The main crux of this thesis was to produce a model that was capable of simulating the theoretical performance of different configurations for a spatial measurement system using radio frequency technology. It has been important to study new modalities of spatial measurement since spatial measurement systems are an enabling technology that have allowed for the creation of better medical procedures and techniques, provided valuable data for motion capture in animation and biomechanics, and have improved the quality of manufacturing processes in many industries. However, there has been room for improvement in the functional design and accuracy of spatial measurement systems that will enhance current applications and further develop new applications in medicine, research and industry. In this thesis, a modelling framework for the investigation of spatial measurement based on radio frequency signals was developed. The simulation framework was designed for the purpose of investigating different position determination algorithms and sensor geometries. A finite element model using the FEMLAB partial differential equation modelling tool was created for a time-domain model of electromagnetic wave propagation in order to simulate the radio frequency signals travelling from a transmitting source antenna to a set of receiving antenna sensors. Electronic line signals were obtained using a simple receiving infinitesimal dipole model and input into a time difference of arrival localization algorithm. The finite element model results were validated against a set of analytical solutions for the free space case. The accuracy of the localization algorithm was measured against a set of possible applications for a potential radio frequency spatial measurement system design. It was concluded that the simulation framework was successful should one significant deficiency be corrected in future research endeavours. A phase error was observed in the signals extracted at the receiving antenna locations. This phase error, which can be up to 40◦, was attributed to the zeroth order finite elements implemented in the finite element model. This phase error can be corrected in the future if higher order vector elements are introduced into future versions of FEMLAB or via the development of custom finite element analysis software but were not implemented in this thesis due to time constraints. Other improvements were also suggested for future work.


ABSTRACT Microbial ecology within oligotrophic marine sediment is poorly understood, yet is critical for understanding geochemical cycles. Here, 16S rRNA sequences from RNA and DNA inform the structure of active and total microbial communities in oligotrophic sediment on the western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Sequences identified as Bacillariophyta chloroplast were detected within DNA, but undetectable within RNA, suggesting preservation in 5.6-million-year-old sediment. Statistical analysis revealed that RNA-based microbial populations correlated significantly with nitrogen concentrations, whereas DNA-based populations did not correspond to measured geochemical analytes. Bioenergetic calculations determined which metabolisms could yield energy in situ, and found that denitrification, nitrification, and nitrogen fixation were all favorable. A metagenome was produced from one sample, and included genes mediating nitrogen redox processes. Nitrogen respiration by active bacteria is an important metabolic strategy in North Pond sediments, and could be widespread in the oligotrophic sedimentary biosphere.


Introduction:
Dental caries has long been a significant child health issue in Scotland. Significant advances have been made in recent years in tackling this issue. However, as dental caries has become less endemic to the population as a whole, it is now increasingly concentrated within a high risk segment. There are a number of effective preventive interventions that can be targeted to those at higher risk. Clinical guidelines recommend the practice of assessing an individual's caries risk and implementing an appropriate prevention plan. Unfortunately, the translation of clinical guidelines to routine clinical practice is inconsistent throughout healthcare; including dentistry. This inconsistency results in patient receiving suboptimal care and in some cases irreversible harm. This inconsistency of practice is increasingly being identified as an unnecessary cost to the healthcare services, potentially causing patients to receiving suboptimal care and potentially irreversible harm. Therefore, efforts are being targeted at interventions that improve the consistent translation of best evidence to routine practice.
Aims and Objectives
Primary Aim – To improve the documentation of a caries risk assessment (CRA) for all patients attending the department of paediatric dentistry by application of a systems based approach to quality improvement methods.
Secondary Aim – To investigate the impact of these quality improvement efforts on the subsequent delivery of preventive care.
Materials and Methods
This work was carried out with the department of Paediatric dentistry at Glasgow Dental Hospital and School over a 25 month period. Improvement of CRA was driven by the Plan-Do-Study-Act improvement method and was termed the Caries Assessment Risk Evaluation (CARE) project. This was monitored and guided by the use of a run chart, with data provided by random sampling of 5 case notes on a weekly basis.
The impact that this improvement was having on preventive care delivery was monitored during the project by undertaking two retrospective surveys. These compared preventive care received by patients who did have a completed CARE tool with those who did not. At the end of the study a retrospective survey was carried out comparing the preventive care received by a random sample of patients prior to any improvement work (2007) with a random sample once the improvement work was well established (2010).
Results
Over the 25 months of the study there was a significant variability in the monitoring of CRA completion. In the first months of the project performance shifted to around 40%, whilst by the end of this project a shift in performance to around 80% was detected. A notable difference in the consistency of performance of completion of a CRA by the different staff groups (p < 0.001) and clinics (p = 0.04) within the department was detected. A clear impact on performance was seen when systems of working were disrupted by environmental constraints.
The two surveys of preventive care received by the patients who did have a completed CARE tool in comparison to those who did not, consistently found that those patients with a completed CARE tool had more documented preventive care delivered. The 2007 versus 2010 audit found that CRA (p < 0.001), radiographs (p = 0.004), oral hygiene instruction (p < 0.001), fluoride varnish (p < 0.001), toothpaste strength (p < 0.001) and diet advice (p < 0.001) had all significantly improved following the implementation of the project.
Conclusions
This study found that improvement in oral health care is possible by applying a systems based approach to ensure translation of best evidence into routine practice. The greatest consistency in improvement was achieved when new processes could be integrated that complemented current working practice. The challenge remains to develop such complementary systems that are suitable for the wide variety of clinical situations that present in daily practice. The evidence from this study supports the hypothesis that improving CRA compliance leads to an improvement in documented delivery of other preventive interventions.


The study critically examines the relationship between credit management, liquidity position and profitability of some selected banks in Nigeria using annual data of ten banks over the period of 2006 to 2010. Time series properties of all variables used in the estimation were examined through Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) test in order to obtain reliable results. It shows that all the variables were stationary and significant at first differences. The results from Ordinary Least Square (OLS) estimate found that current ratio is positively related to debt ratio and significant at 1% level.  This confirms the alternative "risk absorption" hypothesis, which stipulates that efficient credit management enhances firms' ability to create liquidity. In addition, the result shows that ROA has significant positive effect on current ratio confirming the "financial fragility – crowding out" hypothesis which stipulate that the ability of firms' to maintain certain degree of liquidity reduces firms' profitability enhancement. This conclusion has important policy implications for emerging countries like Nigeria as it suggests that when a company's credit policy is favourable, liquidity is at a desirable level and lastly, the findings revealed that companies should ensure the monitoring and regular review of their credit policy and the allowance of cash discounts should be minimized as much as possible.


The dispute over Chinese exchange rate policy within the United States has generated a series of legislative proposals to restrict the discretion of the US Treasury Department in determining currency manipulation and to reform the department's accountability to the Congress. This study reviews the Treasury's reports to the Congress on exchange rate policy--introduced by the 1988 trade act--and Congress's treatment of them. It finds that the accountability process has often not worked well in practice: The coverage of the reports has sometimes been incomplete and not provided a sufficient basis for congressional oversight. Nor has Congress always performed its own role well, holding hearings on less than half of the reports and overlooking important substantive issues. Several recommendations can improve guidance to the Treasury, standards for assessment, and congressional oversight. These include (1) refining the criteria used to determine currency manipulation and writing them into law; (2) explicitly harnessing US decisions on manipulation to the IMF's rules on exchange rates; (3) clarifying the general objectives of US exchange rate policy; (4) reaffirming the mandate to seek international macroeconomic and currency cooperation; and (5) institutionalizing multicommittee oversight of exchange rate policy by Congress. As they develop legislation targeting manipulation, furthermore, legislators should not lose sight of the broader purposes of the 1988 act relating to the effective valuation of the dollar, the current account, and their ramifications for the US economy overall.


A new technique has been developed for growing good quality molecular crystals, suitable for Raman studies at low temperatures. The method utilizes a copper rod, cooled by a suitable refrigerant, which lies axially in the sample tube. The crystal grows radially around the rod from the melt. Liquid nitrogen and helium cryostats, incorporating this method, for use with the Cary 81 spectrophotometer, are described. These can be readily modified to suit other Raman instruments. Low Rayleigh scattering near the exciting line and the very sharp spectral lines of a number of samples so far studied indicate the good quality of such crystals, grown in a relatively short time.


There is a growing trend among many Indonesian Muslims to feel closely connected with the transnational community, especially through their association with transnational Islamic movements. This paper examines the voices of Indonesian women who have been active in global transnational Islamic movements, namely followers of Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia, Salafism, and Tablighi Jama'at. Women's voices are often marginalised in discussions of these movements. To what extent does these women's alternative imagined belonging challenges their sense of inherited Indonesian identity? How do they feel as Muslims in the largest majority-Muslim country in the world? What are their hopes and wishes with regards to their understanding of the notion of citizenship in Indonesia? Drawing extensively on case studies based on anthropological research in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, and Makassar, this paper demonstrates that women who attach themselves to transnational Islamic movements feel marginalised in the nation-state system despite the fact that Indonesia is the world's largest majority-Muslim country. On the other hand, their attachment to the transnational umma has eased the perceived pressure of being a minority and provided them a chance to gain a better status as part of a global community of Muslims. This phenomenon is part of the reflection of the crisis of trust between Muslims and nation-state systems. Attachment to transnational movements has introduced many Muslims to new hopes, identities and solidarities.


Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine consumer ethnocentrism (CE) in China and clarify whether CE impacted on Chinese consumers' product preferences between local and foreign products.

