Foxtail millet is an indigenous crop known for its rich nutritive value, drought tolerance ability and low input requirements. Though it is grown in marginal condition, it can give the best production with the proper nutrient management for its cultivation. In this respect, an experiment was conducted in Agronomy farm of Lamjung Campus, Sundarbazar during March-June 2017. The main objective of the experiment was to explore the performance of local foxtail millet under different level of nutrients. The experiment was carried out in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications and seven treatments viz. FYM 6 t/ha, FYM 6 t/ha+60:30:20 kg NPK/ha, 60:30:20 kg NPK/ha, FYM 6t/ha+30:20kg PK/ha, FYM 6t/ha+60:30 kg NK/ha, FYM 6 t/ha+60:30 kg NP/ha and Control (no fertilizers). Results revealed that highest grain yield (2.47t/ha) (152% higher than control), was obtained from FYM 6 t/ha+60:30:20 kg NPK/ha which was followed by 60:30:20 kg NPK/ha (2.45 t/ha) and were statistically at par with each other. The highest grain yield in FYM 6 t/ha+60:30:20 kg NPK/ha was supported by higher no. of grains per panicle (2870), more test weight (1.79 gm) and more harvest index (19.3%). However, the straw yield (12.6t/ha), biological yield (15.02t/ha) along with B: C ratio was found slightly higher in 60:30:20 kg NPK/ha. The growth characters viz. plant height, flag leaf area and panicle length of all the treatments were significantly higher than Control (T7). The treatment having balanced plant nutrients (T2) produced significantly higher yield and can be recommended to mid-hill farmers for obtaining good yield.


We study the resilience of complex networks against attacks in which nodes are targeted intelligently, but where disabling a node has a cost to the attacker which depends on its degree. Attackers have to meet these costs with limited resources, which constrains their actions. A network's integrity is quantified in terms of the efficacy of the process that it supports. We calculate how the optimal attack strategy and the most attack-resistant network degree statistics depend on the node removal cost function and the attack resources. The resilience of networks against intelligent attacks is found to depend strongly on the node removal cost function faced by the attacker. In particular, if node removal costs increase sufficiently fast with the node degree, power law networks are found to be more resilient than Poissonian ones, even against optimized intelligent attacks. For cost functions increasing quadratically in the node degrees, intelligent attackers cannot damage the network more than random damages would.


With multicore processors now in every computer, server, and embedded device, the need for cost-effective, reliable parallel software has never been greater. By explaining key aspects of multicore programming, Fundamentals of Multicore Software Development helps software engineers understand parallel programming and master the multicore challenge. Accessible to newcomers to the field, the book captures the state of the art of multicore programming in computer science. It covers the fundamentals of multicore hardware, parallel design patterns, and parallel programming in C++, .NET, and Java. It also discusses manycore computing on graphics cards and heterogeneous multicore platforms, automatic parallelization, automatic performance tuning, transactional memory, and emerging applications. As computing power increasingly comes from parallelism, software developers must embrace parallel programming. Written by leaders in the field, this book provides an overview of the existing and up-and-coming programming choices for multicores. It addresses issues in systems architecture, operating systems, languages, and compilers.


The most important reason of environmental problems that the world faced with is the growing in demand of environmental sources. Therefore, sensitivity toward environmental problems has started to increase since the second half of 20th century. The most effective formula that is built up to solve environmental problems is to make people conscious of these problems. It will be possible with a qualified environmental education that includes all sections of society. The ultimate purpose of the environmental education is to construct environmentally literate people, who are conscious of environmental problems, in society. In this study, it is aimed to introduce the environmental literacy and to evaluate researches about the subject in Turkey. It is thought that the study will be useful for scientists who want to make research on the environmental literacy in Turkey.


The international workshop on Policy Modeling for Industrial Energy Use was jointly organized by EETA (Professional Network for Engineering Economic Technology Analysis) and INEDIS (International Network for Energy Demand Analysis in the Industrial Sector). The workshop has helped to layout the needs and challenges to include policy more explicitly in energy-efficiency modeling. The current state-of-the-art models have a proven track record in forecasting future trends under conditions similar to those faced in the recent past. However, the future of energy policy in a climate-restrained world is likely to demand different and additional services to be provided by energy modelers. In this workshop some of the international models used to make energy consumption forecasts have been discussed as well as innovations to enable the modeling of policy scenarios. This was followed by the discussion of future challenges, new insights in the data needed to determine the inputs into energy model s, and methods to incorporate decision making and policy in the models. Based on the discussion the workshop participants came to the following conclusions and recommendations: Current energy models are already complex, and it is already difficult to collect the model inputs. Hence, new approaches should be transparent and not lead to extremely complex models that try to ''do everything''. The model structure will be determined by the questions that need to be answered. A good understanding of the decision making framework of policy makers and clear communication on the needs are essential to make any future energy modeling effort successful. There is a need to better understand the effects of policy on future energy use, emissions and the economy. To allow the inclusion of policy instruments in models, evaluation of programs and instruments is essential, and need to be included in the policy instrument design. Increased efforts are needed to better understand the effects of innovative (no n-monetary) policy instruments through evaluation and to develop approaches to model both conventional and innovative policies. The explicit modeling of barriers and decision making in the models seems a promising way to enable modeling of conventional and innovative policies. A modular modeling approach is essential to not only provide transparency, but also to use the available resources most effectively and efficiently. Many large models have been developed in the past, but have been abandoned after only brief periods of use. A development path based on modular building blocks needs the establishment of a flexible but uniform modeling framework. The leadership of international agencies and organizations is essential in the establishment of such a framework. A preference is given for ''softlinks'' between different modules and models, to increase transparency and reduce complexity. There is a strong need to improve the efficiency of data collection and interpretation efforts to produce reliable model inputs. The workshop participants support the need for the establishment of an (in-)formal exchanges of information, as well as modeling approaches. The development of an informal network of research institutes and universities to help build a common dataset and exchange ideas on specific areas is proposed. Starting with an exchange of students would be a relative low-cost way to start such collaboration. It would be essential to focus on specific topics. It is also essential to maintain means of regular exchange of ideas between researchers in the different focus points.


Technology use is increasing globally as more people obtain access to it. Older adults are among the fastest growing group of technology users (Perrin & Duggan, 2015). Almost 60% of people over 65 use the Internet and 77% have a cell phone (Smith, 2014). Furthermore, mobile technology is becoming more relevant for older adults (Kim & Preis, 2016). However, older adults' perceptions of the benefits of technology use vary (Selwyn, 2004). Those who adopt technology tend to be younger, more educated, and have a higher income than those who do not (Smith, 2014). Users focus on project-based or purposeful use while non-users are indifferent to technology and/or engage in non-technological activities during their free-time (Hanson, 2010; Selwyn, 2004). Despite these variations, several benefits of technology use have been identified, including: enjoyment and entertainment, increased learning opportunities, information searches, business transactions (e.g., shopping, finances), and social contact (Gatto & Tak, 2008). However, adults aged 70 and older are underrepresented and little attention has been paid specifically to older adults and technology use in the leisure literature (for exceptions see Kim & Preis, 2016; Nimrod, 2011). The Technology In Later Life (TILL) Project aimed to explore technology use among adults aged 70 and over since "despite the increasing political, academic, and practitioner interest in older adults and technology, we know little of the realities of how older adults use, and do not use [information and communications technologies] in their everyday lives" (Selwyn, 2004, p. 370-371). The focus of the TILL Project was to understand older adults' perceptions and use or non-use of technology. We adopted a mixed methods approach for this international pilot study. Participants were recruited from four different sites spanning urban and rural environments. Two sites were located in Canada and two were located in the UK. Thirty-seven participants completed an 80-item online survey and then participated in a semi-structured focus group. Survey questions included types of devices owned and reasons for using technology (e.g., social networking, banking). Focus group discussions were a minimum duration of 60 minutes and were digitally recorded and transcribed. Questions explored benefits and challenges of technology use, including issues such as access to and use of technology, learning how to use technology, and privacy concerns. Several themes were identified through initial and focused coding (Charmaz, 2014), including technology use habits, benefits of using technology, and challenges of using technology. Technology use was both functional and social as participants researched information, maintained health and safety records, constructed communication pathways (e.g., social media, video conferencing) and engaged in leisure (e.g., gaming and reading). Technology played a role in the participants' leisure activities, ranging from information searches for crafting to online games and communication. Despite these benefits, some participants remained cautious, taking care to protect personal information and limit time spent on technology This study provides insight into the possibilities of technology use as a site for leisure amongst older adults, as well as the barriers or challenges experienced as older adults embrace technology for leisure engagement.


A whole world of free and exciting instruments at our disposal for play and work. These instruments try to cater for all the needs that the musician or the sound artist might have. And what is better: if you program computers, you can get the code source of the software and adapt it to your own specific work pattern, thus transforming yourself from being a mere consumer to a co-author of the software. At the moment FLOSS software provides most of what commercial software can provide, and sometimes more.


