ABSTRACT Introduction: Amino acid depletion in the blood serum is currently being exploited and explored for therapies in tumors or viral infections that are auxotrophic for a certain amino acid or have a metabolic defect and cannot produce it. The success of these treatments is because normal cells remain unaltered since they are less demanding and/or can synthesize these compounds in sufficient amounts for their needs by other mechanisms. Areas covered: This review is focused on amino acid depriving enzymes and their formulations that have been successfully used in the treatment of several types of cancer and viral infections. Particular attention will be given to the enzymes L-asparaginase, L-arginase, L-arginine deiminase, and L-methionine-γ-lyase. Expert opinion: The immunogenicity and other toxic effects are perhaps the major limitations of these therapies, but they have been successfully decreased either through the expression of these enzymes from other organisms, recombination processes, pegylation of the selected enzymes or by specific mutations in the proteins. In 2006, FDA has already approved the use of L-asparaginase in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Other enzymes and in particular L-arginase, L-arginine deiminase, and L-methioninase have been showing promising results in vitro and in vivo studies.


Weekly passive sampling campaigns were carried out over two sample periods to measure volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in Bursa, one of the most heavily industrialized cities in Turkey. The measurements, taken at 40 points in October 2005 and 49 points in April 2006, revealed concentrations of 34 VOCs, including aromatics, olefins, paraffin and halogenated compounds; with benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and o, m, and p-xylene polymers (BTEX) being the most abundant compounds detected at all sample points. Toluene was the most abundant VOC found at all sites, with a median concentration ranging from 0.99 μg/m−3 in background samples to 35.98 μg/m−3 at industrial sites, followed by m- and p-xylene and ethylbenzene. High toluene-to-benzene (T/B) ratios (9.6) were observed at industrial sites, whereas the T/B ratios measured in urban areas and at roadside locations were comparable and were higher than in other countries. A principle component analysis (PCA) using a receptor-oriented source apportionment model was applied to the VOC data and extracted four major sources for both the October and April sampling periods. Principle factors accounted for 85% and 74% of the variance in VOC data for the October and April sample periods, respectively. The identified sources of VOCs in Bursa included: 1) vehicular exhaust (gasoline and diesel engine vehicles), 2) industrial emissions, and 3) evaporative emissions. The explained factors indicated that the urban air in Bursa was influenced by both traffic and industrial sources, each of which displayed different levels.


In this paper we predict the relevance of images based on a lowdimensional feature space found using several users' eye movements. Each user is given an image-based search task, during which their eye movements are extracted using a Tobii eye tracker. The users also provide us with explicit feedback regarding the relevance of images. We demonstrate that by using a greedy Nyström algorithm on the eye movement features of different users, we can find a suitable low-dimensional feature space for learning. We validate the suitability of this feature space by projecting the eye movement features of a new user into this space, training an online learning algorithm using these features, and showing that the number of mistakes (regret over time) made in predicting relevant images is lower than when using the original eye movement features. We also plot Recall-Precision and ROC curves, and use a sign test to verify the statistical significance of our results.


This paper analyzes the trends in retail maize meal prices and the wholesale-retail margins enjoyed by millers and retailers in Zambia since maize and maize meal prices were decontrolled in the early 1990s. This note summarizes material from a broader study on Zambia's maize supply chain. The findings from this paper are designed to inform policy discussions aimed at improving household food security and maize market performance in Zambia.


Data from the Community Hopes, Fears and Actions Survey are used to examine how pervasive the view is that the more privileged in society are failing to pay their fair share of tax, to understand the beliefs that underpin such perceptions, and the reforms that are needed to open dialogue with the Australian public about the issue. Support is found for five hypotheses. Economic self-interest provides a partial explanation for perceptions of vertical inequity, but more important are disillusionment with the Australian democracy and perceptions of insuffi cient procedural justice from the tax offi ce. Values about how Australian society should develop also play a part. Those looking for a more equal, caring and compassionate Australia perceive there to be a high level of vertical inequity. Such perceptions are not shared by those aspiring to an Australia that pursues competitive advantage either economically or politically.