Design/methodology/approach

Street surveys and mall intercepts were conducted, 367 questionnaires were collected with 170 from Shenyang – Northern China and 197 from Shenzhen – Southern China.

Findings

CE is low in China, it poses no serious threat to foreign products. Consumers living in second tier Northern city like Shenyang have higher ethnocentric beliefs than those living in a first tier like Shenzhen in Southern China. CE's impact varies between product categories and availability of domestic alternative could be a key issue. Age and education level have significant moderating effects.

Research limitations/implications

It only collected from two Chinese cities, distribution pattern of CE data determined non-parametric data analysis methods were adopted.

Practical implications

Regional differences in China matters, first tier Southern cities like Shenzhen could be less challenging destinations for foreign retailers. Targeting young and highly educated consumers could be more effective. Although CE level is low in China, a cautious approach beyond first tier cities is recommended, especially when facing competent local rivals.

Originality/value

It clarified that CE did affect product preferences amongst Chinese consumers, highlighted China's regional differences in terms of North-South divide and first and second tier cites. It also identified that availability of domestic alternative is a key factor that cannot be ignored. This study provided evidence to demonstrate that with unprecedented uncertainties on global free trade, there is no grassroots support for protectionism and isolationism in China.


OBJECTIVE
To determine whether male sex steroids contribute to the depression in cell-mediated immunity following trauma-hemorrhage and resuscitation.

DESIGN
Two weeks before the induction of soft-tissue trauma (2.5-cm midline laparotomy) and hemorrhagic shock (mean [+/-SEM] blood pressure, 35 +/- 5 mm Hg), male C3H/HeN mice were castrated or sham castrated. Following trauma-hemorrhage, the mice were resuscitated and killed 24 hours thereafter to obtain whole blood and the spleen.

RESULTS
Splenocyte proliferation and splenocyte interleukin-2 and interleukin-3 release were significantly depressed in sham-castrated animals after trauma-hemorrhage. In contrast, these variables in castrated mice after trauma-hemorrhage were similar to those in sham-operated animals. Corticosterone plasma levels were significantly elevated in both trauma-hemorrhage groups compared with those in sham-operated mice. Plasma testosterone levels were undetectable in castrated animals and detectable in sham-castrated mice.

CONCLUSIONS
Castration before soft-tissue trauma and hemorrhagic shock maintains normal immune function in male mice, but sham-castrated male mice show significant immunodepression. The maintenance of immune function by androgen deficiency does not seem to be related to changes in the release of corticosterone. We conclude that male sex steroids are involved in the immunodepression observed after trauma-hemorrhage. Thus, the use of testosterone-blocking agents following trauma-hemorrhage should prevent the depression of immune functions and decrease the susceptibility to sepsis under those conditions.


In the recent past there have been calls for transparent and filigree structures in the building industry. Therefore, glass plays an increasing role not only in a classic way, as a space enclosing element, but also more and more in terms of offering load carrying functions. Glass beams for facade elements or floor girders, glass columns, or bracing facade elements are examples of this. To realize such architecturally attractive structures, bonded hybrid steel-glass elements have been developed in which each material is used in an optimized way according to its material properties. Promising examples for such bonded structures are I-beams in which steel flanges and glass webs are connected by linear adhesive bonds. The shear force is carried by the glass web, whereas the bending capacity of the hybrid beam is significantly increased by slender steel flanges compared to the pure glass pane. The shear forces between steel and glass are sustained only by the adhesive between them. In order to maximize the exploitation of both steel and glass, the adhesive on the one hand has to ensure an adequate stiffness but on the other hand has to be flexible enough to allow for a reduction or redistribution of local stress peaks, as well as other constraints such as thermal dilatation. However, the load-bearing capacity of such beams is governed, besides by the mechanical and geometrical characteristics of the adhesive joint, by aging, temperature, and creeping. In this contribution, an approach is shown for characterizing the adhesive joints for hybrid steel-glass beams by means of simplified small-scale tests. Standardized specimens (block shear and tension bulk specimens) and small-scale push-out tests are used to derive adequate mechanical values for analytical and numerical calculations, allowing one to draw conclusions regarding the general load carrying behavior of large-scale hybrid steel-glass beams. The results show that full-scale hybrid steel-glass beams, especially those with butt splice bonded and U-bonded geometries, are feasible using new structural adhesives, predominantly elasto-plastics such as polyurethanes or epoxy resins.


PURPOSE
To assess the dosimetric implication of spot position errors on intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT) treatment plan-quality and develop an analytical routine to aid in that assessment.

METHODS
IMPT plans with different spot spacing (SS) (3-6mm) were created on a water phantom and a patient CT using a commercial planning system. Spot position errors (PE) (1-2mm) were simulated by shifting spots away from their planned location using a custom built script. Various perturbations of single-spot shift and multiple-spot shift in a correlated and random manner were simulated. The resulting dose perturbations were compared to the original plans to calculate percent dose error (PDE (%)).

RESULTS
Spot shifts created hot and cold spots adjacent to the location of the error. In the phantom study of the single-spot error, the PDE at the largest dose difference has been mapped out in SS and PE space to be a quadratic 3D surface, and the slope of the surface became less steep at the deeper depth. As the global dose distribution reduced from volume to plane and line the PDE increased substantially. For clustered multiple-spot error the dose perturbation was significantly larger than single-spot error, but there is saturation for the magnitude of PDE though the perturbation volume increased. In a patient plan, 5% of total spots were clustered which resulted in the PDE of 5 to 6 % and is decreased to 2% when the spots and shift direction are randomly chosen.

CONCLUSION
The dose perturbation is a complex function of PE, SS, depth and global dose distribution. To quantitatively and systematically evaluate the impact of position errors on plan-quality a simulation tool for both selective and random spot(s) position errors was developed.


Abstract Unlike many Third World countries, Bangladesh has remained relatively stable and peaceful and escaped from major internal upheavals. While the democratic transition in 1991 was slow and painful, democratic change of governments has become the norm. Leaders are changed through ballots and not bullets and power oscillates between the two principal parties. Despite these developments, Bangladesh is in the midst of a host of internal crises which could potentially undermine long‐term national stability. The polity, is dominated by changing national identities, growing Islamic fervour in the society, personalised politics, weak institution building, absence of political accountability, lack of responsible opposition and worsening law and order situation leading to the induction of the military in civic duties. Individually these factors are neither unique to Bangladesh nor a serious challenge to its stability. As the paper would argue, Bangladesh belied the promise of democracy it held out at the time of its foundation. This paper seeks to understand the dynamics of the developments that Bangladesh is in the grips of. Pre‐occupied with personal animosities and rivalries, the government of the day is unable to address the basic issues such as protection of lives and Properties of ordinary citizens. The introduction of special courts, tough legislations and military assistance could partly remedy the situation. The consolidation of democracy along with checks and balances, greater accommodation and tolerance of political differences, are essential if Bangladesh were to avoid the return of military rule.


Decomposition and side reactions of, and the synthetic use of, pentafluorophenylmagnesium bromide and pentafluorophenyllithium have been investigated using G,C9/M.S, techniques• Their reactions with reagents such as CgF^X (X H, F, CI, Br, 1), C6F4X2 (X H, CI)f C6F3C13, C6H6. (CgX5)3P (X = H, F), (C6X5)3P=0 (X = H, F), (CgX5)Si (CH3)3 (X = H, F) and (CH0K SiCl , n = 1,2, in ether or ether/n-hexane were studied• In addition to the principal reaction of synthetic use, namely the replacement of a halogen by a pentafluorophenyl group, two types of side reactions were observed* These were (i) intermolecular loss of LiF via a nucleophilic substitution, and (ii) intramolecular loss of LiF, followed by the addition of either inorganic salts such as lithium or magnesium halides, or organometal compounds such as organolithium or organo-Grigaard* G.C«/M.S. techniques were routinely employed to study complicated reaction mixtures. Although mass spectrometry alone has disadvantages for the identification of isomers, deduction of the most probable pathway often helps overcome this problem.


Preface. About the Author. 1 Learning, Live Online. Synchronous Interaction Across the Learning Continuum. Needs Served by Synchronous Interaction. The Synchronous Compact. Indicators for Real-Time Online Learning. Learner Skills Developed and Assessed Live Online. 2 Real-Time Learning as Good Practice. Contact Between Students and Faculty. Cooperation Among Students. Active Learning. Prompt Feedback. Time on Task. High Expectations. Diverse Talents and Ways of Learning. 3 Tools for Learning in Real Time. Text-Based Tools. Live Audio and Video Tools. Content, Display, and Other Interactive Tools. 4 Real-Time Learning Venues. A Moving Target. Chat Rooms. Instant Messenger. Multi-user Virtual Environments. Virtual Reference, Tutoring, and Help Desks. Virtual Offices and Virtual Meeting Rooms. Virtual Classrooms. Interactive Webcasting. Webcasting or Broadcasting. In-class Online Aids. 5 Facilitating Learning in Real Time. Be a Good Host. Inflate a Bubble of Concentration. Be a Ringmaster. Use Virtual Body Language. Rely on Others: You Are Not Alone. Use the Synchronous Dashboard. Be Prepared and Manage Crises. 6 Real-Time Online Learning Activities. Magnetic Brainstorms. Stone Soup. Solo Fishbowls. Paired Partners or Dyads. Cracker Barrels. Guest Appearances and Co-hosts. Live Blogging and Cclogging. Expeditions and Virtual Training Labs. Multiple Venue Productions or Presentations. Additional Resources. Further Reading and Related Web Sites. Ten Common Misconceptions About Synchronous Instruction. Scheduling Synchronous Interaction. Buyer's Guide: Questions to Ask When Considering a Synchronous Tool. References. Index.