The past century has witnessed an extraordinary flowering of fiction, poetry and drama from countries previously colonised by Britain, an output which has changed the map of English literature. This introduction, from a leading figure in the field, explores a wide range of Anglophone postcolonial writing from Africa, Australia, the Caribbean, India, Ireland and Britain. Lyn Innes compares the ways in which authors shape communal identities and interrogate the values and representations of peoples in newly independent nations. Placing its emphasis on literary rather than theoretical texts, this book offers detailed discussion of many internationally renowned authors, including Chinua Achebe, James Joyce, Les Murray, Salman Rushdie and Derek Walcott. It also includes historical surveys of the main countries discussed, a glossary, and biographical notes on major authors. Lyn Innes provides a rich and subtle guide to an array of authors and texts from a wide range of sites.


Hypermedia systems development is, in many regards, different from "conventional" systems development, chief amongst these differences being its multidisciplinary nature. Foremost amongst the roles in hypermedia development are software engineering and graphic design. However, there has traditionally been a pronounced tension between software engineers and graphic designers. It is therefore important to gain an understanding of the differences between the two camps with a view to bringing them closer together. This paper reports on the findings of a survey of hypermedia developers conducted in Ireland. One of the objectives of the survey was to compare and contrast the development approaches, methods, and techniques used by software engineers with those used by graphic designers. It was found that software engineers and graphic designers are much closer than might be believed in their attitudes on the value and importance of processes and documented working methods. However, graphic designers primarily base development approaches around the use of specific tools, whereas software engineers are more reliant on traditional and object-oriented software development methods. Regarding diagramming methods, there is some evidence of cross-pollination, as software engineers often use informal techniques such as storyboarding and graphic designers use software engineering techniques such as use case diagrams. However, graphic designers find software engineering techniques to be less useful than vice versa.


A randomized control trial with 432 small and medium enterprises in Mexico shows positive impact of access to 1 year of management consulting services on total factor productivity and return on assets. Owners also had an increase in "entrepreneurial spirit" (an index that measures entrepreneurial confidence and goal setting). Using Mexican social security data, we find a persistent large increase (about 50 percent) in the number of employees and total wage bill even 5 years after the program. We document large heterogeneity in the specific managerial practices that improved as a result of the consulting, with the most prominent being marketing, financial accounting, and long-term business planning.


In this study, feasibility of selected nutrient sequestration during hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) was tested for three different HTC temperatures (180, 230, and 300 °C). To study the nutrient sequestration in solid from liquid solution, sugar and salt solutions were chosen as HTC feedstock. Glucose was used as carbohydrate source and various salts e.g., ammonium hydrophosphate, potassium chloride, potassium sulfate, and anhydrous ferric chloride were used as source of nitrogen and phosphorus, potassium, and iron, respectively. Solid hydrochar was extensively characterized by means of elemental, ICP-OES, SEM-EDX, surface area, pore volume and size, and ATR-FTIR to determine nutrients' sequestration as well as hydrochar quality variation with HTC temperatures. The spherical mesoporous hydrochars produced during HTC have low surface area in the range of 1.0–3.5 m 2 g −1 . Hydrochar yield was increased about 10% with the increase of temperature from 180 °C to 300 °C. Nutrient sequestration was also increased with HTC temperature. In fact, around 71, 31, and 23 wt% nitrogen, iron, and phosphorus were sequestered at 300 °C, respectively. Potassium sequestration was very low throughout the HTC and maximum 5.2% was observed in solid during HTC.


The explicit assumption in the proposed use of ecological and biodiversity
indicators is that patterns of diversity and distribution observed in the indicator
taxon are reflected in other taxa, yet this assumption has rarely been tested. The use
of biodiversity and ecological indicators requires that their representativeness of
other taxa be demonstrated. This thesis examines the potential for using carabid
beetles as biodiversity and ecological indicators for other Coleoptera in Tasmania.
Species-occurrence data for carabids and a range of Coleoptera collected by
continuous year-long pitfall trapping at fifty-one sites in three biomes, dry
sclerophyll forest, remnant native grasslands and coastal sand dunes were used to
investigate the utility of carabid beetles as biodiversity indicators for overall
coleopteran diversity and for other selected beetle taxa.
Correlated species counts, correlations in rank ordering based on species richness,
and coincidence of hotspots revealed that while the patterns of diversity exhibited by
carabids did not necessarily predict the patterns of diversity of other individual
beetle taxa considered separately, they did, with a reasonable degree of accuracy,
indicate overall patterns of diversity for Coleoptera in all the biomes studied.
Carabid species richness was a good predictor of overall beetle species richness
within biomes and within vegetation community types.
Application of three reserve selection approaches: (1) Hotspots, (2) Representative
Species Richness and (3) Complementarity, demonstrated that a set of
representative areas, based on carabids species richness, gave proportional
representation for all Coleoptera. Representation for, all carabids using the
complementarity approach also gave protection to over 90% of all coleopteran
species. It is therefore likely that a set of representative areas in which carabids are
completely represented will substantially represent the diversity of other Coleoptera.
To assess the utility of carabids as ecological indicators for other Coleoptera, the
response of carabids and other Coleoptera to silvicultural practices (clearfelling and
slash burning) were examined and compared.
Morisita-Horn community similarity indices demonstrate that carabid and overall
Coleoptera species composition showed less variation within grouped age classes
than between different age classes in both forests. Results for other beetle taxa considered separately were more complex and varied with forest. In both forests,
UPGMA cluster analysis generally grouped the total beetle fauna according to
regrowth age, but indicated that the species composition of regrowth sites were
often similar to some old-growth sites. This pattern was observed for carabids in
the dry sclerophyll forest, but not in the wet. Other beetle taxa demonstrated more
complex patterns of clustering, with no clear evidence of site separation on age
class.
The family Carabidae did not reflect the exact response of other beetle families
considered separately. However, they did reflect the overall patterns of diversity
and distribution exhibited by beetles as a group in response to forest management
practices. Results demonstrated that monitoring particular carabid species would
provide evidence of the success or otherwise of management practices for other oldgrowth
dependent beetles.
The results reported in this thesis support the hypotheses that:
(i) the family of ground beetles (Carabidae) is an appropriate biodiversity indicator
for identifying and predicting the biodiversity patterns of ground dwelling
Coleoptera in most instances in Tasmania, and
(ii) that carabids are useful ecological indicators to predict and monitor the effects of
forest management on a wider range of ground-dwelling beetles in Tasmania.


This chapter for a forthcoming book on protracted refugee crises argues that the origins of both the unresolved Tibetan refugee crisis and the tragic and unprecedented wave of some 120 self-immolations in Tibet since 2009 lie in Tibet's unacknowledged status as a colony. China illegally invaded and annexed Tibet in 1950, and it remains under belligerent occupation to this day. Contrary to the official views of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the United States, and (to my knowledge) every other state in the world, it is a fiction to refer to the Tibetan people as a Chinese 'minority nationality'. Every credible study (excluding, that is, PRC 'white papers') of Tibet and its people's legal and historical status so concludes. The Tibetan people's history as a nation extends back millennia. Despite the nebulous law on self-determination in the post-Cold War era, if any people merit what international law denotes 'external' self-determination — that is, the right (afforded to virtually all other colonies since 1945) to choose among independence as a sovereign state, integration with an existing state, or free association status based on a free and fair referendum — it is the Tibetan people. Their right to external self-determination arises from several facts, each independently sufficient, but even more compelling in combination: Tibet's status as a colonized nation; the PRC's continuing refusal to afford Tibetans any genuine autonomy consistent with the right of peoples to 'internal' self-determination; and more than half a century of systematic and severe human rights violations inconsistent with even the PRC's own view of Tibetans as a minority nationality. Hence the self-immolation crisis within Tibet, a drastic act of dissent and protest in a political environment that enables few other forms of dissent, arises from the same circumstances that perpetuate the unresolved refugee crisis without (i.e., outside of Tibet). Acknowledging Tibet's colonization is a necessary but insufficient step to resolving both crises.


As coaching psychology finds its feet, demands for evidence-based approaches are increasing both from inside and outside of the industry. There is an opportunity in the many evidence-based interventions in other areas of applied psychology that are of direct relevance to coaching psychology. However, there may too be risks associated with unprincipled eclecticism. Existing approaches that are gaining popularity in the coaching field such as dialectic behavioural therapy and mindfulness enjoy close affiliation with Contextual Behavioral Science (CBS). In this article, we provide a brief overview of CBS as a coherent philosophical, scientific, and practice framework for empirically supported coaching work. We review its evidence base, and its direct applicability to coaching by describing CBS's most explicitly linked intervention – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy/Training (ACT). We highlight key strengths of ACT including: its great flexibility in regard of the kinds of client change it can support; the variety of materials and exercises available; and, the varied modes of delivery through which it has been shown to work. The article lays out guiding principles and provides a brief illustrative case study of contextual behavioural coaching.


Objectives End-stage kidney disease disproportionately affects people of South Asian origin. This study aimed to uncover the lived experiences of this group of patients on centre-based haemodialysis (HD), the most prevalent dialysis modality. Design The study utilised a qualitative focus group methodology. Seven focus groups were conducted across four NHS Trusts in the UK including three in Gujarati and two each in Punjabi and Urdu. This provided an inclusive opportunity for South Asian patients to contribute in their language of origin. A total of 24 patients participated. Focus groups were facilitated by bilingual project workers and data were forward translated and analysed using thematic analysis. Results Four themes were identified. This included (1) 'treatment imposition', which comprised of the restrictive nature of HD, the effects of treatment and the feeling of being trapped in an endless process. (2) The 'patient–clinician relationship' centred around the impact of a perceived lack of staff time, and inadequacies in the quality of interactions. (3) 'Coping strategies' highlighted the role of cognitive reappraisal, living in the moment and family support networks in facilitating adjustment. (4) 'Pursuit of transplantation' included equating this form of treatment with restoring normality, alongside cultural factors limiting hopefulness for receiving an organ. Conclusions In general, the experiences of South Asian patients receiving HD were not unique to this ethnic group. We did find distinct issues in relation to interactions with healthcare professionals, views on access to transplantation and the importance of family support networks. The study provides useful insights which may help enhance culturally tailored renal care.


