Understanding the urban landscape requires familiarity with the past stories and history of the city. Cities and also urban landscape formation is affected by various factors, including environmental, historical, social, cultural, political factors. These factors may not have the same effect, and one of them may have more strong and prominent role in shaping the landscape of the city than any other factor. There are three visible historical periods (tradition, socialism and independence) in the Caucasian cities (Armenia and Georgia), which were play a more prominent role in the construction of urban landscape. The Soviet government has more effective role in changing the urban landscape of the region throughout a special look at the philosophy of socialism. Socialist governments have been planning and designing a special framework in order to establishing equality among people, which caused major changes in the landscape of the cities and its components. In this era, communal spaces as interactive space of a city had turned into a turning point with anthropocentric scale, which were only used for political gatherings. This paper emphasized that the success of urban communal spaces rooted in behavior patterns and needs of their citizens, and must be founded based on a human-centered and community-centered approach, something that has not happened in the Caucasian cities. Today, citie's authorities trying to organized urban places of the region with a similar approach and goal of globalization with imitation of European cities, regardless of the customs and traditions of the people of this country. Although, cities that traditional behavior patterns has been flowed in the people lifes, just have a expository and propagandistic look without any common and shared soul, and there aren't any community-centered thought and design in their construction.


Rasvumite and "loparite-(Ce)" from the Mont Saint-Hilaire alkaline complex in Quebec were re-examined using a variety of analytical techniques. Rasvumite crystals from a marble xenolith and tawite ("sodalite xenolith") entrained in nepheline syenite contain significant amounts of Rb and Cs (up to 7.2 and 2.6 wt.%, respectively). Our data indicate that these elements are more compatible with respect to rasvumite than sodalite, tainiolite, or perovskite-type phases. Cubo-octahedral crystals and penetration twins of "loparite-(Ce)" from the tawite comprise {100} growth sectors composed of loparite-(Ce) and {111} sectors composed of lueshite; the proportion of Na 0.5 Ce 0.5 TiO 3 and NaNbO 3 components varies by ≥15 mol.% between the sectors. In addition to the light rare-earth elements and Ti, the {100} sectors are enriched in K, Sr, Ba, Y, Th, U, Fe, Si and Zr with respect to the {111} sectors, which show higher levels of Na, Ca, Nb and Ta. Some elements (Ba, Th and U) exhibit a two-fold or greater difference in D between the sectors. Crystal-chemical analysis of the sector zoning indicates that higher-charged cations partition into surface protosites with fewer bonds satisfied (in agreement with Dowty's model). Among isovalent A -site cations, the larger partition into the {100} sectors. This observation is at variance with Dowty's predictions, but can be readily explained in terms of the relative differences in bond strength between large and small cations (estimated from their bond-valence parameters). The distribution of B -site cations is highly charge-dependent (but size-independent) and constrained mostly by heterovalent substitutions in the A site within a given sector. Comparison with the published data shows that the inter-sectorial distribution of cations in the perovskite structure is controlled not only by their charge, radius and involvement in coupled substitutions, but also by the chemistry of crystallization environment ( e.g. , availability of Nb). The implications of these data for the study of element partitioning in perovskites are discussed. The loparite-lueshite intergrowths and Rb-Cs-rich rasvumite in the tawite are interpreted to have crystallized in equilibrium with sodalite, aegirine and tainiolite from halogen-rich peralkaline magma. The tawite and its host nepheline syenite may have formed from cognate immiscible magmas, as proposed earlier by Piilonen, McDonald and Lalonde.


The wide deployment of wireless sensor and RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) devices is one of the key enablers for next-generation pervasive computing applications, including large-scale environmental monitoring and control, context-aware computing, and "smart digital homes". Sensory readings are inherently unreliable and typically exhibit strong temporal and spatial correlations (within and across different sensing devices); effective reasoning over such unreliable streams introduces a host of new data management challenges. The Data Furnace project at Intel Research and UC-Berkeley aims to build a probabilistic data management infrastructure for pervasive computing environments that handles the uncertain nature of such data as a first-class citizen through a principled framework grounded in probabilistic models and inference techniques.


The paradigm of Human Computation has grown rapidly in recent years and has thus sparked great interest in both the industry and the research community. In this survey, we give an overview of the state-of-the-art of human computation in the context of data, information, and knowledge management (DIKM). On the one hand, we study how to use human intelligence to solve computation problems in DIKM applications such as data acquisition, data analysis, data curation, data storage, and data usage. On the other hand, we study how to help computational systems to solve human problems by understanding human needs. Towards this goal, we cover the kinds of human-computation systems; the various techniques for design and dissemination of tasks for human interaction; the methods employed for reconciling human inputs against given tasks and determining the quality of those inputs; and the various kinds of applications based on human computation.


Virtualization is a core concept in modern computing systems and clients place a vast amount of trust in the virtualization system to provide essential security guarantees such as data confidentiality and software integrity. A virtualization system's unlimited access to software and data in virtual environments presents a genuine scientific challenge. The Trusted Computing Module (TPM) as part of a trusted platform can be used to establish trust in a computer and we discuss challenges and present solutions related to establishing trust in a virtual environment.


Whether literally or suggestively, the concept of soundscape is alluded in both modern and ancient music. In this study, we examine whether we can analyze and compare Western and Chinese classical music based on soundscape models. We addressed this question through a comparative study. Specifically, corpora of Western classical music excerpts (WCMED) and Chinese classical music excerpts (CCMED) were curated and annotated with emotional valence and arousal through a crowdsourcing experiment. We used a sound event detection (SED) and soundscape emotion recognition (SER) models with transfer learning to predict the perceived emotion of WCMED and CCMED. The results show that both SER and SED models could be used to analyze Chinese and Western classical music. The fact that SER and SED work better on Chinese classical music emotion recognition provides evidence that certain similarities exist between Chinese classical music and soundscape recordings, which permits transferability between machine learning models.


Abstract Aquatic fungal colonization dynamics and seasonal patterns were investigated in two sites in Catamaran Brook, New Brunswick, Canada, as part of a larger study to evaluate logging effects on a salmon stream. Four leaf-pack trials were conducted between May 1995 and Dec 1996 to determine species composition of the fungal community, the seasonal pattern of colonization on decaying maple leaves, and what effects, if any, invertebrate feeding and logging activities might have on community structure. Contrary to expectation, neither mesh size (i.e., invertebrate presence or absence) nor preliminary logging activity (road construction near one site) had a consistent effect on community structure. Time of immersion of the leaves in the stream, followed by season, were the major factors controlling community structure. Spore production and species diversity measures were highest during the middle part of the colonization period (generally 4–8 wk of immersion in summer trials and 2–4 wk immersion in the autumn trial), and were also higher in the autumn (Sep to Dec) than in the summer trials. Forty-five species of hyphomycetes were recorded during the study period, although 6 taxa (Alatospora acuminata, Anguillospora filiformis, Articulospora tetracladia, Geniculospora inflata, Lunulospora cymbiformis, and a sigmoid species, probably Flagellospora curvula) made up nearly 95% of all identified spores. A total of 35 species were found during the autumn trial, compared to 27 in each of the two summer trials, and 25 during a winter trial. Colonization dynamics also varied with season, but generally there were three main colonization patterns; some taxa were only present or showed highest abundance very early in the colonization period, most arrived or peaked during intermediate stages of leaf decay, and a few were characteristic of the latest stages.


Mountain worship and sanshin (mountain gods) legends are intrinsic to Korean culture. Central for narratives of anti-colonial struggle and contemporary policy of North Korea, Mt. Paektu also became a symbol of Korean national identity in South Korean popular culture. This paper engages two legends sited there, suggesting that their main protagonists represent contemporary sanshin. Firstly we consider the image of Kim Chŏng-suk of North Korea, and those narratives addressing her husband, Kim Il-sŏng's guerrilla resistance in terrains surrounding Paektu. As a bodyguard of Kim Il-sŏng and a champion of revolutionary struggle, Kim Chŏng-suk transcends her human nature, and embodies female presence on Mt. Paektu. Secondly the paper investigates narrative from contemporary South Korean practice GiCheon (氣天 Kich'ŏn), intended for physical and moral cultivation of a person, reinvented in modernity on the basis of ancient East-Asian traditions. It recounts a mythic meeting of Bodhidharma with the Immortal Woman of Heaven (天仙女 Ch'ŏnsŏnyŏ) dwelling at Mt. Paektu. The Woman of Heaven overpowers Bodhidharma in battle, challenging patriarchal gender conceptions and contesting Chinese cultural superiority. Examined together, these two narratives demonstrate common cultural background. Ancient tradition, passed down from past to present, continuously accumulates and transforms, acquiring new forms in South and North Korean contexts.


Scientists can gain insights into new ways to use microorganisms in medicine and manufacturing through a coordinated large-scale effort to sequence the genomes of not just individual microorganisms but entire ecosystems, according to a new report from the American Academy of Microbiology that outlines recommendations for this massive effort. The report, "Large-Scale Sequencing: The Future of Genomic Sciences?" is based on a colloquium convened by the Academy in September 2008. The report outlines recommendations for large-scale microbial sequencing efforts directed toward cultivated isolates and single cells, as well as a community-scale approach to characterize a set of defined ecosystems of varying complexity.


