Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common entity affecting hemodialysis patients. Although the cause of RLS remains unclear, a number of therapies have been used successfully to treat the disorder. Gabapentin is an anticonvulsant shown to alleviate symptoms of RLS in two small studies of nonhemodialysis patients. Because it is excreted renally, gabapentin has a long half-life among hemodialysis patients and may be advantageous if proven effective. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-crossover study of gabapentin in the treatment of RLS among a population of hemodialysis patients. Sixteen patients identified with RLS were randomized to either gabapentin or placebo. After 6 weeks of treatment with 200 to 300 mg of gabapentin after each hemodialysis session, patients' RLS was reassessed. After a 1-week washout period, patients were switched from gabapentin to placebo or placebo to gabapentin. After another 6 weeks, patients' RLS was assessed again. Patient data were analyzed using both parametric and nonparametric means. Thirteen of the 16 original patients completed the study. Two patients dropped out because of lethargy (believed to be secondary to gabapentin), and 1 patient died secondary to myocardial infarction. Eleven patients responded to gabapentin, but not placebo (P < 0.01). One patient responded to both, and 1 patient responded to placebo, but not gabapentin. Gabapentin is an effective treatment for RLS in hemodialysis patients.


This article links a normative analysis of basic rights to an important debate between cosmopolitans and localists on the moral standing of particular political communities. Cosmopolitan scholars often defend the universality of basic rights by appealing to the importance of satisfying the vital needs of every human being. For its part, the localist critique of cosmopolitanism defends compatriot favoritism and emphasizes the role of particularist attachments that are thought to cultivate solidarity, reciprocity, and legitimacy. I move beyond this dualism and adopt an "enlightened localist" approach that justifies basic rights from a universal-cosmopolitan perspective even as it attends to local commitments when faced with corresponding issues of agency and the distribution of responsibility. I distinguish different cosmopolitan accounts in favor of basic rights and argue that one of them successfully defends the validity of basic rights from a universal perspective. But such an account cannot resolve the problem of agency in the global sphere: it cannot specify how transnational obligations corresponding to these basic rights should be allocated. In short, while the normative justification of basic rights is persuasive, the distribution of responsibilities that would render such rights institutionally effective rests on shaky grounds. I conclude by showing that cosmopolitan responsibilities corresponding to basic rights are more appropriately discharged by local communities as the most relevant agents of global justice - if such localism proceeds from an "enlightened" perspective.


Submitted for the MAR17 Meeting of The American Physical Society Physical determinants of bipolar mitotic spindle assembly and stability in fission yeast1 MEREDITH BETTERTON, ROBERT BLACKWELL, CHRISTOPHER EDELMAIER, OLIVER SWEEZY-SCHINDLER, ADAM LAMSON, ZACHARY GERGELY, EILEEN O'TOOLE, AMMON CRAPO, LOREN HOUGH, J. RICHARD MCINTOSH, MATTHEW GLASER, Univ of Colorado Boulder — Mitotic spindles use an elegant bipolar architecture to segregate duplicated chromosomes with high fidelity. Bipolar spindles form from a monopolar initial condition; this is the most fundamental construction problem that the spindle must solve. Microtubules, motors, and crosslinkers are important for bipolarity, but the mechanisms necessary and sufficient for spindle assembly remain unknown. Here we describe a physical model that exhibits de novo bipolar spindle formation. We began with previously published data on fission-yeast spindle-pole-body size and microtubule number, kinesin-5 motors, kinesin-14 motors, and passive crosslinkers. Our model results agree quantitatively with our experiments in fission yeast, thereby establishing a minimal system with which to interrogate collective self assembly. By varying features of our model, we identify a set of functions essential for the generation and stability of spindle bipolarity. When kinesin-5 motors are present, their bidirectionality is essential, but spindles can form in the presence of passive crosslinkers alone. We also identify characteristic failed states of spindle assembly, which are avoided by creation and maintenance of antiparallel microtubule overlaps. 1DMR-0847685, DMR-1551095, DMR-1420736, K25GM110486, R01GM104976, R01GM033787 M. Betterton Univ of Colorado Boulder Date submitted: 11 Nov 2016 Electronic form version 1.4


The Quake That Rocked Japan The 11 March 2011 magnitude 9.0 Tohoku-Oki megathrust earthquake just off the Eastern coast of Japan was one of the largest earthquakes in recorded history. Japan's considerable investment in seismic and geodetic networks allowed for the collection of rapid and reliable data on the mechanics of the earthquake and the devastating tsunami that followed (see the Perspective by Heki). Sato et al. (p. 1395, published online 19 May) describe the huge displacements from ocean bottom transponders—previously placed directly above the earthquake's hypocenter—communicating with Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers aboard a ship. Simons et al. (p. 1421, published online 19 May) used land-based GPS receivers and tsunami gauge measurements to model the kinematics and extent of the earthquake, comparing it to past earthquakes in Japan and elsewhere. Finally, Ide et al. (p. 1426, published online 19 May) used finite-source imaging to model the evolution of the earthquake's rupture that revealed a strong depth dependence in both slip and seismic energy. These initial results provide fundamental insights into the behavior of rare, very large earthquakes that may aid in preparation and early warning efforts for future tsunamis following subduction zone earthquakes. Detailed geophysical measurements reveal features of the 2011 Tohoku-Oki megathrust earthquake. The moment magnitude (Mw) = 9.0 2011 Tohoku-Oki mega-thrust earthquake occurred off the coast of northeastern Japan. Combining Global Positioning System (GPS) and acoustic data, we detected very large sea-floor movements associated with this event directly above the focal region. An area with more than 20 meters of horizontal displacement, that is, four times larger than those detected on land, stretches several tens of kilometers long along the trench; the largest amount reaches about 24 meters toward east-southeast just above the hypocenter. Furthermore, nearly 3 meters of vertical uplift occurred, contrary to observed terrestrial subsidence.


Surface chlorophyll a concentrations in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) lagoon were monitored at individual stations for periods of 6 to 12 years. The monitoring program was established to detect spatial and temporal changes in water quality resulting from increased loads of nutrients exported from the catchments adjoining the GBR. Sampling occurred monthly at up to 86 sites that were located in transects across the width of the continental shelf. In the central and southern GBR (16–21°S), there was a persistent cross-shelf chlorophyll a gradient, with higher concentrations near the coast. No cross-shelf gradient was observed in the far northern GBR (12–15°S). Mean chlorophyll a concentrations in the far northern GBR (0.23 µg L–1) were less than half those in the south and central GBR (0.54 µg L–1). Chlorophyll a varied seasonally within regions, with mean summer-wet season (December–April) concentrations ~50% greater than those in the winter-dry season (May–November). Sub-annual, inter-annual and event-related variations in chlorophyll a concentrations were observed in several zones. Multi-year patterns in concentrations suggest that relatively short (5–8 years) time series may give spurious estimates of secular trends. Higher chlorophyll a concentrations in inshore waters south of 16°S were most likely related to the levels of river nutrient delivery associated with agricultural development on adjacent catchments.


The ability of quantile regression models to characterize the heterogeneous impact of variables on different points of an outcome distribution makes them appealing in many economic applications. However, in observational studies, the variables of interest (e.g., education, prices) are often endogenous, making conventional quantile regression inconsistent and hence inappropriate for recovering the causal effects of these variables on the quantiles of economic outcomes. In order to address this problem, we develop a model of quantile treatment effects (QTE) in the presence of endogeneity and obtain conditions for identification of the QTE without functional form assumptions. The principal feature of the model is the imposition of conditions that restrict the evolution of ranks across treatment states. This feature allows us to overcome the endogeneity problem and recover the true QTE through the use of instrumental variables. The proposed model can also be equivalently viewed as a structural simultaneous equation model with nonadditive errors, where QTE can be interpreted as the structural quantile effects (SQE).


Global coupled chemistry-climate models underestimate carbon monoxide (CO) in the Northern Hemisphere, exhibiting a pervasive negative bias against measurements peaking in late winter and early spring. While this bias has been commonly attributed to underestimation of direct anthropogenic and biomass burning emissions, chemical production and loss via OH reaction from emissions of anthropogenic and biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) play an important role. Here we investigate the reasons for this underestimation using aircraft measurements taken in May and June 2016 from the Korea-United States Air Quality (KORUS-AQ) experiment in South Korea and the Air Chemistry Research in Asia (ARIAs) in the North China Plain (NCP). For reference, multispectral CO retrievals (V8J) from the Measurements of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT) are jointly assimilated with meteorological observations using an ensemble adjustment Kalman filter (EAKF) within the global Community Atmosphere Model with Chemistry (CAM-Chem) and the Data Assimilation Research Testbed (DART). With regard to KORUS-AQ data, CO is underestimated by 42% in the control run and by 12% with the MOPITT assimilation run. The inversion suggests an underestimation of anthropogenic CO sources in many regions, by up to 80% for northern China, with large increments over the Liaoning Province and the North China Plain (NCP). Yet, an often-overlooked aspect of these inversions is that correcting the underestimation in anthropogenic CO emissions also improves the comparison with observational O3 datasets and observationally constrained box model simulations of OH and HO2. Running a CAM-Chem simulation with the updated emissions of anthropogenic CO reduces the bias by 29% for CO, 18% for ozone, 11% for HO2, and 27% for OH. Longer-lived anthropogenic VOCs whose model errors are correlated with CO are also improved, while short-lived VOCs, including formaldehyde, are difficult to constrain solely by assimilating satellite retrievals of CO. During an anticyclonic episode, better simulation of O3, with an average underestimation of 5.5 ppbv, and a reduction in the bias of surface formaldehyde and oxygenated VOCs can be achieved by separately increasing by a factor of 2 the modeled biogenic emissions for the plant functional types found in Korea. Results also suggest that controlling VOC and CO emissions, in addition to widespread NO x controls, can improve ozone pollution over East Asia.


OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to compare the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with treated hypertension who achieved systolic blood pressures (SBPs) of <120, <130, and <140 mmHg after an increase in their antihypertensive regimen. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 28,014 primary care adult patients with T2DM with no prior diagnosis of CVD and who achieved SBP readings <140 mmHg after an increase in the number of antihypertensive medications prescribed. Using an extension of propensity score matching, a total of 2,079, 10,851, and 15,084 matched patients with achieved SBP measurements of <120, <130, and <140 mmHg were identified. The association between achieved SBP and incident CVD were evaluated using Cox regressions. Subgroup analyses were conducted by stratifying patients' baseline characteristics. RESULTS Over a median follow-up period of 4.8 years, the incidence of CVD in patients with achieved SBP measures of <120, <130, and <140 mmHg were 318 (15.3%; incidence rate [IR] 34.3/1,000 person-years [PY]), 992 (9.1%; IR 20.4/1,000 PY), and 1,635 (10.8%; IR 21.4/1,000 PY). Achieved SBP <120 mmHg was associated with a higher risk of CVD compared with achieved SBP <130 mmHg (hazard ratio [HR] 1.75 [95% CI 1.53, 2.00]) and achieved SBP <140 mmHg (HR 1.67 [95% CI 1.46, 1.90]). There was a significant reduction in CVD risk in patients <65 years (HR 0.81 [95% CI 0.69, 0.96]) but no difference for other patients, including patients ≥65 years, who achieved SBP <130 mmHg when compared with the group that achieved SBP <140 mmHg. CONCLUSIONS Our findings support a SBP treatment target of 140 mmHg and suspect no risk reduction attenuation on CVD for lower SBP targets (<120 or <130 mmHg) for most patients with uncomplicated T2DM. A randomized control trial is still needed to confirm these findings.


"Truth happens to an idea." So wrote William James in 1907; and twenty-four years later John Dewey argued that artistic experience entailed a process of "doing and undergoing." But what do these ideas have to do with music, or with research conducted in and through music—that is, with "artistic research"? In this collection of essays, fourteen very different authors respond with distinct and challenging perspectives. Some report on their own experiments and experiences; some offer probing analyses of noteworthy practices; some view historical continuities through the lens of pragmatism and artistic experiment. The resulting collection yields new insights into what musicians do, how they experiment, and what they experience—insights that arise not from doctrine, but from diverse voices seeking common ground in and through experimental discourse: artistic research in and of itself.


ABSTRACT  A total of 171 species of lichens and allied fungi are reported from the spruce-fir forests of Mount Mitchell State Park, in the Black Mountains of North Carolina, based on both historical and modern records. Comparison of the modern baseline with the historical macrolichen baseline generated in the 1970s revealed potential losses of high-elevation southern Appalachian endemics (2 species), cyanolichens (5 species), species typical of exposed rock outcrops (1 species), and widespread species typical of hardwood substrates at high elevations (8 species). In addition to a checklist and summary of lichen biodiversity, dichotomous keys are provided that include all reported species.


A method has been developed of computing bounds on the performance of a code comprised of two linear binary codes generated by two encoders serially concatenated through an interleaver. Originally intended for use in evaluating the performances of some codes proposed for deep-space communication links, the method can also be used in evaluating the performances of short-block-length codes in other applications. The method applies, more specifically, to a communication system in which following processes take place: At the transmitter, the original binary information that one seeks to transmit is first processed by an encoder into an outer code (Co) characterized by, among other things, a pair of numbers (n,k), where n (n > k)is the total number of code bits associated with k information bits and n k bits are used for correcting or at least detecting errors. Next, the outer code is processed through either a block or a convolutional interleaver. In the block interleaver, the words of the outer code are processed in blocks of I words. In the convolutional interleaver, the interleaving operation is performed bit-wise in N rows with delays that are multiples of B bits. The output of the interleaver is processed through a second encoder to obtain an inner code (Ci) characterized by (ni,ki). The output of the inner code is transmitted over an additive-white-Gaussian- noise channel characterized by a symbol signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) Es/No and a bit SNR Eb/No. At the receiver, an inner decoder generates estimates of bits. Depending on whether a block or a convolutional interleaver is used at the transmitter, the sequence of estimated bits is processed through a block or a convolutional de-interleaver, respectively, to obtain estimates of code words. Then the estimates of the code words are processed through an outer decoder, which generates estimates of the original information along with flags indicating which estimates are presumed to be correct and which are found to be erroneous. From the perspective of the present method, the topic of major interest is the performance of the communication system as quantified in the word-error rate and the undetected-error rate as functions of the SNRs and the total latency of the interleaver and inner code. The method is embodied in equations that describe bounds on these functions. Throughout the derivation of the equations that embody the method, it is assumed that the decoder for the outer code corrects any error pattern of t or fewer errors, detects any error pattern of s or fewer errors, may detect some error patterns of more than s errors, and does not correct any patterns of more than t errors. Because a mathematically complete description of the equations that embody the method and of the derivation of the equations would greatly exceed the space available for this article, it must suffice to summarize by reporting that the derivation includes consideration of several complex issues, including relationships between latency and memory requirements for block and convolutional codes, burst error statistics, enumeration of error-event intersections, and effects of different interleaving depths. In a demonstration, the method was used to calculate bounds on the performances of several communication systems, each based on serial concatenation of a (63,56) expurgated Hamming code with a convolutional inner code through a convolutional interleaver. The bounds calculated by use of the method were compared with results of numerical simulations of performances of the systems to show the regions where the bounds are tight (see figure).


In tandem with increased recognition that many social interventions have been limited by their failure to deal with issues related to ethnicity, program developers are increasingly utilizing culturally specific programming in the design and implementation of programs for youth and families. We describe a culturally specific rites of passage program designed for African American youth in foster care as an adjunct to an independent living program. In addition, we present some preliminary evaluative data of this Africentric rites-based initiative. THE SAMPLE CASE OF AN AFRICAN AMERICAN RITES OF PASSAGE PROGRAM* Stephen id. Gavazzi, Keith A. Alford, and Patrick C. McKenry" he literature concerning the impact of family system characteristics on adolescent growth and development is burgeoning (cf. Anderson & Sabatelli, 1990; Bartle & Sabatelli, 1989; Brody, Moore, & Glei, 1994; Gavazzi, 1993; Henry, 1994; Sabatelli & Anderson, 1991), as is the literature on the development of prevention and intervention efforts targeting adolescents and their families (Blumenkrantz & Gavazzi, 1993; Dumka, Roosa, Michaels, & Suh, 1995; Gavazzi, 1995; Guerney, Guerney, & Cooney, 1985; L'Abate, 1990; Sporakowski, 1992). However, at the same time, little attention has been directed to the study of adolescents who are experiencing out-of-home placement, including those who are placed within a foster care environment. In particular, inadequate information is available about the impact of foster family characteristics on adolescent adjustment. Concurrently, little emphasis has been given to the development of prevention and intervention initiatives that target youth in foster care placement (Schuerman, Rzepnicki, & Littell, 1994). All youth who are experiencing foster care are placed in a dependency relationship outside their family of origin. Upon removal from their families, certain normative developmental pathways toward self-sufficiency are altered for these youth. In particular, youth who are moving from a dependent custody arrangement to independent living status are faced with a relatively abrupt transition into adulthood. Research suggests that youth who are dealing with this critical life transition are placed at high risk of continued dependency on the community well into their adult lives. This continued dependency is most evident in the use of welfare and Medicaid and/or periods of institutionalization. Also, because of the declining economic opportunities within most metropolitan environments, urban youth are at even greater risk of continued dependency, a situation compounded by ethnic status (Jackson & Westmoreland, 1992). One response to this problem has been to use life skills training programs within the context of traditional independent living programs that have been designed to directly facilitate the youth's movement toward adult self-sufficiency prior to emancipation. Self-sufficiency most often is equated with the youth's ability to accomplish any or all of the following: (a) graduation from high school, (b) maintenance of a stable job, (c) accessing appropriate health care services, (d) avoidance of young parenthood, (e) establishment of a social network, and (f) development and maintenance of a positive self-concept (cf. Daniel Memorial Institute, 1991). National studies of independent living programs (Westat, 1991) have reported significant relationships between the exposure to life skills training programs and the accomplishment of many of these self-sufficiency criteria. However, this report also has noted the lack of programmatic impact on (a) avoidance of early parenthood, (b) obtaining higher levels of educational achievement, and (c) establishment of a social network (Westat, 1991). It has been hypothesized that life skills programs that do not focus on issues related to the cultural backgrounds of the program participants may achieve limited success. When youth are taken out of their family of origin's homes, often they are removed from their immediate social and/or cultural community as well (Gill & Jackson, 1983; Mullender & Miller, 1985). …


Eyes on the Earth 3D software gives scientists, and the general public, a realtime, 3D interactive means of accurately viewing the real-time locations, speed, and values of recently collected data from several of NASA's Earth Observing Satellites using a standard Web browser (climate.nasa.gov/eyes). Anyone with Web access can use this software to see where the NASA fleet of these satellites is now, or where they will be up to a year in the future. The software also displays several Earth Science Data sets that have been collected on a daily basis. This application uses a third-party, 3D, realtime, interactive game engine called Unity 3D to visualize the satellites and is accessible from a Web browser.


