IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) cloud applications require reliable, fault-tolerant networks, supporting real-time guarantees and allowing interaction with other applications already existing in the datacenter. The Software Defined Networks (SDN) paradigm is especially suited for the management of the network cloud because of its fine grained admission control and the management flexibility provided by the centralized resource management. This paper presents a SDN management approach for IIoT datacenters, which provides an efficient fault-tolerant network, enabled with deterministic QoS guarantees. By taking advantage of a centralized resource management mechanism, the proposed solution integrates topology definition with resource allocation, allowing to efficiently distribute available network resources for admitted packet flows.


Open source represents a model generally known for its success in software production. The objective of this article is to establish a new strategic approach of using open source development principles for managing collaborative arrangements between citizens and public administration. The identity of open source governance is developed by highlighting how it is different from its main "competitor"—collaborative governance, and from other two popular concepts—open government and e-democracy. The other sections are designed to answer to public managers regarding why and what to adopt from this governance model for public sector services.


Astragalus membranaceus (AM) root modulates polyglutamine aggregation in adult C. elegans via the DAF-16/IIS pathway. The effects of AM root on stress response in larval C. elegans through the HSF-1/IIS pathway are unknown. Herein, this study aims to elucidate AM root effects on heat-induced paralysis of first larval stage (L1) C. elegans during short-term and long-term heat shock. Wild-type (N2) C. elegans (n=100 per plate) were synchronized to the L1 stage to eliminate age-based variability, exposed to 0 mg/mL (control) or 2 mg/mL, 4 mg/mL, or 8 mg/mL AM root extract (experimental), and heat shocked at 37°C for either ten or twenty minutes. A harsh touch sensitivity assay was performed, and C. elegans responses were recorded. Paralysis rate after ten-minute heat shock decreased as AM root extract concentration increased, indicating that AM root may enhance HSF-1 activity in L1 C. elegans after short-term stress. Unexpectedly, longer periods of heat shock resulted in a lower percentage of worms becoming paralyzed in the control condition, possibly due to habituation to stress. Exposure to low concentrations of AM root extract promoted paralysis during long-term stress (p<0.05), possibly due to AM root interference in the habituation of C. elegans. Further investigations will be necessary to explore the role of AM root in C. elegans habituation and in other laboratory organisms. Deeper insight into molecular pathways altered by AM root during stress responses will not only help to elucidate such pathways in C. elegans, but will also have implications in the modulation of stress-response pathways in humans.


Capturing physical phenomena such as node mobility or wave propagation is challenging in current network simulators, and is mostly achieved through crude abstractions. Despite being operationally efficient, such abstractions adversely affect simulation credibility. To realize more accurate modeling, we are currently developing a simulation environment integrating a hybrid modeling language into a mainstream network simulator. This paper gives a preliminary overview of our efforts. For illustration, an example simulation scenario with some basic mobility is described.


Leadership first, location second
 As more organizations adopt a remote workforce, the challenges of leading at a distance become more urgent than ever. The cofounders of the Remote Leadership Institute, Kevin Eikenberry and Wayne Turmel, show leaders how to guide their teams by recalling the foundational principles of leadership.

 The authors' "Three-O" Model refocuses leaders to think about outcomes, others, and ourselves—elements of leadership that remain unchanged, whether employees are down the hall or halfway around the world. By pairing it with the Remote Leadership Model, which emphasizes using technology as a tool and not a distraction, leaders are now able to navigate the terrain of managing teams wherever they are. Filled with exercises that ensure projects stay on track, keep productivity and morale high, and build lasting relationships, this book is the go-to guide for leading, no matter where people work.


Like all politics, all entrepreneurship is local. Individuals launch firms and, if successful, expand their enterprises to other locations. But new firms must start somewhere, even if their businesses are conducted largely or exclusively on the Internet. Likewise, policymakers at local and state levels increasingly recognize that entrepreneurship is the key to building and sustaining their economies' growth. Although this is a seemingly obvious proposition, it represents something of a departure from past thinking about how local, state, or regional economies grow. Historically, state and local policymakers have put their energies into trying to attract existing firms from somewhere else, either to relocate to a particular area or to build new facilities there. Such smokestack chasing - or, in this cleaner era, simply firm chasing - often has degenerated into what is essentially a zero-sum game for the national economy. When one city or state offers tax breaks or other financial inducements to encourage firms to locate new plants or headquarters, and succeeds, some other city or state loses out in the process. Local, state, and regional economic development centered on entrepreneurship, however, is a fundamentally different phenomenon. The formation and growth of new firms, especially those built around new products or ways of doing things, wherever this occurs, is clearly a positive sum game, not just for the locality, but for the nation as a whole. This essay provides a guide to policymakers and citizens to what is known about the effects of various local and state policies aimed at fostering entrepreneurially driven growth. There is also much we do not know; thus, the essay identifies subjects that require further research.


In the course of this investigation, a nonlinear hydrodynamic, barotropic, numerical model for Peninsular Malaysia's eastern continental shelf has been developed. In the investigation, results of the wind driven ocean circulation are presented, with particular emphasis given to the ocean's response to the north-east (NE) and the south-west (SW) monsoon winds. Qualitatively, the results compare favorably with observations: the current flowing along the Vietnamese coast and along Peninsular Malaysia's east coast, during both monsoon seasons, is well resolved. The gyre on the South China Sea, is well resolved. It is shown that the existence of this gyre is only due to topographical effects. Quantitatively, our results, for the mass transports, along the Vietnamese coast and along Peninsular Malaysia's eastern continental shelf, are quite similar to the ones obtained in previous investigations.


This collection considers how religious identity interplays with other forms and contexts of identity, specifically those related to sexual identity. It asks how these intersections are formed, negotiated and resisted across time and places, including the UK, Europe, North America, Australia, and the Global South. Questions around 'queer' engagements in same-sex marriages, civil partnerships and other practices (e.g. adoption) have created a number of provoking stances and policy provisions - but what remains unanswered is how people experience and situate themselves within sometimes competing, or 'contradictory', moments as 'religious queers' who may be tasked with 'queering religion'. Additionally, the presumed paradoxes of 'marriage', queer sexuality, religion and youth combine to generate a noteworthy generational absence. This leads to questions about where 'religious queers' reside, resist and relate experiences of intersecting religious and sexual lives. In looking at interconnectedness, this collection offers international contributions which bridge the 'contradictions' in queering religion and in making visible 'religious queers.' It provides insight into older and younger people's understandings of religiosity, queer cultures, and religious groups. A small but active religious minority in the US has received much attention for its anti-gay political activity; much less attention has been paid to the more positive, supportive role that religious-based groups play in e.g. providing housing, education and political advocacy for queer youth. Queer methodologies and intersectional approaches offer a lens both theoretically and methodologically to uncover the salience of related social divisions and identities. This collection is both innovative and sensitive to 'blended' identities and their various enactments. © 2014 Taylor & Francis. All rights reserved.


Six double mutants and a quadruple mutant were derived from four UV radiation-hypersensitive single mutants (rad-1, rad-2, rad-3 and rad-7). Sensitivities of the 11 strains to UV, gamma-radiation and methyl methanesulfonate (MMS) were compared. Of the six double mutants, only the rad-1;rad-2 and rad-3;rad-7 doubles were no more hypersensitive than the most sensitive single mutant to UV-radiation. Thus, rad-1 and rad-2 define one epistasis group, whereas rad-3 and rad-7 define another. Consistent with this model was the observation that rad-1 and rad-2, but not rad-3 and rad-7, were hypersensitive to gamma-radiation. In addition, none of the multiple mutants was more hypersensitive to gamma-radiation than the most sensitive single rad mutant. No synergistic interactions of the rad mutations with respect to MMS sensitivities were observed.


Study of the syntax of Old English and Old Icelandic has for long been dominated by the impressions of early philologists. Their assertions that these languages were « free in their word-order were for many years unchallenged. Only within the last two decades has it been demonstrated that the word-order of each shows regular patterns which approach the status of rules, and which may be precisely described. This book takes the subject one step further by offering a comparison of the syntax of Old English and Old Icelandic, the two best-preserved Old Germanic languages. Over-whelmingly the two languages show the same word-order patterns - as do the other Old Germanic languages, at least as far as can be determined from the fragments which have survived. It has long been recognised that Old English and Old Icelandic have a high proportion of common lexis and very similar morphology, yet the convention has been to emphasise the differences between the two as representatives respectively of the West and North sub-families of Germanic. The argument of this book is that the similar word-order of the two should instead lead us to stress the similarities between the two languages. Old English and Old Icelandic were sufficiently close to be mutually comprehensible. This thesis receives copious support from historical and literary texts. Our understanding of the Old Germanic world should be modified by the concept of a common « Northern Speech which provided a common Germanic ethnic identity and a platform for the free flow of cultural ideas.