Background: Metabolic syndrome is characterized by a pronounced sympathetic overactivity as documented by the marked increase in muscle sympathetic nerve traffic (MSNA) as well as in plasma norepinephrine values reported in this condition. Whether and to what extent heart rate (HR) reflects the abovementioned adrenergic alterations in metabolic syndrome remains largely undefined. It is also undefined the validity of the abovementioned adrenergic markers in reflecting the main features of the metabolic syndrome. Methods: In 65 metabolic syndrome patients, aged 56.5 ± 1.3 years (mean ± SEM), we measured over a 30-min resting period blood pressure, HR (ECG), venous plasma norepinephrine (HPLC) and MSNA (microneurography). We also evaluated anthropometric and metabolic variables including HOMA index, correlating them with the adrenergic markers. The same measurements were also made in 48 age-matched healthy controls. Results: HR was significantly greater in the metabolic syndrome patients than in controls (74.6 ± 1.5 versus 67.5 ± 1.5 bpm, P < 0.001) and significantly and directly correlated with the elevated norepinephrine and MSNA values (r = 0.25 and 0.33, P < 0.05 and 0.01, respectively). MSNA was significantly and directly related to blood pressure (r = 0.27 and 0.31 SBP and DBP, respectively, P < 0.05 for both), BMI (r = 0.36, P < 0.01), waist circumference (r = 0.34, P < 0.01), waist-to-hip ratio (r = 0.49, P < 0.01) and plasma insulin (r = 0.57, P < 0.01). In contrast, no significant correlation was detectable between HR or norepinephrine and the abovementioned anthropometric and metabolic variables. Conclusion: Our data show that in the metabolic syndrome not only peripheral but also cardiac sympathetic drive is markedly potentiated and HR can be regarded as a marker of adrenergic overdrive characterizing this clinical condition. The reliability of HR (and of plasma norepinephrine) as sympathetic marker appears to be limited, however, this variable being unable to reflect, at variance from MSNA, the main metabolic and anthropometric abnormalities characterizing the metabolic syndrome.


The current research quantified individual participation in a jury deliberation in an
attempt to predict rates of involvement as a function of situational and personality
characteristics. Measured level of juror bias and conscientiousness resulted in accurate
predictions for rates of participation. Furthermore, the study supports previous juror
research. The methodology for quantifying and controlling factors in a deliberation are
highlighted. Implications for a willingness to influence are discussed as well.


Livestock, especially ruminant, production is an important component of farming systems in upland areas of the Philippines. Moreover, since upland agriculture is becoming unsustainable because of soil erosion and productivity of crops is limited by poor soils, livestock production is a particularly valuable source of income to complement crop production. Farmers rely heavily on livestock to provide a source of savings, cash income, draft power and nutritious food. Nevertheless, scarcity and poor quality of feed are major constraints to improved livestock productivity in upland areas. Introduction of planted forages in these systems has the potential to increase substantially the quality and quantity of available forages, thus providing fodder to supplement low-quality naturally occurring forages and crop residues; concurrently, forage plants promote sustainability by improving soil quality and reducing soil erosion. Adoption of forages by smallholder farmers in the rainfed upland areas of the Philippines is conditioned by the dual-purpose role of forage plants. A number of forage species have been used as contour hedgerow species for the reduction of soil erosion. These include Gliricidia sepium, Leucaena leucocephala, Setaria spp ., napier grass ( Pennisetum purpureum ) and vetiver grass ( Vetiveria zizanioides ). These species were chosen as hedgerow species because of their value as fodder for livestock, in addition to their roles in reducing soil erosion, controlling weed growth, and improving and stabilising fallow areas. A number of constraints affect the widespread adoption of forages for use as hedgerow species by smallholder farmers in the Philippine uplands. These factors include: the limited availability of seed; high mortality amongst the forage species planted; a lack of collective action; and the high initial cost of investment. Insufficient attention has been given to policy and socio-economic factors affecting adoption of forages. For example, the effects of socio-economic factors such as human capital (education, age), income and access to institutions ( e.g . credit and extension) have not been studied in association with the adoption of forage species. Therefore, policy and technology options to address these issues are warranted. This paper uses an econometric approach ( i.e. probit) to identify the factors affecting adoption of forages by smallholder farmers in the upland areas of the Philippines, using data from a survey conducted in 1996 by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). The survey examined farmers who had adopted contour hedgerow technology at 2 upland sites, Cebu, Visayas and Claveria, Mindanao, the Philippines.


Focusing mainly on the Mappila Muslim trading family of the Arackal Ali Rajas, this book throws light on the repercussions of European commercial expansion on the traditional socio-political relations in the South Indian kigdom of Cannanore during the early-modern period.


Concerns for sustainable development and poverty alleviation are forcing public agricultural research systems to focus on improving livelihoods security. Crop-livestock production systems are central to the livelihood security of the rural poor in India and some other countries of the tropics. With increasing population, urbanisation and incomes, massive increases are foreseen in demands for livestock products, leading to a livestock revolution. This will present associated challenges and opportunities to the research and policy systems like those that followed the green revolution in crops. The challenges would be different as the importance of livestock for livelihoods security is more in marginal rainfed and arid ecosystems. This paper develops a research policy framework for planning for a livestock revolution and discusses the implications for research and institutional reform.


We present the first results from a survey carried out over the second quarter of 2009 examining how theories in object-oriented design are understood and used by software developers. We collected 3785 responses from software developers world-wide, which we believe is the largest survey of its kind. We targeted the use of encapsulation, class size as measured by number of methods, and depth of a class in the inheritance hierarchy. We found that, while overall practitioners followed advice on encapsulation, there was some variation of adherence to it. For class size and depth there was substantially less agreement with expert advice. In addition, inconsistencies were found within the use and perception of object-oriented concepts within the investigated group of developers. The results of this survey has deep reaching consequences for both practitioners and researchers as they highlight and confirm central issues.


Facebook recently deployed Facebook Messages, its first ever user-facing application built on the Apache Hadoop platform. Apache HBase is a database-like layer built on Hadoop designed to support billions of messages per day. This paper describes the reasons why Facebook chose Hadoop and HBase over other systems such as Apache Cassandra and Voldemort and discusses the application's requirements for consistency, availability, partition tolerance, data model and scalability. We explore the enhancements made to Hadoop to make it a more effective realtime system, the tradeoffs we made while configuring the system, and how this solution has significant advantages over the sharded MySQL database scheme used in other applications at Facebook and many other web-scale companies. We discuss the motivations behind our design choices, the challenges that we face in day-to-day operations, and future capabilities and improvements still under development. We offer these observations on the deployment as a model for other companies who are contemplating a Hadoop-based solution over traditional sharded RDBMS deployments.


One aspect of model behaviour that is of interest to the model builder is sensitivity to different forms of errors. This can be investigated using stochastic simulations, as shown by Gajda [1995]. The method involves generating random numbers from a given (usually normal) distribution and introducing them as shocks to the model. In particular, stochastic simulations can be employed to make an empirical investigation into the following aspects of the model: the effects on the forecast of random disturbances, the effects on the forecast of random variation in equation parameters (sampling errors), error propagation and accumulation patterns in the model, the effects on the forecast of (random) errors in the exogenous variables. The results of stochastic simulations can provide information on - inter alia - the sampling distribution of the model forecast. In particular, the model builder may be interested in the shape of this distribution. If it is not symmetric, the mean (stochastic) forecast will be different from the median forecast (which under certain conditions is equal to the deterministic forecast). Furthermore, if the distribution is skewed, a typical stochastic forecast (represented by the mode) will systematically underestimate (or overestimate) both the mean and the median forecasts. The purpose of the present paper is to investigate KOSMOS, the econometric model of the National Institute of Economic Research in Stockholm, from the point of view of the first three aspects mentioned above. The main aim of this exercise is to look for "weak links" in the model, i.e. to find out which equations introduce most uncertainty and at the same time are crucial for the forecast because of their strong influence on it. Thus, our interest is not only in assessing the forecast error variance as a descriptive statistic, but also - and primarily - in finding those equations that are important for error propagation and those coefficients whose values are crucial for the model. The outline of the paper is as follows. Section 2 discusses the analysis of expected forecast errors (for linear models) based on analytical formulae. In Section 3, model simulations and stochastic simulations are defined. The two subsequent sections discuss the purpose of our experiments and their design, respectively. Section 6 gives a brief description of the econometric model KOSMOS, whose equations are subject to our investigation. Section 7 describes the results of stochastic simulations with additive equation disturbances. Section 8 presents the results of stochastic simulations with both equation disturbances and disturbances to the estimated coefficients. Sampling distributions of forecasts are discussed in Section 9. Section 10 concludes.


Despite an urgency to expand opportunities to learn science, historically, little attention has been paid to science education in the elementary years. While there are no clear standards or universally accepted expectations for elementary science methods courses, science in the elementary grades is starting to receive more attention due to an understanding that it is crucial that young learners have opportunities to build a strong foundation in science prior to middle school. Recent works have supported the case that young children are powerful thinkers who are capable of sophisticated scientific reasoning and that our models and assumptions of reaching elementary children need to be examined. In this paper we explain how this new emphasis on elementary science education and recent research on the needs of preservice teacher education programs to address these issues has guided our science education faculty to develop a new model for science teacher preparation here in Washington State, Methods of Research-based Education for Teachers (M.O.R.E.).