The four-meter Advanced Technology Solar Telescope (ATST) will be the most powerful solar telescope and the world's leading resource for studying solar magnetism that controls the solar wind, flares, coronal mass ejections and variability in the Sun's output. Development of a four-meter solar telescope presents many technical challenges, which include: thermal control of optics and telescope structure; contamination control of the primary mirror to achieve low scattered light levels for coronal observations; control of instrumental polarization to allow accurate and precise polarimetric observations of solar magnetic fields; and high-order solar adaptive optics that uses solar granulation as the wavefront sensing target in order to achieve diffraction limited imaging and spectroscopy. We give a status report of the ATST project focusing on the substantial progress that has been made with the design of the ATST. We summarize the design of the major subsystems, including the enclosure, the primary and secondary mirror assemblies, the coude and Nasmyth focal stations, adaptive optics and instrumentation. The site selection has been successfully concluded and we discuss areas where the site selection impacts the design.


Abstract The sunflower midge, Contarinia schulzi Gagné (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), is a pest of cultivated sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). Larval feeding can cause damage and yield loss to the sunflower head. Adult emergence is extended and larvae are well protected in the sunflower receptacle, making chemical control methods difficult and expensive. Sunflower midge enter sunflower fields at the edges but fieldwide distributions occur, although the dynamics are not fully understood. Two commercial fields in 1999 and one field in 2000 were systematically sampled by dividing each field into fixed sample points. Mean egg and larval densities from each sample point were used to describe sunflower midge populations. The sunflower heads at each sample point were also assessed for damage. Maps of sunflower midge population density, cumulative density, and sunflower head damage ratings were estimated with kriging interpolation. Maps were estimated several times during first generation sunflower midge infestation. Field edges that were initially populated continued to be areas of infestation throughout the sampling period. Damage ratings were related to population densities when infestations were high. In 2000, we tested the larval hatching rate from different-sized egg masses with regression to determine an estimation technique for combining numbers of eggs and larvae.


The Engineering Analysis provides information on efficiencies, manufacturer costs, and other characteristics of the appliance class being analyzed. For clothes washers, there are two classes: standard and compact. Since data were not available to analyze the compact class, only clothes washers were analyzed in this report. For this analysis, individual design options were combined and ordered in a manner that resulted in the lowest cumulative cost/savings ratio. The cost/savings ratio is the increase in manufacturer cost for a design option divided by the reduction in operating costs due to fuel and water savings.


This paper is the result of critical discussions held in the framework of the SALTSA project on the post-2010 continuation of the Lisbon process. The general conclusion is that Europe will continue to need, in the future, a common strategy for growth and sustainable development which builds on the experiences of the 'old' Lisbon strategy. That is why the paper starts with analysing the Lisbon process and discussing its various shortcomings. The author argues that a genuinely new strategy will have to adopt a generally different approach when setting priorities. Economic growth is namely a means to more welfare, not a goal in itself. Social inclusion and common shared welfare are not developments that will happen automatically, they have to be fostered by positive policies and by the creation of political platforms for further initiatives. Social equality and justice must be in the fore-front of the new post-Lisbon strategy. The search for appropriate and sustainable solutions is above all a political issue which Europe must first acknowledge and for which it must then develop appropriate strategies.


Key points Technological advances in the amounts of data that researchers generate and use are causing problems for the scholarly communication system. How, when and by whom should quality checks and assurance be integrated into this – already overloaded – ecosystem? This paper outlines the challenges, illustrates some current initiatives and posits possible directions for the future.


This article discusses the collocations that express the meaning of an indeterminate, large quantity of objects. As our analysis has shown the plurality in these collocations is expressed by two classes of collocators: aggregate nouns (full-meaning words) and nouns with quantificative semantics that do not have a referential meaning, and their usage is based on metaphorical transfer. Despite the fact that aggregate nouns in metaphorical transfer undergo a semantic shift, and, changing their status, fall into the class of quantifiers, their semantic influence in the meaning of collocations is more considerable, than that of collocators with quantificative semantics. Keywords: collocations; quantifiers; semantics; lexical combinability


Abstract δ13Corg and TOC data are presented from the upper spiralis Biozone (Telychian, Llandovery, Silurian) through to the upper Sheinwoodian (Wenlock, Silurian) of the Banwy River section, Wales. In laminated hemipelagites from the Telychian, δ13Corg values rise through the upper lapworthi Biozone to a maximum in the lower insectus Biozone after which they decline slightly. The most conspicuous feature of the δ13Corg curve is the prolonged positive excursion in the Sheinwoodian, commencing in the upper murchisoni Biozone and ending in strata yielding Monograptus flexilis. This Sheinwoodian positive δ13C excursion in the Banwy River section correlates precisely with that recognized in the East Baltic. The interval with the highest δ13Corg values also records the highest TOC values, suggesting that for the Sheinwoodian at least burial of carbon may have contributed to the positive δ13C excursion. Bioturbated strata yield very low TOC values; whether the δ13Corg values from these beds reflect a primary signal or the result of biostratinomic or diagenetic modification is uncertain.


Building on the biblical narrative and on social world analysis, Leeb argues that the terms NA'AR and NA'ARAH refer to persons displaced from the father's house (BET 'AB), usually as a result of debt slavery. Hence, rather than working his father's land, and becoming in turn the head of his own household, the NA'AR, as a domestic or military servant, helps build the household of another. Less frequently, the weakness or absence of the father leads to the same, or a similar, predicament. Any woman venturing from her own household is also likely to acquire the status of a NA'ARAH. This is a novel and challenging study in ancient Israelite social structure.


Ninety-four consecutive patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia in first clinical chronic phase, median age of 34.0 years (range, 6.8 to 52.4 years), with a histocompatible sibling donor, were treated with fractionated total body irradiation (1,320 cGy) and high-dose etoposide (60 mg/kg) followed by allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The median time from diagnosis to BMT was 7.0 months (range, 2.3 to 72.0 months). Sixty patients were treated before BMT with hydroxyurea alone, four patients with busulfan alone, one patient with interferon alone, and the other 29 patients were treated with various combinations of these drugs. Cumulative probabilities of overall survival, event-free survival, and relapse at 5 years were 73%, 64%, and 14%, respectively. The median follow-up time for surviving patients was 38 months, ranging from 12 to 88 months. By stepwise Cox regression analysis, significant prognostic variables were age at transplant, acute graft-versus-host disease > or = grade II, cytomegalovirus-associated interstitial pneumonitis, and years from diagnosis to BMT.


This study is described the cutting method using an articulated robot that is the new machining for extruded aluminum alloys. The characteristics of this method are using the small diameter of endmill which aims to reduce the cutting force in order to compensate completely the low stiffness of articulated robot, and using the high-speed spindle to improve the machining efficiency. The behavior of super high-speed rotational cutting for extruded aluminum alloys is still unclear. In this paper, the basic cutting experiments and the structural analysis were done. It was proved the high frequency vibration proper to high-speed cutting had a close relation to the stiffness (natural frequency) of machine tools and workpieces, and great affected the cutting force and the cutting surface. The articulated robot was low stiffness, so there was few effect on the high frequency vibration in cutting, and the cutting force decreased 50~70% in comparison with the fluting machine. Consequently, it was understood the cutting method using an articulated robot was effective for the improvement of high-speed cutting.


BACKGROUND
Several studies report early results of endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal surgery; however, none discuss long-term outcome measures such as tumor recurrence rates and the need for additional surgical procedures.

OBJECTIVE
To discuss the long-term outcomes after endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal surgery for nonfunctioning pituitary macroadenomas.

METHODS
This is a retrospective study. Patients were included only if they had at least 5 years of clinical and imaging follow-up after surgery.

RESULTS
Eighty patients met the study criteria. Grossly complete resection was achieved in 71% of patients. Knosp grade 0 to 2 tumors and tumor with volumes <10 cm were significantly more likely to have received a grossly complete resection. There were 7 recurrences (12%) in patients who had received grossly complete resections, with a mean time to recurrence of 53 months. Among the 23 patients who had subtotal resections, 11 (61%) progressed radiographically, and 3 (17%) had symptomatic progression. Knosp score, surgical and radiographic evidence of invasion, and preoperative visual deficits were predictive of recurrence in a univariate analysis, but Knosp grade was the only independent predictor in a multivariate analysis. Kaplan-Meier analysis projected a 10-year progression-free survival rate of 80% and 21% for patients with gross total resections and subtotal resections, respectively.

CONCLUSION
At the long-term follow-up, 12% of patients had recurrent tumors after grossly complete resection. Recurrent or residual tumors were treated with either repeat surgery or Gamma Knife radiosurgery. Rates of complete resection, postoperative surgical and endocrinological complications, and additional surgical procedures are similar to previously published reports after microscopic transsphenoidal surgery.


Despite the promising prospects of magnesium (Mg) alloys over conventional metallic biomaterials, there are still several challenges for bone implants such as the insufficient mechanical strength and ductility of Mg alloys and its rapid degradation in the physiological environment before adequate bone healing. Nano-sized reinforcements have the potential to enhance the mechanical properties of metal matrices by Orowan strengthening and load-transfer strengthening mechanisms. In this study, powder metallurgy (PM) fabrication routes was used to fabricated new magnesium (Mg) metal matrix composites (MMCs) reinforced with graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) for biomedical applications. GNPs (0.1, 0.2, 0.3 wt.%) with variable layer thicknesses and sizes were dispersed into Mg powder using high-energy ball-milling (BM) processes. The microstructure of the fabricated composites was characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), optical microscopy (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy (RS). The mechanical properties were evaluated by compression tests. The corrosion resistance was investigated by electrochemical tests and hydrogen evolution measurements. The cytotoxicity was assessed using osteoblast-like cells. The results indicate that GNPs are excellent candidates as reinforcements in Mg matrices for the manufacture of biodegradable Mg implants. GNP addition improved the mechanical properties of Mg via synergetic strengthening modes including grain-refinement strengthening, thermal-mismatch strengthening, dispersion strengthening, and load-transfer strengthening. Moreover, retaining the structural integrity of dispersed GNPs improved the ductility, compressive strength, and corrosion resistance of the Mg–GNP composites. Cytotoxicity assessments did not reveal any significant adverse effects on biocompatibility with the addition of GNPs to Mg matrices. Mg–xGNPs with x < 0.3 wt.% may constitute promising biodegradable implant materials for load-bearing applications.