The language used in communication that occurs in an environment tends to be different from others. The special terms of language used by certain group is called jargon. They use jargon in order to differentiate their own identity with other groups. The language used at Friendster Testimonial in Indonesia is also distinctive. The jargons used in Friendster testimonial are unique so the writer is interested in studying it. The aims of this study were to identify the jargon and their meaning used at Friendster
testimonial in Indonesia and also to know the function of these jargons. The method used in this study was descriptive qualitative design. In applying this method, the writer basically used the technique of observation, unstructured interviews, note taking, and data triangulation to have a valid data. The object of this study was the jargon used at Friendster testimonial in Indonesia. Based on the result of this study, there
were 103 jargons found at Friendster testimonial. All of jargons were derived from acronym of English and Indonesian, abbreviation of English and Indonesian, nouns,
verbs, adjectives of English and Indonesian, jargons of computer, modification (blend) of alphabet and number, and emoticons (Emotion Icons). There were three functions of
using jargons at Friendster Testimonial. First, because most of members tended to write few words in sending testimonial so they minimized the word used. Second, the members wanted to make a good friendship or even relationship among them. By using jargons in testimonial they could be closer to each other. Third, because jargon is not used and often not understood by the speech community as a whole, by using it at Friendster testimonial
every member could show their existence in community. It is proved that Friendster's members use special words in writing testimonial. Indeed, for Sociolinguistics, this
research can give more contribution to the development of language, especially jargons.


Conflicted Antiquities is a rich cultural history of European and Egyptian interest in ancient Egypt and its material culture, from the early nineteenth century until the mid-twentieth. Consulting the relevant Arabic archives, Elliott Colla demonstrates that the emergence of Egyptology—the study of ancient Egypt and its material legacy—was as consequential for modern Egyptians as it was for Europeans. The values and practices introduced by the new science of archaeology played a key role in the formation of a new colonial regime in Egypt. This fact was not lost on Egyptian nationalists, who challenged colonial archaeologists with the claim that they were the direct heirs of the Pharaohs, and therefore the rightful owners and administrators of ancient Egypt's historical sites and artifacts. As this dispute developed, nationalists invented the political and expressive culture of "Pharaonism"—Egypt's response to Europe's Egyptomania. In the process, a significant body of modern, Pharaonist poetry, sculpture, architecture, and film was created by artists and authors who looked to the ancient past for inspiration.

Colla draws on medieval and modern Arabic poetry, novels, and travel accounts; British and French travel writing; the history of archaeology; and the history of European and Egyptian museums and exhibits. The struggle over the ownership of Pharaonic Egypt did not simply pit Egyptian nationalists against European colonial administrators. Egyptian elites found arguments about the appreciation and preservation of ancient objects useful for exerting new forms of control over rural populations and for mobilizing new political parties. Finally, just as the political and expressive culture of Pharaonism proved critical to the formation of new concepts of nationalist identity, it also fueled Islamist opposition to the Egyptian state.


Aurubis Cu-OF is an oxygen-free, high conductivity copper with 99.95% minimum Cu. It offers the advantages of both electrolytic tough pitch (ETP) copper and phosphorus deoxidized (DHP) copper. Its high purity, with less than 10 ppm (0.001%) oxygen, and the absence of deoxidizers accounts for an electrical conductivity of 100% IACS minimum, as well as no susceptibility to hydrogen embrittlement. Due to the absence of oxides in the structure, Cu-OF is capable of withstanding extra deep drawing and severe forming, and is superior to Cu-ETP in this respect. This datasheet provides information on composition, physical properties, hardness, elasticity, tensile properties, and bend strength. It also includes information on corrosion resistance as well as forming, heat treating, and joining. Filing Code: Cu-911. Producer or Source: Aurubis AG.


Prescaling is a far-from-equilibrium phenomenon which describes the rapid establishment of a universal scaling form of distributions much before the universal values of their scaling exponents are realized. We consider the example of the spatiotemporal evolution of the quark-gluon plasma explored in heavy-ion collisions at sufficiently high energies. Solving QCD kinetic theory with elastic and inelastic processes, we demonstrate that the gluon and quark distributions very quickly adapt a self-similar scaling form, which is independent of initial condition details and system parameters. The dynamics in the prescaling regime is then fully encoded in a few time-dependent scaling exponents, whose slow evolution gives rise to far-from-equilibrium hydrodynamic behavior.


Crime has to be punished, but does punishment reduce crime? We conduct a neutrally framed laboratory experiment to test the deterrence hypothesis, namely that crime is weakly decreasing in deterrent incentives, i.e. severity and probability of punishment. In our experiment, subjects can steal from another participant's payoff. Deterrent incentives vary across and within sessions. The across subject analysis clearly rejects the deterrence hypothesis: except for very high levels of incentives, subjects steal more the stronger the incentives. We observe two types of subjects: selfish subjects who act according to the deterrence hypothesis and fair-minded subjects for whom deterrent incentives backfire.


Objective: The granular glands of amphibians have long been known to produce many biologically active compounds. The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize insulinotropic peptides from the skin of Phyllomedusa trinitatis frog. Methods and Results: Crude secretions obtained by mild electrical stimulation of the dorsal skin surface were purified by reverse phase HPLC yielding 80 fractions. In acute incubations with glucose-responsive BRIN-BD11 cells, fractions 39-40 (band 1) and fractions 43-46 (band 2) significantly stimulated insulin release by 1.5 to 2.5-fold. Pooled fractions in bands 1 and 2 were rechromatographed to 4 homogeneous peaks, each with insulin-releasing activity. Mass spectrometry analysis was successfully completed for 3 peptides, indicating 2996.4, 3379.9, and 8326.4 Da. The sequence of the 2996.4 Da peptide was determined as ALWKDILKNVGKAAGKAVLNTVTDMVNQ. This 28-amino-acid peptide has 100% homology with the C-terminal of the 75-amino-acid dermaseptin BIV precursor of a family of structurally related antimicrobial peptides in the skin of the Phyllomedusinae subfamily. Conclusion: These data demonstrate that the defensive skin secretions of P. trinitatis contain biologically active peptides, which may have mammalian counterparts and merit further investigation as insulin secretagogues.


Background: Gurah is one of many traditional therapy to treat chronic sinusitis. Exacerbation could happened in chronic sinusitis patient, which can make the simptoms became worsen and decrease the quality of life of the patient. In this study senggugu root extract is used as gurah ingredient which contains tanin that according to previous studies serve as an antiseptic agents. Aim: This study aim was to know the different of the exarcebation rate between gurah chronic sinusitis patient and non gurah chronic sinusitis patient. Methode: The design of the study was observational with pre and post controlled group. Sample of this study were 66 patients of chronic sinusitis patients in the Kariadi Hospital Semarang that has been divided randomly in two group, control group and treatment group. Gurah treatments were given to the treatment group. Questionnares were given to both group to value the exacerbation rate. Patients were being observed in 3 months. Analysis of the data was processed by a computer program with difference test with 2x2 tabels and using fisher-exact analysis. S The significance levels were accepted if p < 0,05. Result: In the first month there weren't any exarcebation in both control group and treatment group. The study continues to the third month. In the control group there were 5 patients that had exarcerbation. In treatment group there weren't any exarcebation until the third month. Difference test was applied with 2x2 tabels and using chi-square analysis. There was 2 cell with expected count < 5,0 so it had to used altenative fisher-exact analysis. Fisher-exact analysis found significance different(p<0,05) between control group and treatment group at 0,03. Conclusion: There was significant decrease of exacerbation rate from gurah chronic sinusitis patient than non gurah chronic sinusitis patient. Key Word: gurah, chronic sinusitis, exacerbation


Sorafenib has substantial clinical activity as third- or fourth-line treatment of imatinib- and sunitinib-resistant gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). Because sorafenib targets both angiogenesis-related kinases (VEGFR) and the pathogenetic kinases found in GIST (KIT or PDGFRA), the molecular basis for sorafenib efficacy in this setting remains unknown. We sought to determine the spectrum of activity of sorafenib against different mutant kinases associated with drug-sensitive and drug-resistant GIST. We compared the activity of imatinib and sorafenib against transiently expressed mutant forms of KIT and PDGFRA, including various secondary mutations that have been identified in imatinib-resistant or sunitinib-resistant GISTs. We also examined these drugs against four GIST cell lines, three of which are imatinib resistant. In our in vitro studies, we determined that sorafenib inhibited imatinib-resistant mutations in exons encoding the ATP/drug-binding pocket and in exons encoding the activation loop, with the exception of substitutions at KIT codon D816 and PDGFRA codon 842. Notably our data indicate that sorafenib is more effective than imatinib or sunitinib for inhibiting the kinase activity of drug-resistant KIT mutants (as assessed by biochemical IC50). We hypothesize that a major determinant of the efficacy of sorafenib for treatment of advanced GIST is the activity of this agent against KIT or PDGFRA-mutant kinases. These results have implications for the further development of treatments for drug-resistant GIST. Mol Cancer Ther; 11(8); 1770–80. ©2012 AACR.


Objectives: To determine prevalence of delirium in critically ill children and explore associated risk factors. Design: Multi-institutional point prevalence study. Setting: Twenty-five pediatric critical care units in the United States, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, and Saudi Arabia. Patients: All children admitted to the pediatric critical care units on designated study days (n = 994). Intervention: Children were screened for delirium using the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium by the bedside nurse. Demographic and treatment-related variables were collected. Measurements and Main Results: Primary study outcome measure was prevalence of delirium. In 159 children, a final determination of mental status could not be ascertained. Of the 835 remaining subjects, 25% screened positive for delirium, 13% were classified as comatose, and 62% were delirium-free and coma-free. Delirium prevalence rates varied significantly with reason for ICU admission, with highest delirium rates found in children admitted with an infectious or inflammatory disorder. For children who were in the PICU for 6 or more days, delirium prevalence rate was 38%. In a multivariate model, risk factors independently associated with development of delirium included age less than 2 years, mechanical ventilation, benzodiazepines, narcotics, use of physical restraints, and exposure to vasopressors and antiepileptics. Conclusions: Delirium is a prevalent complication of critical illness in children, with identifiable risk factors. Further multi-institutional, longitudinal studies are required to investigate effect of delirium on long-term outcomes and possible preventive and treatment measures. Universal delirium screening is practical and can be implemented in pediatric critical care units.