Objectives : The detection of cancer micrometastasis for early diagnosis and treatment poses a great challenge for conventional imaging techniques. The aim of study is to evaluate the performance of photoacoustic imaging (PAI) in detecting hepatic micrometastases from melanoma in a very early stage and perform tumor resection by intraoperative photoacoustic image-guidance. Methods : In vivo studies were performed by following protocols approved by the Ethical Committee for Animal Research at Xiamen University. First, a B16 melanoma hepatic metastasis mouse model (n = 10) was established to study the development of micrometastases in vivo. Next, the hepatic metastasis mice models were imaged by scalable PAI instrument, ultrasound, 9.4 T high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), and bioluminescence imaging. Photoacoustic images acquired with optical wavelengths spanning from 680 to 850 nm were spectrally unmixed by using a linear least-squares method to differentiate various components. Differences in the signal-to-background ratios among different modalities were determined with the two-tailed paired t test. The diagnosis results were assessed with histologic examinations. Excised liver samples from patients diagnosed with hepatic cancer were also examined to identify tumor boundary. In viv o metastatic melanoma removal in surgery was precisely guided by the portable PAI system. Results : PAI achieved as small as ~400 µm hepatic melanoma detection at a depth up to 7 mm in vivo, which could early detect small melanoma compared with ultrasound and MRI in mouse models. The signal ratio of tumor-to-liver acquired with PAI in micrometastases at 8 days (4.2 ± 0.2, n = 6) and 14 days (9.2 ± 0.4, n = 5) were significantly higher than those obtained with PET/CT (1.8 ± 0.1, n = 5 and 4.5 ± 0.2, n = 5, P <0.001 for both). Functional PAI provided dynamic oxygen saturation changes during tumor growth. The limit of detection was measured to be approximately 219 successfully performed intraoperative photoacoustic image-guided surgery in vivo using the rapid portable PAI system. Conclusions : Our findings offer a rapid and effective tool to noninvasively detect micrometastases and guide intraoperative resection as a complementary clinical imaging application.


Abstract The neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a promising biomarker of neuronal injury which is approaching routine clinical use. With the development of ultra-sensitive technologies, NfL has become measurable in the peripheral blood but the reference interval for serum NfL remains to be established. NfL was measured by a single-molecule array (Simoa™) analysis under internal and external quality control which is established for routine clinical use. Serum samples from 342 reference subjects, 18−87 years were analyzed. The age-partitioned reference interval was established according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines, an approximation of the upper reference interval limit per 10-year age-groups was performed, and key pre-analytical properties were examined. Serum NfL levels increased 2.9% per year. The non-parametric reference interval for the age groups 18−40, 41−65, and >65 years were 2.8−9.7 ng/L, 4.6 − 21.4 ng/L, and 7.5−53.8 ng/L, respectively. The estimated upper reference interval limits per 10-year intervals corresponded well with the 90% confidence limits of the non-parametric reference interval. The recovery of serum NfL after seven days at room temperature or three freeze-thaw cycles were 93% (95% CI: 89%−97%) and 92% (95% CI: 83%−102%) and levels in serum were only slightly higher than levels in plasma (p < .0001). The study establishes the serum NfL reference interval, provide estimated upper reference intevral limits in 10-year intervals to increase the clinical applicability and uncover pre-analytical properties that make serum NfL feasible for clinical use.


We introduce a method to generate vectorial representations of visual classification tasks which can be used to reason about the nature of those tasks and their relations. Given a dataset with ground-truth labels and a loss function, we process images through a "probe network" and compute an embedding based on estimates of the Fisher information matrix associated with the probe network parameters. This provides a fixed-dimensional embedding of the task that is independent of details such as the number of classes and requires no understanding of the class label semantics. We demonstrate that this embedding is capable of predicting task similarities that match our intuition about semantic and taxonomic relations between different visual tasks. We demonstrate the practical value of this framework for the meta-task of selecting a pre-trained feature extractor for a novel task. We present a simple meta-learning framework for learning a metric on embeddings that is capable of predicting which feature extractors will perform well on which task. Selecting a feature extractor with task embedding yields performance close to the best available feature extractor, with substantially less computational effort than exhaustively training and evaluating all available models.


The most accurate stereo disparity algorithms take dozens or hundreds of seconds to process a single frame. This timescale is impractical for many applications. However, high accuracy is often not needed throughout the scene. Here, we investigate a "foveation" approach (in which some parts of an image are processed more intensively than others) in the context of modern stereo algorithms. We consider two scenarios: disparity estimation with a convolutional network in a robotic grasping context, and disparity estimation with a Markov random field in a navigation context. In each case, combining fast and slow methods in different parts of the scene improves frame rates while maintaining accuracy in the most task-relevant areas. We also demonstrate a simple and broadly applicable utility function for choosing foveal regions, which combines image and task information. Finally, we characterize the benefits of defining multiple individually placed small foveae per image, rather than a single large fovea. We find little benefit, supporting the use of hardware foveae of fixed size and shape. More generally, our results reaffirm that foveation is a practical way to combine speed with task-relevant accuracy. Foveae are present in the most complex biological vision systems, suggesting that they may become more important in artificial vision systems, as these systems become more complex.


This article describes the drama-based research strategy 'researcher-in-role', developed during the two-year Connecting Curriculum, Connecting Learning project, based in New Zealand. First, a definition of researcher-in-role is offered along with a survey of relevant literature. Then the evolution and implementation of the strategy within the project is described, and the importance of clear signalling and implications for notions of 'informed consent' are explored. Next, the paper shares the data generated where researcher-in-role was used during learning conversations with students. Responses to the researcher-in-role are compared to data generated by a traditional researcher in the same three classrooms. It is shown how the researcher-in-role strategy resulted in data of a different, more complex discursive quality than that generated by the traditional researcher. The data arising, and the strategy itself, are considered through the lens of positioning theory. It is argued that the researcher-in-role strategy entailed a repositioning of the researcher, which in turn opened possibilities for new storylines and admissible actions – including speech acts – to be played out by children within the research relationship. It is also argued that this repositioning resulted in generation of more authentic data, with children more comfortable to reveal their emergent understandings, in the form of advice, instruction or exhortation. The article concludes by suggesting that the researcher-in-role strategy should be of interest not only to drama education researchers but also for other classroom researchers interested in repositioning children and engaging in complex dialogic exchange.


Defining Religion, Spirituality and Human Experience This paper is a thought-experiment, less a research endeavor, more an essay or analysis. It seeks a context for the Oxford Round Table discussion "Allusions to God in Literature." It searches for the infra-structure which makes such a topic possible. It weaves together three broad and gossamer threads of thought, not easily or absolutely definable: religion, spirituality, human experience. It assumes that the tapestry cannot hold together unless all the strands are intact. We organize this thought-experiment in three categories: 1. Misdirected Assumptions 2. Defining Religious Experience 3. Corollaries and Conclusions 1. Misdirected Assumptions A. Freudian Synthesis Since Sigmund Freud was a comprehensive thinker, he considered religious and spiritual questions. Moses and Monotheism, Totem and Taboo, and The Future of an Illusion conclude that religious and spiritual systems derive from a universal, obsessional neurosis, an Oedipal complex and illusionary projection. The universal neurosis is the fear of death. Such fear leads to obsessional thinking and behavior. The only recourse from this terror is religion, apparently, because no other institution in society promises relief from annihilation. A believer clings to religion tenaciously, irrationally, because it is the sole alternative to non-existence. Thus, Freud argues, religion has had a hold on us from the beginning. Religion endures because the fear is persistent. Post-Enlightenment rationality does not assuage the fear, indeed, it often intensifies it. There is more. The Oedipal complex adds to the neurotic fear a measure of guilt. We do not live our lives without guilt. Religion promises, as no other resource does, that guilt can be absolved and that we can begin anew. This brings comfort and tranquility at a level no alternative quite achieves. Religion enlists God as the guarantor that we are forgiven and guiltless. The final element in the Freudian synthesis is illusion. We begin life with a sense that omnipotent, omniscient, infallible, benign care-givers answer our needs and bring us happiness. As we come of age, we replace these increasingly inadequate care-givers with a cosmic parental figure, God, who is omnipotent, omniscient, infallible, benign. This God rescues us from death and brings us into bliss, to a paradise where we are known and loved, healed and immortal. The illusion is intoxicating. Religion, Freud observes, derives its meaning and its endurance, its influence and its irreplaceability from its ingenious capacity to address the universal neurotic fear of death, the anxiety generated by guilt, and the existential loss created by the dispelling of our early illusions. We might note, in passing, that Freud provides us with a brilliant insight into dysfunctional religiosity. Some believers all the time and most, if not all, at various times turn to religion out of fear, guilt, and disillusionment. Where Freud appears deficient is in his inability to account for religious affirmations which follow upon critical thinking and which lead to the enormous creativity religion regularly inspires. Positive consequences of religious affirmation include art and music and architecture, poetry and moral systems and learning, compassion and social justice and personal development. The negative consequences are horrific but the positive consequences are awesome. There is more in the religious equation than fear and guilt and disillusionment. This "more" is not taken into account by Freud and it inspires the positive consequences we have cited. Nonetheless, the Freudian synthesis has had wide influences. The assumption it works with, however, is inadequate. B. One True Religion A further misdirected assumption maintains that only one religion is true and that all the others are false or seriously flawed. …