A series of co-crystallizations between four biimidazole based compounds (1,1′-bis(pyridin-4-ylmethyl)-2,2′-biimidazole A1, 1,1′-bis(pyridin-3-ylmethyl)-2,2′-biimidazole A2, 1,1′-bis(pyridin-2-ylmethyl)-2,2′-biimidazole A3 and 1,1′-dibenzyl-2,2′-biimidazole A4) and nine symmetric aliphatic di-acids were carried out in order to determine if a ranking based on calculated molecular electrostatic potential surfaces (MEPS) can be used to effectively assign selectivity in hydrogen-bond based intermolecular interactions. Acceptors A1–A3 are asymmetric ditopic acceptors where two types of nitrogen atoms (pyridine and imidazole) are present, while A4 is a control molecule with only one type of acceptor to rule out any influence of steric factors in the observed structures. 28 of 36 experiments (78% yield) produced a co-crystal, as indicated by relevant changes in the corresponding infrared spectra. Twelve crystal structures of co-crystals of A1–A3 were obtained and every single one displayed primary OH⋯N hydrogens bonds that could be rationalized using the ranking based upon electrostatic potential maps. One crystal structure of A4 was obtained the result of which indicate that the patterns of behaviour established in this family of compounds is not a result of sterics or crystal packing; a simple electrostatic view of hydrogen-bond strength provides a reliable tool for predicting the most likely interactions in a competitive system.


The Foreign Bank Account Report, or FBAR, is part of a regime designed to stop terrorists, money-launderers, and tax evaders. Unfortunately, its increasingly draconian requirements and consequences now apply to millions of innocent bystanders who are collateral damage in the ongoing battle against financial crime. Their inclusion in the FBAR regime is a massive waste of both government and taxpayer resources, effectively criminalizing activities that are wholly unconnected to financial crime, and perversely discouraging compliance. All of this is unnecessary because as the administrator of FBAR, Treasury can immediately fix the problems. The difficulty is that FBAR is still relatively obscure to those not caught in its grasp, and the extent of the damage it is doing to U.S. taxpayers and to the integrity of the tax system is thus under-appreciated. This damage is real, but it can be reversed by re-focusing FBAR where Congress intended: on likely criminal activity. In short, this Essay demonstrates that the FBAR regime is broken and it is time for Treasury to fix it.


In courses that involve programming assignments, giving meaningful feedback to students is an important challenge. Human beings can give useful feedback by manually grading the programs but this is a time-consuming, labor intensive, and usually boring process. Automatic graders can be fast and scale well but they usually provide poor feedback. Although there has been research on improving automatic graders, research on scaling and improving human grading is limited. We propose to scale human grading by augmenting the manual grading process with an equivalence algorithm that can identify the equivalences between student submissions. This enables human graders to give targeted feedback for multiple student submissions at once. Our technique is conservative in two aspects. First, it identifies equivalence between submissions that are algorithmically similar, e.g., it cannot identify the equivalence between quicksort and mergesort. Second, it uses formal methods instead of clustering algorithms from the machine learning literature. This allows us to prove a soundness result that guarantees that submissions will never be clustered together in error. Despite only reporting equivalence when there is algorithmic similarity and the ability to formally prove equivalence, we show that our technique can significantly reduce grading time for thousands of programming submissions from an introductory functional programming course.


The brutal murder of Hamiona Haira, who had been mining with his two brothers and his father-in-law, shocked the new settlement. Being a member of Ngati Koe and Ngati Hako, these hapu threatened utu on the Pakeha responsible, causing both Maori and Pakeha miners to abandon their claims at Tui. Suspicion immediately fell on John Procoffy, a Finn, and evidence was quickly collected, officials being anxious to obtain a speedy conviction to avoid an innocent Pakeha being killed in revenge. Rangatira agreed to let the courts deal with the case, although some Pakeha criticized the government for being too anxious to appease Maori. After a coroner's inquest, which included Maori as members of the jury, returned a verdict of murder by 'person or persons unknown', Procoffy faced two trials. As the prosecution was handicapped by the limitations of contemporary forensic skills, its case was largely circumstantial. Although the police were certain they had their murderer, others were not convinced, and there was a reluctance to convict because of the death penalty. The final outcome was a verdict of not guilty, which, as was pointed out, should have


David Schalkwyk offers a sustained reading of Shakespeare's sonnets in relation to his plays. He argues that the language of the sonnets is primarily performative rather than descriptive, and bases this distinction on the philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein and J.L.Austin. In a wide-ranging analysis of both the  quarto of Shakespeare's sonnets and the Petrarchan discourses in a selection of plays, Schalkwyk addresses such issues as embodiment and silencing, interiority and theatricality, inequalities of power, status, gender and desire, both in the published poems and on the stage and in the context of the early modern period. In a provocative discussion of the question of proper names and naming events in the sonnets and plays, the book seeks to reopen the question of the autobiographical nature of Shakespeare's sonnets.


The goal of the Americans with Disabilities (ADA) Act is to provide equal opportunity, full participation, and independence to persons with disabilities. The inability to travel, or the lack of knowledge in accessing the available transportation options, frequently translates into difficulty finding employment, seeking necessary medical services, and participating in educational or vocational training. Simple tasks such as knowing when to pull the cord to indicate the need to exit the bus can be challenging for people with cognitive disabilities. Travel trainers provide one-on-one instruction to develop the skills necessary for independent transit riding. The travel assistant device (TAD) developed for this project is a prototype software system that can be installed on off-the-shelf, GPS-enabled cell phones. The TAD software provides various informational prompts such as playing the recorded audio messages "Get ready" and "Pull the cord now!" and vibrating to alert the rider to pull the stop cord. These prompts are delivered to the rider in a just-in-time method. The real-time location of the rider can be viewed by the travel trainer or family member through a web page. TAD utilizes stop and route data provided by transit agencies in the de facto industry standard Google Transit Feed Specification format. TAD was designed for use by cognitively-disabled transit riders, but can be used by any transit user. Tools that reduce the time and cost of travel training by addressing one or more of the 23 skills necessary for a trainee to travel independently increase the mobility of the population, permit transit agencies to train individuals more efficiently, and reassure the families of these travelers. The field test results with cognitively-disabled young adults successfully demonstrated that TAD supports 3 of the 23 skills a trainee needs to possess to travel independently: watching for landmarks, recognizing a landmark near the desired bus stop, and signaling to exit at the proper time. TAD also provides confidence and security to individuals using the fixed-route transit system. Future research needs include additional testing through wider-scale deployment, integrating trip planning functionality, and combining TAD with automatic vehicle location (AVL) systems for increased reliability and approaching bus notifications. Finally, integrating the TAD into travel training curriculums makes it a tool that travel trainers can use to enhance transit rider independence and safety.


Despite the widespread use of mobile phones and tablets, hand-held portable devices have only recently been identified as a promising platform for gaze-aware applications. Estimating gaze on portable devices is challenging given their limited computational resources, low quality integrated front-facing RGB cameras, and small screens to which gaze is mapped. In this paper we present EyeTab, a model-based approach for binocular gaze estimation that runs entirely on an unmodified tablet. EyeTab builds on set of established image processing and computer vision algorithms and adapts them for robust and near-realtime gaze estimation. A technical prototype evaluation with eight participants in a normal indoors office setting shows that EyeTab achieves an average gaze estimation accuracy of 6.88° of visual angle at 12 frames per second.


Objective: The authors present a rare case of paediatric sphenoidal mucopyocele mimicking a tumour. Methods: A case report and literature review of sphenoid mucoceles in the paediatric population. Results: The authors present a case of sphenoidal mucopyocele in childhood initially thought to be a rhabdomyosarcoma. We discuss the presentation, investigation and surgical management of this rare entity. We also provide radiological evidence of this pathology. Conclusion: Paranasal sinus mucoceles are uncommon in the paediatric population; with sphenoidal mucoceles being extremely rare. Endoscopic endonasal surgery is nowadays the gold standard for treating sphenoid mucoceles.