Just after World War I, the musical style called jazz began a waterborne journey outward from that quintessential haven of romance and decadence, New Orleans. For the first time in any organized way, steam-driven boats left town during the summer months to tramp the Mississippi River, bringing an exotic new music to the rest of the nation. For entrepreneurs promoting jazz, this seemed a promising way to spread northward the exciting sounds of the Crescent City. And the musicians no longer had to wait for folks upriver to make their way down to New Orleans to hear the vibrant rhythms, astonishing improvisations, and new harmonic idioms being created. Simply put, when jazz went upstream, it went mainstream, and in Jazz on the River, William Howland Kenney brings to life the vibrant history of this music and its seduction of the men and women along America's inland waterways. Here for the first time readers can learn about the lives and music of the levee roustabouts promoting riverboat jazz and their relationships with such great early jazz adventurers as Louis Armstrong, Fate Marable, Warren "Baby" Dodds, and Jess Stacy. Kenney follows the boats from Memphis to St. Louis, where new styles of jazz were soon produced, all the way up the Ohio River, where the music captivated audiences in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh alike. Jazz on the River concludes with the story of the decline of the old paddle wheelers - and thus riverboat jazz - on the inland waterways after World War II. The enduring silence of our rivers, Kenney argues, reminds us of the loss of such a distinctive musical tradition. But riverboat jazz still lives on in myriad permutations, each one in tune with our own times.


We identify obfuscated gradients, a kind of gradient masking, as a phenomenon that leads to a false sense of security in defenses against adversarial examples. While defenses that cause obfuscated gradients appear to defeat iterative optimization-based attacks, we find defenses relying on this effect can be circumvented. We describe characteristic behaviors of defenses exhibiting the effect, and for each of the three types of obfuscated gradients we discover, we develop attack techniques to overcome it. In a case study, examining non-certified white-box-secure defenses at ICLR 2018, we find obfuscated gradients are a common occurrence, with 7 of 9 defenses relying on obfuscated gradients. Our new attacks successfully circumvent 6 completely, and 1 partially, in the original threat model each paper considers.


Hillslopes turn precipitation into runoff and thus exert important controls on various Earth system processes. It remains difficult to collect reliable data necessary for understanding and modeling these Earth system processes in real catchments. To overcome this problem, controlled experiments are being conducted at the Landscape Evolution Observatory at Biosphere 2, The University of Arizona. Previous experiments have revealed differences in hydrological response between 2 landscapes within Landscape Evolution Observatory, even though both landscapes were designed to be identical. In an attempt to discover where the observed differences stem from, we use a fully 3‐dimensional hydrological model (CATchment HYdrology) to show the effect of soil water retention characteristics and saturated hydraulic conductivity on the hydrological response of these 2 hillslopes. We also show that soil water retention characteristics can be derived at hillslope scale from experimental observations of soil moisture and matric potential. It is found that differences in soil packing between the 2 landscapes may be responsible for the observed differences in hydrological response. This modeling study also suggests that soil water retention characteristics and saturated hydraulic conductivity have a profound effect on rainfall–runoff processes at hillslope scale and that parametrization of a single hillslope may be a promising step in modeling rainfall–runoff response in real catchments.


There is intense interest surrounding the use of gene editing nucleases in gene drive systems to control agricultural insect pests and insect vectors of infectious diseases such as malaria, dengue and Zika virus. While gene drive systems offer immense promise for the beneficial modification of deleterious insect populations, their unique mechanism of action also raises novel safety concerns and regulatory issues. A recent US National Academies of Science report provides a list of potential regulatory issues associated with implementation of homologous recombination (HR)-mediated gene drive systems, based on the premise that all such systems would exhibit similar biological behaviors. Here we examine how HR-mediated gene drive systems based on different gene editing nuclease platforms could be affected by mutations that occur during host cell transcription, genome replication, and, in conjunction with gene editing nuclease activity, during HR-mediated gene drive. Our analysis suggests that the same feature that makes RNA-guided nucleases such attractive research tools—their ease of reprogramming by alterations to their guide RNA components—might also contribute to increased rates of retargeting that could influence the long term behavior of RNA-guided gene drive systems. Predictability of behavior over time is an issue that should be addressed by in-depth risk assessment before field testing of organisms incorporating nuclease-mediated gene drives.


. Billboards are present in many localities of Vietnam, with typical structure of large surfaces, so wind load is one of the main loads during the design stage. In the Southwest region of Vietnam, during the rainy season, there are usually thunderstorms accompanied by strong winds, causing many billboards to be damaged. To avoid such damage, the structure of the billboard is simulated by random quantities such as wind load, material strength, geometric dimensions, resulting in the reliability of the structure was evaluated. The results show that there may be a high risk of the integrity of the billboards, even if the safety of these structures is implied by the design code. This study analyzed reliability index of billboard structure under wind speed, material, geometric characters by Monte Carclo simulation to indentify the reliability of billboard design.


Abstract The high-cosmic abundance of sulfur is not reflected in the terrestrial crust, implying it is either sequestered in the Earth's interior or was volatilized during accretion. As it has widely been suggested that sulfur could be one of the contributing light elements leading to the density deficit of Earth's core, a robust thermal equation of state of iron sulfide is useful for understanding the evolution and properties of Earth's interior. We performed X-ray diffraction measurements on FeS2 achieving pressures from 15 to 80 GPa and temperatures up to 2400 K using laser-heated diamond-anvil cells. No phase transitions were observed in the pyrite structure over the pressure and temperature ranges investigated. Combining our new P-V-T data with previously published room-temperature compression and thermochemical data, we fit a Debye temperature of 624(14) K and determined a Mie-Grüneisen equation of state for pyrite having bulk modulus KT = 141.2(18) GPa, pressure derivative KT′=5.56(24)$K_{\rm{T}}^\prime = 5.56\left( {24} \right)$, Grüneisen parameter γ0 = 1.41, anharmonic coefficient A2 = 2.53(27) × 10−3 J/(K2·mol), and q = 2.06(27). These findings are compared to previously published equation of state parameters for pyrite from static compression, shock compression, and ab initio studies. This revised equation of state for pyrite is consistent with an outer core density deficit satisfied by 11.4(10) wt% sulfur, yet matching the bulk sound speed of PREM requires an outer core composition of 4.8(19) wt% S. This discrepancy suggests that sulfur alone cannot satisfy both seismological constraints simultaneously and cannot be the only light element within Earth's core, and so the sulfur content needed to satisfy density constraints using our FeS2 equation of state should be considered an upper bound for sulfur in the Earth's core.


It has previously been shown that there is an underlying bias in blood pressure (BP) measurements between the arterial line and the sphygmomanometer cuffs. It is unclear the extent to which this bias can lead to differences in the standard of care inside the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The objective of this study was to compare the circadian patterns of systolic, mean arterial and diastolic BP (SBP, MAP and DBP) derived from simultaneous measurements of arterial lines and sphygmomanometer cuffs in the ICU. 2,243 patients were selected from the MIMIC-III database, resulting in 22,743 data-points of paired BP measurements from the arterial line and sphygmomanometer cuff. A significant bias between the two measurement sources was found for SBP and MAP but not for DBP. In addition, a significant proportion (SBP - 51%, DBP - 23%, MAP - 41%) of cuff measurements had a difference greater than 10 mmHg with respect to the arterial line. Despite these errors, the circadian rhythms between the two signals showed a high correlation: SBP - r = 0.92 p < 0.001; MAP - r = 0.90 p < 0.001; DBP - r = 0.86 p < 0.001. Despite significant errors and bias between the arterial line and cuff, the sphygmomanometer cuff is sufficiently accurate to track circadian rhythms in BP in the ICU.


Americans cherish freedom and value local control of education. The issue of "school choice," a movement that supports publicly funded tuition vouchers for students who attend private schools, appeared on the public agenda in the 1980s and has remained a controversial topic into the twenty-first century. Milwaukee had one of the first and most expansive school choice programs in the United States. If one is to understand school choice, one must understand its origin in Milwaukee. Milwaukee moved through three eras of choice – the eras of "no choice," "forced choice," and "school choice." The Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) followed a "comprehensive" model and a traditional neighborhood assignment pattern in the first era. Schools were racially segregated in that era. Lloyd Barbee led the protest movement and legal challenge to end segregation in the 1960s and 1970s, and Superintendent Lee McMurrin and the school board responded by creating a magnet school program that offered students more choices than any other district in the United States. Magnet schools were supposed to racially integrate students and provide them with a variety of quality educational options. But the program was difficult to implement and not well received by many parents, either African American or white. Many families wanted to keep their children in neighborhood schools, but if not enough students volunteered to attend an integrated school, then some had to be "forced" to choose one in the second era of school choice. And while many of the magnet schools were excellent, they did not improve education in Milwaukee as a whole. Civic and community leaders tried to remedy low academic achievement in the 1990s by introducing more forms of choice, including charter schools, vouchers to private schools, open enrollment in suburban districts, and neighborhood schools and small schools within MPS. Despite all these choices, education has not improved in Milwaukee. Nonetheless, Milwaukee parents and students have a level of choice, for good or for bad, that is not available in any other school district in the United States. These choices would not be possible if it were not for Milwaukee's unique urban history.


