kansas grown in containers outdoors or inside of a high tunnel. Outdoor hemp production is of interest because of reduced infrastructure cost. However, pollination is a concern with outdoor hemp. Unpollinated female flowers contain the highest concentration of cannabinoids. When flowers are pollinated and seeds are produced, the total concentration of all cannabinoids is greatly diminished. In Kansas, naturalized populations of C. sativa can be found throughout the state. With pollen easily traveling as far as 3 miles there is concern regarding the viability of outdoor CBD hemp potential. We wanted to test whether a covered high tunnel could effectively reduce pollination of the plants within.


Ever since its discovery by Mukhtar Ali Isani in 1986, the poem believed to be Phillis Wheatley's last publication during her lifetime, "An Elegy on Leaving," has struck scholars as displaying an "atypical weariness and lack of hope" (Isani, "Elegy on Leaving" 611). From its opening lines, the poem evokes a scene of unwelcome departure from a pastoral haven: FAREWEL! ye friendly bow'rs, ye streams adieu, I leave with sorrow each sequester'd seat: The lawns, where oft I swept the morning dew, The groves, from noon-tide rays a kind retreat. (Wheatley, Complete Writings l02-03) John C. Shields, in his survey of Wheatley's "employ[ment] of [the] subversive pastoral," identifies it as "one of her bleakest, for she appears to bid adieu to the entire world of poetic creativity" ("Phillis Wheatley's Subversive Pastoral" 632, 646). Vincent Carretta, in his remarkable new biography of Wheatley, sees in the poem a "fittingly poignant farewell to more than just a life of seclusion" (189). Those who mark the propinquity of its publication to Wheatley's death--it was published only months before in the July 1784 issue of London's Arminian Magazine--welcome its uncharacteristic directness of pastoral sentiment; it symbolically sounds a mournful endnote for her tragically abbreviated life and work. This elegiac mood pervades most scholarly discussions of the poem, and few other substantive analyses exist. (1) Indeed, when compelled to discuss its literary merits in his introductory essay, Isani asserts that its "importance is mainly historical" and admits that the poem "does not escape the conventions of [Wheatley's] day" ("Elegy on Leaving" 612). The sensitivity of previous scholars to these differences in tone and quality between this poem and the rest of Wheatley's oeuvre is better explained, however, by new evidence that proves that the work is not Wheatley's after all. Rather, it is the work of English poet Mary Whateley (1738-1825), who included it as "Elegy on Leaving" in her 1764 collection Original Poems on Several Occasions (see Figure 1). Whateley was the daughter of a gentleman farmer of Beoley village in Worcestershire. (2) Though her mother was "barely literate" and her father owned only a "parcel" of "old" books, her close friendship with the daughter of the local vicar gave her access to an Oxonian's more substantial library (Messenger 15). Moreover, the location of her village in the Midlands brought her to the attention of William Shenstone, a landscape gardener and poet known for the pastoral mode, who acted as a mentor. She also came to the attention of poet and translator John Langhorne, who wrote the prefatory poem to her first book and commended her writing in the Monthly Review. (3) These two men introduced her to additional literary connections and assisted her in the publication of her verse. (4) In her early twenties, she moved to Walsall in Staffordshire, where she was to "keep house for her brother Henry" (Messenger 24-25). Though she was initially reluctant to move, she grew to appreciate the town's artistic and intellectual community. After returning to Beoley for a period and publishing her book, she came back to Walsall and married a local curate, John Darwall. Marriage and motherhood slowed but did not end her literary career; a widowed Mary Whateley Darwall published a two-volume work of poetry in 1794, the similarly titled Poems on Several Occasions. According to her biographer, Ann Messenger, the undated "Elegy on Leaving" was undoubtedly composed in 1759/60 as it "obviously chronicles her feelings about having to trade [the] rural peace" of Beoley for the more populous Walsall. Messenger admires the poem, which she deems "conventionally and simply pastoral," more for its insight into Whateley's emotions than for its art (24-25, 65), (5) an opinion that resonates with many Wheatley scholars' assessments of the misascribed work. The poems themselves are identical, with the exception of occasional changes in orthography, punctuation, capitalization, and italicization. …


This study sought to explore the management of teaching and learning resources in the context of free primary education in Lesotho primary schools. In addressing this purpose the qualitative methods of data production were used. The participants were the principals and teachers from three schools. Qualitative data was collected through individual semi structured interviews, observations and document analysis. This was analyzed using qualitative thematic approach. The findings showed that the schools studied had functional resource management committees. However the schools experienced a high shortage of resources. These resources largely come from the government but they are delivered late in most cases. Therefore teachers find themselves having to improvise and to use resources in turns. The study concludes that schools cannot rely on government alone in terms of teaching and learning resources.


We support student activities across campus that promote student growth, raise cultural awareness, and build community. Through their participation in fun, positive, and new experiences, students will be able to develop a better understanding of self and others, as well as a broader perspective on culture and inclusiveness. There are three primary areas of Student Activities: Carolina Union Activities Board, Large-scale Campus-Wide initiatives, and Heritage Month programming. Learn more about opportunities to engage in or create programming below!


The current study was conducted to compare between two methods of small intestinal anastomosis in dogs after obliquely resected and anastomosed by using simple interrupted and cross mattress sutures technique. The results revealed that the oblique technique of intestinal anastomosis was successful in all operative animals with few complications and without mortality rate postoperatively. The postmortem examination revealed that the cross mattress technique was associated with minimal adhesion as compare to simple interrupted technique which was associated with sever adhesion .The radiographic study revealed that no significant differences in mean degree of stenosis between two methods of this study. Also the radiographic pictures revealed that, the mean degree of stenosis which associated with cross mattress pattern was less than accompanied with simple interrupted pattern at thirty days after operation. The histopathological examination shown minute foci of tissue reaction with thick and mature fibrous tissue at the site of operation after 30 days in cross mattress anastomosis, whereas the anastomosis with the simple interrupted suture accompanied by sever inflammation and destruction of the serosal layer of intestine at 30 days after operation .We concluded that simple interrupted and cross mattress patterns can be used for anastomosis of oblique intestinal resection.


To gain an accurate view of medieval Judaism, one must look through the eyes of Jews and their contemporaries. First published in 1938, Jacob Rader Marcus s classic source book on medieval Judaism provides the documents and historical narratives which let the actors and witnesses of events speak for themselves. The medieval epoch in Jewish history begins around the year 315, when the emperor Constantine began enacting disabling laws against the Jews, rendering them second-class citizens. In the centuries following, Jews enjoyed (or suffered under) legislation, either chosen or forced by the state, which differed from the laws for the Christian and Muslim masses. Most states saw the Jews as simply a tolerated group, even when given favorable privileges. The masses often disliked them. Medieval Jewish history presents a picture wherein large patches are characterized by political and social disabilities. Marcus closes the medieval Jewish age (for Western Jewry) in 1791 with the proclamation of political and civil emancipation in France. The 137 sources included in the anthology include historical narratives, codes, legal opinions, martyrologies, memoirs, polemics, epitaphs, advertisements, folk-tales, ethical and pedagogical writings, book prefaces and colophons, commentaries, and communal statutes. These documents are organized in three sections: The first treats the relation of the State to the Jew and reflects the civil and political status of the Jew in the medieval setting. The second deals with the profound influence exerted by the Catholic and Protestant churches on Jewish life and well-being. The final section presents a study of the Jew at home, with four sub-divisions with treat the life of the medieval Jew in its various aspects. Marcus presents the texts themselves, introductions, and lucid notes. Marc Saperstein offers a new introduction and updated bibliography."