A seller wishes to sell an object to one of multiple bidders. The valuations of the bidders are privately known. We consider the joint design problem in which the seller can decide the accuracy by which bidders learn their valuation and to whom to sell at what price. We establish that optimal information structures in an optimal auction exhibit a number of properties: (i) information structures can be represented by monotone partitions, (ii) the cardinality of each partition is finite, (iii) the partitions are asymmetric across agents. These properties imply that the optimal selling strategy of a seller can be implemented by a sequence of exclusive take-it or leave-it offers.


(This paper will be the basis for the author's remarks at the 2008 meeting of the Evidence Section at the A.A.L.S. meeting. It will later be published in SETON HALL LAW REVIEW.) Professor Christopher Slobogin's new book, PROVING THE UNPROVABLE (2007), is one of the most provocative Evidence texts released in recent years. In the book, he argues in favor of a more relaxed standard for admitting psychologists' and psychiatrists' testimony about a person's prior mental state. He contends that a person's earlier mental state is essentially unprovable and that it is impossible to gauge the validity of such testimony in the sense of its substantive accuracy. He concludes that the nature of such testimony precludes the application of the normal expert testimony standards prescribed by Daubert and Kumho. Instead, Professor Slobogin proposes generally accepted content validity as the standard for admissibility. His proposal is a step in the right direction. The proposal would at least ensure that the expert's opinion represents something more than the expert's personal ipse dixit. Moreover, his analysis is balanced. While he states that "scientifically verified evidence" is "usually" unavailable as a basis for expert testimony about past mental state, he adds the qualification that "[i]n those few instances when scientifically reliable information material to [the] issue [of past mental state] is available, the expert should rely on it." My fear, though, is that some may not read PROVING THE UNPROVABLE closely enough and will lose sight of the important qualifications Professor Slobogin adds. The book is argued so forcefully that readers may instead focus on the broad language suggesting that the very nature of the topic precludes policing the substantive accuracy of the relevant expert testimony. I have grave doubts about the wisdom of a general call to abandon the search for substantive accuracy in psychological and psychiatric testimony. The purpose of this short article is to explain the source of those doubts. The first part of this article is a descriptive survey of the state of the art of determining malingering by subjects of psychological and psychiatric interviews. The second part of the article is a critical evaluation of the state of that art. The third and final part of the articles inquires what light the state of the art of malingering detection sheds on the question of whether it is necessary to abandon the attempt to ensure the substantive accuracy of testimony by psychologists and psychiatrists about a person's prior mental state.


This piece is a response to Pierre Desrochers's criticism of an article by me. This response challenges Desrochers's argument that market forces compelled nineteenth- and early twentieth-century manufacturers to recycle, voluntarily, the vast majority of their wastes. I argue that Desrochers provides no counter-evidence that disproves my findings and that he bases some of his criticism on conjecture that is factually inaccurate and/or overly simplistic. I conclude that to do justice to this important and complex subject, historians need to investigate the barriers that discouraged manufacturers from using their wastes, as well as the full range of regulatory as well as market-based drivers that encouraged them to do so.


The notion that democracy is a system is ever present in democratic theory. However, what it means to think systemically about democracy (as opposed to what it means for a political system to be democratic) is under-elaborated. This article sets out a meta-level framework for thinking systemically about democracy, built upon seven conceptual building blocks, which we term (1) functions, (2) norms, (3) practices, (4) actors, (5) arenas, (6) levels, and (7) interactions. This enables us to systematically structure the debate on democratic systems, highlighting the commonalities and differences between systems approaches, their omissions, and the key questions that remain to be answered. It also enables us to push the debate forward both by demonstrating how a full consideration of all seven building blocks would address issues with existing approaches and by introducing new conceptual clarifications within those building blocks.


Members of highly social species decode, interpret, and react to the emotion of a conspecific depending on whether the other belongs to the same (ingroup) or different (outgroup) social group. While studies indicate that consciously perceived emotional stimuli drive social categorization, information about how implicit emotional stimuli and specific physiological signatures affect social categorization is lacking. We addressed this issue by exploring whether subliminal and supraliminal affective priming can influence the categorization of neutral faces as ingroup versus outgroup. Functional infrared thermal imaging was used to investigate whether the effect of affective priming on the categorization decision was moderated by the activation of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). During the subliminal condition, we found that stronger SNS activation after positive or negative affective primes induced ingroup and outgroup face categorization, respectively. The exact opposite pattern (i.e. outgroup after positive and ingroup after negative primes) was observed in the supraliminal condition. We also found that misattribution effects were stronger in people with low emotional awareness, suggesting that this trait moderates how one recognizes SNS signals and employs them for unrelated decisions. Our results allow the remarkable implication that low-level affective reactions coupled with sympathetic activation may bias social categorization.


Personalized learning considers that the causal effects of a studied learning intervention may differ for the individual student. Making the inference about causal effects of studies interventions is a central problem. In this paper we propose the Residual Counterfactual Networks (RCN) for answering counterfactual inference questions, such as "Would this particular student benefit more from the video hint or the text hint when the student cannot solve a problem?". The model learns a balancing representation of students by minimizing the distance between the distributions of the control and the treated populations, and then uses a residual block to estimate the individual treatment effect based on the representation of the student. We run experiments on semi-simulated datasets and real-world educational online experiment datasets to evaluate the efficacy of our model. The results show that our model matches or outperforms the state-of-the-art.


Purpose: The purpose of this research is to assess the five Medicaid waiver programs operated by the Department of Aging and Disability Services for adults with physical and intellectual disabilities. This research identifies areas for program improvement by obtaining experience information directly from people who receive services. Recommendations based on the findings are also developed. Methodology: Structured interviews were conducted from May through August 2005 with random samples of people 18 years of age or older receiving services in the Home and Community-based Services (HCS), Texas Home Living (TxHmL), Deaf-Blind with Multiple Disabilities (DB-MD), the Community Living Assistance and Support Services (CLASS), or Consolidated Waiver Program (CWP). A proportional sampling methodology was used for each program based on the number of people receiving services in each county. The questionnaire utilized in this research effort was developed by the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) in cooperation with the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disability Services (NASDDDS) and known as the National Core Indicators (NCI) Consumer Survey. Results: Generally, people in all programs participate to some degree in community activities. Most do not feel lonely and the majority receive annual physical exams. Improvements need to be made in all programs in the areas of Self-Advocacy and Choice and Control.


This is a guide to materials in The Russell Manning Collection housed in the History of Aviation Collection, Special Collections Department, The University of Texas at Dallas.


Lake Kivu is one of the large African Rift lakes situated between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda. In its permanently stratified hypolimnion, unusually high methane concentrations have increased further in recent decades. Because methanogenesis is, in part, dependent on supply of organic material from the photic zone, it is necessary to quantify upward nutrient fluxes from the saline, nutrient‐rich deep waters. These upward fluxes are mainly driven by advection caused by subaquatic springs. Biogenic calcite precipitation drives surface‐water depletion and deep‐water enrichment of Ca2+, Sr2+, and Ba2+. Methane is mainly oxidized aerobically at the redox interface at 60 m, with a small contribution of anaerobic methane oxidation. A subaquatic spring that sustains the major chemocline at 250 m depth was depleted of N, P, and CH4, and concentrations of major ions were slightly lower than in the lake water of the same depth. Enrichment of the deep waters with nutrients and CH4 are driven by mineralization of settling organic material, whereas SiO2 is influenced by uptake and mineralization of diatoms and inputs through subaquatic springs. Dissolved inorganic phosphorus and Si fluxes supplied by internal loading through upwelling were found to be lower than the estimations for Lakes Malawi and Tanganyika. In contrast, N flux was within the lower range for Lake Malawi, whereas it was assumed to be totally lost by denitrification in Lake Tanganyika. In Lake Kivu, nutrient uptake by primary production is three times higher than nutrient upward fluxes.


Abstract Moving towards multimodal mediated theory, I propose to define a mode as a system of mediated action that comes about through concrete lower-level actions that social actors take in the world. In order to explain exactly how a mode is a system of mediated action, I turn to a perfume blog and use one blog entry as my starting point. The mode that I primarily focus on in this article is the mode of smell, explicating that the mode of smell is not synonymous with olfactory perception, even though modal development of smell is certainly partially dependent upon olfactory perception. As I am ostensibly focusing on the one mode, I once again problematize this notion of countability and delineate the purely theoretical and heuristic unit of mode (Norris, 2004). I clarify that modes a) do not exist in the world as they are purely theoretical in nature; b) that modes can be delineated in various ways; and c) that modes are never singular. Even though the concept of mode is problematical - and in my view needs to always be problematized - I argue that the term and the notion of mode is theoretically useful as it allows us to talk about and better understand communication and (inter)action in three respects: 1. The notion of mode allows us to investigate regularities as residing on a continuum somewhere between the social actor(s) and the mediational means; 2. The theoretical notion of mode embraces socio-cultural and historical as well as individual characteristics, never prioritising any of these and always embracing the tension that exists between social actor(s) and mediational means; and 3. The theoretical notion of mode demonstrates that modal development through concrete lower-level actions taken in the world, is transferable to other lower-level actions taken.