This thesis addresses the development of stabilizing model predictive control algorithms for nonlinear systems subject to input and state constraints and in the presence of parametric and/or structural uncertainty, disturbances and measurement noise. Our basic model predictive control (MPC) scheme consists of a finite horizon MPC technique with the introduction of an additional state constraint which we have denoted contractive constraint. This is a Lyapunov-based approach in which a Lyapunov function chosen a priori is decreased, not continuously, but discretely; it is allowed to increase at other times (between prediction horizons). We will show
in this work that the implementation of this additional constraint into the on-line optimization makes it possible to prove rather strong stability properties of the closed-loop system. In the nominal case and in the absence of disturbances, it is possible to show that the presence of the contractive constraint renders the closed-loop system exponentially stable. We will also examine how the stability properties weaken as structural and/or parametric model/plant mismatch, disturbances and measurement noise are considered. Another important aspect considered in this work is the computational efficiency and implement ability of the algorithms proposed. The MPC schemes previously proposed in the literature which are able to guarantee stability of the closed-loop system involve the solution of a nonlinear programming problem at each time step in order to find the optimal (or, at least, feasible) control sequence. Nonlinear programming is the general case in which both the objective and constraint functions may be non-linear, and is the most difficult of the smooth optimization problems. Due to the difficulties inherent to solving nonlinear programming problems and since MPC requires the optimal (or feasible) solution to be computed on-line, it is important that an alternative implementation be found which guarantees that the problem can be solved in a finite number of steps. It is well-known that both linear and quadratic programming (QP) problems satisfy this requirement. If a standard quadratic objective function is used and the input/state constraints are linear in the decision variables, then the contractive constraint (which is originally a quadratic constraint) can be implemented in such a way that the optimization problem to be solved in the prediction step of the MPC algorithm is reduced to a QP. Having linear input/state constraints means that a linear approximation of the original nonlinear system has to be used in the prediction as well as in the computation of the contractive constraint. Thus, in order to make the algorithm more easily implementable we introduce the difficulty of having to handle the mismatch between the real nonlinear system and its linear approximation which is used for prediction. In other words, we now have a robust MPC control problem at hand. In this case, it is the contractive constraint which comes to the rescue and allows the MPC controller to stabilize the closed-loop system spite of the linear/nonlinear mismatch, for certain choices of the contractive parameter (the parameter which defines how much "shrinkage" of the states is required during one prediction horizon). In summary, this thesis is an application of contractive principles to model predictive control and it is dedicated to robust stability analysis, design and implementation of state and output feedback "contractive" MPC schemes.


We consider contests with a fixed proportion of winners based on relative performance. Special attention is paid to winner-take-all contests, which we define as contests with relatively few winners receiving relatively large awards, but we consider the full range of values of the proportion of winners. If a contestant has the opportunity to modify the distribution of her performance, what strategy is advantageous? When the proportion of winners is less than one-half, a riskier performance distribution is preferred; when this proportion is greater than one-half, it is better to choose a less risky distribution. Using a multinormal model, we consider modifications in the variability of the distribution and in correlations with the performance of other contestants. Increasing variability and decreasing correlations lead to improved chances of winning when the proportion of winners is less than one-half, and the opposite directions should be taken for proportions greater than one-half. Thus, it is better to take chances and to attempt to distance oneself from the other contestants (i.e., to break away from the herd) when there are few winners; a more conservative, herding strategy makes sense when there are many winners. Our analytical and numerical results indicate that the probability of winning can change substantially as variability and/or correlations are modified. Furthermore, in a game-theoretic setting in which all contestants can make modifications, choosing a riskier (less risky) performance distribution when the proportion of winners is low (high) is the dominant best-response strategy. We briefly consider some practical issues related to the recommended strategies and some possible extensions.


Working smarter, not harder, is an age-old adage. The embracers of this concept are able to streamline their entire working life with higher productivity at lower costs. The various tools which facilitate achieving such levels of metrics include: Motivation, Competency and Compensation. When such attributes are maximised, targeting excellence – which has been termed in Hindi as of Chak De! Quality. The Paradigm of 'Chak De' incidentally, has already graduated from an austere term to a global one, thanks to the Bollywood movie of the same title. The movie thus acted not only as an exemplar for each 'manpower development' (MPD) programme to successfully meet and beat challenges, but also tends to take on an advisory role to exert the vitality of team spirit. Teaming itself is a prelude to excellence. As the acronym TEAM (expanded as "Together Everyone Achieves More") also suffices to increase smartness of the individuals in the group. A 6 point programme has been counted on, and as an exemplar aligned to the teaching domain. This paper attempts to sketch the imperatives of the working smarter for achieving excellence, which is illustrated and defended using a case study driven from an autobiographical sketch – working harder for needed accomplishments.


The stability of messenger RNA (mRNA) is one of the major determinants of gene expression. Although a wealth of sequence elements regulating mRNA stability has been described, their quantitative contributions to half-life are unknown. Here, we built a quantitative model for Saccharomyces cerevisiae explaining 60% of the half-life variation between genes based on mRNA sequence features alone, and predicts half-life at a median relative error of 30%. The model integrates known cis-regulatory elements, identifies novel ones, and quantifies their contributions at single-nucleotide resolution. We show quantitatively that codon usage is the major determinant of mRNA stability. Nonetheless, single-nucleotide variations have the largest effect when occurring on 3'UTR motifs or upstream AUGs. Application of the approach to Schizosaccharomyces pombe supports the generality of these findings. Analyzing the effect of these sequence elements on mRNA half-life data of 34 knockout strains showed that the effect of codon usage not only requires functional decapping and deadenylation, but also the 5'-to-3' exonuclease Xrn1, the non-sense mediated decay genes, but not no-go decay. Altogether, this study quantitatively delineates the contributions of mRNA sequence features on stability in yeast, reveals their functional dependencies on degradation pathways, and allows accurate prediction of half-life from mRNA sequence.


Research has documented the effects of some alternative methods on mood: exercise (Legrand & Heuze, 2007), diet (Appleton et al., 2007) and supplementation with micronutrients such as iron (Beard et al., 2005), fatty acids (Nemets et al, 2002) and St. John's wort (Mulrow, 2005), for example, have all demonstrated an ability to positively affect mood. It is unknown to what extent this research has been disseminated or implemented into practice. Procedure: Mental health care practitioners (n = 306) in Idaho were randomly surveyed. Items measuring knowledge and use of the following three methods were asked: exercise, diet, supplementation. Results: Sixty-eight percent of respondents had encountered exercise as a mood disorder treatment option in professional discussion within the last 2 years, 44.7% had encountered dietary methods and 46.5% had encountered supplemental methods in the same context. Sixty-six percent (n=204) of respondents indicated that they used exercise methods to treat mood disorders, 35% (n=108) reported using dietary measures and 19% (n=60) reported using supplemental methods. Specific types of exercise, dietary and supplemental methods used-e.g. yoga, St. John's wort, etc-are also discussed. Conclusions: The use of some alternative methods for the treatment of mood disorders is common in mental health care practitioners.


Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) uses strategies such as exclusive bus lanes, off-vehicle fare collection, high quality vehicles and stations, signal priority, among others. Transit Signal Priority (TSP) is frequently seen as an option to improve performance of public transportation systems at the operational level. TSP is an operational strategy that aims at reducing the delays at intersections for transit vehicles. The goal is to reduce travel times and improve service reliability. The use of transit priority strategies, properly designed for BRT, can complement its other features and potentially contribute to improved performance. However, BRT corridors present a number of challenges and operating characteristics that differ from conventional corridors which are worth considering. This thesis evaluates the potential of incorporating different priority strategies, especially TSP, into BRT operations both in the U.S. and in developing countries. A corridor from Boston, MA and a corridor from Santiago, Chile are analyzed, assessing TSP strategies that consider different conditions such as headway, loads, and traffic demand in a BRT context. Results for both case studies support the belief that TSP can provide travel time reductions for transit vehicles, together with reductions in headway variability. However, results proved to be very sensitive to increases in traffic congestion and transit frequency. The research provides insights into the potential of TSP under medium and high levels of traffic demand, as well as under higher frequencies. Further research is necessary to make the models more robust and test the sensitivity of the parameters of the priority strategies. Evaluation of other priority strategies like the use of full exclusive bus lanes and signal coordination are also included.


This paper deals with the performance assessment of the Long Term Evolution (LTE)-Advanced Release 12 physical downlink channel, emphasizing on the Carrier Aggregation (CA) technology and its recent advances, such as the challenging interband non-contiguous solution. By processing the LTE-Advanced waveforms in the time domain (instead of the more common baseband), we describe the underlying system model and the associated simulation setup in detail. The error performance of the system is evaluated under different physical layer parameters and CA scenarios, according to the latest updates of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) technical specifications. Our analysis reveals that the Heterogeneous Band (HetBand) non-contiguous CA technology can be efficiently applied to the design of next generation mobile broadband networks, given that the exploitation of both unlicensed and frequency dispersed bands might be a promising solution against the spectrum scarcity.


Sediment-hosted massive sulfide (SHMS) deposits are an important source of global zinc resources, and the Red Dog Pb-Zn-Ag ± Ba district in Alaska (USA) contains giant deposits of this type. The existing model for ore formation at Red Dog involves early diagenetic replacement of sediment deposited in a restricted basin with stratified suboxic bottom waters. We present new observations of trace fossils Schaubcylindrichnus ichnospecies (isp.) and Chondrites isp. in several Red Dog deposits. The presence of the trace fossils, the size of the largest burrows, and the pervasiveness of the ichnofabric indicate that at least some intervals of the host sediment were deposited in an oxygenated middle to outer shelf environment. The burrow linings and infill are replaced by barite, hydrothermal quartz, and sulfide minerals, and the lack of compaction suggests that mineralization was diagenetically early. To reconcile these data with those from previous regional sedimentological and lithogeochemical studies, we propose a new model whereby the ore-hosting sediment was deposited in a shelfal setting in which redox conditions were affected by a fluctuating oxygen minimum zone. The strong spatial correlation between bioturbation and Red Dog SHMS deposits suggests that the presence of trace fossils may have played an important role in controlling the flow of ore-forming fluids by increasing host sediment permeability.