Environmental variations can be recorded in bivalve shells, and this proxy information can be crucial for paleoceanographic studies in regions where other proxies (e.g. corals) are absent. We present the first sclerochronological study of Protothaca thaca (Mollusca, Veneridae), a common upper subtidal bivalve, characterized by a high temperature tolerance, from the SE Pacific Ocean (12 to 45° S). P. thaca is present in archaeological deposits and Holocene marine terraces, making it a potentially useful paleo-environmental recorder, particularly in respect to El Nino Southern Oscilla- tion (ENSO) reconstructions. The sclerochronological analysis of recent P. thaca shells from Peru and Chile was done by microscopy of thin sections and acetate peel replicates; it shows that a clear 'sum- mer check' (SC) is formed in the shell when sea surface temperature (SST) exceeds 18°C for several weeks. Under La Nina conditions in summer, SCs can be absent due to lower SST and enhanced pro- ductivity. During the strong 1997-1998 El Nino, long-lasting high summer SST produced an SC >520 µm wide. The relative width of SC on fossil shells may thus be an indicator of paleo-ENSO events. Our sclerochronological analysis has established a temporal framework in P. thaca shells, providing precise time-series analytical profiles, which is a prerequisite for future calibration of geochemical proxies.


The Snellgrove Maze Task (SMT; Snellgrove, 2005) was developed in SA to screen for specific cognitive domains required for safe driving (attention, visuospatial ability, planning and foresight), and discriminated with high accuracy older drivers with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or early dementia who passed or failed an on-road driving test. Independent US studies have supported the utility of the SMT in predicting on-road pass or fail in older drivers, and those experiencing dementia and stroke. These studies will be presented, with a view to illustrating the potential for brief in-office cognitive screening to identify the most competent and dangerous older drivers without costly on-road driving tests.


The price of immunity might be high blood pressure, as data from Guzik et al. (page 2449) suggest.

High blood pressure—or hypertension—is triggered by angiotensin II. This hormone instructs the kidneys to retain salt and the brain to release stress hormones. It also activates oxidases that generate free radicals, which narrow blood vessels and cause plaques to grow and harden the arteries.

Recent evidence suggests that angiotensin II might also get the immune system into the tension-raising act. Patients with immune systems weakened by immunosuppressive drugs or HIV infection have low blood pressure, which can skyrocket when they go off the drugs or start taking antiviral medications. One set of lymphocytes, the T cells, are the likeliest culprits, as they bear angiotensin II receptors and the same dangerous free radical–generating enzymes.

Guzik et al. now find that angiotensin II activates T cells to raise blood pressure. Mice that lack lymphocytes failed to develop hypertension after angiotensin II injection unless T cells were put back in. The hormone, they found, increased the T cells' ability to attach to and infiltrate blood vessel walls. The cells congregated in the underlying fatty tissue and secreted the inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF), which further activates free radical production in the surrounding cells. Blocking TNF blunted hypertension.

The authors propose that T cells infiltrating the kidney and the brain might also amplify angiotensin II's damaging effects in these organs.


Abstract—Based on multivariate statistical analysis theory, this paper uses the principal component analysis method, Mahalanobis distance analysis method and fitting method to establish the photovoltaic health model to evaluate the health of photovoltaic panels. First of all, according to weather conditions, the photovoltaic panel variable data are classified into five categories: sunny, cloudy, rainy, foggy, overcast. The health of photovoltaic panels in these five types of weather is studied. Secondly, a scatterplot of the relationship between the amount of electricity produced by each kind of weather and other variables was plotted. It was found that the amount of electricity generated by photovoltaic panels has a significant nonlinear relationship with time. The fitting method was used to fit the relationship between the amount of weather generated and the time, and the nonlinear equation was obtained. Then, using the principal component analysis method to analyze the independent variables under five kinds of weather conditions, according to the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin test, it was found that three types of weather such as overcast, foggy, and sunny meet the conditions for factor analysis, while cloudy and rainy weather do not satisfy the conditions for factor analysis. Therefore, through the principal component analysis method, the main components of overcast weather are temperature, AQI, and pm2.5. The main component of foggy weather is temperature, and the main components of sunny weather are temperature, AQI, and pm2.5. Cloudy and rainy weather require analysis of all of their variables, namely temperature, AQI, pm2.5, solar radiation intensity and time. Finally, taking the variable values in sunny weather as observed values, taking the main components of cloudy, foggy, overcast and rainy weather as sample data, the Mahalanobis distances between observed value and these sample values are obtained. A comparative analysis was carried out to compare the degree of deviation of the Mahalanobis distance to determine the health of the photovoltaic panels under different weather conditions. It was found that the weather conditions in which the Mahalanobis distance fluctuations ranged from small to large were: foggy, cloudy, overcast and rainy.