Fundamentally Human: Contemporary Art and Neuroscience exhibition brings the work of seven contemporary artists to the fore, whose work addresses aspects of the neurological sciences. Curated by BFA Fine Arts Department Chair of the School of Visual Arts in New York Suzanne Anker, the exhibition includes works by the artists Suzanne Anker (USA), Andrew Carnie (UK), Rona Pondick (USA), Michael Joaquin Grey (USA), Michael Rees (USA), Frank Gillette (USA) and Leonel Moura (Portugal). Each interdisciplinary artist essentially employs new technologies ranging from robotics, 3-D scanning, Photoshop, rapid prototyping, microscopy and computational video. All are concerned with the mysteries and unity of nature and its processes, the transmission of knowledge and beliefs, and the reveries of human metaphors of being in time. As the artists incorporate such metaphors invoked by matter, perception and memory, their discrete personifications are framed within a symbolic narrative. This exhibition which combines science and art; invites us to view art through a scientific perspective and help us understand and question the strong connection between contemporary art and neuroscience.


The swamp blues have lain in the margins of music history despite foundational, if brief, contributions to 1960s popular music broadly and British blues-rock specifically. The canon is not stylistically unified, but organized around a musical sodality from the independent record industry of Southwest Louisiana between 1954-1966. Why has this regional music been forgotten, and why are the few traces of its history all overseas? Through an investigation of the postwar industrial and economic forces that reshaped the South Louisiana cultural territory into a Southeast-Texas-and-Southwest-Louisiana musical byway, this dissertation reveals how migrations of African-American workers and a "Crawfish Circuit" of nightclubs heightened musical exchanges across the region. Influenced as much by New Orleans' piano-driven r&b as Texan guitar blues, the swamp blues represent a cultural third-space beyond the more popular Zydeco and swamp pop local arenas. Poppy, sophisticated, grooving ensemble r&b by Charles Sheffield, Katie Webster, Lionel Prevost, and Slim Harpo, late-era downhome blues by Lightning Slim and Juke Boy Bonner, and transitional r&b that encapsulates both sides from Guitar Jr., Big Chenier, and Lazy Lester came out on Excello and Goldband Records. The music trades alternately in notions of downhome authenticity and hip urbanity, the anticommercial and the big-league professional. Under the black-white binary aegis of the postwar record industry, nonCreole African Americans here made trendy records with vast market appeal, all sourced from Louisianian musical crossroads and material, and in so doing, harnessed essentialist ideas about black American identity to commercial ends. Few swamp blues musicians had virtuosic talent, so history has instead honored the genius of two white independent record producers, J.D. Miller and Eddie Shuler. Their watermark follows the swamp blues overseas, where a British fanbase buoyed the Jay Miller legacy especially. I consider how, across different spaces in time, the placedness of black musicians' bodies has influenced varying interpretations of the swamp blues. I argue that the unconventional "regional" swamp blues beg a revaluation of both blackness in Civil Rights-era Southwest Louisiana, and the accepted racial and ethnic segregations of sound found there that exclude the swamp blues from standard narratives of local music history. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group Music First Advisor Guthrie P. Ramsey


Automatic tagging of video recordings of sports matches and training sessions can be helpful to coaches and players and provide access to structured data at a scale that would be unfeasible if one were to rely on manual tagging. Recognition of different actions forms an essential part of sports video tagging. In this paper, the authors employ machine learning techniques to automatically recognize specific types of volleyball actions (i.e., underhand serve, overhead pass, serve, forearm pass, one hand pass, smash, and block which are manually annotated) during matches and training sessions (uncontrolled, in the wild data) based on motion data captured by inertial measurement unit sensors strapped on the wrists of eight female volleyball players. Analysis of the results suggests that all sensors in the inertial measurement unit (i.e., magnetometer, accelerometer, barometer, and gyroscope) contribute unique information in the classification of volleyball actions types. The authors demonstrate that while the accelerometer feature set provides better results than other sensors, overall (i.e., gyroscope, magnetometer, and barometer) feature fusion of the accelerometer, magnetometer, and gyroscope provides the bests results (unweighted average recall = 67.87%, unweighted average precision = 68.68%, and κ = .727), well above the chance level of 14.28%. Interestingly, it is also demonstrated that the dominant hand (unweighted average recall = 61.45%, unweighted average precision = 65.41%, and κ = .652) provides better results than the nondominant (unweighted average recall = 45.56%, unweighted average precision = 55.45, and κ = .553) hand. Apart from machine learning models, this paper also discusses a modular architecture for a system to automatically supplement video recording by detecting events of interests in volleyball matches and training sessions and to provide tailored and interactive multimodal feedback by utilizing an HTML5/JavaScript application. A proof of concept prototype developed based on this architecture is also described.


Teach yourself the fundamentals of ADO.NET 4 -- one step at a time. With this practical, learn-by-doing tutorial, you get the clear guidance and hands-on examples you need to start creating datacentric applications for Windows and the Web. Discover how to: Connect to external data sources, including databases and other data formats Use ADO.NET Entity Framework to interact with underlying data stores Build Entity Framework models with graphical design tools in Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Analyze information stored in ADO.NET with various LINQ providers Bind data directly to Windows Forms and Web Forms to drive information to users Manage disconnected or standalone data and information Go beyond the core functionality of ADO.NET to manipulate data in more advanced ways Your step by step digital content includes: Practice exercises Fully searchable online edition of this book -- with unlimited access on the Web


Purpose. To evaluate changes in anterior corneal curvature and graft stability with different sized donor buttons in a laboratory model of posterior lamellar keratoplasty. Methods. Thirty-six human eye bank corneas (18 donors and 18 recipients) were mounted on an artificial anterior chamber. A manual microkeratome was used to create a hinged anterior lamellar keratectomy. A 7.0-mm diameter posterior lamellar disk (posterior stroma, Descemet's membrane, and endothelium) was then trephinated from the recipient cornea. Three different sizes (7.0, 7.25, and 7.5 mm) of donor buttons were compared. They were sutured into the recipient bed with a running 10-0 nylon suture and covered by the host corneal flap. The flap was replaced without sutures. The resulting endokeratoplasty was analyzed by computerized videokeratography and tonometry. Results. Regular postoperative astigmatism was present in all cases. There was an average increase in astigmatism of 1.47 ± 1.49 diopters (D) postoperatively. The mean change in the average keratometry readings was −5.12 ± 6.12 D. The grafts and flaps maintained watertight seals with average leak pressures of 66.9 ± 46.4 mm Hg. Although donor buttons oversized by 0.5 mm had the least change in average keratometry reading, those oversized by 0.25 mm had the best stability at high pressure. All groups had little change in astigmatism. Conclusion. The optimal sized button of those tested would be either oversized by 0.25 or 0.5 mm. This new surgical technique may result in lower risk of high and irregular astigmatism in the management of corneal endothelial disorders.


Signs and symptoms of systemic mastocytosis often include extreme tiredness (fatigue), skin redness and warmth (flushing), nausea, abdominal pain, bloating, diarrhea, the backflow of stomach acids into the esophagus (gastroesophageal reflux), nasal congestion, shortness of breath, low blood pressure (hypotension), lightheadedness, and headache. Some affected individuals have attention or memory problems, anxiety, or depression. Many individuals with systemic mastocytosis develop a skin condition called urticaria pigmentosa, which is characterized by raised patches of brownish skin that sting or itch with contact or changes in temperature. Nearly half of individuals with systemic mastocytosis will experience severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis).


The ectodermal dysplasias (EDs) are a large and complex group of diseases. More than 170 different clinical conditions have been recognized and defined as ectodermal dysplasias. Commonly involved ectodermal-derived structures are hair, teeth, nails, and sweat glands. In some conditions, it may be associated with mental retardation. We report a case of 10-year-old male child with ectrodactyly, syndactyly, ED, cleft lip/palate, hearing loss, and mental retardation.