This paper presents a novel cross-layer design for joint power and end-to-end rate control optimization in DS-CDMA wireless networks, along with a detailed implementation and evaluation in the network simulator ns-2. Starting with a network utility maximization formulation of the problem, we derive distributed power control, transport rate and queue management schemes that jointly achieve the optimal network operation. Our solution has several attractive features compared to alternatives: it adheres to the natural time-scale separation between rapid power control updates and slower end-to-end rate adjustments, and uses simplified power control mechanisms with reduced signalling requirements. We argue that these features are critical for a successful real-world implementation. To validate these claims, we present a detailed implementation of a cross-layer adapted networking stack for DS-CSMA ad-hoc networks in ns-2. We describe several critical issues that arise in the implementation, but are typically neglected in the theoretical protocol design, and evaluate the alternatives in extensive simulations.


This work presents an approach for estimating the effect of the fractional-N phase locked loop (Frac-N PLL) phase noise profile on frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar precision. Unlike previous approaches, the proposed modelling method takes the actual shape of the phase noise profile into account leading to insights on the main regions dominating the precision. Estimates from the proposed model are in very good agreement with statistical simulations and measurement results from an FMCW radar test chip fabricated on an IBM7WL BiCMOS 0.18 μm technology. At 5.8 GHz center frequency, a close-in phase noise of −75 dBc/Hz at 1 kHz offset is measured. A root mean squared (RMS) chirp nonlinearity error of 14.6 kHz and a ranging precision of 0.52 cm are achieved which competes with state-of-the-art FMCW secondary radars.


Sterechinus neumayeri is an abundant regular sea urchin that lives in the shallow Antarctic waters. This organism has been used as a model system in many fields of the Antarctic biology. Yet, understanding of the evolutionary identity of the species, such as its phylogenetic relationships and divergence time, remains limited. Here, we reconstructed the molecular phylogenies of the species together with two sea urchin species in southernmost South America (Loxechinus albus and Pseudechinus magellanicus), a parechinid species (Paracentrotus lividus) and three strongylocentrotid species (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, S. intermedius, and Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus) using mitochondrial DNA sequences of 12S rDNA-tRNA(gln) region (877nt) and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI, 1079nt). The rate of sequence evolution and the divergence time of the species were then estimated from the trees. The phylogenetic trees reveal that S. neumayeri is a sister group to the lineage of L. albus and P. lividus, and separated from the lineage 24–35 million years ago (m.y.a.). The divergence between S. neumayeri and L. albus coincides with the separation of Antarctica from South America, suggesting that the tectonic event must have provoked the cladogenesis of the species through vicariance.


Abstract. The Towuti Drilling Project (TDP) is an international research program, whose goal is to understand long-term environmental and climatic change in the tropical western Pacific, the impacts of geological and environmental changes on the biological evolution of aquatic taxa, and the geomicrobiology and biogeochemistry of metal-rich, ultramafic-hosted lake sediments through the scientific drilling of Lake Towuti, southern Sulawesi, Indonesia. Lake Towuti is a large tectonic lake at the downstream end of the Malili lake system, a chain of five highly biodiverse lakes that are among the oldest lakes in Southeast Asia. In 2015 we carried out a scientific drilling program on Lake Towuti using the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) Deep Lakes Drilling System (DLDS). We recovered a total of  ∼ 1018 m of core from 11 drilling sites with water depths ranging from 156 to 200 m. Recovery averaged 91.7 %, and the maximum drilling depth was 175 m below the lake floor, penetrating the entire sedimentary infill of the basin. Initial data from core and borehole logging indicate that these cores record the evolution of a highly dynamic tectonic and limnological system, with clear indications of orbital-scale climate variability during the mid- to late Pleistocene.


An efficient and solvent-free approach for various substituted Bis-amides is described. The reaction was performed on the silica surface under microwave conditions. This Microwave Irradiation (MWI) reaction under solvent-free conditions resulted in a "green-chemistry" procedures, by which Bis-amides were synthesized. NiCuFe2O4 nanoparticle, an efficient and reusable catalyst was employed in the reaction between amide and aldehydes in presence of silica medium to achieve Bis-amides. This approach "synthesis of the titled compounds in the absence of co-catalyst/additivesA¢Â€ÂŸ is first of its kind. The recoverability and reusability of the catalyst used in the present method was studied. Further the synthesized Bis-amides were subjected for fluorescence studies.


Introduction Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), endemic in Bolivia, mostly affects poor people in rainforest areas. The current first-line treatment consists of systemic pentavalent antimonials (SPA) for 20 days and is paid for by the Ministry of Health (MoH). Long periods of drug shortages and a lack of safe conditions to deliver treatment are challenges to implementation. Intralesional pentavalent antimonials (ILPA) are an alternative to SPA. This study aims to compare the cost of ILPA and SPA, and to estimate the health and economic impacts of changing the first-line treatment for CL in a Bolivian endemic area. Methods The cost-per-patient treated was estimated for SPA and ILPA from the perspectives of the MoH and society. The quantity and unit costs of medications, staff time, transportation and loss of production were obtained through a health facility survey (N = 12), official documents and key informants. A one-way sensitivity analysis was conducted on key parameters to evaluate the robustness of the results. The annual number of patients treated and the budget impact of switching to ILPA as the first-line treatment were estimated under different scenarios of increasing treatment utilization. Costs were reported in 2017 international dollars (1 INT$ = 3.10 BOB). Results Treating CL using ILPA was associated with a cost-saving of $248 per-patient-treated from the MoH perspective, and $688 per-patient-treated from the societal perspective. Switching first-line treatment to ILPA while maintaining the current budget would allow two-and-a-half times the current number of patients to be treated. ILPA remained cost-saving compared to SPA in the sensitivity analysis. Conclusions The results of this study support a shift to ILPA as the first-line treatment for CL in Bolivia and possibly in other South American countries.


The data presented in this paper show that the population of cells that adoptively transfer contact hypersensitivity are Lyt-1+ 2-, I-J- and nonadherent to V. villosa lectin. However, the adoptive transfer of immunity by this population of cells is successful only when the recipient has been treated in such a way as to impair the host immunosuppression mechanism. This population cannot, on its own, transfer immunity to adult, untreated naive recipients unless an additional population of immunoregulatory cells is present. This immunoregulatory population does not itself adoptively transfer immunity. This latter population is differentiated from the immune cells in that they are Lyt-1+ 2-, I-J+ and are adherent to V. villosa lectin. Both populations are required to adoptively transfer immunity to adult untreated naive recipients.


Firefighters are known to be exposed to a wide variety of combustion products during operational and training firefighting activities. However, the potential for exposure to diesel exhaust emissions, recently classified as carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, also exists within the fire station environment. In this study, concentrations of diesel particulate matter and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons have been measured in the engine bays, duty offices and dormitory areas of eight fire stations in Queensland, Australia. Operation of fire appliances and mechanical equipment during start of shift checks were found to contribute more strongly to overall engine bay diesel particulate matter concentrations than the number of fire appliance departures and returns. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were found to be transported further into fire station living environments than diesel particulate matter. This study highlights a number of potential strategies for reducing firefighter exposures to components of diesel engine exhaust in the fire station environment.


Dry deposition velocities of particles govern the deposition and atmospheric lifetime of aerosols and their constituents and need to be parameterised in chemical transport models to predict air quality, climate change and ecosystem impacts. The same micrometeorological flux measurement approaches used to measure deposition rates can be used to quantify emissions from area sources such as urban emissions and resuspension. This paper reviews recent measurements of fluxes of particle number and, importantly, individual aerosol chemical compounds, made with wet-chemistry gradient systems and eddy-covariance using aerosol mass spectrometry. The results indicate that aerosol exchange tends to be bi-directional and is modulated by particle dynamics due to evaporation and condensation growth. Often, some aerosol components are emitted or chemically formed below the measurement height, while other components deposit or evaporate. This has important implications on the use of field measurements of number fluxes for the development of model parameterisations. For example, measurements over a range of surfaces show that ammonium nitrate volatilises during the deposition to semi-natural vegetation, forming associated gaseous precursors, which deposit faster than the aerosol species. This evaporation therefore enhances total nitrogen deposition, and models need to use enhanced effective deposition rates to account for the effect. Conversely, the effect of particle dynamics on fluxes can be used to study aerosol processing, such as the in-situ formation of inorganic and organic secondary aerosol and the volatilisation of primary combustion aerosol. Examples will be shown from agricultural, natural and urban environments. Finally, the paper will discuss future research priorities to help improve parameterisations of dry deposition velocities further.