"Snow Fall" is a Pulitzer Prize winning, digital storytelling project produced by the New York Times. It represents the next step in long-form digital journalism. The web application tells a compelling story about the fate of sixteen skiers and snowboarders during an avalanche. The textual element of the story is wrapped in a slick interface with gently appearing and disappearing images, strategically positioned HTML5 video and image slideshows, maps, and 3-D visualizations. Its title, "Snow Fall," has become a verb in the digital journalism world. Upon seeing "Snow Fall" and other similar projects, the authors started to make the connection between this form of storytelling and Special Collections. Special Collections are full of interesting, rich, and unique stories. Their digital representation, however, while widespread in systems such as ContentDM, can be lacking in sensory appeal. Because of this, the authors developed a "Snow Fall"-like application for a Special Collections' exhibit, "Cradle of Coaches," in the fall of 2013. In addition to this exhibit, they have developed two more using the same template. They feel that this is a new and exciting medium to tell the stories within special collections and archives, as well as general stories about libraries themselves.


Due to globalization and an increasing transport sector the interest for more fuel efficient combustion engines operating under lean conditions has increased. The products formed during the burning process in internal combustion engines are major contributants to global air pollution, where carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) are the major toxic components regulated in many countries. One effective way to reduce nitrogen oxides in lean environments is selective catalytic reduction with ammonia (NH3-SCR). Metal-exchanged zeolites have in this connection proven to be very active and promising catalysts for NOX reduction. Several challenges arise when using these materials in exhaust aftertreatment systems for vehicles. One problem is thermal deactivation due to the high-temperature conditions in connection with the regeneration of the particulate filter which in addition to the SCR catalyst is an important component in the aftertreatment system. In this licentiate thesis, the thermal stability of iron-based zeolite beta, Fe-BEA, as NH3-SCR catalyst is evaluated with several different experimental techniques. Based on the experimental results a kinetic model is developed to describe the kinetics and the fundamental deactivation mechanisms for Fe-BEA after hydrothermal treatment with focus on the dynamics of the active iron sites.
Cordierite supported Fe-BEA samples were hydrothermally treated at 600 and 7000C for 3-100 h to capture the effect of time and temperature on the ageing process. The samples were characterized with BET, XPS, XRD and NH3-TPD. The catalytic performance of the samples with respect to NO and NH3 oxidation, and NOX reduction (NH3-SCR) was studied by flow reactor experiments. The catalytic performance was correlated with structural changes of the zeolite and the iron phases. The results showed that the NOX reduction at low temperatures is more sensitive to changes in the oxidation state of iron caused by the hydrothermal ageing than at higher temperatures. Furthermore, a maximum in activity for NO oxidation and an increased oxidation state of iron indicate Fe2O3 particle growth. This was further investigated with DRIFT spectroscopy which showed that the change of the nature of the iron species in Fe-BEA proceeds in two steps; (i) milder ageing results in a decreased amount of isolated iron species due to migration, and (ii) more sever aging results in a continuous migration and formation of larger iron oxide particles. High surface coverage of ammonia inhibits the SCR reaction. However, the inhibition effect is not significantly affected by the hydrothermal treatment. Furthermore, the possibility to regenerate the catalyst by treatment with hydrogen was investigated. The H2-treatment showed a reversed trend compared to the hydrothermally treated samples. Increased NOX reduction at low temperatures was observed indicating that the H2-treatment results in the formation of isolated iron species in the zeolite.
A kinetic ageing model was developed based on the experimental results for H-BEA and Fe-BEA. The ageing model describes the experiments well for both H-BEA and Fe-BEA, before and after hydrothermal treatment, by decreasing the density of active sites. Furthermore, the model showed that the spillover rate of ammonia, inhibiting the NOX reduction is independent of the site density and depends only on the fraction of free sites, indicating that a constant number of Bronsted sites buffer each active iron site is constant and unaffected by the hydrothermal treatment.


Currently, a range of criminal offences are perpetrated online. In addition to the commission of traditional offences, such as fraud, stalking, and domestic violence, new phenomena have emerged to warrant attention from the media, government, and communities. The phenomenon colloquially referred to as 'revenge porn' stands as one of the greater threats to public morality. To date, legislative responses to circumscribe revenge porn, both internationally and in Australia, have been sporadic and disjunctive. This article critically examines the impact and prevalence of revenge porn and provides a critical analysis of the civil and criminal responses to its commission. It concludes by arguing that addressing the challenges associated with investigating such offences, and educating about the dangers of revenge porn have to some extent been overlooked in the rush to legislate and create new offences. The article highlights that existing legislation may provide adequate protection. BOND ^UNIVERSITY


Very few reversible data hiding methods are proposed for compressed video and particularly for the H.264/AVC video codec, despite the importance of both of the watermarking reversibility criterion and the codec. The reversible watermarking techniques of images, when applied to the compressed video, can affect particularly the video quality and bitrate. Thus, to make these techniques applicable, the embedding capacity is usually reduced. Therefore an adaptation is necessary to improve the tradeoff between the embedding capacity, the visual quality and the bitrate of the watermarked video. In this paper, we investigate the possibility to introduce the DCT based reversible data hiding method, proposed initially for compressed images, to H.264/AVC codec. The embedding is applied during the encoding process, in the quantized DCT coefficients of I and P frames. To enhance the embedding capacity a mapping rule is used to embed three bits in one coefficient. Results show that exploiting the P frames improves considerably the video quality and the embedding capacity.


The dilute aqueous solution behaviour of oxyethylene/oxypropylene copolymers has been investigated as a function of temperature (275-370K), copolymer concentration (0.1-5% w/v) and copolymer composition [polyoxypropylene (POP) and polyoxyethylene (POE) homopolymers (750-4000gmol-1 ) and diblock copolymers (3450-13300gmol-1 ), poloxamers (POE-POP-POE triblock copolymers, 1100-14000gmol-1 ) and poloxamines (ethylene diamine alkoxylates, 1650-26000gmol-1 )] using the macroscopic techniques of high sensitivity differential scanning calorimetry (HSDSC), and differential scanning densitometry (DSD) and also using the technique of 1H and 13C-NMR. The observed phase transitions from HSDSC data are indicative of an aggregation process and are consequent upon changes associated with POP involving dehydration, a conformational change and aggregation. For POP homopolymers, the phase transition results in phase separation of the polymer (cloud point) but for the diblock copolymers, poloxamers and poloxamines these copolymers remain in solution due to the effects of the POE portion of the copolymer. The phase transition temperature (Tm ) decreases and the calorimetric enthalpy (AHcai) increases with increasing molecular mass of the POP block and show no relationship to the POE content. DSD data of poloxamers in water at a concentration of 1 % (w/v) show a sharp increase in partial specific volume (v) with increasing temperature, the mid-point of the transition in agreement with the Tm observed by HSDSC. The partial specific volume change (Av) approach zero as the POE:POP ratio approaches 1:0 indicative that the phase transition is associated with changes in the POP portion of the copolymer. TI relaxation NMR data for poloxamer 237 in D20 as a function of temperature shows a gradual increase in relaxation times for -CH2- and -CH(Me)-resonances with increasing temperature due to increased molecular motion, but a sharp decrease of the -CH(Me)- relaxation time was observed at the Tm relating to a change in conformation of the POP portion of the copolymer. The effects of cosolutes (NaCl, Na2HPO4/NaH2PO4, urea and guanidinium chloride) and cosolvents (methanol, ethanol, n-propanol, n-butanol and formamide) on the observed phase transition of poloxamers have been investigated using HSDSC. Sodium chloride, phosphate buffer, n-propanol and n-butanol favour aggregation of the copolymer reflected in a lowering the Tm and an increase in AHcal]. Conversely, urea, guanidinium chloride, methanol, ethanol and formamide prevent the onset of aggregation reflected in an increase in Tm and a lowering of AHcai. The effects of cosolutes and cosolvents on the aggregation behaviour of poloxamers are explained in terms of enhancing or breaking water structure or by possibly replacing water molecules in the solvation sphere of the POP portion of the copolymer. The calorimetric output has been analysed using a model fitting procedure based upon a mass action description to obtain estimates for thermodynamic parameters which characterise the aggregation process. These important parameters include T½, the temperature at which the aggregation process is half completed, AHcal, AHvH . the van't Hoff enthalpy and n the aggregation number. The modelled excess heat capacity data are in good agreement with the experimental calorimetric outputs. An enthalpy-entropy compensation plot for all data obtained indicate that the solvent-solute interactions that are responsible for the phase transitions observed by HSDSC are the same for all of the copolymers investigated regardless of the copolymer composition and concentration.


Given the importance of potato in the economy and people's nutrition, as well as planting of disease-free seeds, it seems necessary to produce healthy seeds through tissue culture. This study was conducted during 2012-2013 at the Research Center of Agricultural University of Tajikistan aiming to evaluate the effect of different sizes of mini-tuber on yield and yield components of potato crop. Agria variety plantlets derived from tissue culture were grown in pots; the yielded mini-tubers were divided according to size into lighter than 1 g, 1-5 g, 5-10 g, and heavier than 10 g treatments, which then were evaluated in randomized complete block design in four replications. The results showed that tuber weight, the mean of bush yield, and the yield per area unit increased following the increase in mini-tuber weight. The highest mean number of tubers was produced from 5-10 g mini-tubers. Examination of other traits showed that the mean number of eyes and diameter of tubers increased by increasing mini-tuber weight. According to the results, mini-tubers lighter than 1 g are not suitable for planting.


Abstract Teachers often deliver the same lesson multiple times in one day. In contrast to year-to-year teaching experience, it is unclear how this teaching repetition affects student outcomes. We examine the effects of teaching repetition in a higher education setting where students are randomly assigned to a university instructor's first, second, third, or fourth lesson on the same day. We find no meaningful effects of repetition on grades, course dropout, or study effort and only suggestive evidence of positive effects on teaching evaluations. These results suggest that teaching repetition is a powerful tool to reduce teachers' preparation time without negative effects on students.