This article examines the argument regarding whether perceived social exclusion during unemployment leads to procrastination through online media, which in turn lessens the job search efforts of the unemployed. Based on data from 386 unemployed Internet users, we argue that online procrastination plays an important role in the lives of the unemployed but has no immediate effects on their perceived job search efforts. Contextual factors play an important role; that is, the amount of motivational control that the unemployed can muster exerts a strong effect on job search efforts. Generally, unemployed Internet users with low motivational control struggle more with their job search efforts. Thus, the recreational use of online media as such is not necessarily detrimental to the efforts invested in finding a job; instead, online skill-building and motivational support are key antecedents to better empower the unemployed to use the Internet productively for finding reemployment.


The Australian study Making Music Work: Sustainable Portfolio Careers for Australian Musicians (2016-2019) explored the conditions and strategies needed for musicians to sustain successful portfolio careers.
The vast majority of Australian musicians undertake a portfolio career which encompasses a variety of concurrent and often impermanent roles. While this is not a new phenomenon, major shifts in how music is made, paid for and consumed, as well as a changing commercial, funding, educational and policy landscape, all impact how musicians currently develop and sustain their careers.
 Making Music Work sought to provide a more nuanced and granular understanding of these key sector dynamics and how musicians navigate them. The study included a national survey of 592 musicians and 11 in-depth interviews with a diverse group of musicians.
Making Music Work was funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage grant and led by Queensland Conservatorium Research Centre (QCRC), Griffith University, with industry partners, Australia Council for the Arts, Create NSW, Creative Victoria, Western Australian Government – Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC), and institutional partner Curtin University.
The research team included Professor Brydie-Leigh Bartleet, Professor Dawn Bennett, Professor Ruth Bridgstock, Professor Scott Harrison, Professor Paul Draper, Professor Vanessa Tomlinson and Research Fellow Dr Christina Ballico.


This longitudinal study examined factors that contribute to the persistence of underrepresented racial minority (URM) undergraduates in STEM fields. The primary source of data came from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program's 2004 The Freshman Survey (TFS) and 2008 College Senior Survey (CSS). The sample included 3,670 students at 217 institutions who indicated on the TFS that they intended to major in a STEM field, 1,634 of whom were underrepresented minority (URM) students. Findings indicate that Black and Latino undergraduates were significantly less likely to persist in STEM majors than were their White and Asian American counterparts. Background characteristics and college experiences moderated this race effect, suggesting both that pre-college factors may explain some of the observed racial disparities and that individual institutions can take more concrete actions to improve science achievement. Findings from the follow-up analysis of the sample of URMs suggest that institutions can improve URM STEM persistence by increasing the likelihood that those students will engage in key academic experiences: studying frequently with others, participating in undergraduate research, and involvement in academic clubs or organizations. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 51: 555–580, 2014


Livestock contributes enormously in food and nutritional security apart from livelihood security to rural population all over the world. India has the largest number of livestock, representing over 17% of world population. Availability of forage legumes is essential for better animal health, production and increasing the nutritive value of forage-based rations, besides providing a source of biological nitrogen fixation for enriching soil, reducing land degradation and mitigating climate change. However, supply of quality green fodder in India is extremely precarious, and the gap is huge against demand. The major fodder legume crops cultivated in India are Medicago sativa, Trifolium alexandrinum, Vigna unguiculata, Vigna umbellate and range legumes are Stylosanthes spp., Desmanthus virgatus, and Clitoria ternatea. Indian subcontinent represents wide spectrum of eco-climates and reported diversity of 21 forage legumes genera viz., Desmodium, Lablab, Stylosanthes, Vigna, Macroptelium, Centrosema and browse plants Leucaena, Sesbania, Albizia, Bauhinia, Cassia, Grewia, etc. Diversity of forage legumes were collected (>3200 accessions), evaluated and sources for different biotic and abiotic stress tolerance were identified, apart from >50 cultivars developed. Considering these aspects, tropical legumes for livestock production, soil health and ecosystem services, diversity, evaluation and breeding for improved varieties are discussed in this chapter.


Maintaining academic integrity is a universal problem and can be especially difficult when implementing a simulation scenario that must take place over several days. It became obvious to faculty that students scheduled in later sessions exceeded realistic expectations in their performances. In response to this, faculty created two scenarios (one psychiatric and one medical-surgical)with flexibility that provided each student a unique and challenging learning experience while guiding the facilitator along various pathways based on the student's actions in the scenario. This allowed the overall learning objectives to be maintained regardless of students sharing information from simulations scheduled on earlier dates. Adapting the scenario based on individual student's responses allowed each student to have a unique learning opportunity in spite of the students being "prepped" by students that had already participated in the simulation. Faculty and student feedback revealed the flexibility of the scenarios was a valuable and meaningful learning experience. This paper discusses how to plan and implement this innovative approach to simulation, which will help to counter the effects of information sharing among students.


Today's organizations are inherently open and connected, sharing knowledge and ideas in order to remain innovative. As a result, these organizations are also more vulnerable to information theft through different forms of security breaches caused by hackers and competitors. One way of understanding the vulnerability of an information system is to build and analyze the attack graph of that system. The attack graph of an information system contains all the paths that can be used to penetrate the system in order to breach critical assets. Although existing literature provides an abundance of attack graph generation algorithms, more methods are required to help analyze the attack graphs. In this paper, we study how best to deploy security countermeasures to protect an organization by analyzing the vulnerability of the organization through the use of its attack graph. In particular, we present an approach to find an optimal affordable subset of arcs, called an interdiction plan, on an attack graph that should be protected from attack to minimize the loss due to security breaches. We formulate this problem as a bi-level mixed-integer linear program and develop an exact algorithm to solve it. Experiments show that the algorithm is able to solve relatively large problems. Two heuristic methods, one with and the other without a heuristic to solve the master problem and both limiting the master problem branch-and-bound tree to only one node solve the large problems remarkably well. Experiments also reveal that the quality of an interdiction plan is relatively insensitive with respect to the error in the estimate of the attacker's budget, and that the breach loss drops sharply at the beginning, then levels off before finally dropping sharply again with increases in the security budget.


Abstract Some countries fail to ensure that their citizens and businesses make an appropriate contribution to the financing of public tasks. But not all countries with a low tax ratio automatically fall into this category. This paper presents an approach to bridge the gap between probabilistic statements based on statistical analyses, and country-specific information. Rather than defining general across-the-board criteria, the approach accounts for different development levels and other influencing factors, such as regional patterns, non-tax revenue and governance. Findings on individual countries or groups of countries should put governments, donors and international organisations in a better position to decide on tax reform programmes and aid modalities.


ABSTRACT Time, or rather lack of time, is currently an issue to many involved in social work, in Sweden and elsewhere. Stress at work is presently one of the most common reasons social workers state for leaving their profession or their workplace. This article examines how time is perceived in relation to work and private life by employees in the social services. The investigation was conducted as a qualitative interview study with six social workers. An abductive approach was adopted in the analysis. The results indicate a general experience of lack of time and an individual perception of time among the interviewees. What they say about time indicates that they have a monochronic perspective on time. It is also shown that the respondents use different curbing strategies to recuperate. At work, strategies take the form of creating recovery arenas allowing for micropauses such as eating an apple or having a cup of coffee. After work, exercising or strolling in the woods are common strategies. In relation to the employer and the organisation individuals also assume responsibility for organisational shortcomings that they cannot influence.


We report on the reversible dimerization of methylene blue (MB) on titanate nanowires. The self-organizational properties of MB on the surface of this nanostructured material studied by spectroscopic means revealed that the light absorption properties of the MB molecules are humidity dependent. Based on the observed humidity dependent metachromasy, we fabricated a humidity sensor using optical fiber technology which is adapted for medical, industrial or environmental applications. The sensor operates with excellent linearity over the relative humidity (RH) levels ranging from 8 to 98%. The response and recovery time can be reduced to 0.5 s while the device exhibits excellent reproducibility with low hysteresis. These performances led to the implementation of the sensor in a breathing monitoring system. Furthermore, the metachromasy was observed for other dyes. This calls for a detailed study of molecular configuration on functional surfaces since it can substantially modify the sensitization efficacy of dyes, e.g. in light conversion.