In this paper, we present a unifying approach to the general theory of abelian Stark conjectures. To do so we define natural notions of 'zeta element', of 'Weil-étale cohomology complexes' and of 'integral Selmer groups' for the multiplicative group Gm over finite abelian extensions of number fields. We then conjecture a precise connection between zeta elements and Weil-étale cohomology complexes, we show this conjecture is equivalent to a special case of the equivariant Tamagawa number conjecture and we give an unconditional proof of the analogous statement for global function fields. We also show that the conjecture entails much detailed information about the arithmetic properties of generalized Stark elements including a new family of integral congruence relations between Rubin-Stark elements (that refines recent conjectures of Mazur and Rubin and of the third author) and explicit formulas in terms of these elements for the higher Fitting ideals of the integral Selmer groups of Gm, thereby obtaining a clear and very general approach to the theory of abelian Stark conjectures. As first applications of this approach, we derive, amongst other things, a proof of (a refinement of) a conjecture of Darmon concerning cyclotomic units, a proof of (a refinement of) Gross's 'Conjecture for Tori' in the case that the base field is Q, explicit conjectural formulas for both annihilating elements and, in certain cases, the higher Fitting ideals (and hence explicit structures) of ideal class groups and a strong refinement of many previous results concerning abelian Stark conjectures.


The Prototype Laboratory initiated and maintained by the Chair of Product Development at the Faculty of Architecture, TU Delft, has set an example in architectural education for hands-on 'learning-by-making' for students. According to the authors of this book, in the current curriculums time spent on practical work is not rewarded and students are educated in an abstract concept of architecture, not getting a proper feeling for materialization. A semester of designing, engineering, producing and building a prototype with their own hands after their own design often gives students a boost in their education. The Delft Prototype laboratory was the base of around 1,000 students, now professionals. Some architect's offices make prototypes regularly as their designs are quite experimental and require more insight for the designing architect, before the realization of his building. Prototypes of technical components are often developed parallel to the building process. The Prototype Laboratory at the Faraculty of Architecture was supervised for almost 18 years by Peter van Swieten. He describes his experiences in this book, in collaboration with the initiator, professor Mick Eekhout. Marcel Bilow took over the Bucky Lab, as it is called, from 2012 onwards.


In this paper, we present a new adaptive microphone array processing algorithm for hands-free sound capture. Most traditional adaptive beamforming techniques operate solely on the basis of the direction of arrival of the desired source and are blind to any knowledge about the signal itself. In contrast, the proposed algorithm uses a nonlinear spatial filter to generate an estimate of the magnitude of the source signal. This estimate is then used to drive the adaptation of a linear beamformer according to a log-MMSE criterion. By combining a nonlinear spatial filter with an adaptive beamformer in this manner, we are able to exploit the high SNR output from the nonlinear spatial filter to drive a linear beamformer that does not suffer from distortions or artifacts. A series of experiments demonstrate that the proposed method generates improvements in PESQ and SNR over conventional methods.


Indoor navigation is challenging due to unavailability of satellites-based signals indoors. Inertial Navigation Systems (INSs) may be used as standalone navigation indoors. However, INS suffers from growing drifts without bounds due to error accumulation. On the other side, the IEEE 802.11 WLAN (WiFi) is widely adopted which prompted many researchers to use it to provide positioning indoors using fingerprinting. However, due to WiFi signal noise and multipath errors indoors, WiFi positioning is scattered and noisy. To benefit from both WiFi and inertial systems, in this paper, two major techniques are applied. First, a low-cost Reduced Inertial Sensors System (RISS) is integrated with WiFi to smooth the noisy scattered WiFi positioning and reduce RISS drifts. Second, a fast feature reduction technique is applied to fingerprinting to identify the WiFi access points with highest discrepancy power to be used for positioning. The RISS/WiFi system is implemented using a fast version of Mixture Particle Filter for state estimation as nonlinear non-Gaussian filtering algorithm. Real experiments showed that drifts of RISS are greatly reduced and the scattered noisy WiFi positioning is significantly smoothed. The proposed system provides smooth indoor positioning of 1 m accuracy 70% of the time outperforming each system individually.


Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. settled the now familiar principle of federal administrative law that a reviewing court must accept an agency's "reasonable" interpretation of a gap or ambiguity in a statute the agency is charged with administering. Less familiar is Bowles v. Seminole Rock & Sand Co., in which the Supreme Court explained that "the ultimate criterion" for judicial construction of an ambiguous regulation "is the administrative interpretation, which becomes of controlling weight unless it is plainly erroneous or inconsistent with the regulation." Under that principle, a reviewing court must accept a "plausible construction of the . . . regulation," even if it is not "the best or most natural one by grammatical or other standards."The Chevron and Seminole Rock principles are superficially similar, but they presents vastly different structure incentives in the administrative state. Chevron affords an administrative agency deference to its interpretation of a statute enacted by Congress; hence, ambiguity in such a statute gives discretion to to Congress's constitutional rival, the Executive Branch. In contrast, if Seminole Rock tells us that an agency's rules mean whatever it says they mean (unless the reading is plainly erroneous), the agency effectively secures the power of self-interpretation. This authority permits an agency to fill in regulatory gaps or ambiguities of its own making and relieves the agency of the cost of imprecision that it has produced. This state of affairs makes it that much less likely that an agency will give clear notice of its policies either to those who participate in the rulemaking process prescribed by the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) or to the regulated public. Seminole Rock deference also contradicts a major premise of our constitutional scheme and of contemporary separation of powers case law — that a fusion of lawmaking and law-exposition is especially dangerous to our liberties.From that starting point, this Article argues that the Court should replace Seminole Rock with a standard that imposes an independent judicial check on the agency's determination of regulatory meaning. In particular, it argues that courts should evaluate agency interpretations of regulations under the standard of judicial review prescribed by Skidmore v. Swift & Co. Under Skidmore, a court gives an agency interpretation the weight it deserves in light of the "thoroughness evident in the [agency's] consideration, the validity of its reasoning, its consistency with earlier and later pronouncements, and all those factors which give it the power to persuade, if lacking power to control." That approach would restore an independent judicial check on the agency's interpretation of its own regulations while also recognizing that agency experience and expertise may be valuable in the interpretive process and that courts should be open to persuasion when an agency advances a well-reasoned interpretation of its rules.


This paper introduces an approach for enabling existing multi-view stereo methods to operate on extremely large unstructured photo collections. The main idea is to decompose the collection into a set of overlapping sets of photos that can be processed in parallel, and to merge the resulting reconstructions. This overlapping clustering problem is formulated as a constrained optimization and solved iteratively. The merging algorithm, designed to be parallel and out-of-core, incorporates robust filtering steps to eliminate low-quality reconstructions and enforce global visibility constraints. The approach has been tested on several large datasets downloaded from Flickr.com, including one with over ten thousand images, yielding a 3D reconstruction with nearly thirty million points.


J. Fleury, J. Chorowicz & J. Somma write: In their recent paper Butler et al. 1997 discussed the active Dead Sea Transform in Lebanon and suggested that the active strand is the Roum and not the Yammouneh fault. This work argues that the present day transform fault system fits with a model of circle arc that runs from the Gulf of Aqaba to a triple junction in the Mediterranean southeast of Cyprus via the city of Beirut. Girdler (1990) has proposed the same idea but used the Carmel Fault instead of the Roum Fault. Most of the other authors (e.g. Garfunkel et al. 1981; Bartov 1994) are of the opinion that the transform is the Yammouneh fault. Below, we present satellite imagery and field observations that show that the Roum Fault is not the active segment of the Dead Sea Transform and that the Yammouneh Fault is an active Quaternary structure. This problem of the location of the plate boundary is important for the zonation of seismic hazards. Northern region. Butler et al. 1997 have argued that the Homs Basalt, located in the northern region of the Yammouneh Fault, and dated c. 5 Ma, unconformably overlies Cretaceous to Miocene sediments without being generally faulted. On the Landsat-TM image, the Yammouneh fault is expressed as a NNE-trending straight line (Fig. 1). It mainly affects Mesozoic-Palaeogene limestones and Mio-Pliocene continental sediments. Southeast of Tripoli along the fault (A in Fig. 1), a small (4.5 km long, 1 km wide) basin, filled with


Risk Assessment is the scientifically-based process that characterizes the possible human health implications of hazards found in food. This scientific approach is part of the risk analysis paradigm that governs the food decision-making process. It is a prerequisite for the development and execution of robust and consistent food safety regulatory decisions. This paper reviews food regulatory decision-making scenarios where risk assessment plays a key role. It discusses challenges associated with the access to capacity and competencies from various disciplines necessary to enable risk assessment and overall risk analysis. The paper illustrates the urgent need for the provision of additional support to capacity building initiatives in this area by means of mutually beneficial resource-sharing with the objective to establish regional and/or sub-regional centres of food regulatory science, including expertise in risk assessment. Regional Centres of Expertise may be the answer to provide the needed competencies and up-to-date tools to operationalize food regulatory systems, where food risk analysis is the foundation of decision-making, as advocated by the guidance of the Codex Alimentarius commission. It may also be the response to support economic regional integration, where food and agrifood trade needs to be supported by the removal of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) constraints and through achieving a more coordinated and harmonious food safety standard setting framework, at the regional level.