To deeply understand the factors that affect the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fermentable sugars, experimental results should be bridged with process simulations. The objective of this paper is to review published research on modeling of the pretreatment process using leading technologies such as dilute acid, alkaline, and steam explosion pretreatment, as well as the enzymatic hydrolysis process for converting lignocellulose to sugars. The most commonly developed models for the pretreatment are kinetic models with assumptions of a first-order dependence of reaction rate on biomass components and an Arrhenius-type correlation between rate constant and temperature. In view of the heterogeneous nature of the reactions involved in the pretreatment, the uses of severity factor, artificial neural network, and fuzzy inference systems present alternative approaches for predicting the behavior of the systems. Kinetics of the enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulosic biomass has been simulated using various modeling approaches, among which the models developed based on Langmuir-type adsorption mechanism and the modified Michaelis-Menten models that incorporate appropriate rate-limiting factors have the most potential. Factors including substrate reactivity, enzyme activity and accessibility, irreversible binding of enzymes to lignin, and enzyme deactivation at high conversion levels, need to be considered in modeling the hydrolysis process. Future prospects for research should focus on thorough understanding of the interactions between biomass reactants and chemicals/enzymes — the key to developing sophisticated models for the entire conversion process.


A depositional model for the development of the Helvetiafjellet Formation in Nordenskiold Land, Spitsbergen is presented. The formation was deposited into a segment of the large epicontinental Boreal basin that rimmed northern Pangaea during the Early Cretaceous. A wide range of depositional subenvironments are recorded within the succession; including fluvial braidplain, shallow marine bay, delta, coastal plain and fluvial channel. The depositional model approaches a layer-cake style for this part of the basin, caused by the rapid rates of progradation and retrogradation made possible by the gentle depositional gradient. An initial period of fluvial deposition arose in response to an early rise in relative sea-level. Following a regional flooding, the progradational to aggradational architecture in the area reflects a balanced rate of increase in accommodation vs. rate of sedimentation (A/S) ratio. This resulted in a heterolithic stacking of sandstone and mudstone. Autogenic variables are thought to have dominated the lateral facies variations recorded in the upper and middle parts of the succession.


Recent years have seen embodied visual navigation advance in two distinct directions: (i) in equipping the AI agent to follow natural language instructions, and (ii) in making the navigable world multimodal, e.g., audio-visual navigation. However, the real world is not only multimodal, but also often complex, and thus in spite of these advances, agents still need to understand the uncertainty in their actions and seek instructions to navigate. To this end, we present AVLEN~ -- an interactive agent for Audio-Visual-Language Embodied Navigation. Similar to audio-visual navigation tasks, the goal of our embodied agent is to localize an audio event via navigating the 3D visual world; however, the agent may also seek help from a human (oracle), where the assistance is provided in free-form natural language. To realize these abilities, AVLEN uses a multimodal hierarchical reinforcement learning backbone that learns: (a) high-level policies to choose either audio-cues for navigation or to query the oracle, and (b) lower-level policies to select navigation actions based on its audio-visual and language inputs. The policies are trained via rewarding for the success on the navigation task while minimizing the number of queries to the oracle. To empirically evaluate AVLEN, we present experiments on the SoundSpaces framework for semantic audio-visual navigation tasks. Our results show that equipping the agent to ask for help leads to a clear improvement in performance, especially in challenging cases, e.g., when the sound is unheard during training or in the presence of distractor sounds.


An alternating current bridge is described which may be used for measuring large capacities in series with high resistances or small phase angles in high resistance boxes. Using this bridge it is possible to compensate for the capacity and inductive effects in the standard resistance boxes and in the arms of the bridge. This correction is effected by the method developed for the adjustment of the Wagner earthing arm. Circuit equations are given to show the extent to which errors are eliminated, and experimental results in some typical cases are shown.


Many organizations in Asian countries are struggling to sustain the Information Technology (IT) agenda beyond basic enterprise systems (like Enterprise Resource Planning [ERP] implementation). To sustain the real benefits of an enterprise system, these organizations require a different paradigm of information leadership and a contextually relevant IT governance structure and supporting mechanisms. The Chief Information Officer (CIO) alone cannot make ERP deliver business value; rather, it requires the participation of all in the top management (TP) team. The present case presents the dilemma faced by a real-life Indian manufacturing organization. After the successful implementation of an ERP and reaping initial benefits, the organization feels it is not creating any incremental value. Though the case pertains to the manufacturing industry, it is equally relevant to organizations across all kinds of industries such as banking, insurance, retail, etc. The case highlights the situation that is common in many organizations. It has been developed with the objective of appreciating the need for, and building an understanding of a collective form of leadership and a befitting governance structure with respect to IT management. Two specific tools, the information leadership grid and IT governance matrix, have been synthesized based upon literature review as specific tools for the purpose.


Sensitivity analysis is an approach to recognising the behaviour of models and relative importance of causative factors. In this paper, behaviours of six pier scour depth empirical formulae are evaluated on the basis of an analytical method. The sensitivity of predicted scour depth is analysed with respect to the following independent parameters: approach flow depth, riverbed slope and median sediment size. Also their combined influence is studied examining the relative importance of each parameter with respect to the total variation of the maximum scour depth. Results show that: (1) sensitivity significantly depends on flow intensity for most of the selected formulae, whereas for the others it is a constant value or depends on other influencing parameters; (2) different formulae demonstrate various level of sensitivity to the input variables, so that, for a certain error in the input variables, the error in the results may vary consistently; (3) some formulae are very sensitive to the input parameters under some conditions, hence an error in an input variable may be amplified in the output results; and (4) most of the formulae are more sensitive to the variations of the influencing parameters in clear-water than in live-bed conditions.


The Eve of Spain demonstrates how the telling and retelling of one of Spain's founding myths played a central role in the formation of that country's national identity. King Roderigo, the last Visigoth king of Spain, rapes (or possibly seduces) La Cava, the daughter of his friend and counselor, Count Julian. In revenge, the count travels to North Africa and conspires with its Berber rulers to send an invading army into Spain. So begins the Muslim conquest and the end of Visigothic rule. A few years later, in Northern Spain, Pelayo initiates a Christian resistance and starts a new line of kings to which the present-day Spanish monarchy traces its roots. Patricia E. Grieve follows the evolution of this story from the Middle Ages into the modern era, as shifts in religious tolerance and cultural acceptance influenced its retelling. She explains how increasing anti-Semitism came to be woven into the tale during the Christian conquest of the peninsula-in the form of traitorous Jewish conspirators. In the sixteenth century, the tale was linked to the looming threat of the Ottoman Turks. The story continued to resonate through the Enlightenment and into modern historiography, revealing the complex interactions of racial and religious conflict and evolving ideas of women's sexuality. In following the story of La Cava, Rodrigo, and Pelayo, Grieve explains how foundational myths and popular legends articulate struggles for national identity. She explores how myths are developed around few historical facts, how they come to be written into history, and how they are exploited politically, as in the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 followed by that of the Moriscos in 1609. Finally, Grieve focuses on the misogynistic elements of the story and asks why the fall of Spain is figured as a cautionary tale about a woman's sexuality.


This research explored the use of electronic payments by selected Seventh-day Adventist International Schools in Thailand and investigated the factors that affected parental perceptions of these payments. A Descriptive Research Design approach was utilized. Questionnaires and interviews were used to collect the data. A statistical software package was used to analyze the data, and stepwise multiple regression was applied to test the hypotheses. The 319 parents who had previously made electronic payments to the schools and eight Finance Department staff members at the schools were selected as respondents. Frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, and multiple regression (stepwise multiple regression analysis) were utilized for data analysis.The results indicated that the factors of benefits, trust, self-efficacy, ease of use, and security were rated at the "High" level. The highest mean score was benefits (4.16), followed by selfefficacy (3.91), ease of use (3.89), trust (3.81), and security (3.55), respectively. Also, all factors – except for self-efficacy – were related to parental perceptions of e-payments at the 0.05 level of significance. Findings from group interviews of the finance staff at each school revealed that the factors of ease of use, trust, security, and benefits affected their perceptionsof electronic transactions for both receiving and disbursing funds.


The objective of the study was to prepare flurbiprofen loaded stealth liposome formulations by optimizing the various process and formulation related variables. Various liposomal batches were prepared by thin film hydration technique and they were characterized for drug encapsulation %, chemical interaction of the drug and excipients, vesicle size, drug release profile in vitro and stability using specified methods. The best flurbiprofen loaded liposome was composed of DSPC/Cholesterol group of 4:1 mole ratio and the best stealth liposome was composed of DSPC/CH/ PE 18:0|18:0-PEG 2000 (PE-PEG) group of 4:1:0.2 mole ratios. Stealth liposome was found to have greater stability, higher drug encapsulation % and lower drug release in vitro compared to others. The drug encapsulation efficiency of stealth liposomes was 68% and it could retain 70.9% of the drug even after 24 h. FTIR study indicated that there is no significant chemical interaction between the components. SEM photograph confirmed that vesicles were homogenous and spherical in shape. Stability studies showed that the vesicles were stable in -20 °C and refrigerated temperature (4 °C) for one month without significant differences in drug entrapment. The present study has given us knowledge also that liposomes with low amount of cholesterol are better candidate for flurbiprofen liposomes.