The standard theory of the stochastic models used to value financial derivatives contracts involves models whose input parameters are deterministic functions and often constants. Because of the random nature of the changes in the market prices of the financial instruments, the coefficients of these models are inevitably susceptible to random perturbations from their initial estimates. In this paper we will investigate the behavior of some of the most widely used models when small changes are applied to their volatility component. Starting with the Black-Scholes model for the price of a European call option, we will continue our analysis of the traditional models for pricing American options, Asian options, Barrier options, as well as some of the models for the short term rate of interest. In addition to obtaining convergence results for all of the models, we will examine a method of controlling the deviations in the volatility parameter of the Black-Scholes model and the resulting estimate can be used for further extensions on the topic. Moreover, we will present an example on how to calculate probabilities of rare events, using a technique called importance sampling. We will concentrate only on the case of discrete random variables but the same algorithm can be applied to estimate the probabilities of the deviations of the pricing functions of the models under question. The latter is left for future research.


Water-extractable P (WEP) in manure is correlated with P concentration in runoff from soils amended with manure and is, thus, an effective indicator of environmental P loss. This study sought to elucidate methodological factors affecting WEP measurement in manure and to quantify errors related to two established methods of manure WEP measurement. Dairy cow (Bos taurus) manure, poultry (Gallus gallus domesticus L.) (layer) manure, and swine (Sus scrofa domestica L.) slurry were used. Varying dry matter/distilled water ratios (1 to 20:200) revealed that greater dilution of manure dry matter increased WEP (mean 1.8-5.4 g kg -1 ), likely because of the dissolution of calcium phosphates. Increasing shaking time from 1 min to 24 h, increased manure WEP concentration (average 3.7-8.2 g kg -1 ). Filtration with Whatman 1 paper filters resulted in significantly higher WEP measurements in-dairy and poultry manure (4.1 g kg -1 ) than with a 0.45-μm filtration (3.7 g kg -1 ). No significant difference was observed in the swine slurry. A rainfall-runoff experiment using simulated rainfall was conducted to determine the effect of the individual factors on predicting dissolved-reactive P (DRP) concentration in runoff. Comparison of regression coefficients relating manure WEP to runoff DRP concentration revealed an optimum shaking time between 30 min and 2 h, but did not support any single manure/distilled water ratio or filtration method. Replication of two established methods of manure WEP measurement resulted in coefficients of variation of 0.01 to 0.12. Results of this study support the use of a single method with a fixed manure/distilled water ratio for liquid and dry manures.


Climate shifts are not new in the experience of humans and other species, but the capacity of potential evolutionary and ecological responses to climate change has been reduced through widespread human modifications of natural ecosystems. The magnitude, duration and timescales of altered climate threats require multigenerational strategies for climate change adaptation. In many places terrestrial and aquatic species and human livelihoods are limited by the availability of freshwater resources. Current climate change adaptation practice places great faith in the ability of climate models to predict specific impacts, which then become the focus of climate change adaptation activities and thus foster reactive 'impacts thinking'. Given that freshwater climate variables are associated with high predictive uncertainty, a novel approach referred to here as 'adaptation thinking' treats ecosystems as dynamic entities that will be inherently different from current and past ecosystem states for multiple reasons, including climate change. As a result, adaptation thinking emphasizes the shifting relationship between institutions and ecosystems. This approach promotes flexibility and continuous scenario development. Using natural modes of adaptation as a template for sustainable development should promote collaboration between scientists, policymakers and development professionals.