The origin of the germline-soma distinction is a fundamental unsolved question. Plants and basal metazoans do not have a germline but generate gametes from somatic tissues (somatic gametogenesis), whereas most bilaterians sequester a germline. We develop an evolutionary model which shows that selection for mitochondrial quality drives germline evolution. In organisms with low mitochondrial mutation rates, segregation of mutations over multiple cell divisions generates variation, allowing selection to optimize gamete quality through somatic gametogenesis. Higher mutation rates promote early germline sequestration. Oogamy reduces mitochondrial segregation in early development, improving adult fitness by restricting variation between tissues, but also limiting variation between early-sequestered oocytes, undermining gamete quality. Oocyte variation is restored through proliferation and random culling (atresia) of precursor cells. We predict a novel pathway from basal metazoans lacking a germline to active bilaterians with early sequestration of large oocytes subject to atresia, allowing the emergence of complex developmental processes.


OBJECTIVE
Dry needling is commonly used for the management of plantar fasciitis. This meta-analysis evaluated the effects of dry needling over trigger points (TrPs) associated with plantar heel pain on pain intensity and related disability or function.

METHODS
Electronic databases were searched for randomized controlled trials where at least one group received dry needling, not acupuncture, for TrPs associated with plantar heel pain and collected outcomes on pain intensity and related-disability. The risk of bias (RoB) was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool, methodological quality was assessed with PEDro score, and the level of evidence is reported using the GRADE approach. Between-groups mean differences (MD) and standardized mean difference (SMD) were calculated.

RESULTS
The search identified 297 publications with 6 trials eligible for inclusion. The meta-analysis found low quality evidence that TrP dry needling reduces pain intensity at short term (MD -1.70 points, 95%CI -2.80 to -0.60; SMD -1.28, 95%CI -2.11 to -0.44) and moderate quality evidence for improving pain intensity (MD -1.77 points, 95%CI -2.44 to -1.11; SMD -1.45, 95%CI -2.19 to -0.70) and related-disability (SMD -1.75, 95% CI -2.22 to -1.28) at long-term compared to a comparison group. The RoB of the trials was generally low, but the heterogeneity of the results downgraded the level of evidence.

DISCUSSION
Moderate to low evidence suggests a positive effect of TrP dry needling for improving pain intensity and pain-related disability in patients with plantar heel pain of musculoskeletal origin at short- and long-term, respectively. Current results should be considered with caution due to the small number of trials.


Over the last 20 years, Papua New Guinea has been at the center of a resource development boom as mining, petroleum, and logging companies extract the rich resources of this tropical Pacific island. As 97 percent of the country is owned by customary groups who correspondingly receive benefits from extraction, resource development has the potential to integrate local communities into the global economy in beneficial ways. Often, though, this is not the case, as small factions of landowners control the bulk of development proceeds. In this article, I examine the development of a coffee growing scheme adjacent to the world-class Porgera Gold Mine, intended to help local people who are marginal to mining benefit streams. Tragically, however, instead of engaging in coffee production, many disenfranchised young men in Porgera prefer to work in the "life market"— a term they use to describe tribal warfare in which groups not receiving benefits attack benefit-receiving groups in the attempt to extort monetary payments. Not only are individuals' lives at stake in the life market, but so too are the economic conditions—coffee and gold mining—that allow the life market's very existence.


Forest products provide an important source of income and wellbeing for rural smallholder communities across the tropics. Although tropical forest products frequently become over-exploited, only few studies explicitly address the dynamics of degradation in response to socio-economic drivers. Our study addresses this gap by analyzing the factors driving changes in tropical forest products in the perception of rural smallholder communities. Using the poverty and environment network global dataset, we studied recently perceived trends of forest product availability considering firewood, charcoal, timber, food, medicine, forage and other forest products. We looked at a pan-tropical sample of 233 villages with forest access. Our results show that 90% of the villages experienced declining availability of forest resources over the last five years according to the informants. Timber and fuelwood together with forest foods were featured as the most strongly affected, though with marked differences across continents. In contrast, availability of at least one main forest product was perceived to increase in only 39% of the villages. Furthermore, the growing local use of forest resources is seen as the main culprit for the decline. In villages with both growing forest resource use and immigration—vividly illustrating demographic pressures—the strongest forest resources degradation was observed. Conversely, villages with little or no population growth and a decreased use of forest resources were most likely to see significant forest-resource increases. Further, villages are less likely to perceive resource declines when local communities own a significant share of forest area. Our results thus suggest that perceived resource declines have only exceptionally triggered adaptations in local resource-use and management patterns that would effectively deal with scarcity. Hence, at the margin this supports neo-Malthusian over neo-Boserupian explanations of local resource-use dynamics.


This study compares the Lucerne German allophones of Middle High German using data from the crowdsourcing smartphone app Dialakt App, to those of the Linguistic Atlas of German-Speaking Switzerland. In doing so we examine language change in real-time across c. 70 years. In the north of the Canton of Lucerne, use of /l/-vocalisation has receded, whereas in the west, and in and around the city of Lucerne, /l/-vocalisation occurs more frequently than at the time of the historic atlas. Both age and sex differences were found to be statistically non-significant, though older speakers tended to vocalise more. Generally, however, we report substantial areal heterogeneity which we suspect is due to the Canton's geographical location in a dialectal transition zone, increased personal mobility, and the growing presence of broadcast media in dialect.


BACKGROUND
The proportion of people living with and surviving cancer is growing. This has led to increased awareness of the importance of quality of life including sexual function in people with cancer. Sexual dysfunction (SD) is a potential long-term complication of cancer treatments.

OBJECTIVES
Evaluate effectiveness of interventions for SD following treatments for cancer and their adverse effects.

SEARCH STRATEGY
The Cochrane Pain, Palliative & Supportive Care Register, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycInfo, AMED, CINAHL, Dissertation Abstracts and NHS Research Register were searched.

SELECTION CRITERIA
Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) were included that assessed the effectiveness of a treatment for SD. The trial population comprised of adults of either sex who at trial entry had developed SD as a consequence of cancer treatment.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
Two review authors independently extracted the data and assessed trial quality. Meta-analysis was considered for trials with comparable key characteristics.

MAIN RESULTS
Eleven RCTs with a total of 1743 participants were identified. The quality of the trials was poor. Ten trials explored interventions for SD in men following treatments for non-metastatic prostate cancer. One trial explored effectiveness in women of a lubricating vaginal cream following radiotherapy for cervical cancer. The strongest evidence (from four trials) was on oral phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors for erectile dysfunction (ED) following radiotherapy of the prostate or radical prostatectomy. The results using validated measures in all trials significantly favoured those in the PDE5 inhibitor group(s). The combined results of two trials indicated a significantly greater improvement in ED in the PDE5 inhibitor groups (odds ratio (OR) 10.09 95% confidence interval (CI) 6.20 to 16.43). Negative effects were few and usually mild to moderate headaches or flushing. One trial reported more clinically serious events including six events of tachycardia and six of chest pain. Following prostate cancer treatments there was some evidence that PDE5 inhibitors are more effective in combination with acetyl-L-carnitine and propionyl-L-carnitine and that sexual counselling improves self-administration of prostaglandin intra-cavernous injection for SD. There was some evidence following treatment for prostate cancer that transurethral alprostadil and vacuum constriction devices reduce SD, although in both trials negative effects were fairly common. There is some evidence that vaginal lubricating creams reduce SD.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
PDE5 inhibitors are an effective treatment for SD secondary to treatments for prostate cancer. Other interventions identified need to be tested in further RCTs. The SD interventions in this review are not representative of the range available for men and women. Further evaluations are needed for these interventions for SD following cancer treatments.


Recently a new debate has started regarding food and energy issues because food has become an alternative source of energy and energy becoming the main input of agriculture. However, this study attempts to investigate the possible long-term relationship between the prices of crude oil and food commodities represented by maize, wheat, sorghum, soybean, barley, linseed oil, soybean oil, and palm oil. Time series econometric techniques (Unit root tests, Co-integration, and Granger causality) were applied. The study utilizes monthly data over the period of 1980 to 2009. The results of this study reveal that there is a strong evidence of long-term relationship between crude oil and the food commodities prices. A traditional Granger Causality is used to check whether causality exists between two product prices. The outcome suggests that there is unidirectional causality between the prices crude oil and some of the food commodities under examination.


A young Kaunian girl is forced to remain hidden while her Forthwegian savior braves the rough, Algarvian-controlled streets to earn their keep. The scholars of Kuusamo are no closer to understanding the bloodless magic that may win the war-and time is short. Kuusamo has joined into an unsteady alliance with Lagoas and Unkerlant. No one kingdom trusts another, but they must unite, for it is only together that they can defeat the Algarvian threat. The war is no longer confined to soldiers and sorcerers. Common folk are joining together to fight from underneath their oppressors, whether they be Algarve or Unkerlant. What those farmer soldiers lack in skill, they make up for in dedication. A dedication that will carry them . . . through the darkness.