Imitations of Life views Russian melodrama from the eighteenth century to today as an unexpectedly hospitable forum for considering social issues. The contributors follow the evolution of the genre through a variety of cultural practices and changing political scenarios. They argue that Russian audiences have found a particular type of comfort in this mode of entertainment that invites them to respond emotionally rather than politically to social turmoil. Drawing on a wide variety of sources, including plays, lachrymose novels, popular movies, and even highly publicised funerals and political trials, the essays in Imitations of Life argue that melodrama has consistently offered models of behaviour for times of transition, and that contemporary televised versions of melodrama continue to help Russians cope with national events that they understand implicitly but are not yet able to articulate. In contrast to previous studies, this collection argues for a reading that takes into account the subtle but pointed challenges to national politics and to gender and class hierarchies made in melodramatic works from both the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Collectively, the contributors shift and cross borders, illustrating how the cultural dismissal of melodrama as fundamentally escapist and targeted primarily at the politically disenfranchised has subverted the drama's own intrinsically subversive virtues. Imitations of Life will interest students and scholars of contemporary Russia, and Russian history, literature, and theatre. Contributors. Otto Boele, Julie Buckler, Julie Cassiday, Susan Costanzo, Helena Goscilo, Beth Holmgren, Lars Lih, Louise McReynolds, Joan Neuberger, Alexander Prokhorov, Richard Stites


The goal in this paper is to compare the CPU utilization when one would like to migrate its applications to the cloud. This will allow the user to specify the real capacity of the server in order to match the foreseen memory and computational demands. Each overutilization of the CPU will significantly impact the performance. In this paper we analyze two different types of web services, defined on memory and computation demands. The first web service is memory only demanding and the second is both memory demanding and computation intensive. The experiments are realized on two environments using the same hardware, the first is on-site environment, and the second is cloud environment, where on top of the first we include private OpenStack cloud solution. The comparison of results will show what is the impact of cloud deployment, and also how the load of web services impacts the CPU utilization.


This paper examines the impact of ICT on the growth of the Indian Stock Exchange using a modified version of the Gompertz technology diffusion model introduced by Chow (1983) and therefore rearranges the model such that ICT development becomes the independent variable while stock market growth indicators are the dependent variables. Capital markets have become excessively volatile since the adoption of computer assisted trading strategies as the latter increase short-term price volatility and risks. Fama and French (1988) argued that information technology have made capital markets more efficient as attendant stock prices now reflect important information and investors' perception of stocks more swiftly. The data in the present study is obtained from BSE and NSE stock exchanges database, MCX India database, Securities and Exchange Commission and websites of World Development Indicators. In the course of analysis, market capitalization model, stock market value traded model, stock market volume traded model, turnover model, number of securities listed model, public sector bond model and private sector debt model has been designed. The results disclose that selected variables are significantly affected by information and communications technology especially in respect of increase in the number of stockbrokers, investors and access to ICT. Information Technology have contributed to growth of the Indian Capital Market, with the effect mostly seen in the availability of information to investors and the improvements in the trading patterns of the Indian Stock Exchange. Keywords: Indian stock market, ICT , Gompertz model, macroeconomic variables


Groundwater age is an important water property used as an indicator of groundwater quality. There have been no sufficient data and measurements underground, and that problem has been mitigated by using direct simulation of groundwater age. This paper has been motivated by the work of Daniel J. Goode, defining a rather different approach. A numerical model has been developed, using the Lagrangian approach and random walk particle tracking method, where groundwater age is calculated as a summed-up travelling time of certain particles. Basic input of this method is flow calculation; hence, in order to get the groundwater age simulation, an upgrade has been done to the existing software. Synthetic examples have been simulated for homogeneous, layered, as well as for low and medium heterogeneous aquifer systems. A stochastic analysis of heterogeneous aquifers has been done using a Monte Carlo simulation method. The results are given as groundwater age fields. Application of such an approach lays in possible estimation of the expected groundwater age at a certain location of water intake. Therefore, the calculated probability assumptions may be used as a decision support tool in cases of groundwater pollution, estimation of the level of aquifer9s auto-purification, or in events where applying certain level of water treatment prior to usage is needed.


In barley, the eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) gene situated on chromosome 3H is recognized as an important source of resistance to the bymoviruses Barley yellow mosaic virus and Barley mild mosaic virus. In modern barley cultivars, two recessive eIF4E alleles, rym4 and rym5, confer different isolate‐specific resistances. In this study, the sequence of eIF4E was analysed in 1090 barley landraces and noncurrent cultivars originating from 84 countries. An exceptionally high nucleotide diversity was evident in the coding sequence of eIF4E but not in either the adjacent MCT‐1 gene or the sequence‐related eIF(iso)4E gene situated on chromosome 1H. Surprisingly, all nucleotide polymorphisms detected in the coding sequence of eIF4E resulted in amino acid changes. A total of 47 eIF4E haplotypes were identified, and phylogenetic analysis using maximum likelihood provided evidence of strong positive selection acting on this barley gene. The majority of eIF4E haplotypes were found to be specific to distinct geographic regions. Furthermore, the eI4FE haplotype diversity (uh) was found to be considerably higher in East Asia, whereas SNP genotyping identified a comparatively low degree of genome‐wide genetic diversity in 16 of 17 tested accessions (each carrying a different eIF4E haplotype) from this same region. In addition, selection statistic calculations using coalescent simulations showed evidence of non‐neutral variation for eIF4E in several geographic regions, including East Asia, the region with a long history of the bymovirus‐induced yellow mosaic disease. Together these findings suggest that eIF4E may play a role in barley adaptation to local habitats.


Introduction: Oil immersion objective is not routinely used in histopathology and very rarely in cytopathology. We, on the other hand are routinely using the technique in our department on almost all types of lesions in histopathology and cytopathology. Objective: To determine the extra advantages of examining histopathology sections at 1000X magnification. Study Design: It was a comparative study. Settings: This study was carried out in department of pathology, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad. Duration of Study: June 2005 to Dec 2005. Material & Methods: Thirty diagnosed cases of gastric and colorectal adenocarcinomas were examined first under high power lens (400X) and then oil immersion lens using xylene (as an alternative for oil) for various parameters such as tumor architecture, cytoplasmic and nuclear features. The difference in various parameters was scored from 0-2. Results: The results revealed that nuclear features such as membrane breaks, nuclear pinching, grooving and chromatin patterns were significantly better appreciated on oil immersion lens compared to high power objective. However no significant difference was observed in tumor architecture and cytoplasmic features. Conclusion: Oil immersion lens with a magnification of 1000 may be useful in difficult cases to ascertain about malignancy which is mostly based on nuclear features.


The continuous connection method of analysis of coupled shear walls assumes that the discrete system of connections, formed by lintel beams or floor slabs, may be replaced by an equivalent continuous medium. By assuming that all cross-beams have a point of contraflexure at midspan, the behavior of the system may be expressed as a single second-order differential equation, enabling a general closed solution to the problem to be obtained. The writers have extended the technique to include shearing deformations of the walls. By comparing the theoretical values of both stresses and deflections with the results from a series of tests on model walls perforated with one or two bands of openings, it is shown that the influence of the shearing deformations in the walls is much less than that of the flexibility of the joints between the walls and connecting beams.


Abstract Textiles in ancient Mesoamerica served as a critical economic resource and symbolic display of status, wealth, and social affiliation. The economic significance of textiles can be explored, in part, by the archaeological identification and distribution of production tools: spinning and weaving implements. In the Maya area, however, few studies have examined the organization of textile production, and systematic documentation of tool distributions is lacking. This paper reviews previous archaeological research on Maya textile production and introduces new data from the Classic-period site of Motul de San José, Guatemala. These data complement current understandings of Classic Maya household economies by stressing the relative economic autonomy of households from the state in textile production and the heterogeneity of productive strategies within and between different households. Such heterogeneity is expressed, at least in the case of Motul de San José, by more intensive or larger-scale production conducted by large, elite households than by small, commoner households. This finding implies that textile production for tribute was not a central concern among lower-status groups in this area as it was among many Postclassic- and Contact-period commoners in Mesoamerica. Rather, Classic-period Maya royal and elite individuals were able to bolster further their economic and social standings through textile production because they had easier access to resources or surplus labor found in or associated with their own households.


Benefited from the booming social network, reading posts from other users overinternet is becoming one of commonest ways for people to intake information. Onemay also have noticed that sometimes we tend to focus on users provide well-foundedanalysis, rather than those merely who vent their emotions. This thesis aims atfinding a simple and efficient way to recognize reliable information sources amongcountless internet users by examining the sentiments from their past posts.To achieve this goal, the research utilized a dataset of tweets about Apples stockprice retrieved from Twitter. Key features we studied include post-date, user name,number of followers of that user, and the sentiment of that tweet. Prior to makingfurther use of the dataset, tweets from users who do not have sufficient posts arefiltered out. To compare user sentiments and the derivative of Apples stock price, weuse Pearson correlation between them for to describe how well each user performs.Then we iteratively increase the weight of reliable users and lower the weight ofuntrustworthy users, the correlation between overall sentiment and the derivative ofstock price will finally converge. The final correlations for individual users are theirperformance scores. Due to the chaos of real world data, manual segmentation viadata visualization is also proposed as a denoise method to improve performance.Besides our method, other metrics can also be considered as user trust index, suchas numbers of followers of each user. Experiments are conducted to prove that ourmethod out performs others. With simple input, this method can be applied on awide range of topics including election, economy, and job market.