The objective in this collaborative project was to return a series of government-made films about the ancient tradition of water puppetry to the village of Bao Ha in the Red River Delta where they were originally shot in order to make this invaluable cultural heritage available to the very community of which they are records. Beyond simply expressing their opinions about these films, five villagers were selected and trained to make films of their own on the topic of water puppetry. We organized a second community screening, but this time the featured films were made by members of the community themselves. In a very powerfully symbolic way this second set of films represents the process of digital repatriation traveling full circle. The hope is that this collaboration will serve as a model for ethnographic filmmaking, as more and more historically marginalized peoples are gaining the skills, technology and need for a fuller understanding of their own past as well as a means to articulate their present and future.


This document lists only tools which can evaluate one or more TCP
implementations, or which can privde some specific results which
describe or evaluate the TCP being tested. This memo provides
information for the Internet community. It does not specify an
Internet standard of any kind.


The article discusses the formation of the first political organizations and creation of the first political parties in Lithuania. It focuses on the illegal social movements, political organizations and their legalization processes. The author examines the main feature of regulation of political parties at the beginning of the 20th century, the way and legal procedures of establishing political parties, the formations of political parties, their genesis, development and legal regulation. The article begins with the review of the socio-political processes that took place during the 19th century. It discusses political resurgence, the role of newspapers ("Ausra," "Varpas," "Apžvalga," "Sviesa," "Ūkininkas," "Tėvynės Sargas," "Lietuvos balsas," "Naujoji gadynė" etc.) and organizations (e.g. "Lietuvos mylėtojų") in the recovery of independence. Furthermore, the author analyzes the first legal regulation in political parties of the different periods of Lithuania in 1919–1905. It compares the period of the occupation of the Russian Empire and the period of early independence of the Republic of Lithuania. The article discusses the reforms of Russian government, including granting the freedoms of speech and assembly and the legalization of political parties. It takes notes of comparison the existing legal regulation of these different periods of the statehood of Lithuania. It should be noted that the political aspect of the party system in Lithuania has received a lot of attention but the historical—legal aspect has been examined quite superficially of the clerisy of Lithuania. Separate authors highlight one or another historical period of Lithuania's statehood. Most relevant to the subject of the research were studies conducted by E. Sileikis ("Politinių partijų instucionalizavimas", 1997), where he analyzed the development of the political parties from the ancient Greece to the present day. Moreover, he presents the historical development of regulation of political parties in Lithuania, and outlines more extensively the significance of modern political parties. The second important research was made by professor M. Romeris. His study of Lithuanian national rebirth and the emergence of political movements is called "Lietuva". It describes the transformations of the first Lithuanian political parties. In addition, the development of political party system, political organizations in Lithuania are examined in light of democratization after occupation of the Russian Empire. The article considers the development of the regulation of the party system and studies the practical problems of legal and factual mismatch trials. In order to carry out a comprehensive scientific study the article reviews the existing de jure legal framework and the consequent de facto reality. In conclusion, the research proves not only that there were some differences between the existing legal framework and de facto reality in the period of the occupation of the Russian Empire. Also, the article defines the requirements to the general principal of regulation of political parties and determines correspondence of existing legal regulation to basic democratic standards.


BACKGROUND
In the United States, blacks and Hispanics have lower cancer screening rates than whites have. Studies on the screening behaviors of minorities are increasing, but few focus on the factors that contribute to this discrepancy. This study presents the self-reported willingness by blacks, Puerto Rican Hispanics, and non-Hispanic whites to participate in cancer screenings in differing cancer screening situations.

METHODS
The Cancer Screening Questionnaire (CSQ), a 60-item questionnaire, was administered via random-digit-dial telephone interviews to adults in three cities: Baltimore, Maryland; New York, New York; and, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

RESULTS
The 1,148 participants in the CSQ study sample consisted of 355 blacks, 311 Puerto Rican Hispanics, and 482 non-Hispanic whites. Response rates ranged from 45% to 58% by city. Multivariable logistic regression analyses revealed that blacks and Puerto Ricans were often more likely (OR 2.0-3.0) and never less likely than whites to self-report willingness to participate in cancer screenings regardless of who conducted the cancer screening, what one was asked to do in the cancer screening, or what type of cancer was involved (with the exception of skin cancer where blacks, compared with whites, had an OR of 0.5).

CONCLUSIONS
The findings from this study provide evidence that blacks and Hispanics self-report that they are either as willing or more willing than whites to participate in cancer screening programs.


An exoskeleton robotic glove intended for patients who have suffered paralysis of the hand due to stroke or other factors has been developed and integrated. The robotic glove has the potential to aid patients with grasping objects as part of their daily life activities. Grasp stability was studied and researched by various research groups, but mainly focused on robotic grippers by devising conditions for a stable grasp of objects. Maintaining grasp stability is important so as to reduce the chances of the object slipping and dropping. But there was little focus on the grasp stability of robotic exoskeleton gloves, and most of the research was focused on mechanical design. A robotic exoskeleton glove was developed as well as novel methods to improve the grasp stability. The glove is constructed with rigidly coupled four-bar linkages attached to the finger tips. Each linkage mechanism has one-DOF (degree of freedom) and is actuated by a linear series elastic actuator (SEA). Two methods were developed to satisfy two of the conditions required for a stable grasp. These include deformation prevention of soft objects, and maintaining force and moment equilibrium of the objects being grasped. Simulations were performed to validate the performance of the proposed algorithms. A battery of experiments was performed on the integrated prototype in order to validate the performance of the algorithms developed.


Future urban road traffic management is an example of a socially relevant problem that can be modeled as a large-scale, open, distributed system, composed of many autonomous interacting agents, which need to be controlled in a decentralized manner. In this context, advanced, reservation-based, intersection control—where autonomous vehicles controlled entirely by agents interact with a coordination facility that controls an intersection, to avoid collisions and minimize delays—will be a possible scenario in the near future. In this article, we seize the opportunities for multiagent learning offered by such a scenario, studying i) how vehicles, when approaching a reservation-based intersection, can coordinate their actions in order to improve their crossing times, and therefore, speed up the traffic flow through the intersection, and ii) how a set of reservation-based intersections can cooperatively act over an entire network of intersections in order to minimize travel times.


Best outcomes are achieved with the application of early excision and grafting, but availability limits this in the major burn. Cadaver skin is undoubtedly the best alternative to autograft, but ready supply is unreliable, and legislative and cultural restrictions have significantly influenced availability. This review summarises the indications for cadaver skin in burn surgery and complex wound care. The South African Burn Society prioritises the establishment of a deceased donor skin bank in South Africa, whose mandate it would be to procure and store allograft for distribution to burns units when required.


The Bantu expansion, which started in West Central Africa around 5,000 BP, constitutes a major migratory movement involving the joint spread of peoples and languages across sub-Saharan Africa. Despite the rich linguistic and archaeological evidence available, the genetic relationships between different Bantu-speaking populations and the migratory routes they followed during various phases of the expansion remain poorly understood. Here, we analyze the genetic profiles of southwestern and southeastern Bantu-speaking peoples located at the edges of the Bantu expansion by generating genome-wide data for 200 individuals from 12 Mozambican and 3 Angolan populations using ∼1.9 million autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms. Incorporating a wide range of available genetic data, our analyses confirm previous results favoring a "late split" between West and East Bantu speakers, following a joint passage through the rainforest. In addition, we find that Bantu speakers from eastern Africa display genetic substructure, with Mozambican populations forming a gradient of relatedness along a North-South cline stretching from the coastal border between Kenya and Tanzania to South Africa. This gradient is further associated with a southward increase in genetic homogeneity, and involved minimum admixture with resident populations. Together, our results provide the first genetic evidence in support of a rapid North-South dispersal of Bantu peoples along the Indian Ocean Coast, as inferred from the distribution and antiquity of Early Iron Age assemblages associated with the Kwale archaeological tradition.


This is a comprehensive study of the effects of the four major brain gangliosides (GM1, GD1b, GD1a, and GT1b) on the adsorption and rupture of phospholipid vesicles on SiO2 surfaces for the formation of supported lipid bilayer (SLB) membranes. Using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) we show that gangliosides GD1a and GT1b significantly slow the SLB formation process, whereas GM1 and GD1b have smaller effects. This is likely due to the net ganglioside charge as well as the positions of acidic sugar groups on ganglioside glycan head groups. Data is included that shows calcium can accelerate the formation of ganglioside-rich SLBs. Using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) we also show that the presence of gangliosides significantly reduces lipid diffusion coefficients in SLBs in a concentration-dependent manner. Finally, using QCM-D and GD1a-rich SLB membranes we measure the binding kinetics of an anti-GD1a antibody that has similarities to a monoclonal antibody that is a hallmark of a variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome.