The 1990s were a time of political upheaval in Japan. When the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lost its monopoly on power, which it had held for 38 years, as a result of the House of Representatives election of 1993, Japanese politics entered the coalition era. From 1993 to 1998, the reins of government were held by two types of coalitions: non-LDP coalitions and coalitions that included the LDP and its longtime rival, the Social Democratic Party of Japan (SDP). Although the LDP organized its own government in the early summer of 1998, that year's House of Councillors election returned Japan to the coalition era. The coalition era in the 1990s was also a period of party reorganization. In the fall of 1998, only two parties remained of the nine that had existed in the summer of 1993. This shuffling of power between the LDP and coalition governments affected the policymaking process in general and certain issues in particular. In this book, six political scientists present in-depth analyses of power shuffles and policymaking in Japan in the 1990s. Specific cases of policymaking discussed include administrative reform of quasi-governmental organizations dealing with public finance and business operations; the review of telecommunications policy undertaken in tandem with the consideration of issues concerning the privatization and deregulation of the telecom giant Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation; and the establishment of long-term care insurance (LTCI) for the elderly. Typical of the style followed in the case study chapters, the discussion of LTCI gives background on the issues concerned, examines the relevant political events at each stage of the policy process--agenda-setting, preparation of a draft bill, compromises made, and final outcome--and analyzes how successful the coalition governments were in changing long-established patterns of policymaking. Other chapters present the backdrop to the political events of the 1990s by examining the impact of voter preference on party realignment and policy conflict from the 1970s to the present, and discuss structural reform by the SDPJ and the changes it made in policy when its chairman was named prime minister in 1994. Also considered is the degree of similarity and difference among the policymaking processes of the LDP and the various coalition governments.


The French epicure and gastronome Brillat-Savarin declared, "Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you who you are." Wenying Xu infuses this notion with cultural-political energy by extending it to an ethnic group known for its cuisines: Asian Americans.She begins with the general argument that eating is a means of becoming - not simply in the sense of nourishment but more importantly of what we choose to eat, what we can afford to eat, what we secretly crave but are ashamed to eat in front of others, and how we eat. Food, as the most significant medium of traffic between the inside and outside of our bodies, organizes, signifies, and legitimates our sense of self and distinguishes us from others, who practice different foodways.Narrowing her scope, Xu reveals how cooking, eating, and food fashion Asian American identities in terms of race/ethnicity, gender, class, diaspora, and sexuality. She provides lucid and informed interpretations of seven Asian American writers (John Okada, Joy Kogawa, Frank Chin, Li-Young Lee, David Wong Louie, Mei Ng, and Monique Truong) and places these identity issues in the fascinating spaces of food, hunger, consumption, appetite, desire, and orality. Asian American literature abounds in culinary metaphors and references, but few scholars have made sense of them in a meaningful way.


Polyamide based reverse osmosis (PA-RO) membranes are applied for the desalination of halide-containing waters such as seawater and brackish groundwater. They are the industry standard because of their high selectivity and ability to withstand a wide range of pH. However, one of their pitfalls is their propensity to undergo biofouling, which is deterioration due to biological growth. Biofouling is known to dramatically decrease membrane performance and increase energy consumption. In order to overcome biofouling, a disinfectant, typically free chlorine, is applied; however, free chlorine is known to react with the polyamide layer and result in further membrane deterioration and performance loss.One topic that has garnered less attention is the application of chloramines and their interactions with the PA-RO membrane when applied as a biofouling control. Furthermore, the role of halides (e.g. chloride, bromide, and iodide) in the presence of chloramines must be further explored because they are known to react to form secondary species which are reactive toward PA-RO membranes. In Chapter 2, the PA based monomers benzanilide (BA) and N-Methyl-N-phenylbenzamide (N-CH3-BA) were used to model the PA layer. Monomers were exposed to halide containing waters and chloraminated with pre-formed NH2Cl over a wide range of pH. The decay and by-product formation after exposure were evaluated using HPLC-DAD, LC/MS, and/or GC/MS. Results indicated that pH of the system and bromide concentration controlled parent compound decay and brominated by-product formation, where low pH and high bromide concentrations led to the highest formation of brominated by-products.In Chapter 3, commercially made PA-RO membranes (SWC4-LD) were chloraminated or chlorinated with and without halides over a wide pH range. Their performance was evaluated after exposure through flux experiments using a dead-end flow cell. Results indicated that exposure to free chlorine led to the greatest change in flux and monochloramine resulted in the smallest change in flux. During chloramination of the membranes, the reactors containing bromide led to further change in flux than the chloramine only conditions. This was likely due to formation of secondary species that were reactive toward the PA membrane. Furthermore, Chapter 4 summarizes overall research contributions from this work and proposes future work pertaining to this topic.


Light-induced surface excitations may offer a route to faster, smaller, and more efficient electronics as well as new technology opportunities. Just over a decade ago, the term "plasmonics" was coined for a promising new device technology that aims to exploit the unique optical properties of metallic nanostructures to enable routing and active manipulation of light at the nanoscale (1). At the same time, it was already well established that tiny metallic particles have a number of valuable optical properties that are derived from their ability to support collective light-induced electronic excitations, known as surface plasmons. Most notably, nanostructured metals dramatically alter the way light scatters from molecules, and this later led to the development of an important optical spectroscopy technique called surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (2–4).


For the past thirty years, the general advice for those seeking to collect, use, and share people's personal data in a responsible way was relatively straightforward: follow the fair information practices, often called the "FIPs." These general guidelines were designed to ensure that data processors are accountable for their actions and that data subjects are safe, secure, and endowed with control over their personal information. The FIPs have proven remarkably sturdy against the backdrop of near-constant technological change. Yet in the age of social media, big data, and artificial intelligence, the FIPs have been pushed to their breaking point. We are asking too much of the FIPs, yet they are far too entrenched and important to be abandoned.
New privacy risks present an opportune moment to assess the state of the FIPs in the modern world and ask whether they are up to the task. This Essay is an attempt to identify the practical virtues and limitations of the FIPs in order to help privacy law evolve while retaining traditional notions of data accountability. I argue that while we cannot do without the FIPs, it is time for lawmakers to stake out new ground. They should pay more attention to things like anti-competitive behavior and the design of information technologies. The FIPs are necessary, but not sufficient. To make privacy law whole, the FIPs must be treated as one of several frameworks to protect our personal information and people's ability to consent to data practices must be treated as a finite resource.


With the exploding increase of mobile users and the release of new wireless applications, the high bandwidth requirement has been taking as a main concern for the design and development of the wireless techniques. There is no doubt that broadband wireless access with the support of heterogeneous kinds of applications is the trend in the next generation wireless networks. As a promising broadband wireless access standard, IEEE 802.16 has attracted extensive attentions from both industry and academia due to its high data rate and the inherent media access control (MAC) mechanism, which takes the service differentiation and quality of service (QoS) provisioning into account. To achieve service differentiation and QoS satisfaction for heterogenous applications is a very complicated issue. It refers to many fields, such as connection admission control (CAC), congestion control, routing algorithm, MAC protocol, and scheduling scheme. Among these fields, packet scheduling plays one of the most important roles in fulfilling service differentiation and QoS provisioning. It decides the order of packet transmissions, and provides mechanisms for the resource allocation and multiplexing at the packet level to ensure that different types of applications meet their service requirements and the network maintains a high resource utilization. In this thesis, we focus on the packet scheduling for difficult types of services in IEEE 802.16 networks, where unicast and mulitcast scheduling are investigated. For unicast scheduling, two types of services are considered: non-real-time polling service (nrtPS) and best effort (BE) service. We propose a flexible and efficient resource allocation and scheduling framework for nrtPS applications to achieve a tradeoff between the delivery delay and resource utilization, where automatic repeat request (ARQ) mechanisms and the adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) technique are jointly considered. For BE service, considering the heterogeneity of subscriber stations (SSs) in IEEE 802.16 iii networks, we propose the weighted proportional fairness scheduling scheme to achieve the flexible scheduling and resource allocation among SSs based on their traffic demands/patterns. For multicast scheduling, a cooperative multicast scheduling is proposed to achieve high throughput and reliable transmission. By using the two-phase transmission model to exploit the spatial diversity gain in the multicast scenario, the proposed scheduling scheme can significantly improve the throughput not only for all multicast groups, but also for each group member. Analytical models are developed to investigate the performance of the proposed schemes in terms of some important performance measurements, such as throughput, resource utilization, and service probability. Extensive simulations are conducted to illustrate the efficient of the proposed schemes and the accuracy of the analytical models. The research work should provide meaningful guidelines for the system design and the selection of operational parameters, such as the number of TV channels supported by the network, the achieved video quality of each SS in the network, and the setting of weights for SSs under different BE traffic demands.


Recent research has identified excessive device focus as a serious problem in collaborative mobile learning as it undermines key ideas of learners engaging with their co-learners in context-rich authentic settings. Various recommendations have been formulated to address device focus in the design of mobile learning technology and pedagogy and foster students' engagement with both their peers and their environment. This paper describes how some of these recommendations have been implemented and extended in the design of Invisible Buildings, a mobile collaborative game-based activity for schoolchildren. It reports the results of an empirical evaluation of the learning experience with primary school children, focusing on students' engagement with their social and physical context during learning activities, and providing insights into their behaviour and strategies with respect to device sharing. Findings broadly confirm the effectiveness of the implemented measures and show good student acceptance of the tools employed and the overall learning experience.