System dynamics, has been useful for a variety of disciplines; however, it has limitations in showing a geographical representation of the models under study. This paper proposes a methodology based on layered vectors which allows the use a city's census information to feed a geographic information system (GIS). The GIS objects implemented into system dynamics and located at coordinates X.Y.Z become the entry parameters for the simulation. The simulation outputs close an analysis cycle, by means of adding new layers which are represented in the GIS. Consequently, the simulation provides feedback for vectorial representation which we successfully used to simulate strategies that can be used to reduce criminality rates in the city under study


If today's tight labor market in the Midwest can be sustained, as now seems likely, the region's policymakers and businesses will face problems associated with labor-constrained growth rather than the underemployment of the recent past. An era of tight labor markets can be expected to add impetus to public policies that improve labor market efficiency, along with those that address perceived labor market imperfections.


ABSTRACT The majority of the numerous train-the-coach courses in the growing coaching market are not evidence-based and evaluate neither the personal development of coaches during these courses nor their effects on clients' subsequent coaching success. The aim of our study was to investigate the development of coaches' career-related variables during a train-the-coach course. Furthermore, we explored the effects of these coach variables on clients' coaching success. Fifty-seven German university students participated in a five-month train-the-coach course and answered questionnaires regarding career-related variables at three points of time during the course. Afterwards, in groups of two or three, they led group coachings for the vocational orientation of secondary school pupils. The pupils (N = 104) answered questionnaires at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of the 10-week coaching process. Results indicated that coaches' occupational self-efficacy, goal orientation and career adaptability significantly increased during the train-the-coach course. Furthermore, higher levels of coaches' goal orientation and career adaptability led to stronger increases of clients' career decision-making self-efficacy during the coaching process. This might be due to coaches' role modelling behaviour. Our findings suggest that coaches not only gain technical competences during train-the-coach courses, but also improve in important career-related variables. Thus, train-the-coach courses might contribute to the personal development of university students. Additionally, coaches' career-related variables indeed seem significant for clients' coaching success and should therefore be encouraged during coach qualification.


For Zygmunt Bauman the search for utopia in contemporary, liquid life takes the form
of an individualised hunt, a self-realisation project rather than an attempt to improve
wider society. While lifestyle migration, a mobility motivated by dreams and facilitated
by at least comparative wealth, can generally be viewed in this light, does this also hold
true for the children? This chapter presents material from interviews and conversations
with children of lifestyle migrants in Southern Spain and examines the validity of
Bauman's perspective. It concludes that while his theories appear to work well in
explaining the motivations behind lifestyle migration, he lacks emphasis on the
continuing salience of traditional categories and the reproduction of structures of
inequality, which remain profoundly relevant even for these very young actors in liquid
life. To fully understand the choices children make, the trajectories they weave, and the
identities they create, we need to invoke the work of Bourdieu and his concepts of
habitus, field and capital.


Abstract Fishes inhabiting shallow, glacial lakes of the Prairie Pothole Region in the United States and Canada periodically experience hypoxia in severe winters that can lead to extensive fish mortality resulting in high biomasses of dead fish. However, the role of carcass-derived nutrient subsidies in shallow, eutrophic lakes translocated to pelagic primary producers is not well documented. This study quantified the influence of winterkill events on nutrient contributions from decaying fish carcasses of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and the phytoplankton response among pre- and postwinterkill years and compared seasonal patterns of nutrient limitation and phytoplankton community composition between winterkill and nonwinterkill lakes. We found that fish carcasses contributed an estimated 2.5–4.3 kg/ha of total (Kjeldahl) nitrogen (N) and 0.3–0.5 kg/ha of total phosphorus (P) to lakes that experienced winterkill conditions. Nutrient bioassays showed that winterkill lakes were primarily N limited, congruent with the low N:P ratios produced by fish carcasses corrected for the disproportionate release of N and P (8.6). Nutrient subsidies translocated from decomposed fish to pelagic primary producers seemed to have little immediate influence on the seasonal phytoplankton community composition, but total N and subsequent chlorophyll-a increased the year following the winterkill event. Cyanobacteria density varied seasonally but was higher in winterkill lakes, presumably due to the integration of nutrients released from fish decomposition. This study provides evidence that large inputs of autochthonous fish-derived nutrients contribute to nutrient availability within winterkilled systems and increase the maximum attainable biomass of the phytoplankton community.


Palmar foot pain is a common cause of lameness. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has the potential to detect damage in all tissues of the equine foot, but an understanding of the differences in magnetic resonance (MR) images between feet from horses with and without palmar foot pain is required. This study aimed to describe MR findings in feet from horses with no history of foot-related lameness, and to compare these with MR findings in horses with lameness improved by palmar digital local analgesia. Thirty-four limbs from horses euthanized with a clinical diagnosis of navicular syndrome (ameness >2 months duration, positive response to palmar digital nerve blocks and absence of other forelimb problems) (Group L), and 25 feet from age-matched horses with no history of foot pain (Group N) were examined. For each anatomic structure, MR signal intensity and homogeneity, size, definition of margins, and relationships with other structures were described. Alterations in MR signal intensity and homogeneity were graded as mild, moderate, or severe and compared between Groups L and N. Results revealed that there were significant differences in MR images between Groups N and L. Multiple moderate-severe MR signal changes were present in 91% of limbs from Group L and moderate (none were graded severe) in 27% of limbs from Group N. In most Group L limbs, more than three structures and frequently six to eight structures were abnormal. Concomitant abnormalities involved most frequently the deep digital flexor tendon, distal sesamoidean impar ligament, navicular bone, collateral sesamoidean ligament, and navicular bursa (with significant associations in severity grade between these structures), sometimes with involvement of the distal interphalangeal joint and/or its collateral ligaments. It was concluded that findings on MR images were different between horses with and without foot pain, and that pain localized to the foot was associated with MR changes in a variety of structures, indicating that damage to several structures may occur concurrently and that MR imaging was useful for evaluation of foot pain.


Often referred to as the Newton of France, Pierre Simon Laplace has been called the greatest scientist of the late 18th and early 19th Centuries. He affirmed the stability of the solar system and offered a powerful hypothesis about its origins. A skilful mathematician and popular philosopher, Laplace also did pioneering work on probability theory, in devising a method of inverse probabilities associated with his classic formulation of physical determinism in the universe. With Lavoisier and several younger disciples, he also made decisive advances in chemistry and mathematical physics. Roger Hahn, who has devoted years to researching Laplace's life, has compiled a rich archive of his scientific correspondence. In this compact biography, also based in part on unpublished private papers, Hahn follows Laplace's journey from would-be priest in the provinces to Parisian academician, populariser of science during the French Revolution, religious sceptic and supporter of Napoleon. By the end of his life, Laplace had become a well-rewarded dean of French science. In this first full-length biography, Hahn illuminates the man in his historical setting. Elegantly written, Pierre Simon Laplace reflects a lifetime of thinking and research by a distinguished historian of science on the fortunes of a singularly important figure in the annals of Enlightenment science.