It is unknown whether muscle damage at the level of the sarcomere can be induced without lengthening contractions. To investigate this, we designed a study where seven young, healthy men underwent 30 min of repeated electrical stimulated contraction of m. gastrocnemius medialis, with the ankle and leg locked in a fixed position. Two muscle biopsies were collected 48 h later: one from the stimulated muscle and one from the contralateral leg as a control. The biopsies were analyzed immunohistochemically for inflammatory cell infiltration and intermediate filament disruption. Ultrastructural changes at the level of the z-lines were investigated by transmission electron microscopy. Blood samples were collected for measurement of creatine kinase activity, and muscle soreness was assessed in the days following stimulation. The biopsies from the stimulated muscle revealed macrophage infiltration and desmin-negative staining in a small percentage of myofibers in five and four individuals, respectively. z-Line disruption was evident at varying magnitudes in all subjects and displayed a trend toward a positive correlation (r = 0.73, P = 0.0663) with the force produced by stimulation. Increased muscle soreness in all subjects, combined with a significant increase in creatine kinase activity (P < 0.05), is indirectly suggestive of muscle damage, and the novel findings of the present study, i.e., 1) macrophages infiltration, 2) lack of desmin staining, and 3) z-line disruption, provide direct evidence of damage at the myofiber and sarcomere levels. These data support the hypothesis that muscle damage at the level of the sarcomere can be induced without lengthening muscle contractions.


AIM:  Study was aimed at understanding the level of confidence of final year undergraduates of a named dental school in managing challenging cases and complications that may arise during endodontic procedures.
Methodology: A cross-sectional study that employed a self-administered questionnaire. Information collected included socio-demographic data, satisfaction with the required number of endodontic procedures before graduation, confidence in carrying out endodontics on some challenging cases. Confidences of the students were measured using a 5 point Likert scale.

Data Analysis: The data were analyzed using SPSS Version 20. Frequencies and means were used for continuous variables. Level of significance was set at ≤ 0.05.
Result: Thirty-five (18 males and 17 females) final year undergraduates with a mean age of 25.2 years ± 2.8 SD participated in the study. Only 9; 25.7% of the participants were not satisfied with the requirement to be met before graduation and major reason was an inadequate number of patients (44.4%). The majority (over 70%) of the participants had little or no confidence in most of the challenging cases such as inter appointment flare up, broken instrument etc. It is only in the management of fractured anterior teeth that majority (over 70%) of the participants claimed confidence.
Conclusion: Undergraduate students expressed very low confidence in handling challenging endodontics since the majority of these cases are referred to postgraduate students, while we impact more theoretical information to undergraduates. It is however pertinent the undergraduates should be prepared adequately enough to handle challenging cases to improve their confidence as dentists.


It has been predicted that the global demand for fish for human consumption will increase by more than 50% over the next 15 years. The FAO has projected that the increase in supply will originate primarily from marine fisheries, aquaculture and to a lesser extent from inland fisheries, but with a commensurate price increase. However, there are constraints to increased production in both marine and inland fisheries, such as overfishing, overexploitation limited potential increase and environmental degradation due to industrialization. The author sees aquaculture as having the greatest potential for future expansion. Aquaculture practices vary depending on culture, environment, society amd sources of fish. Inputs are generally low-cost, ecologically efficient and the majority of aquaculture ventures are small-scale and family operated. In the future, advances in technology, genetic improvement of cultured species, improvement in nutrition, disease management, reproduction control and environmental management are expected along with opportunities for complimentary activities with agriculture, industrial and wastewater linkages. The main constraints to aquaculture are from reduced access to suitable land and good quality water due to pollution and habitat degradation. Aquaculture itself carries minimal potential for aquatic pollution. State participation in fisheries production has not proven to be the best way to promote the fisheries sector. The role of governments is increasingly seen as creating an environment for economic sectors to make an optimum contribution, through support in areas such as infrastructure, research, training and extension and a legal framework. The author feels that a holistic approach integrating the natural and social sciences is called for when fisheries policy is being examined.


Abstract.
 The American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) is listed as a Species of High Concern in the United States Shorebird Conservation Plan due to a small population size and threats during its annual cycle. Previous studies of the American Oystercatcher have focused on Atlantic Coast populations; however, little is known about the reproductive success of the western Gulf Coast population. The objective of this study was to determine nest and brood survival of American Oystercatchers in Texas. A total of 337 nests and 121 broods were monitored on the Texas Gulf Coast during 2011–2013. The top model for nest survival in Program MARK included a linear decline in survival across the nesting season and as nests aged. Survival also declined as island size and foraging habitat near the nest site increased. The probability of a nest surviving from mean initiation date to hatching was 0.384 (95% CI = 0.317, 0.451). The top model for brood survival included a linear decline in survival across the season and an increase in survival as broods aged. Brood survival also varied among years and coastal region. The probability of a brood surviving from mean hatch date to 35 days after hatch ranged from 0.397 (95% CI = 0.204, 0.578) in 2013 to 0.887 (95% CI = 0.673, 0.964) in 2011 across all regions. Known causes of nest and brood loss included beach overwash, depredation, and starvation. This study provides the first estimates of nest and brood survival of the American Oystercatcher along the western Gulf Coast. The additional insight into patterns of nest and brood survival in this species will be useful for future conservation planning efforts that target breeding American Oystercatchers.


The typical functions of private military and security companies (PMSCs) are designed to operate in the context of situations of crisis, which mostly take place in the event of armed conflicts. International humanitarian law (IHL) plays therefore a particularly significant role in regulating the activities of PMSCs. In playing this role, however, IHL interacts with international human rights law (HRL) to a very strict extent. While it is commonly held that HRL and IHL represent two distinct legal regimes, their strict interrelation is evident both in light of their common purpose and of the formulation and content of most of their provisions. According to the International Court of Justice, in the event of armed conflict both HRL and IHL find application, but IHL, being specifically designed to regulate the conduct of fighting, is to be considered as lex specialis. This does not prevent, however, that the most fundamental rules of HRL apply in any case, even if the relevant situations they regulate might also be covered by other rules of international law, including IHL. IHL must therefore conform with the fundamental rules of IHR, according to the principle of complementarity. Nevertheless, this operation may be hardly translated into practice with respect to certain specific rights, particularly the fundamental right to life. This problem has been extensively addressed in the recent practice of the monitoring bodies established by regional human rights instruments, according to which basic human rights fully apply also in the event of armed conflict, and IHL remains an interpretative tool for better defining the scope of application of those rights.


TUfast Racing Team – the Formula Student Team of the Technical University of Munich – is one of only a few formula student teams worldwide to build both an internal combustion engine (ICE) and a fully electric race car annually. Thus we are well positioned to make firsthand comparisons between the two types of vehicles. This white paper analyzes the key differences, main challenges and potential of electrical systems for Formula Student Electric (FSE) in comparison to Formula Student Combustion (FSC) cars, using the specific example of the TUfast Racing Team cars. Also described are the various development tools from Siemens which helped significantly in the design and development of efficient electrical systems in our vehicles. Finally, the potential of knowledge transfer from Formula Student to commercial EVs is discussed from the view of a Formula Student engineering student.


Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a recessive X-linked form of muscular dystrophy caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene, is characterised by rapid progression of muscle degeneration, eventually leading to loss in ambulation, paralysis, and death. The mdx mouse model of muscular dystrophy has a nonsense mutation in exon 23 of the dystrophin gene. We have previously shown a morpholino antisense oligomer could remove this single exon, resulting in an in-frame mRNA transcript encoding a shortened but functional dystrophin protein. In-order to further investigate the consequences associated with this protein restoration, we use Genechip Exon Arrays to compare expression levels in the diaphragm of 10 week old treated mdx mice to that of age matched mdx and C57BL control mice. Quality control and statistical analysis were necessary to normalise microarray data. A oneway ANOVA and fold changes were used to compile gene lists. These genes were categorised in three groups,Molecular function, Biological process and Pathway, based on gene ontology classification e.g. signal transduction, ion transport etc, and then analysed in more detail. The data arising from this study will provide insight into gene interactions and their affects on pathways that are involved in muscle regeneration, which may provide additional therapies for DMD patients.


Three‐dimensional (3D) printing has shown great promise in medicine with increasing reports in congenital heart disease (CHD). This systematic review aims to analyse the main clinical applications and accuracy of 3D printing in CHD, as well as to provide an overview of the software tools, time and costs associated with the generation of 3D printed heart models. A search of different databases was conducted to identify studies investigating the application of 3D printing in CHD. Studies based on patient's medical imaging datasets were included for analysis, while reports on in vitro phantom or review articles were excluded from the analysis. A total of 28 studies met selection criteria for inclusion in the review. More than half of the studies were based on isolated case reports with inclusion of 1–12 cases (61%), while 10 studies (36%) focused on the survey of opinion on the usefulness of 3D printing by healthcare professionals, patients, parents of patients and medical students, and the remaining one involved a multicentre study about the clinical value of 3D printed models in surgical planning of CHD. The analysis shows that patient‐specific 3D printed models accurately replicate complex cardiac anatomy, improve understanding and knowledge about congenital heart diseases and demonstrate value in preoperative planning and simulation of cardiac or interventional procedures, assist surgical decision‐making and intra‐operative orientation, and improve patient‐doctor communication and medical education. The cost of 3D printing ranges from USD 55 to USD 810. This systematic review shows the usefulness of 3D printed models in congenital heart disease with applications ranging from accurate replication of complex cardiac anatomy and pathology to medical education, preoperative planning and simulation. The additional cost and time required to manufacture the 3D printed models represent the limitations which need to be addressed in future studies.