Cultural identity is something that impacts the individual, shaping and influencing them, during their lifetime journey. Each person chooses to embrace that identity differently. For my thesis, I investigated pre-Columbian culture and it's rich history, specifically source visuals of faces as symbolic forms integrated into my visual study. Exploring: various media, elements that are expressive of national identity, image-making techniques, and my graphic design knowledge as vehicles in my work to uncover a different point of view of my own cultural heritage. The process of finding new graphic representations of traditional pre-Columbian faces, while deconstructing and reconstructing their structure and re-contextualizing into a unique contemporary visual vocabulary, was one of my main goals. This exploration helped me better understand those images that I have carried with me since I was a child, but mostly guided me in the right direction of sharing them with my audience which has never been exposed to pre-Columbian symbols and icons. As a graphic designer, I wanted to share the beauty and rich ethnic traits of my culture. I had a story to tell and I had an obligation and responsibility to tell that story through what I know best, graphic design. I believe that exploring our identity can help us communicate our unique individuality and can be used as a source of inspiration and national pride to tell a unique story. In addition, my goal was to not only challenge myself as an artist while developing an in-depth academic body of work.


I offer a normative argument for a collaborative approach to teaching ethical issues in the sciences. Teaching science ethics requires expertise in at least two knowledge domains—the relevant science(s) and philosophical ethics. Accomplishing the aims of ethics education, while ensuring that science ethics discussions remain grounded in the best empirical science, can generally best be done through collaboration between a scientist and an ethicist. Ethics as a discipline is in danger of being misrepresented or distorted if presented by someone who lacks appropriate disciplinary training and experience. While there are exceptions, I take philosophy to be the most appropriate disciplinary domain in which to gain training in ethics teaching. Science students, who must be prepared to engage with many science ethics issues, are poorly served if their education includes a misrepresentation of ethics or specific issues. Students are less well prepared to engage specific issues in science ethics if they lack an appreciation of the resources the discipline of ethics provides. My collaborative proposal looks at a variety of ways scientists and ethicists might collaborate in the classroom to foster good science ethics education.


India's "Look East" policy was launched in the early 1990s as part of a concerted effort to elevate the strategic importance of Southeast Asia in the country's foreign policy agenda. The policy has been described as going through various phases, with an accelerated pace and process of interaction in moving from one phase to the next, marked by a broadening and deepening of India's interaction with the region. This has culminated in the most recent "phase" under the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which has rebranded the policy as "Act East" to signify a more pro-active and action-oriented approach towards the region. However, has there been any real and substantive change in India's engagement with Southeast Asia in moving from one "phase" to the next? Does this narrative of phases in India's post-Cold War engagement with Southeast Asia hold any substance? This article deconstructs the narrative of phases in India's Look East and now Act East policy and argues that India's eastward engagement has not been a process of simple linear progression. As such, while the concept of phases in India's Look East policy serves as a useful narrative device, it does not capture the nuances of India's post-Cold War re-engagement with Southeast Asia, which has been far more complex than this narrative suggests.


The Dabie Mountains represent a fault-bounded, coesite-bearing eclogite gneissic terrane within the collisional belt between the Sino-Korean and Yangtze cratons. The following geologic evidence indicates that this terrane has been subjected to regional ultrahigh-pressure metamorphism. (1) The country rocks have a metamorphic pressure-temperature evolution compatible with that of the eclogites, on the basis of the occurrence of quartz pseudomorphs after coesite, calcite pseudomorphs after aragonite, relict high-pressure assemblages in different rock types of the country rocks, and consistent, comparable compositional zonations of garnets in both country rocks and eclogites. (2) Peak metamorphic pressure-temperature conditions consistently decrease both from east to west in the collisional belt and from north to south in the Dabie Mountains, and clockwise pressure-temperature paths are common for eclogites over the region. (3) Layered eclogites interbedded with gneisses and amphibolites contain omphacite, kyanite, and garnet, indicating a minimum pressure of 20 kbar at 600 °C for formation of these rocks.


Schumpeter maintained that oscillations of macroeconomic variables are only the "secondary wave" of business cycles, a reflex of more fundamental "primary waves" at the microeconomic level caused by the innovating activity of entrepreneurs. Blending Schumpeter's concern for innovation with Keynes' concern for uncertainty and expectation formation, this article focuses on the behaviour of entrepreneurs in front of the uncertainty caused by innovation. Entrepreneurs' behaviour is reconstructed modelling the functioning of their cognitive processes when technological novelties appear. The avalanche process that generates a macroeconomic wave out of the microeconomic behaviour of single entrepreneurs is described as a selforganisation phenomenon. A rudimentary business cycle model is set forth, its qualitative behaviour is analysed by means of a potential function, and simulations are presented. While the basic model produces oscillations only because new technologies force entrepreneurs to change their confidence in the future, a more sophisticated version considers the effect of labour force, too.


Summary
This article re-examines the hypothesis, first proposed by Shepherd (Search, 6(11-12), 1975, 484), that Phytophthora cinnamomi is an ancient organism in Australia and New Guinea. It further evaluates data that suggest the A1 mating type is Gondwanan in origin and may have been present in New Guinea for up to 10 million years. It is postulated that there has been a mating type change in P. cinnamomi from A1 to A2 in relatively recent times as a result of genetic transformation of the A1 mating type.


5G, as the next generation telecommunications architecture that aims to tackle the explosion of connected devices, services and access technologies, will heavily rely on Software Defined Mechanisms (SDN) to compose its underlying mechanisms. Notwithstanding, despite the need for novel control procedures to support and optimize increasingly challenging wireless mobile scenarios, SDN has been being deployed at the core and backhaul sections of the network and is not actively considering its impact directly over the wireless mobile terminals themselves. The challenges associated with the extension of SDN protocols, such as Open Flow, all the way to the terminal requires the design and evaluation of frameworks that not only provide such mechanisms, but actually evaluate them and their benefits. This paper explores a framework where SDN mechanisms are extended all the way to the mobile node, in heterogeneous wireless environments featuring different mobile nodes with multiple data flows, which act both as consumers and producers of information. In this way, flow-based mobility management becomes available to the network controller entity, through the Open Flow protocol, allowing as well the assistance of the mobile nodes in the execution of the mobility procedure. The concept framework was implemented over a physical wireless test bed, validating its contribution in a mobile source-mobility use case, with results highlighting the promising benefits of extending SDN approaches for end-to-end flow control in wireless environments.


Cross-language learning allows one to use training data from one language to build models for a different language. Many approaches to bilingual learning require that we have word-level alignment of sentences from parallel corpora. In this work we explore the use of autoencoder-based methods for cross-language learning of vectorial word representations that are coherent between two languages, while not relying on word-level alignments. We show that by simply learning to reconstruct the bag-of-words representations of aligned sentences, within and between languages, we can in fact learn high-quality representations and do without word alignments. We empirically investigate the success of our approach on the problem of cross-language text classification, where a classifier trained on a given language (e.g., English) must learn to generalize to a different language (e.g., German). In experiments on 3 language pairs, we show that our approach achieves state-of-the-art performance, outperforming a method exploiting word alignments and a strong machine translation baseline.


Environmental resource management policies worldwide have long insisted on the need to involve local communities and their diverse ecological knowledges in management planning and decision-making. In SubSaharan post-colonial countries, however, formal resource management is still largely dominated by bureaucratic governance regimes that date back to colonial power structures and that rely mainly on professional or formal knowledge. In this study, we use a political ecology approach to analyze disputes over eucalyptus plantations in the Taita Hills, Kenya. The approach recognizes the plurality of socially constructed and powerladen perceptions of environmental resources. We found that local people regard eucalyptus plantations not only as a threat to local water resources but they also highlight historical injustices and the loss of control over, and cultural relationships to their land. Bureaucratic resource management institutions, however, support the planting of eucalyptus to meet national demands for commercial forestry. Management officials also plead a lack of "valid" evidence for the negative impacts of eucalyptus on local water resources, diverting attention away from the formal environmental governance system which has unequal sharing of benefits, unclear policies, and internal incoherence. Recognition of historically rooted asymmetries of knowledge and power provides a step towards social transformation, ending a long-standing reproduction of subalternity, and promoting environmental justice and pluralism in decision-making. Keywords: bureaucratic knowledge; environmental justice; eucalyptus; Kenya; knowledge asymmetries; local ecological knowledge; political ecology; resource management


Low-Photoluminescence Hollow Waveguide Platforms for High-sensitivity Integrated Optical Sensors Yue Zhao Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, BYU Doctor of Philosophy This dissertation presents research on the fabrication of optofluidic sensor platforms, which consist of integrated hollow waveguides and solid waveguides. Antiresonant reflecting optical waveguides (ARROWs) filled with liquids or gases, can be used for high-sensitivity sensing in applications of biotechnology, chemical synthesis, and analytical chemistry. The fabrication method developed for integrated ARROW sensing platforms utilizes standard microfabrication processes and materials. Dielectric cladding layers are deposited on a silicon wafer using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) or sputtering. A sacrificial material is then patterned over the bottom cladding layers by photolithography. Additional dielectric layers are deposited around the core, forming the structure of the waveguides. Integrated solid-core waveguides can be easily created by etching a ridge into the topmost dielectric cladding layer. The hollow core waveguides are then formed by wet etching the sacrificial core material. The coupling efficiency between solid core and hollow core waveguides is extremely important for the platform's overall sensitivity. Efficiencies can be enhanced from 18% to 67% by adjusting the thickness of the thick top oxide. Experimental results prove that optical throughput was improved by 17.1× with this improved interface transmission. Sputtered films were investigated as an alternative to for producing cladding layers. The experimental results reveal that sputtered layers show poor adhesion and mechanical strength which make them unreliable for hollow waveguides with small dimension. High-sensitivity ARROW platforms were obtained by employing hybrid layers (PECVD SiO2 and sputtered Ta2O5) as claddings and building waveguides on self-aligned pedestals. The photolumiscence background was only 1/10 that of previous devices made with SiO2/SiN and the average signal-to-noise ratio was improved by 12×.