Privacy and the Information Age. Serge Gutwirth. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, 2002. viii, 152 pp. $60 hbk. $22.95 pbk. Concerns over privacy have grown as Americans become increasingly aware of marketing practices such as online data-mining and proposed national security measures such as the government's "Total Information Awareness" program, which would create a mega-database by combining government and private sector information on individuals. Still, privacy has only recently become a political issue for a nation of consumers who routinely trade personal information for cents-off coupons at the grocery store. In Privacy and the Information Age, Serge Gutwirth examines privacy from a distinctly European point of view that looks at privacy as a safeguard of personal freedom: a right fundamental to democracy, inalienable, and unquestionably not for sale. According to Gutwirth, the digital age has only hastened the infringement of privacy by governmental and private interests that value efficiency and competitiveness over individual freedom and control. The concept of privacy is broader than personal data protection, of course. In the United States, the legal definition of privacy includes "the right to be left alone," an idea that dates back to the seminal law review article in 1890 by Samuel Warren and Louis Brandeis, and a less clearly outlined right to control one's own identity, encompassing issues of misappropriation, identity theft, and data control. Other cultures have altogether different notions of privacy. In one of the book's most interesting chapters, Gutwirth surveys privacy across cultures, noting that the Western concept of privacy is at odds with other cultures, from communitarian societies in Africa to orthodox Muslim communities. In Japan, he writes, the English word "privacy" does not even have a Japanese equivalent. The author, a law professor at the Free University of Brussels and the Erasmus University Rotterdam, is perhaps most familiar with the European Union, which has already set up privacy protections that are broader than anything in place in the United States. American consumers can prevent the collection and resale of their data only through sometimes-cumbersome "opt-out" procedures and are often unaware that their personal information is being collected and used by commercial entities. Consumers in Europe, on the other hand, have a good deal of legal control over their personal data, including the right to "opt-in" to data collection and the right to alter their data and purge it from the database after a certain period of time. …


This paper proposes a time series knowledge mining framework, designed to favor the synergy between subsequence time series clustering and predictive tools such as Hidden Markov Models. Many tasks for temporal data mining rely heavily on the choice of the representation scheme and the dissimilarity measure. The first part is concerned with detailed representation taxonomy for numeric and symbolic time series and comprehensive categorization of distance measures. Subsequence time series clustering methods with a sliding window are addressed in the second part and a generalization of Fuzzy C-Means algorithm based on the dynamic time warping distance is proposed as a very effective solution. This involves a shape-based distance tolerant to phase shifts in time or accelerations/decelerations along the time axis. It also allows to determine the degree to which set-defined objects, such as subsequence time series and their cluster centroids (similar in nature) differ from each other. In the third part we discuss the integration of clustering algorithms with probabilistic predictive tools, such as discrete Markov chains or hidden Markov models. We apply these techniques to clustering of non-overlapping sequences extracted from Standard and Poor's 500 stock index historical data and we suggest different integrations with markovian models to improve the predictive power


International politics affects oil trade. But why? We construct a firm-level dataset for all U.S. oil-importing companies over 1986-2008 to examine what kinds of firms are more responsive to change in "political distance" between the U.S. and her trading partners, measured by divergence in their UN General Assembly voting patterns. Consistent with previous macro evidence, we first show that individual firms diversify their oil imports politically, even after controlling for unobserved firm heterogeneity. We conjecture that the political pattern of oil imports from these individual firms is driven by hold-up risks, because oil trade is often associated with backward vertical FDI. To test this hold-up risk hypothesis, we investigate heterogeneity in responses by matching transaction-level import data with firm-level worldwide reserves. Our results show that long-run oil import decisions are indeed more elastic for firms with oil reserves overseas than those without, although the reverse is true in the short run. We interpret this empirical regularity as that while firms trade in the spot market can adjust their imports immediately, vertically-integrated firms with investment overseas tend to commit to term contracts in the short run even though they are more responsive to changes in international politics in the long run. JEL classification: F13, F51, F59, Q34


A 17-km2 3-D seismic survey was conducted in 2007 within the Flin Flon volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) mining camp as part of the Targeted Geoscience Initiative-3. The resultant 3-D images show strong reflectivity associated with the ore-hosting mine horizon and prominent reflections attributed to the known ore zones. Structural repetition of the mine horizon is clearly identified in the seismic images with at least three levels identified. The 3-D seismic images have been used in conjunction with detailed geologic and geophysical drill hole logs to identify new exploration drill targets. Results from the first three seismic-based exploration drill holes are presented. The drill holes encountered reflective geologic contacts at depths within 3 to 8% of those predicted from the 3-D seismic images. In the first case, a gabbro of no economic significance was encountered at the target depth. In the second case, a highly altered mafic volcanic panel with stringer mineralization was identified sitting blind beneath surface exposures of sandstone. In the third case, the target turned out to be an additional structural level of the mine rhyolite, which provides a new horizon for further exploration. A small massive sulfide ore lens was discovered during follow-up drilling around the third target. These results demonstrate that seismic methods can be successfully applied for mineral exploration in areas of existing infrastructure and cultural noise.


While law review articles are preserved in fee-based databases such as Westlaw and Lexis and thus are reliably accessible for the future, the footnotes, the source of authority and the body of most law review articles which themselves represent the main part of legal scholarship, usually refer to documents which far too often become inaccessible within a few months after their publication. Both government documents and documents privately published on the Internet have an unreliable life-span. This contradictory approach to digitization raises a large array of questions. Among them, is the following: How does this double digitization (that is, digitizing articles which refer to already-digitized, but unreliably retrieved, prior sources) affect the retrieval of legal information? Whose job is it to preserve legal information? As this is a more complex answer here I will only attempt to show that digitization has created a different environment of legal information (which includes legal scholarship) and this new environment proves to be more elusive that we would like to think about it.


Donna Haraway's (1991) concept of partial or situated knowledges has been a major influence on feminist methodological debates within geography. In this paper, I argue that geographers can interrogate the partiality of knowledge by developing research designs that incorporate methods derived from different epistemological traditions. The silences and gaps between data sets can be explored to interrogate the partiality of knowledge produced in different theoretical and methodological contexts. Also, advocates of interpretive methodologies can add substantially to theoretical debates over epistemology by demonstrating how the results from all methods are incomplete and subject to power – and positionality – laden interpretations. Using different methods is one way to highlight this issue and to challenge the hegemony of positivist science within mainstream academic and policy circles.


This article seeks to revise and re-apply the factor endowments perspective on African history. The propositions that sub-Saharan Africa was characterized historically by land abundance and labour scarcity, and that the natural environment posed severe constraints on the exploitation of the land surplus, are broadly upheld. Important alterations are suggested, however, centred on the seasonality of labour supply, Ruf's concept of 'forest rent', and, for precolonial economies, the role of fixed capital. This revised endowments framework is then applied in order to explore the long-term dynamics of economic development in Africa, focusing on how the economic strategies of producers and political authorities created specific paths of change which shifted the production possibility frontiers of the economies concerned, and ultimately altered the very factor ratios to which the strategies had been responses.


The use of electrical signals to restore the function of paralyzed muscles is called functional electrical stimulation (FES). FES is a promising method to restore mobility to individuals paralyzed due to spinal cord injury (SCI). A crucial issue of FES is the control of motor function by the artificial activation of paralyzed muscles due to the various characteristics of the underlying physiological/biomechanical system. Muscle response characteristics are nonlinear and time-varying. After developing a nonlinear model describing the dynamic behavior of the knee joint and muscles, a closed-loop approach of control strategy to track the reference trajectory is assessed in computer simulations. Then, the controller was validated through experimental work. In this approach only the quadriceps muscle is stimulated to perform the swinging motion by controlling the amount of stimulation pulsewidth. An approach of fuzzy trajectory tracking control of swinging motion optimized with genetic algorithm is presented. The results show the effectiveness of the approach in controlling FES-induced swinging motion in the simulation as well as in the practical environment. Abstract: The use of electrical signals to restore the function of paralyzed muscles is called functional electrical stimulation (FES). FES is a promising method to restore mobility to individuals paralyzed due to spinal cord injury (SCI). A crucial issue of FES is the control of motor function by the artificial activation of paralyzed muscles due to the various characteristics of the underlying physiological/biomechanical system. Muscle response characteristics are nonlinear and time-varying. After developing a nonlinear model describing the dynamic behavior of the knee joint and muscles, a closed-loop approach of control strategy to track the reference trajectory is assessed in computer simulations. Then, the controller was validated through experimental work. In this approach only the quadriceps muscle is stimulated to perform the swinging motion by controlling the amount of stimulation pulsewidth. An approach of fuzzy trajectory tracking control of swinging motion optimized with genetic algorithm is presented. The results show the effectiveness of the approach in controlling FES-induced swinging motion in the simulation as well as in the practical environment.