Macrocyclic lactones (MLs) are widely used parasiticides against nematodes and arthropods, but resistance is frequently observed in parasitic nematodes of horses and livestock. Reports claiming resistance or decreased susceptibility in human nematodes are increasing. Since no target site directed ML resistance mechanisms have been identified, non-specific mechanisms were frequently implicated in ML resistance, including P-glycoproteins (Pgps, designated ABCB1 in vertebrates). Nematode genomes encode many different Pgps (e.g. 10 in the sheep parasite Haemonchus contortus). ML transport was shown for mammalian Pgps, Pgps on nematode egg shells, and very recently for Pgp-2 of H. contortus. Here, Pgp-9 from the equine parasite Cylicocyclus elongatus (Cyathostominae) was expressed in a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain lacking seven endogenous efflux transporters. Pgp was detected on these yeasts by flow cytometry and chemiluminescence using the monoclonal antibody UIC2, which is specific for the active Pgp conformation. In a growth assay, Pgp-9 increased resistance to the fungicides ketoconazole, actinomycin D, valinomycin and daunorubicin, but not to the anthelmintic fungicide thiabendazole. Since no fungicidal activity has been described for MLs, their interaction with Pgp-9 was investigated in an assay involving two drugs: Yeasts were incubated with the highest ketoconazole concentration not affecting growth plus increasing concentrations of MLs to determine competition between or modulation of transport of both drugs. Already equimolar concentrations of ivermectin and eprinomectin inhibited growth, and at fourfold higher ML concentrations growth was virtually abolished. Selamectin and doramectin did not increase susceptibility to ketoconazole at all, although doramectin has been shown previously to strongly interact with human and canine Pgp. An intermediate interaction was observed for moxidectin. This was substantiated by increased binding of UIC2 antibodies in the presence of ivermectin, moxidectin, daunorubicin and ketoconazole but not selamectin. These results demonstrate direct effects of MLs on a recombinant nematode Pgp in an ML-specific manner.


Research on culture, leadership and adjustment shows that societal culture influences leadership in such a way that it can impact on expatriate managers' effectiveness and adjustment in a new culture. In previous research, cultural background, personality, motives or behaviour of expatriate managers and their followers' reactions to them have been investigated in Europe, America and Asia. However, little attention has been paid on research on expatriate managers in African cultures especially in Eastern Africa. The present study represents an attempt to address the gap by examining how societal culture, leadership and adjustment success are interrelated for expatriate managers in Kenya and Ethiopia. Questionnaire data were obtained from a) local middle managers (N=160) for studying societal culture and leadership in Kenya and Ethiopia, b) expatriate managers in non-governmental organizations - NGOs (N=28) for studying expatriate managers' personality, motives and adjustment success and c) their immediate subordinates (N=125) for studying the expatriate managers' behaviours and their subordinates' reactions to them. Additionally, expatriate managers were interviewed and responses were coded for implicit motives, experiences and adjustment. SPSS was used to analyse data from questionnaires to obtain cultural and leadership dimensions, leader behaviour and subordinate reactions. The NVIVO computer based disclosure analysis package was used to analyse interview data. Findings indicate that societal culture influences leadership behaviours and leadership perceptions while the expatriate managers' motives, behaviours, personality and the cross cultural training they received prior to their assignment impact on the expatriates' adjustment success and on subordinates' reactions to them. The cultural fit between expatriate managers' home country (19 countries) and the target country (Kenya or Ethiopia) had no significant association with adjustment success but was positively related to expatriate behaviour and negatively associated with subordinates reactions. However, some particular societal practices - obviously adopted by expatriates and transferred to their target country - did predict subordinates' commitment, motivation and job satisfaction. Furthermore, expatriates' responsibility motivation was positively related to their adjustment success. Regarding leadership behaviours and effectiveness, expatriate' supportive behaviours predicted subordinates' job satisfaction most strongly. Expatriate managers expressing their management philosophies and experience shed light on the various aspects of adjustment and management of NGOs. In addition, review of Kenyan and Ethiopian cultures and the NGO context in these countries offers valuable information for expatriate managers. This study's general imphcation for Cross Cultural Management and lnternational Human Resources Management is that the combination of culture general and culture specific knowledge and reflections on Eastern Africa countries can inform senior management and international HR staff about the critical issue of what to include in training, coaching, and actual experience in a particular host country in order to ensure effective leadership. Furthennore, this knowledge is expected to influence expatriate managers' behaviour modification to enhance positive subordinate reactions. Questions about how to prepare expatriate managers and subordinates to work more competently and sensitively across cultures are addressed. Further theoretical implications, limitations of the study and directions for future research are also addressed.


In 1977-1978 excavations were conducted at 41 LK 67 in Live Oak County, south Texas, by the Center for Archaeological Research, The University of Texas at San Antonio. The investigation of this prehistoric archaeological site was part of an extensive program of reconnaissance and excavation necessitated by the construction of the Choke Canyon Reservoir on the Frio River by the Bureau of Reclamation. The site is situated in shallow colluvial deposits capping an old terrace remnant of the Frio River. The excavations involved 193 m2 in three separate areas and revealed ~n ~Ltu Late Prehistoric and Late Archaic components. Recognizably older artifacts (including patinated chert flakes) from the surface and from excavations may represent older disturbed components or artifacts collected prehistorically from nearby sites. Radiocarbon dates, with medians ranging from 1590 to 660 B.C. (MASCA correction) are available only from the Late Archaic component. The principal kinds of debris recovered from the excavations are fire-cracked rock, cores and chipping debris, shells of snails and freshwater mussels, plainware potsherds, and chipped stone tools. Mussel shell was surprisingly abundant; more than 9000 specimens, including 3000 specimens identified taxonomically, were recovered. Fish otoliths were the only animal bones preserved, except for a few recent, intrusive elements. Debris frequencies from the two larger excavation blocks (Areas A and B) were factor analyzed. In most cases the analysis showed the strongest covariation occurring among different classes of chipping debris. For Area C factor analysis indicated that the strongest spatial patterning occurred in the upper part of the deposits. Unfortunately, the analysis was not particularly successful in defining activity sets. The small collection of chipped stone tools was examined microscopically. Two tool classes in particular, distally beveled tools ( gouges 11 ) and quadrilateral bifaces ( beveled knives 11 ) seem to represent more functionally specific tool forms, but other hafted bifaces (projectile points) show a wide range of use wear mostly unrelated to projectile use.


Learning a good representation is an essential component for deep reinforcement learning (RL). Representation learning is especially important in multitask and partially observable settings where building a representation of the unknown environment is crucial to solve the tasks. Here we introduce Prediction of Bootstrap Latents (PBL), a simple and flexible self-supervised representation learning algorithm for multitask deep RL. PBL builds on multistep predictive representations of future observations, and focuses on capturing structured information about environment dynamics. Specifically, PBL trains its representation by predicting latent embeddings of future observations. These latent embeddings are themselves trained to be predictive of the aforementioned representations. These predictions form a bootstrapping effect, allowing the agent to learn more about the key aspects of the environment dynamics. In addition, by defining prediction tasks completely in latent space, PBL provides the flexibility of using multimodal observations involving pixel images, language instructions, rewards and more. We show in our experiments that PBL delivers across-the-board improved performance over state of the art deep RL agents in the DMLab-30 and Atari-57 multitask setting.


Unlike many other areas of regulation, financial regulation operates in the context of a complex interdependent system. The interconnections among firms, markets, and legal rules have implications for financial regulatory policy, especially the choice between ex ante regulation aimed at preventing financial failure and ex post regulation aimed at responding to that failure. Regulatory theory has paid relatively little attention to this distinction. Were regulation to consist solely of duty-imposing norms, such neglect might be defensible. In the context of a system, however, regulation can also take the form of interventions aimed at mitigating the potentially systemic consequences of a financial failure. We show that this dual role of financial regulation implies that ex ante regulation and ex post regulation should be balanced in setting financial regulatory policy, and we offer guidelines for achieving that balance.


Deconvolution microscopy is the only viable form of fluorescence microscopy when we study sensitive cells such as yeasts with imaging experiments of longer durations. It makes the full utilisation of emission photons in order to make the actual or practical/obtainable resolution to be as close as to the theoretical resolution limit. The postprocessing step, known as the deconvolution, which refers to computational inversion of microscope's image blurring model, plays a crucial role in maximisation of the obtainable resolution. In particular, the obtainable resolution is determined by the mathematical technique used for stabilising the computational inversion process against the noise, which is known as regularisation. The regularisation is an expression of some prior knowledge about the structure of a typical image, and its suitability to the actual structure greatly determines the maximum resolution obtainable by a deconvolution method. Advancements in the design of regularisation methods that are specifically tuned for fluorescence imaging will make new type of experiments – with imaging durations longer than ever – possible.

Key Concepts

The problem of phototoxicity limits the imaging duration in 4D microscopy.
In 4D deconvolution microscopy, actual resolution is significantly lower than the theoretical resolution.
In 4D deconvolution microscopy, extending imaging duration causes loss of resolution, and setting a minimum requirement on actual resolution limits imaging duration.
Extent of the loss of resolution in 4D deconvolution microscopy is determined by the efficiency of the deconvolution method.
The efficiency of deconvolution method is determined by the suitability of the regularisation functional used in deconvolution.