Background Although secure messaging (SM) between patients and clinical team members is a recommended component of continuous care, uptake by patients remains relatively low. We designed a multicomponent Supported Adoption Program (SAP) to increase SM adoption among patients using the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) for primary care. Objective Our goals were to (1) conduct a multisite, randomized, encouragement design trial to test the effectiveness of an SAP designed to increase patient engagement with SM through VHA's online patient portal (My HealtheVet [MHV]) and (2) evaluate the impact of the SAP and patient-level SM adoption on perceived provider autonomy support and communication. Patient-reported barriers to SM adoption were also assessed. Methods We randomized 1195 patients at 3 VHA facilities who had MHV portal accounts but had never used SM. Half were randomized to receive the SAP, and half served as controls receiving usual care. The SAP consisted of encouragement to adopt SM via mailed educational materials, proactive SM sent to patients, and telephone-based motivational interviews. We examined differences in SM adoption rates between SAP recipients and controls at 9 months and 21 months. Follow-up telephone surveys were conducted to assess perceived provider autonomy support and self-report of telephone communication with clinical teams. Results Patients randomized to the SAP had significantly higher rates of SM adoption than the control group (101/595, 17.0% vs 40/600, 6.7%; P<.001). Most adopters in the SAP sent their first message without a motivational interview (71/101, 70.3%). The 10-percentage point difference in adoption persisted a full year after the encouragement ended (23.7%, 142/600 in the SAP group vs 13.5%, 80/595 in the control group, P<.001). We obtained follow-up survey data from 49.54% (592/1195) of the participants. SAP participants reported higher perceived provider autonomy support (5.7 vs 5.4, P=.007) and less telephone use to communicate with their provider (68.8% vs 76.0%, P=.05), compared to patients in the control group. Patient-reported barriers to SM adoption included self-efficacy (eg, not comfortable using a computer, 24%), no perceived need for SM (22%), and difficulties with portal password or login (17%). Conclusions The multicomponent SAP was successful in increasing use of SM 10 percentage points above standard care; new SM adopters reported improved perceptions of provider autonomy support and less use of the telephone to communicate with their providers. Still, despite the encouragement and technical assistance provided through the SAP, adoption rates were lower than anticipated, reaching only 24% at 21 months (10% above controls). Common barriers to adoption such as limited perceived need for SM may be more challenging to address and require different interventions than barriers related to patient self-efficacy or technical difficulties. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02665468; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02665468


In this paper, we develop an efficient procedure to solve for the Stokesian fields around a spherical particle in viscous fluid bounded by a cylindrical confinement. We use our method to comprehensively simulate the general creeping flow involving the particle-conduit system. The calculations are based on the expansion of a vector field in terms of basis functions with separable form. The separable form can be applied to obtain general reflection relations for a vector field at simple surfaces. Such reflection relations enable us to solve the flow equation with specified conditions at different disconnected bodies like the sphere and the cylinder. The main focus of this article is to provide a complete description of the dynamics of a spherical particle in a cylindrical vessel. For this purpose, we consider the motion of a sphere in both quiescent fluid and pressure-driven parabolic flow. Firstly, we determine the force and torque on a translating-rotating particle in quiescent fluid in terms of general friction coefficients. Then we assume an impending parabolic flow, and calculate the force and torque on a fixed sphere as well as the linear and angular velocities of a freely moving particle. The results are presented for different radial positions of the particle and different ratios between the sphere and the cylinder radius. Because of the generality of the procedure, there is no restriction in relative dimensions, particle positions and directions of motion. For the limiting cases of geometric parameters, our results agree with the ones obtained by past researchers using different asymptotic methods.


The lithium isotope system is increasingly being applied to a variety of Earth science studies, as the burgeoning literature attests; over 180 papers have been published in the last twelve years that report lithium isotope data, including five review papers that cover different aspects of lithium isotope applications (Elliott et al. 2004; Tomascak 2004; Tang et al. 2007b; Burton and Vigier 2011; Schmitt et al. 2012), and a book (Tomascak et al. 2016). The upswing in lithium isotope studies over the past decade reflects analytical advances that have made Li measurements readily obtainable. These include the use of multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) for relatively precise solution measurements (Tomascak et al. 1999a) and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) for high spatial resolution measurements (Chaussidon and Robert 1998; Kasemann et al. 2005; Bell et al. 2009). In addition, lithium isotope studies are motivated by the large variety of problems for which they may provide insight, including crust–mantle recycling, silicate weathering, fluid–rock interaction, as well as geospeedometry.

The great interest in the Li system that spurred the development of these new analytical methods was initiated by the pioneering work of Lui-Heung Chan, who demonstrated not only that Li isotopic fractionation can be very large at or near the Earth's surface (Chan and Edmond 1988), but also that Li isotopes are strongly fractionated during seawater-basalt interaction (Chan et al. 1992). This discovery naturally led to the search for a recycled slab signature in Li isotopes of arc lavas (some of the earlier studies include Moriguti and Nakamura 1998a; Chan et al. 1999, 2002b; Tomascak et al. 2000, 2002; Leeman et al. 2004; Moriguti et al. 2004), as well as more deeply derived intraplate basalts (e.g., Chan and Frey 2003 …


Theory on condition-dependent risk-taking indicates that when prey are in poor condition, their anti-predator responses should be weak. However, variation in responses resulting from differences in condition is generally considered an incidental by-product of organisms living in a heterogeneous environment. Using Leptinotarsa decemlineata beetles and stinkbug (Podisus maculiventris) predators, we hypothesised that in response to predation risk, parents improve larval nutritional condition and expression of anti-predator responses by promoting intraclutch cannibalism. We showed that mothers experiencing predation risk increase production of unviable trophic eggs, which assures provisioning of an egg meal to the newly hatched offspring. Next, we experimentally demonstrated that egg cannibalism reduces L. decemlineata vulnerability to predation by improving larval nutritional condition and expression of anti-predator responses. Intraclutch cannibalism in herbivorous insects might be a ubiquitous strategy, aimed to overcome the dual challenge of feeding on protein-limited diets while living under constant predation threat.


Financial economics is the branch of economics concerned with "the allocation and deployment of economic resources, both spatially and across time, in an uncertain environment". It is additionally characterised by its "concentration on monetary activities", in which "money of one type or another is likely to appear on both sides of a trade". The questions within financial economics are typically framed in terms of "time, uncertainty, options, and information".


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the performance of a hand-held ketone sensor that is able to measure blood beta-hydroxybutyrate (beta-HBA) concentrations within 30 s in patients with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and patients who attend a weight management clinic.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Two groups of patients were studied: 19 patients admitted with DKA and 156 patients attending a weight management clinic. Paired capillary and venous whole blood samples were measured using the ketone sensor and also using an enzymatic laboratory reference method.

RESULTS
The ketone sensor accurately measured beta-HBA concentrations in patients with DKA (limits of agreement -0.9 to + 1.0 mmol/l) or starvation-induced ketonemia (limits of agreement -0.5 to +0.5 mmol/l).

CONCLUSIONS
This ketone sensor accurately measures whole blood beta-HBA concentrations within 30 s.


Abstract Background. Women with breast cancer (BC) report cognitive impairment. Receiving a BC diagnosis may have a negative psychological impact. We sought to determine whether a diagnosis of BC and subsequent surgical treatment reduced cognitive function. Material and methods. We recruited women, who had a positive radiographic finding, consecutively from the mammography screening program at Stockholm South General Hospital. All subjects completed the Headminder Web-based neuropsychological battery Cognitive Stability Index (CSI) for response speed, processing speed, memory, and attention at enrolment (T1, Baseline). CSI was administered again, after BC was ruled out, or after sector resection or mastectomy, if BC was confirmed by cytology or biopsy (T2, Retest). Results and conclusion. Of the 148 women approached, 146 were enrolled; 69 were healthy and 77 had BC. Comparison between groups at baseline, according to independent t-test, showed significant differences in response speed and processing speed. Cognitive abilities did not decline in either group on any of the measured domains. Our results suggest that a diagnosis of BC and subsequent surgery is not associated with substantial cognitive decline at retest. However, the lack of improvement in attention at retest among BC patients may be suggestive of a decline.


Background and Objective:
The COVID-19 pandemic has created a need to deliver much content for the Human Structure (HS) course virtually. Because osteology is a fundamental component of human gross anatomy, the goal of this project was to create quality interactive osteology modules for HS that can be delivered online.

Project Methods:
To ground our module development in best practices for teaching and learning human gross anatomy, we reviewed 100 articles from PubMed databases and selected 9 for discussion during weekly literature review meetings. Key search terms included: education research, computer-assisted instruction (CAI), technology-enhanced learning (TEL), clinically based anatomy, integrated learning, medical education, and more. We created the modules using Microsoft PowerPoint™ and EndNote X9™ for referencing purposes. Bone images were captured and edited with a Nikon USA™ D850 DLSR camera and Adobe Photoshop, respectively. Additional images were obtained from IUSM online textbooks, miscellaneous websites, and the radiology database Radiopaedia™. Each module includes pertinent clinical correlations, radiology, and post-module quizzes for students to assess their higher-order knowledge.

Results:
We created 7 osteology modules using best practices for human gross anatomy teaching and learning: (1) Vertebral Column, (2) Thorax, (3) Shoulder Girdle & Brachium, (4) Elbow, Antebrachium, Hand, (5) Pelvic Girdle & Thigh, (6) Knee, Leg, Foot, (7) Cranium & Hyoid.