Background Gastro-oesophageal reflux is common in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and is thought to be associated with pulmonary aspiration of gastric contents. The measurement of pepsin in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid has recently been suggested to be a reliable indicator of aspiration. The prevalence of pulmonary aspiration in a group of children with CF was assessed and its association with lung inflammation investigated. Methods This was a cross-sectional case–control study. BAL fluid was collected from individuals with CF (n=31) and healthy controls (n=7). Interleukin-8 (IL-8), pepsin, neutrophil numbers and neutrophil elastase activity levels were measured in all samples. Clinical, microbiological and lung function data were collected from medical notes. Results The pepsin concentration in BAL fluid was higher in the CF group than in controls (mean (SD) 24.4 (27.4) ng/ml vs 4.3 (4.0) ng/ml, p=0.03). Those with CF who had raised pepsin concentrations had higher levels of IL-8 in the BAL fluid than those with a concentration comparable to controls (3.7 (2.7) ng/ml vs 1.4 (0.9) ng/ml, p=0.004). Within the CF group there was a moderate positive correlation between pepsin concentration and IL-8 in BAL fluid (r=0.48, p=0.04). There was no association between BAL fluid pepsin concentrations and age, sex, body mass index z score, forced expiratory volume in 1 s or Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonisation status. Conclusions Many children with CF have increased levels of pepsin in the BAL fluid compared with normal controls. Increased pepsin levels were associated with higher IL-8 concentrations in BAL fluid. These data suggest that aspiration of gastric contents occurs in a subset of patients with CF and is associated with more pronounced lung inflammation.


Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a pervasive drug resistant human pathogen and has become widespread in hospitals around the world. MRSA infections cause approximately 19 000 deaths among hospitalized Americans annually. It is one of the leading causes of healthcare associated or nosocomial infections particularly in intensive care units. Hospital acquired MRSA (HA-MRSA) has been a battle for inpatients since the 1960's. However in the late 1990's a new strain of MRSA emerged. It appeared outside of the hospital setting and has been termed community associated MRSA (CA-MRSA). Presently CA-MRSA has been found to be spreading into the healthcare system presenting a new obstacle for patients and hospitals to overcome. It has been suggested that employees play a role in transmission of MRSA to hospitalized patients. Since healthcare workers are at the interface between hospitals and the community they may serve as a potential reservoir for spreading MRSA. However there are a limited number of studies that investigate employee MRSA colonization and subsequent transmission to patients. This study seeks to provide molecular evidence supporting the likelihood that employees play a role in MRSA transmission to patients. Furthermore with the implementation of a version of "search and destroy" an infection control strategy we show how reductions of hospital-acquired infections are achieved using this method.


We show that globally declining fisheries catch trends cannot be explained by random processes and are consistent with declining stock abundance trends. Future projections are inherently uncertain but may provide a benchmark against which to assess the effectiveness of conservation measures. Marine reserves and fisheries closures are among those measures and can be equally effective in tropical and temperate areas—but must be combined with catch-, effort-, and gear restrictions to meet global conservation objectives.


Abstract. We have developed an integrated model system, EVA (Economic Valuation of Air pollution), based on the impact-pathway chain, to assess the health-related economic externalities of air pollution resulting from specific emission sources or sectors, which can be used to support policy-making with respect to emission control. Central for the system is a newly developed tagging method capable of calculating the contribution from a specific emission source or sector to the overall air pollution levels, taking into account the non-linear atmospheric chemistry. The main objective of this work is to identify the anthropogenic emission sources in Europe and Denmark that contribute the most to human health impacts. In this study, we applied the EVA system to Europe and Denmark, with a detailed analysis of health-related external costs from the ten major emission sectors and their relative contributions. The paper contains a thorough description of the EVA system, the main results from the assessment of the main contributors and a discussion of the most important atmospheric chemical reactions relevant for interpreting the results. The main conclusion from the analysis is that the major contributors to health-related external costs are major power production, agriculture, road traffic, and non-industrial domestic combustion, including wood combustion. We conclude that when regulating the emissions of ammonia from the agricultural sector, both the impacts on nature and on human health should be taken into account. This study confirms that air pollution constitutes a serious problem for human health and that the related external costs are considerable. The results in this work emphasize the importance of defining the right questions in the decision-making process. The results from assessing the impacts from each emission sector depend clearly on the assumption that the other emission sectors are not changed, especially emissions changing concentrations of atmospheric OH and therefore lifetimes of other chemical species.


Over the Spring and Summer, 2001, groups of researchers from HP Labs in Palo Alto, California and another from HP Labs in Bristol, England engaged in a collaborative project to develop a fresh and forward-looking strategy for their Research Center. The overall experience indicated that three general areas presented significant challenges for effective progress: meeting management, communications technology, and document management. Other such elements as: time-zone differences (8 hrs.), working at home vs. the labs, and size of a sub-team were also factors, although these were of lesser importance. The primary observation was that the technologies, as used in this context, were as much hindrances as they were advantages. Distributing documents via email was used most frequently, whereas shared drives and the Center website were considered least useful. In terms of information sources, collaborators relied foremost on their own personal collections, followed by items located on the Web, and from colleagues outside of HP. Recommendations and areas for additional research are identified.


A general conservative numerical model for the simulation of transmission-line unsteady fluid dynamics has been developed and applied to high-pressure injection systems. A comprehensive thermodynamic approach for modeling acoustic cavitation, i.e., cavitation induced by wave propagation, was proposed on the basis of a conservative homogeneous two-phase barotropic flow model of a pure liquid, its vapor, and a gas, both dissolved and undissolved. A physically consistent sound speed equation was set in a closed analytical form of wide application. For the pure-liquid flow simulation outside the cavitation regions, or in the absence of these, temperature variations due to compressibility effects were taken into account, for the first time in injection system simulation, through a thermodynamic relation derived from the energy equation. Nevertheless, in the cavitating regions, an isothermal flow was retained consistently with negligible macroscopic thermal effects due to vaporization or condensation, because of the tiny amounts of liquid involved. A novel implicit, conservative, one-step, symmetrical, and trapezoidal scheme of second-order accuracy was employed to solve the partial differential equations governing the pipe flow. It can also be enhanced at a high-resolution level. The numerical model was applied to wave propagation and cavitation simulation in a high-pressure injection system of the pump-line-nozzle type for light and medium duty vehicles. The system was relevant to model assessment because, at part loads, it presented cavitating flow conditions that can be considered as severe, at least for a diesel injection system. The predicted time histories of pressure at two pipe locations and of injector needle lift were compared to experimental results, substantiating the validity and robustness of the developed conservative model in simulating acoustic cavitation inception and desinence with great accuracy degree. Cavitation transients and the flow discontinuities induced by them were numerically predicted and analyzed.


1. Plant D-Type Cyclins: Structure, Roles and Functions 2. Initiation of DNA Replication 3. Mcm10 and DNA Replication in Fission Yeast 4. Copying the Template - With A Little Help From My Friends? 5. G2/M Transition in Eukaryotes 6. Many Faces of Separase Regulation 7. The Centrosome in the Eukaryotic Cell 8. Division Versus Differentiation in the Early Xenopus Embryo 9. Endoreduplication Control During Plant Development 10. Chromatin Modifications and Nucleotide Excision Repair 11. DNA Ligase - A Means to an End Joining 12. Cell Cycle Checkpoint-Guarded Routes to Catenation-Induced Chromosomal Instability 13. The Spindle Checkpoint: How Do Cells Delay Anaphase Onset? 14. A Mechanism Coupling Cell Division and the Control of Apoptosis 15. The Cytoskeleton and the Control of Organelle Dynamics in the Apoptotic Execution Phase


This paper presents an investigation of using the computer in English teaching at the secondary school in the UK, particularly in respect of reading and writing skills. Many studies suggest that the computer brings significant possibilities for promoting the teaching of reading and writing in the English classroom. The computer can enhance the development of reading and writing [1] [2] [3] [4]. This study adopted interviews as research technique and some student teachers in a university and some English teachers in a secondary school in the UK involved this investigation. The findings of this study show that the computer can enhance students' reading and writing. However, teachers have to learn how to control the process of teaching of reading and writing with the use of the computer.