### What you need to know

Since the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in December 2019, there has been an unparalleled global effort to characterise the virus and the clinical course of disease. Coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2, follows a biphasic pattern of illness that likely results from the combination of an early viral response phase and an inflammatory second phase. Most clinical presentations are mild, and the typical pattern of covid-19 more resembles an influenza-like illness—which includes fever, cough, malaise, myalgia, headache, and taste and smell disturbance—rather than severe pneumonia (although emerging evidence about long term consequences is yet to be understood in detail).1 In this review, we provide a broad update on the emerging understanding of SARS-CoV-2 pathophysiology, including virology, transmission dynamics, and the immune response to the virus. Any of the …


The issue of capital mobility and the related issue of financial market integration is one of the most pronounced cases of contradiction between casual empiricism and conventional wisdom, in the one hand, and the results of formal empirical testing on the other. The question of the degree of capital mobility is an important one in economic analysis. This is because the assumptions one makes about the degree to which capital is mobile internationally can significantly influence the conclusions of the analysis. Over the past decade developing countries have experienced a continuing process of financial market liberalization and growing financial flows. Measuring the degree of capital mobility – defined as the degree of linkage between domestic and foreign interest rates – is central to our understanding and assessment of financial liberalization and its consequences. There are some methodological issues concerning the degree of capital mobility: The connection between capital mobility and market integration seems to be clear; if markets are integrated then capital will move more freely. Feldstein and Horioka (1980) have proposed to measure capital mobility using the degree of correlation between saving and investment rates. The Ferdstein-Horioka criterion also implies that capital mobility can be measured on the basis of differential (nominal and real) rates of interest. However, other researchers argued that the saving-investment correlation is not a proper measure of the degree of capital mobility and market integration (Goldstein et al, 1991), Frankel and MacArthur (1988). In this paper, following Edwards and Khan (1985), the domestic interest rate is hypothesized to depend on weighted average of domestic and foreign factos. The approach that was used is maximum likelihood cointegration analysis of Johansen (1988), and Johansen and Juseliu (1990). The results support the impact of both domestic and international influences on the domestic rate in the case of Greek economy. The evidence based on the Edwards and Khan (1985) approach seems to support the hypothesis of high (but not perfect) capital mobility in the Greek economy. The capital is highly mobile.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide evidence on the role of tenure as a moderator of the effects of job insecurity (JI) and employability on turnover intentions and absenteeism and will demonstrate its importance in personnel research and theorization.

Design/methodology/approach
Data from a sample of client service representatives of a Peruvian call centre (n=268) were analysed. Tests of hypotheses targeted the intact group as a whole and divided into short (3–10 months), medium (11–14 months) and long job tenure groups (15–37 months).

Findings
Results of general linear models revealed that the effects of JI on turnover intention observed in the intact group were aligned with those seen within each of the tenure groups. However, this was not the case for the effects of JI on absenteeism or the effects of employability on turnover intention and absenteeism. A comparison of results of various regression models indicated that the effects of JI and employability on absenteeism differed in meaningful ways across the intact group and the tenure groups.

Research limitations/implications
The evidence does not reveal whether the observed differences stem from dynamic personnel selection processes or whether they express different relationships between the variables at various stages of an employee's trajectory in an organization.

Practical implications
Human resource managers at call centres will be stimulated to re-evaluate the costs and benefits of promoting tenure, and journal editors will have to consider requesting the inclusion of tenure as a variable in studies focussing on organizations with high turnover.

Originality/value
This study is the first to prove that the effects of JI and employability on turnover intention and absenteeism vary across job tenure levels. It also shows the importance of addressing tenure in personnel research and theorization.


Sexual dysfunction is a highly prevalent, age-related disorder which has a significant impact on the quality of life and social well- being of both the patient and the partner. It is a progressive disease associated with many vascular and cardiac risk factors. The subject of sexual dysfunction is more widely discussed in the media as a result of newer therapies that have become available in the past decade. Therefore, men and women of all ages are seeking assistance to improve their sexual relationships. Male sexual dysfunction refers to a problem with one or more of the four components of male sexual function, i.e. libido, erection, ejaculation or orgasm, that interferes with the ability or interest to engage in sexual intercourse. Psychological and physical factors as well as drugs may affect male sexual dysfunction. Female sexual dysfunction has both psychogenic and organic causes, related to desire, arousal, orgasm and sexual pain disorders. This article focuses mainly on erectile dysfunction (ED) in males. However, it is important to remember that the sexual partner plays an integral role in the successful and effective management of the ED patient.


beautiful filament-systems are often shown by t he astonishing development of the modern astronomy. Most of these filaments have an exact circular cross section. Filaments have the same interesting characteristics from a diameter of 0.01 mm to that of many 1000 of light-years. Filaments are incorrectly seen to be of plasma, however, particles move in only one direction in them , often against gravity. In this non-thermal (fifth-) state of matter, particles have up to 10 -times higher energy than those in the hottest stellar plasma. The corona-problem and hundreds of other problems of astrophysics are solved at once. Only six states of matter are possible, all are briefly described.


CONTEXT
In primary aldosteronism, elevated serum 18-hydroxycorticosterone (18OHB) suggests aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA) rather than bilateral, idiopathic hyperaldosteronism (IHA), but little is known about the relative production of 18OHB and aldosterone (A) in APAs compared with IHA.

OBJECTIVES
We measured 18OHB, A, and cortisol (F) in blood from adrenal vein sampling (AVS) studies. We compared the discriminatory power of gradients in 18OHB/A and 18OHB/F ratios with A/F ratio gradients for distinguishing APA from IHA.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND SUBJECTS
We measured 18OHB and A in excess serum from 23 AVS studies performed at our university hospitals.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
We calculated the ratios 18OHB/A, 18OHB/F, and A/F for all specimens, and determined the adrenal vein gradients for these ratios.

RESULTS
The 18OHB/A ratios were much lower in blood draining APAs (2.17 +/- 0.62) than in blood draining the contralateral adrenals (12.96 +/- 12.76; P < 0.001) but similar to blood draining IHA adrenals (4.69 +/- 4.32; P = 0.02). In contrast, the 18OHB/F ratios were elevated in specimens from APAs (26.03 +/- 11.51) compared with IHA adrenals (9.22 +/- 5.18; P < 0.001) or the contralateral adrenals (6.23 +/- 2.97; P < 0.001). Using 18OHB/F gradient greater than two or 18OHB/A gradient less than 0.5 as criteria for lateralization, interpretations agreed with lateralizations based on A/F gradients in 21 of 23 cases.

CONCLUSIONS
High serum 18OHB in APA reflects augmented production of both 18OHB and A, not disproportionate 18OHB secretion relative to A. The 18OHB/A and 18OHB/F gradients are useful adjuncts but not as reliable as A/F gradients for A lateralization during AVS.


We report the calculation of boiling points for several alkyl alcohols through the use of improved molecular descriptors based on the optimization of correlation weights of local invariants of graphs. As local invariants we have used the presence of different chemical elements (i.e. C, H, and O) and the existence of different vertex degree values (i.e. 1, 2, 3 and 4). The inherent ̄exibility of the chosen molecular descriptor seems to be rather suitable to obtain satisfactory predictions of the property under study. Comparison with other similar approximation reveals a very good behavior of the present method. The use of higher order polynomials do not seem to be necessary to improve the results regarding the simple linear ®tting equations. Some possible future extensions are pointed out in order to achieve a more de®nitive conclusion about this approximation. q 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.


Abstract: Purpose: This study examined the relationship between organizational cynicism and employee performance at diverse hierarchical levels in big four audit firms in Sri Lanka. Research methodology: By adopting quantitative research methodology, questionnaires were used as a primary data collection method from audit trainees, audit supervisors, and audit managers in big 4 audit firms in Sri Lanka. This was conducted by deploying a convenient sampling technique, and regression models are used by applying SPSS. Results: The study found a significant negative relationship between organizational cynicism and employee performance at audit firms and that each dimension of organizational cynicism. Limitations: Organizational cynicism was analyzed based on employee perception, although there are other influencing factors for organizational cynicism. Contribution: This study's findings are expected to support audit supervisors in avoiding the discovered negative effect instead by lessening the degree of psychological contract violation and organizational politics. Keywords: Organizational cynicism, Employee performance, Audit firms, Affective cynicism, Cognitive cynicism, Behavioral cynicism Keywords: 1. Organizational cynicism 2. Employee performance 3. Audit firms 4. Affective cynicism 5. Cognitive cynicism 6. Behavioral cynicism


Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS or cot death) is the leading cause of infant death in the developed world (Byard et aL, 1996), and is unique in the medical lexicon in that it represents a pathology defined by categories of exclusion. Historically, Canterbury has had one of the highest rates of SIDS in New Zealand, and New Zealand has had one of the highest SIDS rates in the western world (Nelson, 1996). SIDS is one of the most catastrophic events that can occur within a family, and is particularly traumatic due to parents invariably placing blame upon themselves for their infant's death. Historically, statisticians and epidemiologists have played a major role in SIDS research. Their epidemiological approach has resulted in the identification of modifiable risk factors, including prone sleeping, smoking in an infant's environment, formula feeding, and bed sharing. Public health 'back-to-sleep' campaigns, have directly resulted in a sharp drop in SIDS incidence from the early 1990s. The aim of this thesis is to model and predict the incidence of SIDS in Canterbury, New Zealand (1968-1999), in terms of complex weather I?atterns, characterised by a diverse array of climatic variables. This is achieved by linking the temporal sequence of SIDS counts with a comprehensive climate profile. The association between climate and SIDS has a long history, with the first reference to a seasonal variation in SIDS (a peak in the incidence of SIDS in colder months) published nearly 150 years ago (Wakley, 1855). Many studies have related SIDS to various meteorological measures throughout the world, yet the only consistent relationship found is between SIDS and seasonality (for example Douglas et aL (1998) or Mitchell et aL (1999». This study is the first to systematically analyse a multiplicity of climate data at different temporal levels, with an accurate extensive time series of SIDS. Results from change point analyses showed that the Canterbury SIDS profile was constructed of three distinct temporal periods. Logistic regression on seasonality measures, confirmed that seasonality existed in the Canterbury profile. This annual variation in the incidence of SIDS was best measured by different variables for the different periods. Short term relationships between the incidence of SIDS and climate, over and above seasonality, were found for various climatic profiles including humidity, wind (speed, direction and velocity) and pressure. These relationships were identified using regression techniques based on the Poisson distribution, including Poisson regression, Poisson mixture models, Poisson regression with an autoregressive latent structure, and generalised additive models. Three separate aspects of this study have not previously been seen in the literature, and result from novel statistical applications of mixture and change point methods to the incidence of SIDS. Firstly, this study applies mixture methods to a temporal sequence of discrete SIDS counts. Secondly, the study identifies significant points of change in the chronological profile of SIDS counts, which correspond to structural shifts in the underlying distribution. Thirdly, this study methodologically analyses a vast array of climate data at different temporal levels, with an accurate extensive time series of SIDS.