The concept of stereotype is novel in the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The ECtHR has started to refer to stereotypes in several recent judgments concerning, notably, race and gender equality. In contrast, anti-stereotyping has long been a central feature of both American and Canadian equal protection law. Offering a comparison of the legal reasoning of the ECtHR and the U.S. and Canadian Supreme Courts, this Article uncovers both the pitfalls and the potential of the stereotype concept to advance transformative equality.

 It is hard to develop a proper legal response to stereotyping, as not all stereotypes are bad and, moreover, laws are inevitably based on generalizations. At a minimum, this Article argues, courts should name stereotypes well and carefully examine their harm. This comparative analysis shows that, at its best, legal reasoning can expose and target the invidious cycle wherein stereotyping and discrimination perpetuate each other. Both the U.S. Supreme Court and its Canadian counterpart, however, show a tendency to equate stereotypes with unfair generalizations. This Article cautions against that. Stereotypes can indeed be inaccurate or negative, but they can also be statistically correct, or prescriptive. When stereotypes are conceived of too narrowly (as only raising issues of accuracy), the concept loses its ability to strengthen a transformative equality analysis.

 This Article first charts and critiques the emergent ECtHR case law on stereotypes. It then offers a fresh analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the U.S. and Canadian Supreme Courts' treatment of stereotypes. Two deceptively simple questions will form the leitmotif throughout the comparison: (i) how do these courts conceive of stereotypes, and (ii) given that stereotyping is not necessarily always negative or problematic, how do these courts determine whether the application of a stereotype is invidious? It concludes by exploring what the ECtHR can borrow from American and Canadian equal protection analysis.


Introduction: Given the recent constraints imposed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the importance of the daily light-dark cycle for entraining the human circadian system, it is possible to state that the elderly are likely to be at serious risk of experiencing sleep-related problems. Whilst reduced or limited time outdoors, and thus, exposure to diurnal bright light appear to be detrimental to sleep and emotional well-being in old age, further research is required to confirm this relationship. Materials and Method: To build on earlier work, a two-week study was conducted in a sample of 79 community-dwelling older adults recruited by using snowball sampling method. Throughout the study, the participants were allowed to be outdoors from 10.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. on weekdays. Whilst the participants were performing their daily habitual activities, they were asked to keep an activity diary and report on their sleep quality and emotional wellbeing using two questionnaires. Results: The results demonstrated that participants' daily time spent outdoors (49.13 minutes on average) positively correlated with their perceived sleep quality and emotional well-being at various –– but significant –– levels (p<0.05). Moreover, significant negative correlations were identified between participants' sleep quality and experienced emotional disturbances (p<0.001). Conclusion: Based on the research findings, it is reasonable to conclude that spending momentary periods outdoors may have adverse consequences for the elderly. To maintain a healthy sleep-wake cycle and alleviate related emotional problems in old age, increasing outdoor time and diurnal bright light exposure should be encouraged.


Abstract : A growing number of states have created multiple fusion centers, including California. In addition to having a state fusion center, California has four regional centers statewide. Each center is separately governed, but intended to work together as a unified, statewide system. Given their recognized autonomy, the relationship between California's fusion centers is voluntary and "horizontal" versus "hierarchical," with no single entity in charge. Consequently, the attainment and sustainment of a robust and synchronized partnership between California's fusion centers is dependent upon each center's commitment to collaborate. Current research has focused largely on building collaboration within fusion centers, as opposed to between fusion centers. This research seeks to identify the appropriate role and mission of California's state fusion center as it relates to strengthening stakeholder relationships, collaboration, and sustainability, through the analysis of data captured from California's regional centers, sheriffs and police chiefs, and examining the roles and methods of other state fusion centers in states with multiple centers. From this research, this thesis recommends a series of collaborative initiatives intended to help strengthen intra-state fusion center collaboration, more properly align state and regional fusion center efforts, and enhance sustainability through maintained relevancy and added value to stakeholders and customers.


A molecular model of DNA, that has been shown to reproduce hybridization, is used here to study the transition from two single-stranded molecules to a double-helical complex in situations where one strand is attached to a surface. Transition Path Sampling simulations reveal that hybridization is initiated by forming specific contacts between distinct bases of the molecule. Molecules with repetitive sequences form double helices by sliding along each other after having formed initial contacts. For random sequences, it is shown that the pathway that molecules follow to hybridization depends on the linker length as well as the temperature, and is significantly different from that observed in the bulk.


The first generic and climatological aerosol retrievals using AirMISR data are presented. Multiangle observations at 672 and 867 nm, in a cloud-free region over dark water in Monterey Bay on June 29, 1999, yield complementary generic and climatological results. The generic retrieval produces cross-section-weighted, column-mean aerosol properties: midvisible aerosol optical depth between 0.05 and 0.10, with a preference for values on the low side of the range, particle number-mean characteristic radius between 0.25 and 0.45 μm, and imaginary index of refraction <0.004, with 0.0 as the most likely value. These properties correspond to a "medium-to-large, spherical" column-average particle. The climatological retrieval identifies a maritime air mass, having a total aerosol optical depth about 0.1, and mixing ratio for sea-salt particles (large, spherical) of 50%, based on optical depth in MISR Band 2, and 40% for the sulfate plus carbonaceous (medium, spherical) components, to an accuracy of about ±15%. These results are in good agreement with the limited nearby surface-based and aircraft observations available. The analysis also shows that over dark water, pixel-to-pixel scene variability can contribute more to the retrieval uncertainty than camera calibration and that high spatial variance of the reflectance, in addition to geometric considerations, is a better indicator of Sun glint contamination than geometry alone. This work represents an early step toward the goal of using MISR multiangle data to add spatial detail and information about temporal variability to the global aerosol climatology.


This thesis examines the emergence of black urban subjectivity in South Africa during the 1950s, focussing on the ways in which popular American genres were utilised in the construction of black urban identities that served as a means of resistance to apartheid. At the centre of this process was Drum magazine: founded in South Africa in 195 1, it became the largest selling magazine on the African continent in 1956. Drum! s success was due to the way in which it enabled the relocation of black identity from the "traditional" towards the "niodenf'. The 1940s gave rise to widespread migration of black South Africans from rural to urban areas and this newly urbanised community was seeking models of black urban identity. Yet the Nationalist government was attempting to curtail the emergence of a black urban proletariat, which posed a threat to white political supremacy. Through apartheid legislation black identity was constructed as essentially tribal and rural. As a means of resisting this, urbanised black South Africans turned to, and appropriated, readily available forms of American culture. Drum published Americanised images, and stories: gangsters, black detectives, black comic heroes, and pulp romances. This popular material appeared alongside some of the finest investigative journalism ever published. While Drum magazine is widely acknowledged as having provided a platform for the emergence of black South African writing in English, its popular content has been dismissed by critics as apolitical escapism, imitation and capitulation to American culture. This thesis challenges the dismissal of the popular that has dominated analyses of Drum since the 1960s, arguing that such a position denies the agency of local writers and audiences. My analysis reveals that American forms were adopted in critically discerning ways and chosen for their ability to convey local meaning and create positions from which to resist apartheid.


We study algorithms using randomized value functions for exploration in reinforcement learning. This type of algorithms enjoys appealing empirical performance. We show that when we use 1) a single random seed in each episode, and 2) a Bernstein-type magnitude of noise, we obtain a worst-case $\widetilde{O}\left(H\sqrt{SAT}\right)$ regret bound for episodic time-inhomogeneous Markov Decision Process where $S$ is the size of state space, $A$ is the size of action space, $H$ is the planning horizon and $T$ is the number of interactions. This bound polynomially improves all existing bounds for algorithms based on randomized value functions, and for the first time, matches the $\Omega\left(H\sqrt{SAT}\right)$ lower bound up to logarithmic factors. Our result highlights that randomized exploration can be near-optimal, which was previously achieved only by optimistic algorithms. To achieve the desired result, we develop 1) a new clipping operation to ensure both the probability of being optimistic and the probability of being pessimistic are lower bounded by a constant, and 2) a new recursive formula for the absolute value of estimation errors to analyze the regret.


Over the past 12 years, the gold bullion continues to become a significant investment. Financial advisors and analysts have recommended investors invest a small portion of their portfolio into this precious metal commodity asset. Gold mining stocks offer investors the ability to leverage volatile but rising gold prices. The expected relationship between gold price and gold stock returns is that for every 1% increase in gold prices, gold stocks can be expected to gain 2-3%. Building on a multifactor model by Faff and Chan (1998), we examine how macroeconomic factors such as market returns, the foreign exchange rate, and the interest rate affect the U.S. gold industry stock returns over the period 1996-2011. We contribute to the literature by exploring the significance of business cycle's in explaining gold stock returns.


The mean curvature vector of a surface is obtained by letting the Laplace--Beltrami operator act on the embedding of the surface in ${\bf R}^3$. In this contribution we develop a stabilized finite element approximation of the mean curvature vector of certain piecewise linear surfaces which enjoys first order convergence in $L^2$. The stabilization involves the jump in the tangent gradient in the direction of the outer co-normals at each edge in the surface mesh. We consider both standard meshed surfaces and so-called cut surfaces that are level sets of piecewise linear distance functions. We prove a priori error estimates and verify the theoretical results numerically.