After more than a quarter of a century of active research, metal matrix composites (MMCs), and more particularly aluminum matrix composites (AMCs), are beginning to make a significant contribution to aerospace, automotive, and electronic industrial practice. This is the consequence of progresses in the development of processing techniques, and the result of advances in the understanding of the relationship between composite structure and mechanical behavior In the present work, two kinds of AMCs were elaborated by direct squeeze-casting for the assessment of their mechanical performance in view of potential applications for the automobile and electronic industry. They are based on a specifically designed precipitation hardening Al-4Cu-1Mg-O.5Ag alloy chosen for its promising mechanical properties at temperatures up to 200°C. A12O3 Saffil short fibers (15%-vol) on the one hand and SiC particles (60%-vol) on the other hand act as reinforcements. In the aim of a better understanding of the mechanical properties of the composites, their microstructure has been studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The grain morphology and size, microsegregation and precipitation states of the composites have been investigated and compared with those of the unreinforced matrix alloy. Microsegregation, mainly of A12Cu, A17Cu2Fe and Q-A15Cu2Mg8Si6 phases, is observed in the as-cast composites at the interfaces between the matrix and the reinforcements. However, a solution heat treatment at 500°C for 2 hours leads to a significant dissolution of these phases. Although the unreinforced alloy was free of Si, this element is detected in the matrices of both composites. After a TEM study of the interfaces, it was deduced that Si is released from different interfacial reactions: (i) for the A12O3 reinforced composites, from a reaction between the Mg from the matrix alloy and the SiO2 from the Saffil fibers and the silica binder of the preform, and (ii) for the SiC reinforced composites, from a direct reaction between Al and the SiC particles with an indirect but important contribution of Mg to the reaction kinetics. As consequence of the chemical modification of the alloy, the precipitation state in the matrices of the composites has drastically changed. It was shown by energy dispersive spectrometry chemical analyses (EDS), high resolution electron microscopy (HREM), dedicated scanning transmission electron microscopy (DSTEM) and microdiffraction techniques that the usual Ω and S' hardening phases of the matrix alloy are substituted by a fine and dense precipitation of nano-sized QP rods and θ' plates. The θ' plates lie on nano-sized rod-shaped precipitates identified as Si phase in the A12O3 short fiber reinforced composite, and as QC phase in the SiC particle reinforced composite. The QP and QC phases are shown to be precursors of the stable Q-A15Cu2Mg8Si6 phase. They have both a hexagonal structure withal a = 0.393 nm and c = 0.405 nm, and with a = 0.675 nm and c = 0.405 nm, respectively for QP and QC. A structural phase transition between the QP, QC, Q rod-shaped precipitates in the matrices of the composites is observed and studied by TEM, DF superstructure imaging and in-situ experiment techniques. The details of this transition are shown to bring a new understanding to the precipitation mechanisms in the 6xxx alloys (AlMgSi alloys) in general. These ones are widely used as medium-strength structural alloys. The structures of the metastable phases that precipitate in these alloys have been largely described in literature, but the precipitation mechanims at atomic scale has not been well understood so far. In the present work, a model is developed from the crystallographic structure of the stable Q-phase determined by X-ray. It describes the QP, QC and Q structures as superordered structures formed by an order-disorder transition from a primitive phase named qp. The model predicts that a similar transition exists between all the metastable phases in the 6xxx alloys (β", β', B', type-A, type-B). For example, β' is supposed to be structurally similar to QC, with Si substituting Cu in the unit-cell. The latent lattices implied in the transitions are noted QP and βP for the matrices of the composites (AlCuMgSi alloys) and for the 6xxx alloys respectively. Microdiffraction patterns and superstructure DF images acquired on a CCD camera confirm the similarity between the QC and β' phases. After refinement by comparison between the experimental and computed microdiffraction patterns, their crystallography is found to be hexagonal P62m. Eventually, according to the model, the structural transitions in the AlCuMgSi and AlMgSi alloys are found to respectively follow the sequences qp →(QP →) QC→ Q and βp →(βP →) β'→ B' corresponding to the breaking symmetry path P63/mmc → P62m →P6. This sequence is respected during the cooling of the materials from the liquid state, and structurally mixed precipitates can be observed in the as-cast state, due to the slow kinetics of the transition (order/disorder transition). This sequence is also respected during the aging of the materials, since the small size of the precipitates is expected to reduce the critical temperature of transition. Monte Carlo simulations on an Ising lattice are computed to illustrate and confirm those effects.


We investigated whether control of hand movements can be driven by visual information that is not consciously perceived. Previous studies have shown that subjects can make corrective responses to perturbations during hand movements even when they do not notice the perturbations. We tested whether movements can be affected by visual information that is not perceived at all, using backward masking to prevent conscious perception. Subjects performed reach-to-grasp movements toward 2D virtual objects that were projected onto a rigid surface. They were instructed to touch the projection surface at the locations that they would use to pick up the object. On perturbed trials, the target object was briefly shown (33 ms) at an orientation that was ±20° from the original orientation, followed by a 200 ms mask. Perturbations were triggered when the index finger was 20 cm away from the target. After the mask, the original target reappeared and remained visible until completion of movement. Thus, the task did not require any response to the perturbations. Unperturbed trials were identical except that the orientation of the target remained constant. None of the subjects reported noticing the masked perturbations, and a follow-up test found that half of the subjects could not reliably discriminate the perturbations even when trying. Despite the lack of awareness, the brief views of the rotated targets caused detectable changes in the grip axis during movement. Approximately 200 ms after perturbation onset, the grip axes in perturbed trials began to rotate in the direction of the target rotation, reaching a maximum deviation of 1.2° after another 200 ms. These biases were corrected during the final movement, so that the final grasp axes were not significantly different across perturbation conditions. The results demonstrate that visual information can affect control of hand movement even when it is not consciously perceived. Meeting abstract presented at VSS 2015.


Although the first Switched Reluctance Motor (SRM) dates back to the 19th century (1838), it was not widely used in industry until very recently. The main reason for not using SRMs was their nonlinear nature and, consequently, the difficulties faced in their characterization and control. Accordingly, accurate and fast models of SRM drives are needed for the characterization and development of control algorithms for this class of drives. This dissertation presents new techniques for the fast and accurate characterization of SRM drive systems using Artificial Intelligence (AI) based model. In this work, not only the operation of the machine under normal conditions is considered, but also the machine is assumed to be operating under abnormal (fault) conditions. The work involves building two AI-based models. One model employs Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs), and the other utilizes Fuzzy Inference Systems (FIS). ANNs are used for their interpolation ability and mapping capability in highly nonlinear environment. Fuzzy Logic (FL) is applied in the modeling of the SRM drive systems because it is very suitable for problems with large degree of uncertainty but for which some knowledge is available. As the development of both models requires training data sets, this work first investigated and developed the more conventional State Space (SS) - Finite Element (FE) models. Although these models are accurate and account for magnetic material nonlinearities, they require intensive computational resources and relatively long computational time. Next the SS-FE models were validated and used to generate the information and knowledge needed for AI-based modeling. The AI-based models were used to characterize a prototype SRM drive under normal and fault operating conditions. In addition, the two AI based models were compared in order to help other future investigators in achieving the proper model for their applications.


Objectives: Stability of bone splitting sternotomy is essential for normal healing after open cardiac surgery. Mechanical vibration transmittance may offer a means for early detection of separation of bone (diastasis) in the sternotomy and prevent further complications. This article describes the technical implementation and validation of vibration analysis–based prototype device built for measuring sternal bone connectivity after sternotomy. Methods: An in-house built measurement system, sternal vibration device, consisting of actuator, sensor, and main controller and signal acquisition unit was designed and manufactured. The system was validated, and three different test settings were studied in mockups (polylactide rods in ballistic gel) and in two human sternums: intact, stable wire fixation, and unstable wire fixation with a gap mimicking bone diastasis. The transmittance of vibration stimulus across the median sternotomy was measured. Results: The validation showed that the force produced by the actuator was stable, and the sensor could be calibrated to precisely measure the acceleration values. The vibration transmittance response to material cut and sternotomy was evident and detectable in the 20 Hz to 2 kHz band. The transmittance decreased when the connectivity between the sternal halves became unstable. The trend was visible in all the settings. Conclusion: Technical solutions and description of validation process were given. The device was calibrated, and the vibration transmittance analysis differentiated intact and cut polylactide rod. In the sternum, intact bone, wire fixation with exact apposition, and with a gap were identified separately. Although further studies are needed to assess the accuracy of the method to detect different levels of diastases, the method appears to be feasible.


Individuals interact with conspecifics in a number of behavioural contexts or dimensions. Here, we formalise this by considering a social network between n individuals interacting in b behavioural dimensions as a nxnxb multidimensional object. In addition, we propose that the topology of this object is driven by individual needs to reduce uncertainty about the outcomes of interactions in one or more dimension. The proposal grounds social network dynamics and evolution in individual selection processes and allows us to define the uncertainty of the social network as the joint entropy of its constituent interaction networks. In support of these propositions we use simulations and natural 'knock-outs' in a free-ranging baboon troop to show (i) that such an object can display a small-world state and (ii) that, as predicted, changes in interactions after social perturbations lead to a more certain social network, in which the outcomes of interactions are easier for members to predict. This new formalisation of social networks provides a framework within which to predict network dynamics and evolution under the assumption that it is driven by individuals seeking to reduce the uncertainty of their social environment.