Unlike most technical analysis books, Gerald Appel's Practical Power Tools! offers step-by-step instructions virtually any investor can use to achieve breakthrough success in the market. Appel illuminates a wide range of strategies and timing models, demystifying even advanced technical analysis the first time. Among the models he covers: NASDAQ/NYSE Relative Strength, 3-5 Year Treasury Notes, Triple Momentum, Seasonality, Breadth-Thrust Impulse, and models based on the revolutionary MACD techniques he personally invented. Appel covers momentum and trend of price movement, time and calendar cycles, predictive chart patterns, relative strength, analysis of internal vs. external markets, market breadth, moving averages, trading channels, overbought/oversold indicators, Trin, VIX, major term buy signals, major term sell signals, moving average trading channels, stock market synergy, and much more. He presents techniques for short-, intermediate-, and long-term investors, and even for mutual fund investors.


Proponents of fiscal stimulus argue that government spending is needed to replace the private spending normally lost during a recession. Estimates of the so-called fiscal multiplier based on wartime episodes are used to support the proposition that a peacetime intervention can "stimulate" the economy in a desirable manner. The author argues that a wartime crisis is fundamentally different from a peacetime economic crisis. What may be desirable in war is not necessarily so in peace. This is demonstrated formally in the context of a simple neoclassical model, which delivers fiscal multipliers consistent with the wartime evidence. The optimal fiscal policy, whether it entails expansion or contraction, is independent of the size of the fiscal multiplier.


The annual European Migration Network policy reports examine the main political developments in the area of migration and asylum at EU Member State level. This third policy analysis report focuses on the period from January to December 2006. This report for Ireland compiles information on migration trends, legislative developments and policy implementation issues. Important developments in the period included the emergence of new immigration, residence and protection legislation, the enactment of the Employment Permits Act 2006 and the publication of research and analysis the issue of EU accession and displacement of Irish workers.


To explore the effects of web-based instruction (WBI) on math anxiety, the sense of mastery, and global self-esteem, we use quasi-experimental data from undergraduate statistics students in classes assigned to three study conditions, each with varied access to, and incentive for, the use of online technologies. Results suggest that when statistics course requirements included the use of WBI techniques, such as Blackboard's (Blackboard Inc. 2001) digital drop box and online student discussion board, class levels of math anxiety were reduced from the beginning (Time I) to the end (Time II) of the course instruction periods. In classes that required student participation in online discussion forums, self-esteem levels appear to have been enhanced. Perceived mastery levels, however, were not influenced significantly by use of the WBI tools we consider here. The findings indicate that the incorporation of WBI techniques into statistics courses may benefit college students; yet, the mechanisms by which WBI tools affect student outcomes require elucidation. We recommend that widespread implementation of WBI follow only from systematic evaluation of its efficacy across various educational settings, student populations, and social conditions.


A Cochrane review published on 18 January questions the evidence for prescribing statins for primary prevention in people at low cardiovascular risk, after finding selective reporting of outcomes, failure to report adverse events, and inclusion of people with cardiovascular disease in published studies.

The reviewers analysed randomised controlled trials of statins in adults with no requirements for participants to have particular LDL or HDL cholesterol concentrations and where no more than 10% of participants had a history of cardiovascular disease ( Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2011;(1):CD004816, doi:10.1002/14651858.CD004816.pub4). All studies included also had to have a minimum duration of one year and follow-up of six months.

"We wanted to examine benefits and harms from statins in primary prevention," explained Shah Ebrahim, professor of public health …


In this article, we propose an open definition of "economic philosophy" as a "postural field of rationalized ideas of economics (and economy)." Our argument is formed of two parts. The first allows us to answer this question: Why "economic philosophy"? We argue that it should be understood as a reaction to a doubt about the representation of economics as a science, itself caused by three problems that we analyze. In the second part, we clarify our definition by firstly explaining the notions of "postural field" and of "ideas of economics (economy)." This discussion then leads us to a clarification of the links between idea, concept, theory, and judgment. Finally, we move closer to our stipulative definition, using that promoted by A. Leroux since 1995. JEL classification: A1, B3, B4


Humans use subtle sources of information — like nonverbal behavior — to determine whether to act cooperatively or antagonistically when they negotiate. Handshakes are particularly consequential nonverbal gestures in negotiations because people feel comfortable initiating negotiations with them and believe they signal cooperation (Study 1). We show that handshakes increase cooperative behaviors, affecting outcomes for integrative and distributive negotiations. In two studies with MBA students, pairs who shook hands before integrative negotiations obtained higher joint outcomes (Studies 2a and 2b). Pairs randomly assigned to shake hands were more likely to openly reveal their preferences on trade-off issues, which improved joint outcomes (Study 3). In a fourth study using a distributive negotiation, pairs of executives assigned to shake hands were less likely to lie about their preferences and crafted agreements that split the bargaining zone more equally. Together, these studies show that handshaking promotes the adoption of cooperative strategies and influences negotiation outcomes.


Two types of nanocomposite reactive materials with the same bulk compositions 8Al MoO3 were prepared and compared with each other. One of the materials was manufactured by arrested reactive milling and the other so-called metastable interstitial composite was manufactured by mixing of nanoscaled individual powders. The materials were characterized using differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric, as well as ignition, experiments using an electrically heated filament and laser as heat sources. The experiments were interpreted using simplified models describing heat transfer in the heated material samples in different experimental configurations. Clear differences in the low-temperature redox reactions, well detectable by differential scanning calorimetry, were established between metastable interstitial composite and arrested-reactive-milling-prepared materials. However, the materials did not differ significantly from each other in the ignition experiments. In the heated filament ignition tests, their ignition temperatures were nearly identical to each other and were in the range of 750–800 K. These ignition temperatures coincided with the temperatures at which main exothermic processes were detected in differential scanning calorimetry experiments. In laser ignition experiments performed with consolidated pellets of bothmaterials, metastable interstitial composite pellets produced consistently stronger pressure pulses. The ignition delays were similar for the pellets of both materials prepared with the same porosity. Analysis of the heat transfer in the pellets heated by the laser suggested that the laser-exposed pellet surfaces were heated to approximately the same temperature before ignition for both materials. This temperature was estimated to be close to 500 K, neglecting the exothermic reactions preceding ignition and possible fragmentation of the heated pellets. Taking into account both phenomena is expected to result in a higher surface temperature, which would better represent the experimental situation. It is proposed that the ignition of both metastable interstitial composite and arrested-reactive-millingprepared materials at the same temperature can be explained by a thermodynamically driven transformation of a protective amorphous alumina into a crystalline polymorph.


In contemporary software development projects and computing tasks, security concerns have an increasing effect, and sometimes even guide both the design and the project's processes. In certain environments, the demand for the security becomes the main driver of the development. In these cases, the development of the product requires special security arrangements for development and hosting, and specific security-oriented processes for governance. Compliance with these requirements using agile development methods may not only be a chance to improve the project efficiency, but can in some cases, such as in the case discussed in this paper, be an organizational requirement. This paper describes a case of building a secure identity management system and its management processes, in compliance with the Finnish government's VAHTI security instructions. The building project was to be implemented in accordance to the governmental security instructions, while following the service provider's own management framework. Project itself was managed with Scrum. The project's steering group required the use of Scrum, and this project may be viewed as a showcase of Scrum's suitability to multi-teamed, multi-site, security standard-compliant work. We also discuss the difficulties of fulfilling strict security regulations regarding both the development process and the end product in this project, and the difficulties utilizing Scrum to manage a multi-site project organization. Evaluation of the effects of the security work to project cost and efficiency is also presented. Finally, suggestions to enhance the Scrum method for security-related projects are made.


The article provides a theoretical substantiation of the specificity of formation of Ukrainian national moral and ethical values of younger students' personality. The comparative analysis of existing points of view on the nature of moral and ethical values and their functional significance in the formation of personality is carried out. The content of national moral and ethical values as a historical property of the people, which determine its mentality and national character, is revealed. Ukrainian national moral and ethical values are as imperative entities, developed and formed, which exist throughout the life of the Ukrainian people, they have an intransitive character, moral requirements, regulate the regulatory function and use the necessary knowledge regarding their free species and personality. Ukrainian ethnology has shown that it is possible to preserve Ukrainian national moral and ethical factors by growing up in childbirth, defining enrichment and updating the most up-to-date elementary education. The younger school age becomes more sensitive in the development of moral and ethical and the qualities that determine the patterns, moral behavior is formed. The goals and content of the process of formation of moral and ethical values of junior students by means of the sciences are specified through adequate tasks, which reflect the main directions of educational influence on the personality of the student. In the formation of the system of moral and ethical values in the younger students pedagogical efforts and actions of the primary school teacher should be directed to the development of moral and ethical needs and motives of behavior, formation of ethical knowledge and education of ethical feelings, development of appropriate skills, habits, as well as strengthening of will qualities. In formation of moral and ethical values of people do not matter indirect educational actions, but the attitude of the pupil to them, transformation of external influences into the internal moral and psychological sphere of personality, internal perception of external influences, including educational ones.