Conclusion and Potential Impact:
Studies have demonstrated that CAI/TEL and radiological imaging work synergistically with traditional didactic methods to facilitate learning of human gross anatomy. Our modules will be used statewide in the HS course for first-year medical students as a CAI learning tool. Looking forward, we plan to use both qualitative and quantitative methods to determine if use of these modules results in better exam performance or aids in other aspects of the learning process.


In their first year of EU membership, the new EU member states recorded higher GDP growth (5% on average) than in the previous year, largely thanks to expanding domestic demand - in particular of investment and of private consumption. In 2004 GDP growth accelerated also in Austria, in line with the EU-15, yet both growth rates remained nearly 3 percentage points below that of the NMS. The NMS not only add a certain dynamism to the European economy but put some pressure on the EU reform agenda as well. On the downside, the situation on the NMS labour market remains precarious, robust economic growth notwithstanding. The average rate of unemployment is nearly twice as high as in the EU-15 whereas in Austria the unemployment rate is less than half the EU average. Austria and the NMS face numerous challenges regarding labour market developments in border regions, as well as with respect to the labour market position of different skill groups of workers. Overall, the most vulnerable group of employees are those with the lowest educational levels. There are little prospects for marked improvements anytime soon. The latter refers to industry in particular, which - despite a remarkable acceleration of output growth - continues to shed labour. This implies impressive gains in labour productivity and, given the general wage restraint, in unit labour costs as well. The international cost competitiveness of NMS has recently been eroded by appreciating domestic currencies whereas Austrian productivity and cost competitiveness have been continuously improving. After a temporary increase in 2004 (largely caused by tax adjustments prior to EU accession and by rising energy prices), inflation resumed its downward trend in all NMS. The remaining inflation differential with respect to the eurozone, magnified by an appreciation tendency of NMS currencies (often stimulated by short-term capital inflows) may lead to competitiveness losses in the future. Given the ongoing productivity and quality improvements this danger is not yet imminent. Still the exchange rate developments should be watched closely, not least in the period prior to EMU accession, which in several NMS will probably extend beyond 2010. The need to reduce excessive budget deficits represents another challenge for a number of NMS in the coming years. The outstanding feature of last year's economic developments was a boost in foreign trade. NMS exports grew by more than 20%, somewhat faster than imports (+17%), and their aggregate trade balance improved slightly. Yet foreign trade contributed positively to GDP growth in Poland only (as well as in Austria). The export sector of the NMS is strengthening - not least thanks to sustained reforms and large FDI inflows in the past couple of years - and their integration in the European and world economy is increasing. In 2004, 80% of NMS exports and 70% of imports already represented intra-EU trade. After the takeover of EU external trade policies upon accession, especially intra-NMS trade and extra-EU trade are booming. Altogether, the NMS enjoy a surplus in trade transactions with the EU, an achievement largely attributable to the high and growing surpluses of the Czech Republic and Slovakia (and to a lower deficit in Poland). Austria?s trade with the NMS displays above-average dynamism as well as steady surpluses in both goods and services trade. Austria's services trade has been more diverse with respect to NMS after accession. Travel services are declining in importance, while transport and other business services are on the rise. For the smaller services categories, some degree of trade diversion away from partners in the old EU to NMS can be observed. Trade with the EU may have had a positive effect on GDP growth in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia in the first year of accession; the GDP growth effect of trade with the NMS was positive for Austria as well. The EU's enlargement of May 2004 has brought few surprises and may generally be considered a success. The accession of the NMS was well prepared and managed. Earlier estimates of enlargement effects as a 'win-win situation' for both 'old' and 'new' member states seem to be confirmed. Still, the direct economic effects of accession on the NMS are difficult to identify economic growth, especially of industry, had speeded up already before May 2004, a temporary increase of inflation was successfully contained and domestic currencies strengthened. Net transfers from the EU budget were negligible, yet foreign trade expanded strongly and inflows of FDI picked up again. The GDP growth outlook is fairly robust barring major external shocks, the NMS are expected to grow by 4-5% annually in the coming years (the Baltic States will continue to enjoy even somewhat higher growth) thus maintaining their speed of convergence to the 'old' EU. The shadow side of this fairly upbeat economic forecast is the labour market where no substantial reduction of unemployment is expected. Estonia, Lithuania and Slovenia (all already participating in the ERM II) may adopt the euro in late 2006 or early 2007, with the remaining 'high-deficit' NMS following suit during 2008-2010.


A DNA replication factor ensures that only two centrioles are formed during cell division in animal cells. Accurate chromosome segregation during eukaryotic cell division requires a microtubule spindle, formation of which in animals is driven by centrosomes. To maintain genome stability, centrosomes must be duplicated once every cell division cycle along with the genomic DNA. Hemerly et al. show that Orc1, a component of the origin recognition complex (ORC) essential for DNA replication, also acts at centrosomes to control their copy number. Orc1 inhibits Cyclin E–dependent reduplication of the centrosome, and its localization to centrosomes is directed by the Orc1-binding partner Cyclin A. A. S. Hemerly, S. G. Prasanth, K. Siddiqui, B. Stillman, Orc1 controls centriole and centrosome copy number in human cells. Science 323, 789–793 (2009). [Abstract] [Full Text]


Despite rapid progress in characterizing the yeast metabolic cycle, its connection to the cell division cycle (CDC) has remained unclear. We discovered that a prototrophic batch culture of budding yeast, growing in a phosphate-limited ethanol medium, synchronizes spontaneously and goes through multiple metabolic cycles, whereas the fraction of cells in the G1/G0 phase of the CDC increases monotonically from 90 to 99%. This demonstrates that metabolic cycling does not require cell division cycling and that metabolic synchrony does not require carbon-source limitation. More than 3,000 genes, including most genes annotated to the CDC, were expressed periodically in our batch culture, albeit a mere 10% of the cells divided asynchronously; only a smaller subset of CDC genes correlated with cell division. These results suggest that the yeast metabolic cycle reflects a growth cycle during G1/G0 and explains our previous puzzling observation that genes annotated to the CDC increase in expression at slow growth.


Background: Most traffic safety research projects require accurate real world data which is collected in different databases around the world. This is especially important since the results of these projects form the basis for new crash test procedures and standards. In many of these databases the involvement of the frontal structures of the car in frontal crashes is coded by using the SAE J224 practice (Society of Automobile Engineers). There were indications that by using this practice the database would contain an overestimate of the car frontal structure involvement in real world crashes. One purpose of this thesis is therefore to develop a new method for real world crash investigations to better address this issue. One purpose was also to adopt this method in a data collection of fatal crashes in Sweden and examine injury causation mechanisms. Studies shows that the commonly used Hybrid III dummy is not fully reproducing the kinematical behavior observed in frontal sled test with belted PMHS (Post Mortem Human Subject). A human FE-model (Finite Element) might be able to reproduce the behavior evidenced with the PMHS in order to study upper body kinematics in certain types of frontal collision events. Method: A new data collection method was developed with the purpose to examine actual load paths active in the car front during a frontal crash. An important purpose was to examine if there was a relation between these load paths and injury producing mechanisms. This was done in an examination and analysis of 61 fatally injured occupants in 53 car frontal crashes in a sample area covering 40 % of the population of Sweden. Sample period was one year (1st October 2000 to 30th September 2001). An existing human FE-model was developed and validated with respect to upper body kinematics by using existing frontal belted PMHS tests. This was done by building a FE-model of the seat and seat belt used in the PMHS tests. Results: A generic car structure was developed which was used in the data collection methodology. By adopting this new method, Small Overlap (SO) crashes emerged as the most common crash configuration (48 %) among belted frontal fatalities. The injury producing mechanism in SO crashes is characterized by occupant upper body impacts in the side structure (door, a-pillar) of the car. This upper body kinematics is induced by both the crash pulse and the asymmetrical three point belt system. Current crash test procedures are not designed to fully estimate the performance of neither car structures nor restraints in SO crashes. In order to develop a better tool for reproducing this kinematical behavior a FE-model of a human body was refined and validated for belted conditions. This validation was performed with satisfying result.Conclusions: This study showed that by adopting new methods of data collecting new areas of traffic safety could be considered. In this study SO (48 %) crashes emerged as the most common crash configuration for belted frontal fatalities. Approximately ¼ of the fatalities occurred in a crash configuration comparable to current barrier crash test procedures. The body kinematics of PMHS in the SO crashes can be replicated and studied by using a FE-model of a human body in the collision load case model. With this tool possible collision counter measures could be evaluated for the SO crash configuration.


The Telescope Array (TA) observatory utilizes fluorescence detectors and surface detectors (SDs) to observe air showers produced by ultra high energy cosmic rays in Earth's atmosphere. Cosmic-ray events observed in this way are termed hybrid data. The depth of air shower maximum is related to the mass of the primary particle that generates the shower. This paper reports on shower maxima data collected over 8.5 yr using the Black Rock Mesa and Long Ridge fluorescence detectors in conjunction with the array of SDs. We compare the means and standard deviations of the observed X max distributions with Monte Carlo X max distributions of unmixed protons, helium, nitrogen, and iron, all generated using the QGSJet II-04 hadronic model. We also perform an unbinned maximum likelihood test of the observed data, which is subjected to variable systematic shifting of the data X max distributions to allow us to test the full distributions, and compare them to the Monte Carlo to see which elements are not compatible with the observed data. For all energy bins, QGSJet II-04 protons are found to be compatible with TA hybrid data at the 95% confidence level after some systematic X max shifting of the data. Three other QGSJet II-04 elements are found to be compatible using the same test procedure in an energy range limited to the highest energies where data statistics are sparse.