Bentonite absorbs water to a greater extent than any other ordinary plastic clay and as a
consequence it swells depending on the change in its moisture content. This paper aims to give an
overview of the swelling characteristic of bentonites with particular observations from that of
prehydrated clay mats. How the swelling characteristics vary with the type of clay, water, and the
encompassing boundary materials is presented. Accordingly, it examines the swelling response of the
clay mat and the pressure exerted when the swelling is both fully and partially restrained. The
development of a new apparatus to measure pressures exerted by the clay as a result of the swelling
process is also described. A theoretical study is made to postulate how these pressures can be
evaluated for field situations. Though bentonites are known to have very high swelling pressures, how
this is negated by the compressibility of the composite behaviour with the necessary backfill is
demonstrated. Tests show significant differences in swelling behaviour and pressure development
when the GCL is in deionized water and sea water environments. Free swell characteristics were
similarly affected.. Unique variation of pressure exerted due to swelling in partially restrained
conditions was established with experimental observations made during the study.


This article explores the dynamics of the youth gang (pandilla) phenomenon in contemporary urban Nicaragua, drawing on longitudinal ethnographic research conducted with a Managua pandilla in 1996–97 and in 2002. Pandillas and their violent practices are conceived as constituting a form of local social structuration in the face of broader conditions of high crime, insecurity, and socio-political breakdown. This form of 'street-level politics' changed significantly between 1997 and 2002, however, evolving from a form of collective social violence to a more individually and economically motivated type of brutality. This transformation is related to wider structural processes, which are described as coming together and precipitating a form of 'social death' in contemporary Nicaragua.


Metallic nanoparticles (NPs) have not been effective in improving the overall performance of the cells with micrometer-thick absorbing layers mainly due to the parasitic optical dissipation in the metal. Here, using both experiment and theory, we demonstrate that aggregates of metallic NPs enhance the light absorption of dye-sensitized solar cells of a few micrometer-thick light absorbing layers. The composite electrode containing the optimal concentration of 5 wt% Au@SiO2 aggregates shows the enhancement of 80% and 52% in external quantum efficiency and photocurrent density, respectively. The superior performance of the aggregates relative to NP is attributed to their larger scattering efficiency using full-wave optical simulations. This is further confirmed by optical spectroscopic measurements showing that a large fraction of the incident light couples into the diffused components because of the presence of these metallic aggregates. The optical absorption enhancement is broadband and it is particularly strong at wavelengths larger than 680 nm where the optical absorption of dye molecules is weak.


What happens to a country when its skilled workers emigrate? The first book to examine the complex economic, social, and political effects of emigration on India, Diaspora, Development, and Democracy provides a conceptual framework for understanding the repercussions of international migration on migrants' home countries. Devesh Kapur finds that migration has influenced India far beyond a simplistic "brain drain"--migration's impact greatly depends on who leaves and why. The book offers new methods and empirical evidence for measuring these traits and shows how data about these characteristics link to specific outcomes. For instance, the positive selection of Indian migrants through education has strengthened India's democracy by creating a political space for previously excluded social groups. Because older Indian elites have an exit option, they are less likely to resist the loss of political power at home. Education and training abroad has played an important role in facilitating the flow of expertise to India, integrating the country into the world economy, positively shaping how India is perceived, and changing traditional conceptions of citizenship. The book highlights a paradox--while international migration is a cause and consequence of globalization, its effects on countries of origin depend largely on factors internal to those countries. A rich portrait of the Indian migrant community, Diaspora, Development, and Democracy explores the complex political and economic consequences of migration for the countries migrants leave behind.


One key reason for the failure of Jatropha plantation is the use of non-improved planting materials. We present in this paper a Jatropha variety (JO S2) through selective breeding with much better seed productivity than wild accessions as proven by field trials in Singapore and India. In a single farm trial in Singapore for two years, a comparison was conducted with accessions from China, India, Indonesia and Africa. It was found that all traits studied like seed yield, seed kernel content, seed oil content, fatty acid composition, phosphorus content and PE content differed significantly among and within the wild accessions. Overall, JO S2 was the best performer with the highest seed yield, high oil content and low phosphorus content. On two sites in Tamil Nadu, Southern India, this Jatropha variety produced up to 2.95 ton/ha of dry seeds in the first year and up to 4.25 ton/ha of dry seeds in the second year, much better than the local variety control. We attribute its higher seed productivity to early flowering, better self-branching, more flower/fruiting bunches, more fruits per bunch and importantly, better uniformity among plants. This exemplifies that breeding has improved Jatropha seed productivity which will lead to better economics for Jatropha plantation.


On the one hand, a growing amount of research discusses support for improving online collaborative learning quality, and many indicators are focused to assess its success. On the other hand, thinkLets for designing reputable and valuable collaborative processes have been developed for more than ten years. However, few studies try to apply thinkLets to online collaborative learning. This paper introduces thinkLets to online collaborative learning and experimentally tests its effectiveness with participants' responses on their satisfaction. Yield Shift Theory (YST), a causal theory explaining inner satisfaction, is adopted. In the experiment, 113 students from Universities in Beijing, China are chosen as a sample. They were divided into two groups, collaborating online in a simulated class. Then, YST in student groups under online collaborative learning is validated, a comparison study of online collaborative learning with and without thinkLets is implemented, and the satisfaction response of participants are analyzed. As a result of this comparison, YST is proved applicable in this context, and satisfaction is higher in online collaborative learning with thinkLets.


Multi-dimensional entities are modeled, displayed and understood with a new algorithm vectorizing data of any dimensionality. This algorithm is called SBP; it is a vectorized generalization of parallel coordinates. Classic geometries of any dimensionality can be demonstrated to facilitate perception and understanding of the shapes generated by this algorithm. SBP images of a 4D line, a circle and 3D and 4D spherical helices are shown. A strategy for synthesizing multi-dimensional models matching multi-dimensional data is presented. Current applications include data mining; modeling data-defined structures of scientific interest such as protein structure and Calabi-Yau figures as multi-dimensional geometric entities; generating vector-fused data signature fingerprints of classic frequency spectra that identify substances; and treating complex targets as multi-dimensional entities for automatic target recognition. SBP vector data signatures apply to all pattern recognition problems.


Biomass, species composition and primary production of the microphytobenthos (MPB) were investigated along environmental gradients in the Colne Estuary between August 1996 and March 1998. Mean monthly sediment chlorophyll a (chl a) concentrations varied between 6 and 241 mg m -2 . There was no seasonal pattern in chl a distribution. Low chl a concentrations were asso- ciated with the estuary mouth, which was characterised by exposed sandy sediments and low water column nutrient concentrations. Position on the shore affected biomass, with greater chl a concentra- tions on the high shore. Chl a concentrations followed the same pattern at both high and low shore positions. There was a significant relationship between concentrations of sediment colloidal carbo- hydrate and chl a. Epipelic diatoms dominated the MPB, with cluster analysis identifying 10 distinct species assemblages. Navicula spp. were an important component of all assemblages. Peaks in chl a biomass occurred when a single species made up >65% of the cell numbers. The distribution of the diatom assemblages was related to salinity, temperature and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) con- centrations. Net production of oxygen occurred in sediments under illumination at all sites on almost all occasions. Oxygen uptake by sediment in the dark was positively correlated with temperature at the head of the estuary, but not at any other site. Mean annual chl a concentrations correlated posi- tively with total annual dark oxygen uptake. Annual primary production was estimated by 4 models using chl a concentrations and a model based on gross O2 fluxes across the sediment-water interface. Production was estimated to be in the range of 25 to 1199 gC m -2 yr -1 , depending on site and model. There was greater production on the high shore than on the low shore, due to higher chl a concen- trations and longer emersion periods. Total production of MPB in the estuary was estimated to be between 117 and 852 tons C yr -1 . Assimilation by the MPB provided a temporary sink for DIN, equiv- alent to 12.8% of the annual 1996 load to the Colne Estuary. N assimilation rates by the MPB were in the same order of magnitude as denitrification, indicating that assimilation by the MPB is an impor- tant process affecting the flux of DIN through this mesotidal estuary.


Thiazolidinones are important class of heterocyclic compounds due to their versatile biological activity. A novel series of 2-phenyl-3(5-pyridin-3-yl-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-1,3-thiazoli din-4-one(VIa-n) derivatives were synthesized in go od yield by the cycloaddition of N-[(1E)-phenyl methylene]-5-pyridin-3-yl-1,3,4-thiadiazol -2-amine with thioglycollic acid in presence of dim ethylformamide. The structures of the synthesized compounds were confirmed by FT-IR, 1 H NMR, 13 C NMR, MASS data and elemental analysis. Docking studies has been carried out by using Hex software for all the newly synthesized compounds. All the synthesized compounds were tested against Mycobacterium tuberculosis using Microplate Alamar Blue Assay method. Preliminary results indicated that most of the compounds tested in this study demonstrated comparable activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis as compared with standard Streptomycin, Pyrazinamide and Ciprofloxacin. Among the series, compounds VI l and VI n showed better antitubercular activity compared to all the standards pyrazinamide, streptomycin and ciprofloxacin and compounds VI e, VI g, VI j, VI k and VI m showed similar activity compared to standard streptomycin. The structure and biological activity relationship of titled compounds showed that the presence of pharmacophoric moieties like 1,3,4- thiadiazole nucleus and the substituent's like 2-me thoxy benzaldehyde, 4-methoxy benzaldehyde, 2-hydroxy benzaldehyde and 4-hydroxy benzaldehyde attached to it will increases the activity.