Abstract Background: A growing body of research points to the efficacy of participatory methods in decreasing rates of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use and other risky behaviors among youth. However, to date, no systematic review of the literature has been conducted on Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) for youth substance use prevention. This review draws on the peer-reviewed literature on YPAR in the context of youth substance use prevention published from January 1, 1998 through April 30, 2018. Methods: We summarize (1) the published evidence regarding YPAR for youth substance use prevention; (2) the level of youth engagement in the research process; (3) the methodologies used in YPAR studies for youth substance use prevention; and (4) where more research is needed. We used Reliability-Tested Guidelines for Assessing Participatory Research Projects to assess the level of youth engagement in the research process. Results: In all, we identified 15 unduplicated peer-reviewed, English-language articles that referenced YPAR, Community Based Participatory Research, youth, and substance use prevention. Conclusions: Our findings indicated that youth participation in research and social action resulted in increased community awareness of substance use and related solutions. This supports the premise of youth participation as an agent of community change by producing community-specific substance use data and prevention materials. Identified weaknesses include inconsistent levels of youth engagement throughout the research process, a lack of formalized agreements between youth and researchers with regard to project and data management, and a lack of outcome evaluation measures for assessing YPAR for youth substance use prevention.


Chlamydia spp. are obligate intracellular gram negative bacterial pathogens that cause infertility, blindness, and pneumonia in humans. The unique developmental cycle of Chlamydia spp. requires these bacteria to possess a mechanism(s) to control differentiation between two forms: the elementary body (EB) and the reticulate body (RB). Although the transition between these two phases is essential for the chlamydial infectious cycle (making the steps ideal drug targets), the signals triggering and the mechanisms carrying out differentiation are unclear. We hypothesize that the panchlamydial partner switching mechanism (PSM) is involved in RB to EB morphogenesis through the conversion of external signals into phenotypic changes via regulation of sigma28. The putative chlamydial PSM is composed of two sensor phosphatases (SPs: RsbU and CTL0852), two antiantisigma factors (AASFs: RsbV1 and RsbV2), an antisigma factor (ASF: RsbW), and sigma28. Using the Bacterial Adenylate Cyclase Two Hybrid System (BACTH) and alternative protein protein interaction methods, we mapped the PSM interactome. Results revealed interactions between RsbU and both RsbV1 and RsbV2. Interestingly, while AASF partners for CTL0852 were not identified, interactions between CTL0852 and RsbU were observed indicating that CTL0852 may have a regulatory role for the phosphatase function assigned to RsbU. Our results also showed that the interaction between RsbV1 and RsbW was stronger than interactions between RsbV2 and RsbW. Further characterization of these interactions revealed that RsbV1 and RsbV2 compete to regulate RsbW and the AASFs and SF can form homo and hetero dimers. rsbW transcripts were detected 448 hours post infection, while rsbV2 transcripts were detectable 848 hours post infection. In contrast, rsbV1 and ctl0852 transcripts were found 2448 hours post infection, while rsbU transcripts were detectable at 12, 24, 30 hours post infection. Our findings suggest that RsbW is present early during infection to bind sigma28 and prevent premature transcription of late genes. Late during infection (prior to RB to EB transition), ctl0852, rsbU, and rsbV1 are transcribed. CTL0852 may bind and regulate the activity of RsbU (potentially during stress responses), while RsbU may sense a signal(s) during normal growth stimulating it to dephosphorylate RsbV1 and RsbV2 leading to the dissociation of RsbW from sigma28. Sigma28 would then be free to initiate transcription of late genes needed for RB to EB conversion. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report detailing the top half of the PSM interactome. In addition, we demonstrated competition between the chlamydial AASFs for binding the ASF and revealed dimerization of the ASF and AASFs. Finally, we tested the timing of PSM component transcription during normal infection. Our results will allow future studies to: 1) search for signals controlling the PSM system, 2) define its exact role in development, and 3) screen for inhibitors.


The proliferation of networked authentication systems has put focus on the issue of interoperability. Fingerprint sensors are based on a variety of different technologies that introduce inconsistent distortions and variations in the feature set of the captured image, which makes the goal of interoperability challenging. The motivation of this research was to examine the effect of fingerprint sensor interoperability on the performance of a minutiae based matcher. A statistical analysis framework for testing interoperability was formulated to test similarity of minutiae count, image quality and similarity of performance between native and interoperable datasets. False non-match rate (FNMR) was used as the performance metric in this research. Interoperability performance analysis was conducted on each sensor dataset and also by grouping datasets based on the acquisition technology and interaction type of the acquisition sensor. The lowest interoperable FNMR observed was 0.12%.


DURING THE PAST 15 years, the U.S. economy has become increasingly integrated with the rest of the world. Among other trends, imports and exports have risen significantly as a percentage of U.S. gross domestic product. Many manufacturing sectors have shrunk in the face of stiff international competition; others have grown in response to strong international demands for U.S. exports. One of the notable features of this internationalization is the growing importance of trade with the developing countries. In 1978, developing countries accounted for 29.0 percent of U.S. manufactured goods imports. By 1990, that ratio had risen to 36.4 percent. Seven countries in East Asia (China, Hong Kong, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand), together with Brazil and Mexico, accounted for 79 percent of the increase in U.S. trade with all developing countries between 1978 and 1990. Many observers have linked the growing internationalization of the U.S. economy to important rends in the U.S. labor market. Three labor


Molecular technology has shown the classical, morphologically defined groupings of sequestrate cortinarioid fungi to be artificial and in need of revision. However, these same molecular studies have highlighted morphological characters, such as spore shape and ornamentation, that have proved useful for distinguishing phylogenetically informative groups. This observation underpins the hypothesis of this study: that the numeric analysis of selected morphological characters can provide the same picture of the diversity of, and relationships among, sequestrate cortinarioid fungi as that recovered from phylogenetic analysis of rDNA sequence data.

Sequestrate fungi are those in which the spores mature inside an enclosed fruit body, remaining there until the fruit body decomposes or is eaten. For the purposes of this thesis the following genera are considered to contain cortinarioid sequestrate fungi: Auritella, Cortinarius, Dermocybe, Descomyces, Hymenogaster, Hysterogaster, Inocybe, Protoglossum, Quadrispora, Setchelliogaster and Timgrovea. This thesis focussed on Australian representatives of these fungi to address the hypothesis outlined above.

Four analysis methods were applied to each of three datasets (morphological, rDNA and combined data) in a comparative approach to test the stated hypothesis. The four analysis methods were two multivariate methods: cluster analysis and ordination (by principal coordinates analysis), and two phylogenetic methods: maximum parsimony and Bayesian analysis.

Low bootstrap support and Bayesian partition probabilities for phylogenetic analyses of the morphological data indicated this dataset had little to no phylogenetic signal discernable by parsimony and Bayesian analyses. Different analyses of the morphological data differed in the way they grouped the collections. The type of clustering method used affected the pattern of relationships recovered. The coding of the data had a much more substantial effect on the patterns of relatedness suggested by the multivariate analyses. Despite the low level of phylogenetic information and agreement between analyses of the morphological data it was found that some collections were consistently grouped together. This included the separation of the Cortinarius-like collections from the Descolea-like collections and the relatively consistent grouping of some pairs of collections and some larger groups. Thus, despite the limited phylogenetic signal of the small morphological dataset and the artefacts of coding, some relatively consistent groups were recovered.

Separate analyses of the Cortinarius-, Descolea- and Hebeloma-like ITS sequences recovered similar patterns to published phylogenies. The inclusion of more sequestrate taxa and a greater sample of Australian collections than previous studies, indicated that both Timgrovea subgenera nest among the Descolea-like collections and that hitherto undiscovered lineages of Descolea-like fungi are represented among the collections in Australian herbaria. The Cortinarius-like fungi fall within clades recognised by published phylogenies. Similar topologies were supported by both Parsimony bootstrap and Bayesian partition probability values for analyses of the molecular data including the separation of Cortinarius-like collections from Descolea-like collections. However neither of these methods of analysis and evaluation yielded well-resolved deeper nodes for either of these two major clades. Comparable clades/clusters of Cortinarius- like and Descolea-like collections were found in all analyses of the molecular data. Thus phylogenetically distinct groups of cortinarioid sequestrate fungi could be consistently distinguished using ITS molecular data, but not confidently related to one another.

The ratio of molecular to morphological characters (741:16) meant the patterns observed for the combined analyses were more similar to those observed in analyses of the molecular data than those of the morphological data. This included the recovery of substantially similar clades/clusters to those recovered by analyses of the molecular data alone. The value of combining the morphological and molecular data as analysed is questioned despite the congruence of the datasets according to the Incongruence-Length Difference test. Differences between the molecular and combined datasets arose primarily where the molecular data grouped collections that were also grouped by the morphological data.

The numeric analysis of the selected morphological characters as carried out in this study did not recover the same pattern of groups and relationships among the cortinarioid sequestrate fungi as phylogenetic analyses of ITS data. The composition of groups recovered using the morphological data alone or as part of the combined dataset, and the relationships between those groups, differed from those recovered from the molecular data alone; although there were similarities between groups recovered from different datasets. The ability of this thesis to conclusively address its fundamental hypothesis was compromised by limitations of the study such as taxon sampling, character selection, character coding and the poor resolution of the ITS phylogeny. Acknowledging these limitations, and that some similar groups were recovered, the results of this thesis do not support its stated hypothesis that the numeric analysis of selected morphological characters can provide the same picture of the diversity of, and relationships among, sequestrate cortinarioid fungi as recovered from phylogenetic analysis of rDNA sequence data.