Keywords:

4D microscopy;
deconvolution;
live microscopy;
fluorescence microscopy;
phototoxicity;
regularisation


In this paper, we investigate the effect of dual-pulse timing on material ablation, plasma temperature, and plasma size for pre-ablation spark dual-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Although the plasma temperature increases for dual-pulse excitation, the signal enhancement is most easily attributed to increased sample ablation. Plasma images show that the magnitude of the enhancement can be affected by the collection optic and by the collection geometry. Enhancements calculated using the total integrated intensity of the plasma are comparable to those measured using fiber-optic collection.


Many discussions of health information privacy in relation to biobanks focus on the question of informed consent and, in particular, on why the future of biobanking likely requires the acceptance of some derogation from the traditional standard of informed consent to medical research. Following Neil C. Manson & Onora O'Neill's recent work on informed consent as a "waiver," we argue in this paper that the role of consent can be thought of in a narrower but still highly principled manner which is consistent with how consent is dealt with in tort law. Using this conception, we defend the position that the traditional standard of informed consent to participate in a biobank can be met but only where there is a governance structure ensuring consistent information practices and policies across multiple future research projects. We also argue that specific research uses of research samples and associated data in the biobank do not necessarily require informed consent but do require a governance structure that can regulate privacy risks such as the risk of re-identification. We thus distinguish consent at the outset of the collection and no-consent for future use, with both requiring a governance structure in order to protect the important interests at stake. In our conclusion we suggest that the legal and ethical debates regarding biobanking must shift from an obsession with consent and focus more closely on the elements of good governance in order to move away from compromises and back to the principled protection of research subjects.


The natural abundance of 14C in total CO2 dissolved in seawater is a property applied to evaluate the water age structure and circulation in the ocean and in ocean models. In this study we use three different representations of the global ocean circulation augmented with a suite of idealised tracers to study the potential and limitations of using natural 14C to determine water age, the time elapsed since a body of water had contact with the atmosphere. We find that, globally, bulk 14C-age is dominated by two equally important components, one associated with aging, i.e. the time component of circulation and one associated with a "preformed 14C-age". This latter quantity exists because of the slow and incomplete atmosphere/ocean equilibration of 14C in particular in high latitudes where many water masses form. The relative contribution of the preformed component to bulk 14C-age varies regionally within a given model, but also between models. Regional variability, e.g. in the Atlantic Ocean is associated with the mixing of waters with very different end members of preformed 14C-age. In the Atlantic, variations in the preformed component over space and time mask the circulation component to an extent that its patterns are not detectable from bulk 14C-age alone. Between models the variability of age can also be considerable (factor of 2), related to the combinations of physical model parameters, which influence circulation dynamics, and gas exchange in the models. The preformed component was found to be very sensitive to gas exchange and moderately sensitive to ice cover. In our model evaluation exercise, the choice of the gas exchange constant from within the current range of uncertainty had such a strong influence on preformed and bulk 14C-age that if model evaluation would be based on bulk 14C-age it could easily impair the evaluation and tuning of a models circulation on global and regional scales. Based on the results of this study, we propose that considering preformed 14C-age is critical for a correct assessment of circulation in ocean models.


The limit of concentration for cylindrical concentrators whose collector rejects rays arriving at grazing angles is calculated. Cylindrical concentrators having as cross section a 2-D optimal and ideal concentrator (CPC type) with restricted exit angle are analyzed. These concentrators do not achieve, in general, the upper limit but are very close to it. It is also shown that the upper limit is achievable. Finally, two 2-D concentrators with restricted exit angle are shown for the case when the collector is bifacial and specularly reflects the rejected rays.


BACKGROUND
In Asia, HSV seroprevalence studies are sparse and they have recorded lower prevalence of HSV infection, especially HSV-2.

AIMS
To ascertain the seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 in patients attending a STD clinic in a referral hospital in south India and to compare it with a control group.

METHODS
The study included 135 consecutive STD cases having history of ulcerative or non-ulcerative STD in the present or in the past 5 years and 135 age and sex-matched controls. Diagnostic serology was done for HSV-1 and HSV-2 using type specific IgG by indirect immunoassay using ELISA. The results were analyzed utilizing Chi- square test.

RESULTS
Amongst 135 STD clinic cases, 106 cases were males and 29 cases were females with male to female ratio of 3.65:1. The mean age was 32.2 years (range 16-65 years). Among study group cases, 112 (82.9%) cases were co-infected with HSV-1 and HSV-2, 11 (8.1%) cases were seropositive for HSV-1 alone and 3 (2.2%) cases were seropositive for HSV-2 alone. In the control group, 112 (82.9%) cases were co-infected with HSV-1 and 2, 12 (9.6%) for HSV-1 alone and 1(0.8%) for HSV-2 alone. Correlation of HSV-1 and HSV-2 serology with various demographic and behavioral factors was statistically insignificant.

CONCLUSIONS
Seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 in STD clinic cases and control group is high, similar to that recorded in sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, serological studies for HSV-1 and HSV-2 cannot be taken as a marker of sexual behavior in our set of population.


Non-linear bias measurements require a great level of control of potential systematic effects in galaxy redshift surveys. Our goal is to demonstrate the viability of using Counts-in-Cells (CiC), a statistical measure of the galaxy distribution, as a competitive method to determine linear and higher-order galaxy bias and assess clustering systematics. We measure the galaxy bias by comparing the first four moments of the galaxy density distribution with those of the dark matter distribution. We use data from the MICE simulation to evaluate the performance of this method, and subsequently perform measurements on the public Science Verification (SV) data from the Dark Energy Survey (DES). We find that the linear bias obtained with CiC is consistent with measurements of the bias performed using galaxy-galaxy clustering, galaxy-galaxy lensing,CMB lensing, and shear+clustering measurements. Furthermore, we compute the projected (2D) non-linear bias using the expansion δ g =∑ 3 k=0 (b k /k!)δ k, finding a non-zero value for b 2 at the 3σ level. We also check a non-local bias model and show that the linear bias measurements are robust to the addition of new parameters. We compare our 2D results to the 3D prediction and find compatibility in the large scale regime (>30 Mpc h −1)


A recent study has been directed to the design of metal-free Lewis pair catalysts for ring-opening alternating copolymerization (ROAP) reactions to enhance both activity and selectivity. While the simplest types of organic bases/Lewis bases (for example: PPN+Cl−, DMAP, DBU and TBD) are able to copolymerize anhydride-epoxide in a non-living and non-quantitative manner, the introduction of Lewis acids radically changes this behaviour. In this study, various Lewis acids such as B(C2H5)3, Al(CH)3, Et2Zn and nBu2Mg in combination with various Lewis bases such as PPN+Cl−, DMAP, DBU and TBD were tested as Lewis pair catalysts for anhydride-epoxide ring-opening copolymerization (ROCOP) studies. Based on the observed results, the B(C2H5)3/PPNCl pair stood out as the most active and effective Lewis pair for the perfectly alternating and regioselective controlled ROCOP of various epoxides (cyclohexene oxide, CHO; tert-butyl glycidyl ether, tBGE and 2-benzyloxirane, BO) with phthalic anhydride (PA). Medium to high molecular weight linear poly(anhydride-co-epoxide)s (Mn up to 57.5 kg mol−1) are achieved, and most of them exhibit narrow molecular weight distributions (Mw/Mn as low as 1.07). However, in the presence of strong Lewis acids (Al(CH)3, Et2Zn and nBu2Mg) and neutral Lewis bases (DMAP/DBU/TBD) this broad applicability is offset by the lack of control over the polymerizations, including the side reactions as a consequence of strong acidity/alkalinity. Hence, the ideally suitable acidity/alkalinity and matched size of the Lewis pair are considered crucial for the effective copolymerization of PA and epoxides. In addition, from P(PA-alt-tBGE) copolymers, hydroxyl-functionalized poly(ester-alt-glycerol)s were successfully synthesized by deprotection of the t-butyl groups.


The Adman's Dilemma is a cultural biography that explores the rise and fall of the advertising man as a figure who became effectively a licensed deceiver in the process of governing the lives of American consumers. This personage was caught up in an apparent contradiction, both compelled to deceive yet supposed to tell the truth. It was this moral condition and its consequences that made the adman so interesting to critics, novelists, and eventually filmmakers. The biography tracks his saga from its origins in the exaggerated doings of P.T. Barnum, through the emergence of a new profession in the 1920s, the heyday of the adman's influence during the post–Second World War era, and the later rebranding of the adman as artist, until the apparent demise of the figure, symbolized by the triumph of that consummate huckster, Donald Trump. In The Adman's Dilemma, author Paul Rutherford explores how people inside and outside the advertising industry have understood the conflict between artifice and authenticity. The book employs a range of fictional and nonfictional sources, including memoirs, novels, movies, TV shows, websites, and museum exhibits to suggest how the adman embodied some of the strange realities of modernity.


Navigating in an environment generally involves a goal. However, to date, little is known about the influence of goals on immediate memory for distance and time in 'cognitive maps.' The main aim of the thesis is to investigate the role goals play in memory for distance and time experienced during movement through a range of types of environment, and to begin to unpack the mechanisms at play. A secondary goal of the thesis is to examine the fidelity of virtual environments with respect to memory for distance and time.

There has been a recent surge in the utilisation of Virtual Reality (VR) in research and practice. However, it remains unclear to what extent spatial behaviour in virtual environments captures the experience of Real Space. The environments tested in the thesis allow direct comparison of immediate memory for distance traversed and time spent in real human mazes versus VR versions of the same mazes.