Damping torque analysis (DTA) is a well-developed technique for understanding and studying power system oscillations. It is established on the basis of physical explanation of damping torque contribution of power system control to the rotor motion of generator. Hence when it is applied in a multi-machine power system, the DTA becomes complicated due to the involvement of large number of generators. In this paper, a graphical explanation of the DTA method is presented by using the small-signal equal-area criterion of power system stability analysis. The graphical explanation presented turns out to be completely independent of the physical concept of damping torque, indicating the significant potential to develop the graphical explanation into a general and simple approach for understanding and studying multi-machine power system oscillations. In the paper, an example of a multi-machine power system installed with a STATCOM (static synchronous compensator) is given to demonstrate how the potential of applying graphical explanation can be explored. Based on the conclusion drawn from the graphical explanation, it is shown why the STATCOM voltage control contributes little damping to power system oscillations and a simple method of designing a STATCOM stabilizer is proposed. Confirmation from simulation results of an example four-machine power system is presented in the paper. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A newly discovered cell type for pain perception Pain has been thought to be initiated by activation of free nerve endings without end organs in the skin. In contrast to this paradigm, Abdo et al. discovered a previously unknown meshlike organ covering the skin that senses dangerous environmental stimuli (see the Perspective by Doan and Monk). This organ is built from specialized glial cells located in the epidermal-dermal border and is sufficient and required for initiation of mechanical pain transduction. Science, this issue p. 695; see also p. 641 A specialized glial cell type forms a sensory organ in the skin to sense noxious stimuli. An essential prerequisite for the survival of an organism is the ability to detect and respond to aversive stimuli. Current belief is that noxious stimuli directly activate nociceptive sensory nerve endings in the skin. We discovered a specialized cutaneous glial cell type with extensive processes forming a mesh-like network in the subepidermal border of the skin that conveys noxious thermal and mechanical sensitivity. We demonstrate a direct excitatory functional connection to sensory neurons and provide evidence of a previously unknown organ that has an essential physiological role in sensing noxious stimuli. Thus, these glial cells, which are intimately associated with unmyelinated nociceptive nerves, are inherently mechanosensitive and transmit nociceptive information to the nerve.


The influence of two terrain classes (i.e. 5 to 25% and 25 to 50%
slopes) on soils developed from two parent materials (i.e. granite and
sedimentary rocks) on the growth and yield of rubber (Hevea brasiliensis)
after four years of tapping was evaluated by using the field data, viz.
girth and yield of rubber from 1980 to 1983, obtained from the Federal
Land consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority (FELCRA) Scheme at
Sendayan, Negri Sembilan.
RUbber grown on sedimentary rock derived soil on steep slopes (25 to
50% slope) after four years of tapping showed significantly bigger girth
than those grown on same soil on undulating to rolling terrain (5 to 25%
slope). The mean monthly and yearly dry weight of rubber after four years
of tapping was significantly higher in areas planted on sedimentary rock derived soils located on steep terrain. The growth of rubber as
influenced by the interaction of parent material and slope over time was
not significant during the same period of tapping. However3 the overall
yield of rubber was significantly higher on soils derived from
sedimentary rocks on steep terrain than on soils derived from granite
on similar terrain.


Machiavelli's Florentine Histories originated under Medici patronage at a moment in which, after the death of Lorenzo the younger in May 1519, Cardinal Giulio de' Medici controlled Florence (on behalf of Pope Leo X) and the regime seemed open to the possibility of major constitutional overhaul. In March 1520, Machiavelli was introduced to Giulio through the good offices of his friends in the Orti Oricellari and was warmly received. One result of the changed attitude of the Medici toward Machiavelli was the commission, finalized on November 8, 1520, and approved by the Officials of Florence's university (the Studio), headed by Giulio himself, to "compose the annals and chronicles of Florence [ ad componendum annalia et cronacas florentinas ]." The Florentine Histories thus owe their existence to these external circumstances, but the conceptualization and design of this last of Machiavelli's great works reflect long-standing interests integral to the development of both his political theory and the pragmatic requirements of his persistent critique of Florentine politics. This was not the first time Machiavelli had donned the historian's mantle. The first Decennale , written in 1504, is a verse summary of Italy's history in the decade 1494-1504, in which events involving Florence are tightly bound into the unfolding political situation. Moreover, if we accept the assertion of Machiavelli's friend and chancery colleague Agostino Vespucci in the dedication of the 1506 printed edition of the Decennale , a "more extensive" history of the same events was then "being forged" in Machiavelli's "workshop" - a work that was not realized.


Information science distinguishes between the semantic forms/intangibles of data, information and knowledge. Data (e.g. an attribute of a data record in a relational database) does not have any meaning by itself. Information is data brought into context (e.g. data related to its primary key), and knowledge is the collection of information for useful intent (e.g. a database). This paper investigates the mapping of semantic forms in information science (i.e. data, information, knowledge) to correlative concepts in information law (primarily data protection legislation) with a view to investigating how such semantic forms are legally protected. The paper first proposes a data, information, knowledge, rules (DIKR) hierarchy in the context of relational database theory, and interprets this hierarchy with respect to data protection concepts. The paper then gives an in-depth discussion of the elements of the DIKR hierarchy (data, information, knowledge, deduced knowledge, induced knowledge) and how they relate to the EU Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC. These relationships are summarized in the form of a two dimensional correlation matrix. Finally the paper discusses how the semantic forms identified are protected under the EU Data Protection Directive, and gives insightful observations about the connection between information law and information science.


Scrolling is an essential part of our everyday computing experience. Contemporary scrolling techniques rely on the explicit initiation of scrolling by the user. The act of scrolling is tightly coupled with the user?s ability to absorb information via the visual channel. The use of eye gaze information is therefore a natural choice for enhancing scrolling techniques. We present several gaze-enhanced scrolling techniques for manual and automatic scrolling which use gaze information as a primary input or as an augmented input. We also introduce the use off-screen gaze-actuated buttons for document navigation and control.


Background An epidemiological survey of childhood autism as defined in ICD–10 Research Criteria was conducted in the northern part of Yokohama, Japan. Method The routine health checkup for 18-month-old children served as the initial mass-screening, and all facilities which provide child care services function to detect all cases with childhood autism and refer them to the Yokohama Rehabilitation Centre. Cumulative incidence of childhood autism up to 5 years of age among the birth cohort of 1988, and prevalence on 1 January 1994, among residents born in 1988 were estimated. Results Cumulative incidence and prevalence were 16.2 per 10 000 and 21.1 per 10 000, respectively. Children with high-functioning autism who had IQs of 70 and over constituted approximately half of all the children with childhood autism. Conclusion It was confirmed through better detection of high-functioning cases that childhood autism in Japan is more common than formerly estimated.


Explaining one musical passage by saying it is a transformed version of another is a basic strategy of analysis. In this article, I explore this strategy specifically in regard to harmonic structures in rock music. By focusing on transformations that describe obvious musical experiences (as opposed to transformations that could be considered more rational than empirical in nature), I am able to explore the usefulness of concepts such as chord substitution and musical normality as they apply to our hearings, and as they apply to the ways in which we can make sense of our hearings via a notion of transformation.