Abstract This analysis develops country-specific non-CO2 greenhouse gas abatement cost estimates that can be incorporated into economic models, allowing the abatement options for these gases to be compared with the abatement of CO2. The data are based on official government emission projections or Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change guidelines for estimating emissions, on existing engineering-economic studies, and on available country- or region-specific economic data. The results of the analysis are presented as marginal abatement curves for countries that are major sources of emissions, including Russia, China, the United States and Ukraine.


Software architecture defines the components and the interaction in between the components of a system. It also defines how the components are interacting with each other, the dependency in between the components and the interface protocols used for communication. For a network-based application, system performance is based on network communication. Therefore, selection of the appropriate architectural style(s) for use in designing the software architecture can make the difference between success and failure in the deployment of a network-based application. There are so many architectural styles available to represent different network-based application. According to the behavior of the application we have to choose the appropriate architectural style. In this paper we have surveyed different architectural styles for Network-based application.


Tropical cyclone (TC) forecast models have numerous components that must be properly implemented to achieve accurate forecast of TC track and intensity. The simulation of upper ocean response underneath a TC is of particular importance to TC intensity forecasts. This is because a TC relies on the upper ocean as a source of latent heat energy for its formation and maintenance of its intensity. When a large wind stress applies at the ocean surface underneath a TC, it enhances upper ocean vertical turbulent mixing, promotes deepening of the mixed layer and entrainment of colder water from below the thermocline, and reduces the sea surface temperature (SST). Even a slight SST decrease can significantly reduce the latent heat flux to the atmosphere and weaken the storm. For this reason, coupling of an ocean model to the atmospheric model used for TC forecasting is essential. Accuracy of upper ocean modeling strongly depends on the quality of the ocean model initialization, the wind forcing (air-sea momentum flux) specification, and the upper ocean mixing scheme. Recent studies suggest that the latter two can be significantly modified by different sea states (surface wave fields) and that accurate upper ocean modeling requires coupling of a wave prediction model to the TC-ocean model, as well as implementation of the sea-state dependent upper ocean mixing scheme (Langmuir Turbulence, or LT parameterization). In this thesis we investigate both ocean initialization methods and ocean mixing schemes in the Message Passing Interface Princeton Ocean Model (MPIPOM) underneath ideal and realistic TC wind fields and evaluate their performance against available observations. The second chapter evaluates the Feature-Based (FB), HYbrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) and the Navy Coupled Ocean Data Assimilation (NCODA) ocean model initializations in a standalone version of MPIPOM. The model ocean is compared to satellite sea surface temperature (SST) and Airborne eXbendable BathyThermograph (AXBT) data before, during, and after Hurricane Edouard has passed the region. Both statistical and visual comparisons are used to evaluate the methods. All three initialization methods are shown to produce reasonable initial ocean temperature fields as well as reasonable SST cooling responses, with some notable biases. The third chapter investigates the effects of implicit (sea-state independent) and explicit (sea-state dependent) Langmuir turbulence parameterizations, based on the modified K Profile Parameterization scheme, on the upper ocean underneath TCs. The MPIPOM is coupled with the WaveWatch III (WW3) surface wave model to simulate the complex surface wave fields generated by TCs. Both idealized and Hurricane Edouard wind fields are utilized. The air-sea momentum flux budget is also implemented, accounting for the change in momentum flux to ocean currents due to growing or decaying wave fields. These experiments are performed on an idealized horizontally uniform ocean to clarify the impacts of different mixing schemes. In agreement with previous studies, the sea-state dependent mixing schemes are shown to significantly modify the spatial distribution of SST cooling underneath TCs. The final chapter utilizes the same model setup as the third chapter with two realistic ocean initializations (FB and Real-Time Ocean Forecasting System, RTOFS), a realistic bathymetry, and the Hurricane Edouard wind forcing. The Feature-Based initialization method is found to be more accurate than the RTOFS method. The SST cooling patterns agree well with those in the idealized cases of the previous chapter, as expected. Visual and statistical comparisons with satellite SST and AXBT observations suggest that the sea-state dependent Langmuir turbulence mixing scheme is more skillful than the implicit scheme in predicting the cold wake generated by the storm. The results therefore suggest that the coupling of both wave and ocean models to a TC model, with an explicit sea-state dependent mixing scheme, is needed for accurate predictions of SST and upper ocean structure underneath TCs.


Skeletal remains of a new early Miocene (Ottnangian, MN 4 mammal zone) monitor lizard, Varanus mokrensis sp. nov., are described from two karst fissures in the Mokrá-Western Quarry (1/2001 Turtle Joint; 2/2003 Reptile Joint), Czech Republic, providing the first documented example of a European varanid for which osteological data permit a well-supported assignment to the genus Varanus. The new species is morphologically similar to the Recent Indo-Asiatic varanids of the Varanus bengalensis group. It differs from all other Varanus species on the basis of a single autapomorphy and a combination of 11 characters. As a distinguishing feature of V. mokrensis, the parietal and squamosal processes of the postorbitofrontal form a narrowly acute angle. The teeth show distinct, smooth cutting edges along the mesial and distal margins of the apical portion of their crowns. This feature is not observed in most extant Asiatic Varanus species and may represent a plesiomorphic condition. The results of parsimony phylogenetic analyses, with and without character reweighting, reveal poor resolution within Varanus. A Bayesian analysis shows V. mokrensis to be closely related to extant representatives of the Indo-Asiatic Varanus clade, with close affinities to the V. bengalensis species group. The topology of the Bayesian tree supports the hypothesis that Miocene monitors from Mokrá are representatives of a lineage that is ancestral to the well-defined clade of extant African varanids, including the early Miocene V. rusingensis. In addition, our results support a Eurasian origin for the varanid clade. The extant African Varanus species probably originated in the late Oligocene. The radiation of African varanids probably occurred during the late Oligocene to early Miocene time interval. The occurrence of Varanus in the early Miocene of Mokrá-Western Quarry corresponds to the warm phase of the Miocene Climatic Optimum. Remains of a diverse aquatic and heliophobe amphibian fauna at the 2/2003 Reptile Joint site indicate more humid conditions than those at the 1/2001 Turtle Joint site. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:B1553295-8AC7-42F0-91C4-51C4C13F1C9D


A new challenging application for Li-ion battery has arisen from the rapid development of micro-electronics. Powering Micro-ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) such as autonomous smart-dust nodes using conventional Li-ion batteries is not possible. It is not only new batteries based on new materials but there is also a need of modifying the actual battery design. In this context, the conception of 3D nano-architectured Li-ion batteries is explored. There are several micro-battery concepts that are studied; however in this thesis, the focus is concentrated on one particular architecture that can be described as the successive deposition of battery components (active material, electrolyte, active material) on free-standing arrays of nano-sized columns of a current collector. After a brief introduction about Li-ion batteries and 3D micro-batteries, the electrodeposition of Al through an alumina template using an ionic liquid electrolyte to form free-standing columns of Al current collector is described. The crucial deposition parameters influencing the nucleation and growth of the Al nano-rods are discussed. The deposition of active electrode material on the nano-structured current collector columns is described for 2 distinct active materials deposited using different techniques. Deposition of TiO2 using Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) as active material on top of the nano-structured Al is also presented. The obtained deposits present high uniformity and high covering of the specific surface of the current collector. When cycled versus lithium and compared to planar electrodes, an increase of the capacity was proven to be directly proportional to the specific area gained from shifting from a 2D to a 3D construction. Cu2Sb 3D electrodes were prepared by the electrodeposition of Sb onto a nano-structured Cu current collector followed by an annealing step forcing the alloying between the current collector and Sb. The volume expansion observed during Sb alloying with Li is buffered by the Cu matrix and thus the electrode stability is greatly enhanced (from only 20 cycles to more than 120 cycles). Finally, the deposition of a hybrid polymer electrolyte onto the developed 3D electrodes is presented. Even though the deposition is not conformal and that issues of capacity fading need to be addressed, preliminary results attest that it is possible to cycle the obtained 3D electrode-electrolyte versus lithium without the appearance of short-circuits.


Lignin-based carbon fiber represents a renewable and low-cost alternative to petroleum-based carbon fiber. However, the poor mechanical performance of current lignin carbon fiber hinders its application. We hypothesized that the lower optimal mechanical performance is caused by the inherent heterogeneity of lignin. It is still unknown how the molecular weights (MWs) and lignin uniformity will impact the performance of lignin carbon fiber. We thereby addressed this hypothesis by fractionating lignin into fractions with different MWs and polydispersity indices (PDIs). An enzyme–mediator-based method and a dialysis method were developed to derive lignin fractions with increased MW and decreased PDI. Lignin fractions were electro-spun into fibers after blending with polyacrylonitrile (PAN) at 1 : 1 (w/w) ratio. The fractionation in general improved the spinnability of lignin to allow us to obtain finer lignin-based carbon fibers. The elastic modulus of lignin carbon fibers, as measured by nanoindentation, was increased as the lignin MW increased and as PDI decreased. The scatter plot and linear regression revealed very good correlation between the elastic modulus and PDI, as well as certain correlation between the elastic modulus and MW. XRD and Raman spectroscopy revealed that the crystallite size and the content of the pre-graphitic turbostratic carbon increased with higher lignin MW and lower PDI, revealing the mechanism of the improvement in carbon fiber mechanical performance. This study elucidated the impacts of lignin MW and uniformity on the mechanical properties of carbon fiber, and could thus guide the development of lignin processing technologies for quality lignin-based carbon fiber.