The first series of experiments tested the effects of goals varying in urgency and desirability on memory immediate memory for distance and time in real and virtual straight paths and paths with multiple turns. The results show reliable effects of goals on memory for distance and time. Moreover, the studies discount the influence of arousal and mood as an explanation for these effects, and suggest that goals may mediate attention to the environment.

The second series of experiments investigated the role of attention in memory for distance and time in VR and in mentally simulated environments using verbal, visual, and auditory cues. The results of these studies show some evidence that attention in one's environment influences memory for that environment.

Overall, the results reveal that both goals and deployment of attention affect the representations people construct of their environments (cognitive maps) and subsequent recall. Implications are discussed more broadly with regard to research in spatial cognition.


This paper presents for the first time a statistical validation of predictive TRANSP simulations of plasma temperature using two transport models, GLF23 and TGLF, over a database of 80 baseline H-mode discharges in JET-ILW. While the accuracy of the predicted Te with TRANSP-GLF23 is affected by plasma collisionality, the dependency of predictions on collisionality is less significant when using TRANSP-TGLF, indicating that the latter model has a broader applicability across plasma regimes. TRANSP-TGLF also shows a good matching of predicted Ti with experimental measurements allowing for a more accurate prediction of the neutron yields. The impact of input data and assumptions prescribed in the simulations are also investigated in this paper. The statistical validation and the assessment of uncertainty level in predictive TRANSP simulations for JET-ILW-DD will constitute the basis for the extrapolation to JET-ILW-DT experiments.


Operating on a 24/7 basis has made the maritime industry invent a wide variety of watch keeping systems over the past centuries. These are either two-watch systems (2 teams sharing the work under a 24h period) or three-watch system (3 teams sharing it). This study aims to identify which systems are associated with the lowest amount of fatigue risk and the highest amount of sleep that can possibly be obtained.


This book is the first to analyze the impacts of migration and transnationalism on global Catholicism. It explores how migration and transnationalism are producing diverse spaces and encounters that are moulding the Roman Catholic Church as institution and parish, pilgrimage and network, community and people. Bringing together established and emerging scholars of sociology, anthropology, geography, history and theology, it examines migrants' religious transnationalism, but equally the effects of migration-related-diversity on non-migrant Catholics and the Church itself. This timely edited collection is organised around a series of theoretical frameworks for understanding the intersections of migration and Catholicism, with case studies from 17 different countries and contexts. The extent to which migrants' religiosity transforms Catholicism, and the negotiations of unity in diversity within the Roman Catholic Church, are key themes throughout. This innovative approach will appeal to scholars of migration, transnationalism, religion, theology, and diversity.


Anselm Gerhard explores the origins of "grand opera, arguing that its aesthetic innovations (both musical and theatrical) reflected not bourgeois tastes, but changes in daily life and psychological outlook produced by the rapid urbanization of Paris. These larger urban and social concerns crucial to our understanding of nineteenth-century opera are brought to bear in fascinating discussions of eight operas composed by Rossini, Auber, Meyerbeer, Verdi, and Louise Bertin." ""An invaluable look at this fascinating genre." George W. Loomis, Opera News""


Imagine a random walk that outputs a state only when visiting it for the first time. The observed output is therefore a repeat-censored version of the underlying walk, and consists of a permutation of the states or a prefix of it. We call this model initial-visit emitting random walk (INVITE). Prior work has shown that the random walks with such a repeat-censoring mechanism explain well human behavior in memory search tasks, which is of great interest in both the study of human cognition and various clinical applications. However, parameter estimation in INVITE is challenging, because naive likelihood computation by marginalizing over infinitely many hidden random walk trajectories is intractable. In this paper, we propose the first efficient maximum likelihood estimate (MLE) for INVITE by decomposing the censored output into a series of absorbing random walks. We also prove theoretical properties of the MLE including identifiability and consistency. We show that INVITE outperforms several existing methods on real-world human response data from memory search tasks.


The high proton conductivity of Nafion© membranes in direct methanol fuel cells is attributed to a random three dimensional 3D network of elongated ion channels formed by bundles of rod‐like inverted micelles. However, this network is also responsible for high methanol crossover. In addition, its conductivity is impaired at temperatures 120 °C and above due to ion channel rearrangement, thus limiting the operational temperature to 60–80 °C. Here we report a composite proton exchange membrane prepared by filling the pores of polycarbonate track‐etched membrane with Nafion, which promote channel orientation roughly normal to the surface. The proton conductivity of this geometry is significantly enhanced, presumably due to the restricted swelling, resulting in a better ion channel connectivity and realignment in the axial pore direction upon hydration. The permeability of sodium chloride and methanol, though, is suppressed, presumably due to formation of regions of closely packed sulfonic groups, which facilitate proton transfer but strongly exclude other solutes. Composite membranes with improved conductivity and selectivity based on the principle presented here are expected to allow operating direct methanol fuel cells at higher temperatures and with higher methanol concentrations, thus reducing costs and increasing the efficiency.


Number of biracial marriages is increasing in the United States, so does the number of children with mixed racial heritage. Biracial students constitute a distinct group with unique needs that main-stream multicultural educational agenda does not include. Besides, given the fact that race and identity studies usually focus on either social-historical construction of Blackness or Whiteness in different settings, one can say that mixed race kids are pushed to the periphery of the research agenda. This research sets out to understand how 'biracial' high school students in the United States articulate their schooling, community and family experiences and how peer culture and schooling practices influence the space and racial identity conceptualization of "mixed race" high school students. This research has been grounded on the belief that biracial students constitute a distinct group with unique needs that main-stream multicultural educational agenda does not include. This study is designed as a qualitative, phenomenological study in an attempt to reveal the experiences of biracial students. Seven female students were recruited as the subjects of the study. Snowball sampling technique was adopted as a way of finding research subjects. Semi-structured interview form was adopted as a tool of gathering data. Results show that formation of biracial identity needs to be studied in connection with social class as social class plays an important role on both school choice and schooling practices. In other words, race is nested in social class. At the same time, skin color itself could be very important about how other people see these kids.


In this article, the power of musical sound and its transformative effects on human beings are explored, as perceived since ancient times and discussed in recent literature. An evolving research project is then reviewed, with a group of primary school children from disadvantaged backgrounds with no prior formal musical training. In essence, the aim of the study in progress is to determine how musical sound can be used to facilitate mindfulness, develop wholeness and facilitate the holistic growth of young South African learners, especially those from deprived backgrounds. Initial findings suggest that when musical sound experiences are included in everyday education of young learners, there are moments of joy, spontaneity, a sense of unity and well-being. The listening capacity of the children in the group has refined and performance levels at school have improved.


For thirty plus years George Aichele has been articulating and practicing a fantastic hermeneutic that rejects canonical certainties about biblical texts in order to concentrate on the text's resistance to ideology and on the biblical texts' recurrence outside the controls of the institution(s) that lays (lay) claim to them. The process has enriched the reading of moribund Mark. To explicate Aichele's hermeneutic, I read Jorge Luis Borges's 'The Gospel According to Mark' vis-a-vis Mark and Aichele's work. The result calls attention to Mark's inevitably new meanings in its translations, to the violence implicit in the canonical ascription of redemptive meaning to Jesus's death, to the Markan Jesus's ambiguous, non-unique identity, and to the non-redemptive character of the Markan Jesus's death. The process makes it possible to read Mark as if it were written by a number of different authors – including Mel Gibson, Denys Arcand, Pier Paolo Pasolini, James Frazer, H. P. Lovecraft, William Peter Blatty, Jorge Borges, and George Aichele.


Following the landfall of Hurricane Matthew in Haiti on October 3, 2016, an increase of suspected cholera cases was reported in both the southern part of the island (with Grande-Anse and Le Sud departments reporting 1349 and 1533 cases respectively between 5 October and 6 November) and also in the capital, Port-au-Prince (438 cases reported over the same period). The hurricane caused the displacement of about 175,000 people, the vast majority of which remained in their department of origin; however, about 10% appear to have displaced to the capital Port-au-Prince. In this context, a mass OCV vaccination campaign was planned, starting on November 8 and targeting 816,999 individuals in Grande-Anse and Le Sud. The aim of this study is to provide additional information to health actors responding to the post-hurricane cholera outbreak in Haiti. To this end, we calibrated a mechanistic model of cholera transmission on currently available data for Haiti in order to forecast the spatio-temporal dynamics of the cholera epidemic at the departmental level from November 2016 to January 2017. Model outputs have been translated into operational recommendations, with a focus on the scheduled OCV campaign.


Most of experiments for HCV infection have been done using lytic infection systems, in which HCV-infected cells inevitably die. Here, to elucidate metabolic alteration in HCV-infected cells in a more stable condition, we established an HCV-persistently-infected cell line, designated as HPI cells. This cell line has displayed prominent steatosis and supported HCV infection for more than 2 years, which is the longest ever reported. It enabled us to analyze metabolism in the HCV-infected cells integrally combining metabolomics and expression arrays. It revealed that rate-limiting enzymes for biosynthesis of cholesterol and fatty acids were up-regulated with actual increase in cholesterol, desmosterol (cholesterol precursor) and pool of fatty acids. Notably, the pentose phosphate pathway was facilitated with marked up-regulation of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, a rete-limiting enzyme, with actual increase in NADPH. In its downstream, enzymes for purine synthesis were also up-regulated resulting in increase of purine. Contrary to common cancers, the TCA cycle was preferentially facilitated comparing to glycolysis pathway with a marked increase of most of amino acids. Interestingly, some genes controlled by nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2), a master regulator of antioxidation and metabolism, were constitutively up-regulated in HPI cells. Knockdown of Nrf2 markedly reduced steatosis and HCV infection, indicating that Nrf2 and its target genes play important roles in metabolic alteration and HCV infection. In conclusion, HPI cell is a bona fide HCV-persistently-infected cell line supporting HCV infection for years. This cell line sustained prominent steatosis in a hypermetabolic status producing various metabolites. Therefore, HPI cell is a potent research tool not only for persistent HCV infection but also for liver metabolism, overcoming drawbacks of the lytic infection systems.