Colombia has the greatest bird diversity of any country in the world, with approximately 1900 recorded species, equivalent to 20% of all bird species worldwide. Advances made by the Colombian government to achieve greater security within the country – putting an end to the long-standing armed conflict – and to promote ecotourism can help position Colombia as one of the most important bird watching destinations worldwide. This study estimates the economic benefits from bird-based tourism in post-war Colombia. In particular, we estimate the value that members of the US-based National Audubon Society place on a birding tour that includes the participation of local communities (some of whom were victims of the armed conflict), and visits to important areas for bird watching that are increasingly accessible. The study also approximates the demand for international bird watching tourism to the country. Through the application of the contingent valuation method, we show that birding enthusiasts would be willing to pay, on average, an additional $58 per person per day for a tour in Colombia, as compared to a similar tour in terms of duration and services in Costa Rica, currently one of the main tourism destinations for birdwatchers. Our analysis indicates that a total of 278,850 North American bird watchers would be interested in visiting the country, generating an annual profit of $9 million and 7516 new jobs. In addition to confirming demand for bird-based travel, the study provides information about potential visitors' preferences, which can help guide the development of a strategy to promote bird-based tourism to Colombia.


This paper articulates a theory of the conditions under which the alignment between individual and collective interests generates sustainable competitive advantage. The theory is based on the influence of tacitness, context-specificity and casual ambiguity in the determinants of different types of motivation (extrinsic, normative intrinsic and hedonic intrinsic), under varying conditions of environmental dynamism. The analysis indicates the need to consider mitivational processes as a complement to current resource and competence-based approaches in a comprehensive theory of competitive advantage.


BACKGROUND
Previous studies found that the implementation of service guideline recommendations can significantly reduce the number of suicides in mental healthcare. Important barriers to suicide prevention guideline implementation are a lack of professionals' knowledge and competence towards the suicide prevention guideline. AIM: To assess professionals' knowledge of, competence in, and adherence to the suicide prevention guideline in twelve Dutch specialist mental healthcare institutions. METHOD: In this study, professionals working at crisis teams and outpatient care teams from each of the 12 participating mental healthcare institutions in the network of supranet Care were invited to fill in a questionnaire examining professionals' knowledge of, competence in, and adherence to the suicide prevention guideline (N = 400). Results were analyzed with multilevel regression analysis and adjusted for confounding. RESULTS: Although professionals scored high on knowledge, competence, and adherence towards the guideline, they did not know to what extent the guideline was implemented within their own team. Outpatient care teams scored significantly lower on professionals' knowledge and reported lower levels of competence. Furthermore, we found significantly higher scores on adherence to the guideline for professionals in crisis teams compared to outpatient care teams. Healthcare professionals also reported practice variation within and across Dutch mental healthcare institutions. CONCLUSIONS Practice variation within and across teams and mental healthcare institutions is undesirable. To reduce this variation, professionals and mental healthcare institutions should share best-practices and learn from each other how the quality of care for suicidal patients can be optimized.


Nowadays, collaborations between industrial companies always go hand in hand with trust issues, i.e., exchanging valuable production data entails the risk of improper use of potentially sensitive information. Therefore, companies hesitate to offer their production data, e.g., process parameters that would allow other companies to establish new production lines faster, against a quid pro quo. Nevertheless, the expected benefits of industrial collaboration, data exchanges, and the utilization of external knowledge are significant. In this paper, we introduce our Bloom filter-based Parameter Exchange (BPE), which enables companies to exchange process parameters privacy-preservingly. We demonstrate the applicability of our platform based on two distinct real-world use cases: injection molding and machine tools. We show that BPE is both scalable and deployable for different needs to foster industrial collaborations. Thereby, we reward data-providing companies with payments while preserving their valuable data and reducing the risks of data leakage.


Since the mid 1980's it has been unthinkable for white feminist literary critics to neglect
race in their theoretical work. Strong challenges from black feminists have been effective in
placing race high on the critical agenda. No longer is the kind of exclusivity that marked
early (white) feminist literary theory possible. However, despite the evident commitment to
addressing the race question in their work, the black feminist challenge has been greeted
with a considerable degree of anxiety by white feminist critics. I suggest that the main
source of anxiety is a failure to square the pressing need to 'include' race on the feminist
agenda with doubts about straying into what is perceived to be black feminist territory. In
other words, white feminist critics have yet to resolve their relation to the black feminist
project. This anxiety has meant that a concern over the notion of exclusion has given way to
that of appropriation. This has tended to place the white feminist reader in the paralysing
position where there seems little available ground between the twin poles of exclusion and
appropriation. Typical questions that have arisen out of this dichotomy are: should white
feminists teach black women's writing? Should white feminist critics produce critical
readings of texts authored by black women? Can white women readers read black women's
writings without imposing onto them their own critical agendas? Is a non-appropriative
reading relation possible? How should white feminists deal with the fact of their own race
privilege and what bearing does this privilege have upon the readings they, potentially,
might produce?
This project examines some of the ways in which white feminists have attempted to
address their relation to the race question in feminist literary criticism. Over the space of six
chapters I focus on a number of specific reading strategies offered as positive critical
interventions. My main contention is the impossibility of a guaranteed anti-imperialist
theory or reading position. I also argue for the necessity of asking the question: whether the
imperialist can read, as a complement to that of whether 'the subaltern can speak'. Chapter 1
questions the white feminist ambition of arriving at the truth of the black text as a means of
decolonising the text. Through an examination of the Rodney King events some of the perils
of appeals to pure seeing are highlighted. Chapter 2 explores the implications of white
feminist abstention from the race debates. Chapter 3 looks at the issue of identification as a
basis for reading. Chapter 4 questions the identifications that inhere in applying theory to a
text. Chapter 5 challenges the use of contextualisation as a source of textual limits. Chapter
6 examines the limits of self-reflexivity as an anti-imperialist method.


The purpose of this paper is pointing out the relevance of outsourcing of business process project and strategic option for improving enterprise efficiency and realizing the competitive advantage. The aim of the paper is designing a conceptual model for implementation of BPO concept, which contains four generic steps: establish a business process outsourcing team, conduct a business process analysis, determine BPO possibilities, develop and present the business plan of BPO. The proposed model helps the clients and service provider organizations in understanding critical steps in realizing the intended BPO project.


Mobile wireless ad hoc networks are instantaneous, autonomous telecommunication networks that provide service to users wherever and whenever the service is needed. The communication depends on wireless links that are formed between the users. A link is formed between two users if they are within each other's wireless communication range. The mobility in these networks can cause links to disconnect, disrupting communications. A new strategy is proposed which controls the movements of some mobile agents to maintain network connectivity. The main objective of these mobile agents is to maximize network data flow, which is formulated as an all-pair maximum flow problem. This is accomplished by optimizing the movements of the agents to their next locations as the user nodes travel freely in the field. The representation of ad hoc network performance in terms of an all-pair maximum flow problem is novel as is dynamically optimizing the agent nodes using heuristic algorithms integrated with network flow algorithms. Two evolutionary inspired, population based heuristic algorithms; a genetic algorithm and a particle swarm are developed along with an approximate linear programming model as optimizer tools. The results show the advantage of employing heuristic algorithms due to the complexity of the problem. While the approximate linear model could only solve small static and medium dynamic problems with poor results, the heuristics performed successfully for problems two to four times larger. These heuristic approaches will enable robust and physically self organizing networks with superior connectivity properties. The approach proposed in this research can be applied to static scenarios and dynamic situations. This is important because there are practical static applications of ad hoc networks, mainly in sensor networks. The novel models and algorithms developed should enable new research and commercial opportunities in ad hoc wireless networking.


Presses are used in industries for a wide variety of uses including blanking, piercing and pressing. There are many different types of presses. The most popular are pneumatic presses and hydraulic presses. Pneumatic presses are 10 times faster than hydraulic presses and they can perform many jobs faster and more efficiently. Metal forming is one of the manufacturing processes which are almost chip less. These operations are mainly carried out by the help of presses and press tools. These operations include deformation of metal work pieces to the desired size by applying pressure or force. Press machine always works under impact load condition. Because of continuous impact the load, frame of press machine always experience continuous tensile stress.