The received wisdom, among feminists and others, is that historically the criminal justice system tolerated male violence toward women. Drawing on previously unexplored archival material, Intimate Homicide: Gender and Crime Control, 1880-1920 demonstrates that this story is in need of revision. It dramatically revises feminist understanding of the legal history of public responses to intimate homicide by showing that, in both the eastern and the western United States, men accused of killing their intimates often received stern punishment, whereas women charged with similar crimes were treated with leniency. Moreover, men who killed their lovers, spouses, or other family members in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were executed in larger numbers than today. Although no formal battered woman's defense existed in the late 1800s and early 1900s, courts and juries implicitly recognized one - and even extended it to abandoned women who killed their unfaithful partners. In contrast, when men were accused of intimate murder, the provocation doctrine and other defenses were applied narrowly, and men were held to higher standards of self-control. Jury verdicts and appellate opinions thus reveal concern to police masculinity by punishing men who killed their intimates and by excusing, or even justifying, women's lethal reactions to mistreatment from men. Such paternalistic efforts to condemn male abuse of women did not go uncontested; competing norms led to a deplorable failure to prevent domestic violence from occurring. Nevertheless, the research presented here undercuts the common scholarly view that a hegemonic gender ideology tolerant of extreme violence against women controlled public responses to intimate homicide. This article is not simply a matter of interest to legal historians. Rather, it also requires criminal law scholars and feminists, such as the author, to re-examine the underpinnings of their theories.


With the growing emphasis being placed upon situated learning theory, designs increasingly implement problem-based learning (PBL) in various educational contexts. However, some of the difficulties instructional designers face include interweaving elements such as breadth, depth, and situated knowledge in a contextualized learning task. This design case details how the 3C3R method was systematically employed to design a PBL learning environment that highlights the effects of environmental toxins on human fertility. We also discuss how a case library learning environment (CLLE) was implemented and designed to support the decision-making process. This design case examines the challenges involved, such as misunderstandings between the SMEs and instructional designer as we contextualized complex issues related to human biology.  A discussion of how we designed for multiple solution paths is also included. Lastly, we discuss the challenges of interweaving the ill-structured problem with multiple narratives found in a case library.


ICER-3D Hyperspectral Image Compression Software Software has been developed to implement the ICER-3D algorithm. ICER-3D effects progressive, three-dimensional (3D), wavelet-based compression of hyperspectral images. If a compressed data stream is truncated, the progressive nature of the algorithm enables reconstruction of hyperspectral data at fidelity commensurate with the given data volume. The ICER-3D software is capable of providing either lossless or lossy compression, and incorporates an error-containment scheme to limit the effects of data loss during transmission. The compression algorithm, which was derived from the ICER image compression algorithm, includes wavelet-transform, context-modeling, and entropy coding subalgorithms. The 3D wavelet decomposition structure used by ICER-3D exploits correlations in all three dimensions of sets of hyperspectral image data, while facilitating elimination of spectral ringing artifacts, using a technique summarized in "Improving 3D Wavelet-Based Com pression of Spectral Images" (NPO-41381), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 33, No. 3 (March 2009), page 7a. Correlation is further exploited by a context-modeling subalgorithm, which exploits spectral dependencies in the wavelet-transformed hyperspectral data, using an algorithm that is summarized in "Context Modeler for Wavelet Compression of Hyperspectral Images" (NPO-43239), which follows this article. An important feature of ICER-3D is a scheme for limiting the adverse effects of loss of data during transmission. In this scheme, as in the similar scheme used by ICER, the spatial-frequency domain is partitioned into rectangular error-containment regions. In ICER-3D, the partitions extend through all the wavelength bands. The data in each partition are compressed independently of those in the other partitions, so that loss or corruption of data from any partition does not affect the other partitions. Furthermore, because compression is progressive within each partition, when data are lost, any data from that partition received prior to the loss can be used to reconstruct that partition at lower fidelity. By virtue of the compression improvement it achieves relative to previous means of onboard data compression, this software enables (1) increased return of hyperspectral scientific data in the presence of limits on the rates of transmission of data from spacecraft to Earth via radio communication links and/or (2) reduction in spacecraft radio-communication power and/or cost through reduction in the amounts of data required to be downlinked and stored onboard prior to downlink. The software is also suitable for compressing hyperspectral images for ground storage or archival purposes. This program was written by Hua Xie, Aaron Kiely, Matthew Klimesh, and Nazeeh Aranki of Caltech for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. This software is available for commercial licensing. Please contact Karina Edmonds of the California Institute of Technology at (626) 395-2322. Refer to NPO-43238.


The heavy-hole and light-hole excitons of a pseudomorphic ZnSe film grown on a GaAs epilayer by molecular-beam epitaxy, are studied as a function of applied hydrostatic pressure using photomodulated reflectance spectroscopy. At ambient pressure, the signature in the spectrum due to the heavy-hole exciton occurs at an energy lower than that of the light-hole exciton, a consequence of the compressive biaxial strain in ZnSe due to its lattice mismatch with GaAs. As the pressure is increased, the two signatures approach each other in energy and coalesce at 36.2 kbar. The difference in the compressibility of ZnSe from that of GaAs generates a tensile strain that progressively compensates the lattice-mismatch-induced compressive strain and finally, at 36.2 kbar, the heterostructure is strain free. Beyond this pressure, the strain in ZnSe transforms from biaxial compression to biaxial tension, the light-hole signature now occurring at the lower energy. The transformation of strains via pressure tuning is continuous and reversible. The separation between the heavy-hole and light-hole signatures is superlinear in pressure, suggestive of a pressure-dependent shear-deformation-potential constant.


Merger enforcement today relies on settlements more than litigation to resolve anti-competitive concerns. The impact of settlement policy on welfare and the proper goals of settlement policy are highly controversial. Some argue that gun-shy agencies settle for too little while others argue that agencies use their power to delay to extract over-reaching settlement terms, even when mergers are not welfare-reducing. This article uses decision theory to throw light on this controversy. The goal of this article is to formulate and analyze agency merger enforcement and settlement commitment policies in the face of imperfect information, litigation costs, and delay risks by the merging parties, agencies, and the courts. The article explains why limiting the goal of merger enforcement and agency settlement policy simply to avoiding welfare harms (but no more) is flawed as a matter of both law and policy and would compromise deterrence. The decision-theoretic analysis distinguishes two types of agency commitment policies: a short-run optimal policy that focuses only the specific merger proposal being evaluated; a long-run optimal policy that takes into account effects on future mergers and deterrence goals. The short-run optimal policy may lead to some welfare-reducing settlements by a rationally gun-shy agency; settlement demands for weakly welfare-enhancing merger proposals, what might be called "exacting tribute;" and "anti-deterrence" effects by merging firms proposing some mergers with greater welfare harm in order to increase settlement bargaining leverage. In contrast, a disciplined long-run optimal policy would clear all welfare-enhancing mergers as-proposed; forgo negative welfare settlements despite the risk of losing in court, but instead demand settlements on welfare-reducing merger proposals sufficient to lead to strict welfare increases (not just welfare-neutrality), relative to no merger; and avoid anti-deterrence by demanding larger settlements for more harmful mergers. Deterrence also would be improved if last-minute voluntary divestiture agreements were not treated as part of the merger agreement evaluated by the court, contrary to the approach taken in Arch Coal and other cases.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE
To investigate the performance of an automated foveal center detection algorithm on spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT).

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Fifty normal eyes and 50 eyes with early stage dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) were analyzed. The actual scan center (SC), automatically detected foveal center (AF), and manually identified foveal center (MF) were compared.

RESULTS
The mean of the radial distances was 89 ± 120 μm from MF to SC and 54 ± 41 μm from MF to AF for normal eyes and 179 ± 125 μm from SC to MF and 104 ± 62 μm from AF to MF for eyes with AMD. The differences were statistically significant (P < .001).

CONCLUSION
The automated algorithm designed to detect the foveal center was more accurate in detecting the foveal center than relying on the fixation target of the SD-OCT instrument.


Abstract. Most methods for the mapping of tree species are based on the segmentation of single trees that are subsequently classified using a set of hand-crafted features and an appropriate classifier. The classification accuracy for coniferous and deciduous trees just using airborne laser scanning (ALS) data is only around 90% in case the geometric information of the point cloud is used. As deep neural networks (DNNs) have the ability to adaptively learn features from the underlying data, they have outperformed classic machine learning (ML) approaches on well-known benchmark datasets provided by the robotics, computer vision and remote sensing community. Though, tree species classification using deep learning (DL) procedures has been of minor research interest so far. Some studies have been conducted based on an extensive prior generation of images or voxels from the 3D raw data. Since innovative DNNs directly operate on irregular and unordered 3D point clouds on a large scale, the objective of this study is to exemplarily use PointNet++ for the semantic labeling of ALS point clouds to map deciduous and coniferous trees. The dataset for our experiments consists of ALS data from the Bavarian Forest National Park (366 trees/ha), only including spruces (coniferous) and beeches (deciduous). First, the training data were generated automatically using a classic feature-based Random Forest (RF) approach classifying coniferous trees (precision = 93%, recall = 80%) and deciduous trees (precision = 82%, recall = 92%). Second, PointNet++ was trained and subsequently evaluated using 80 randomly chosen test batches à 400 m2. The achieved per-point classification results after 163 training epochs for coniferous trees (precision = 90%, recall = 79%) and deciduous trees (precision = 81%, recall = 91%) are fairly high considering that only the geometry was included. Nevertheless, the classification results using PointNet++ are slightly lower than those of the baseline method using a RF classifier. Errors in the training data and occurring edge effects limited a better performance. Our first results demonstrate that the architecture of the 3D DNN PointNet++ can successfully be adapted to the semantic labeling of large ALS point clouds to map deciduous and coniferous trees. Future work will focus on the integration of additional features like i.e. the laser intensity, the surface normals and multispectral features into the DNN. Thus, a further improvement of the accuracy of the proposed approach is to be expected. Furthermore, the classification of numerous individual tree species based on pre-segmented single trees should be investigated.