Self-reproduction via description is discussed in a network model of machines and description tapes. Tapes consist of bit strings, which encode the machines' function. A tape is replicated when it is read by adequate machines. Generally, a machine rewrites a tape without doing correct replication. The variation in a reproduced tape is taken as mutation. Because this mutation is caused by a machine's program, we call it active mutation. Which machine is translated from a given tape is dependent on what kind of a machine reads the tape. External noise is introduced in a machine's reading process to make errors. A new reaction pathway is induced by external noise via a machine's error action. We find that the induced pathways will be mimicked deterministically in an emerging core structure. This core structure will remain stable after turning off external noise. Low external noise develops a core structure of a minimal self-replicative loop. When external noise is elevated, a more complex network evolves. Machines containing a complex core network, which has been bred in high external noise, will actively rewrite tapes rather than just replicate them. Self-replication not as an individual but as a network now becomes important.


A multispectral intensity diffraction tomography (I-DT) reconstruction theory for quasi-nondispersive scattering objects is developed and investigated. By "quasi-nondispersive" we refer to an object that is characterized by a refractive index distribution that is approximately nondispersive over a predefined finite temporal frequency interval in which the tomographic measurements are acquired. The scanning requirements and measurement data are shown to be different than in conventional I-DT. Unlike conventional I-DT that requires intensity measurements on a pair of detector planes for each probing wave field, this new method uses measurements on a single detector plane at two frequencies. Computer simulation studies are conducted to demonstrate the method.


This paper presents a methodology to monitor the fatigue life of aerospace structures and hence the remaining allowable fatigue life. In fatigue clearance, conservative load assumptions are made. However, in reality, a structure may see much lower loads and so would be usable for much longer. An example of this is air carried guided missiles. In the UK, missiles must be decommissioned after a period of carriage. The implementation of a system that can monitor the usage of a missile during its time in service is advantageous to the military customer and provides a competitive advantage for the missile manufacture in export markets where reduced through-life costs, longer in-service lives and increased safety are desired. The proposed methodology provides a means to monitor the service life of a missile. This paper describes how machine learning algorithms can be used with accelerometers to determine loads on a missile structure which would then be used to predict how long the missile has left in service.


An interface is constructed based on a bismuth ferrite oxide (BFO) thin film and p-type silicon, and the temperature dependence of the interface properties has been studied systematically using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. The BFO/Si interface exhibits quasi-two-dimension electron gas (2DEG) transport in the temperature range of 80 to 140 K: the electrons at the interface possess large electron mobility (∼106 cm2/V s) and long scattering time (∼100 ps). As the temperature is higher than 140 K, an abrupt decrease in THz interface conductivity is observed due to the breakdown of the 2DEG induced by the surface phase transition in the BFO thin film. Our result reveals that the interface formed between BFO and Si provides a special platform for designing and fabricating THz photonic devices.


Catalysis
has a responsibility to provide solutions to the growing grand challenge of
sustainability in the fuels and chemical industry to help combat climate
change. These changes; however, cannot be realized without a more fundamental
understanding of the active sites that catalyze chemical reactions, and how
they can be tuned to control rates and selectivities. Four specific examples of
active site modification will be considered in this work: the speciation of
isolated metals in zeolite frameworks, solvent thermodynamics and structure at
defects in zeolite frameworks, the electronic modification of platinum through
alloying in well-defined intermetallic nanoparticles, and the mobility and
shape of gold nanoparticles in zeolite channels. Each will highlight how
quantum chemistry calculations can provide a fundamental understanding of how
these active site modifications influence the kinetics of chemical reactions,
and how they can be controlled to pursue solutions to the reduction of carbon
through sustainable utilization of shale gas as well as renewable chemicals
production through biomass upgrading.

Zeolites
exchanged with metal heteroatoms can behave as solid Lewis or Bronsted acids depending on heteroatom identity.
Lewis acid heteroatoms can adsorb water and hydrolyze to speciate into "open
sites" which have been shown to differ in their ability to catalyze reactions
such as glucose isomerization as compared to "closed sites" which are fully
coordinated to the zeolite framework. The structure and catalytic properties of
these sites are interrogated by a gas phase reaction, ethanol dehydration, in
Sn-Beta by a combined Density Functional Theory (DFT) and experimental study.
DFT is used to map the possible reaction mechanisms for ethanol dehydration,
including the speciation of Sn sites into hydrolyzed configurations from water
or ethanol. A microkinetic model for ethanol dehydration including unselective
and inhibitory intermediates is constructed. This microkinetic model predicts
the population of reactants and products on the catalyst surface as well as the
sensitivity of individual elementary steps to the total rates. Powerful
anharmonic entropy methods using ab-initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) is
used to capture the entropy of confined reactive intermediates, which is shown
to be necessary to compare with experiment. Results on closed and hydrolyzed
open zeolite sites can then be compared with ethanol dehydration on "defect
open" sites which were shown experimentally to occur at material stacking
faults. A grain boundary model is constructed of zeolite Beta, where unique
sites have similar ligand identity as hydrolyzed open sites. These defect open
sites are found to not contribute to the observed reaction rate as they cannot
stabilize the same transition state structures that were observed in internal
Beta sites.

Intuition
about the ethanol dehydration reaction in Sn-Beta was then used to map a more
expansive and diverse chemical network, the synthesis of butadiene from
acetaldehyde and ethanol. For elementary reactions in this mechanism, which
included aldol condensation, MPV reduction, and crotyl alcohol dehydration in
addition to ethanol dehydration, the hydrolyzed open sites were found to be
crucial reactive intermediates. Hydrolyzed sites were necessary to stabilize
favorable transition states, which requires reconstruction of the local
framework environment. Methods to preferentially stabilize hydrolyzed sites
were then explored, using a screening algorithm developed to consider all
possible sites in each zeolite framework. It was found that the stability of
these hydrolyzed sites could be correlated to the local strain exerted by the
surrounding silica matrix. This provides a new descriptor that stabilizes
intermediates relevant to the synthesis of butadiene and ethanol dehydration.

Next,
the structure and thermodynamic stability of water networks around Sn-Beta
defects and heteroatom active sites was considered using AIMD. As many biomass
reactions occur in the presence of water, the interactions of water with
hydrophobic and hydrophilic functionalized defects dictate how the stability of
reactive intermediates and transition states is affected by a solvating
environment. Locally stable and strongly nucleated clusters of water were
observed to form at Sn defects, with less densely packed water structures
stable at hydrophilic defects. This is in comparison to defect-free siliceous
Beta, where significantly less water uptake is observed. These local clusters
are in equilibrium with the less dense liquid-like phase that extends between defects.
These results motivate localized cluster models around active sites in Lewis
acids, as well as advance the fundamental understanding of
hydrophobic/hydrophilic interactions in microporous materials. The local
cluster models are then applied to the ethanol dehydration reaction in
protonated aluminum Beta zeolites where experimentally observed non-unity
coefficient ratios are rationalized by quantifying a different degree of
solvation for the ethanol reactant state as opposed to the transition state, validated
by a thermodynamic phase diagram.

Changes
in the electronic energy levels of d electrons upon alloying was studied
in conjunction with a new spectroscopic technique being performed at Argonne
National Laboratory to develop new descriptors to predict the degree of coking
for different alloys. Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering (RIXS) simultaneously
probes the occupied and unoccupied valence states of platinum in nanoparticles
at ambient conditions. The specific excitation process of this spectroscopy is
particularly amendable to DFT modeling, which was used to provide richer
chemical insight into how changes in observed RIXS signature related to the
electronic structure changes of platinum upon alloying. From a suite of
multiple 3d alloy promoter catalysts synthesized, a quantitative comparison
with DFT modeled spectroscopy was developed. The stability of DFT calculated
coke precursors, relevant to dehydrogenation catalysts to convert light alkanes
into olefins, was then correlated to DFT modeled RIXS spectra, which is a
better descriptor for adsorption of unsaturated chemical intermediates that
used previously, as well as being a descriptor accessible to direct
experimental usage.

Finally,
the diffusion of gold nanoparticles in the TS-1 catalyst was studied using AIMD
to help understand what structural motifs of gold are present under reaction
conditions and how the shape and binding sites of gold is strongly influenced
by deformation by the zeolite framework. This is used to help predict new zeolites
for use in direct propylene epoxidation using molecular oxygen and hydrogen.
The optimization of this catalyst is environmentally relevant to reduce the
usage of inorganics and reduce the cost associated with production of hydrogen
peroxide. Following these discussions, the role of computation in the prediction
of active site structures and kinetics in conjunction with experiment was
included. The broader impact of these findings will also be considered, which
span beyond these specific reactions and materials.