Background & Aims: Intrapericardial immature teratoma is a rare, primary cardiac tumor that often causes symptoms through pressure on the structures of the cardiovascular and/or respiratory system and can potentially be fatal. Immature teratoma has the potential to be malignant. Case Report: The patient was a three-day old term male neonate that was admitted in neonatal ICU due to respiratory distress. The neonate had tachypnea (RR>55/min), tachycardia (HR>170/min) and weak pulses. Echocardiography showed massive pericardial effusion and a large capsulated multi- cystic, fluid filled lesions on the anterior of the heart which was pressing on the right atrium and right ventricle. Chest CT scan confirmed echocardiographic findings. The baby emergently was referred for cardiac surgery and the tumor was successfully removed. Histopathologic report of tumor was immature teratoma grade I. The postoperative course was uneventful and one year later in outpatient follow up the infant showed normal development and normal echocardiogram and had no evidence of tumor relapse. Conclusion: Intrapericardial immature teratoma with massive effusion can cause tamponade in early days o f life. Early cardiac surgery is life saving. These tumors are surgically respectable. Immature teratoma has the potential to be malignant, but in this case which was screened regularly every two months with serum FTP, LDH and HCG levels, echocardiography and chest CT scan, there were no signs of metastasis six months after operation.


Endolymphatic sac tumors (ELSTs) are locally invasive neoplasms that arise in the posterior petrous bone and are associated with von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease. These tumors cause symptoms even when microscopic in size (below the threshold for detectability on imaging studies) and can lead to symptoms such as hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, and facial nerve dysfunction. While the mechanisms of audiovestibular dysfunction in patients harboring ELSTs are incompletely understood, they have critical implications for management. The authors present the case of a 33-year-old man with VHL disease and a 10-year history of progressive tinnitus, vertigo, and left-sided hearing loss. Serial T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and computed tomography scans revealed no evidence of tumor, but fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) MR imaging sequences obtained after hearing loss demonstrated evidence of left intralabyrinthine hemorrhage. On the basis of progressive disabling audiovestibular dysfunction (tinnitus and vertigo), FLAIR imaging findings, and VHL disease status, the patient underwent surgical exploration of the posterior petrous region, and a small (2-mm) ELST was identified and completely resected. Postoperatively, the patient had improvement of the tinnitus and vertigo. Intralabyrinthine hemorrhage may be an early and the only neuroimaging sign of an ELST in patients with VHL disease and audiovestibular dysfunction. These findings support tumor-associated hemorrhage as a mechanism underlying the audiovestibular dysfunction associated with ELSTs.


This book is the first to provide a detailed and critical account of the emergence, development, and implementation of plant variety protection laws in Asian countries. Each chapter undertakes a critical socio-legal analysis of one or more legal frameworks to understand, evaluate, and explore the concerns of diverse national stakeholders, the histories and dynamics of law-making, and the ways in which plant variety protection and seed certification laws interact with local agricultural systems. The book also assesses how Asian countries can capitalise on the 'unused policy space' in international agreements such as the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, as well as international obligations beyond these, such as those contained in the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Plant Treaty. It also highlights the many ways in which Asian experiences can offer new insights into the relationship between intellectual property and plants, and how relevant laws might be re-imagined in other regions, including Africa, Europe, and the Americas. By adding an important new perspective to the ongoing debate on intellectual property and plants, this book will appeal to academics, practitioners, and policy-makers engaged in work surrounding intellectual property laws, agricultural biodiversity, and plant breeding.


Offshore wind energy faces three important trends: (1) wind farms grow in size, (2) monopiles are installed in deeper water, and (3) cost reduction remains the most important challenge. With wind farm size, the importance of variations in environmental site conditions across the wind farm increases. These site variations, e.g. water depth and soil conditions, can lead to significant differences of loads on support structures. For monopiles in deeper water, design is dominated by wave-induced fatigue loads. Since full fatigue load calculations are computationally demanding, they can typically not be performed for each turbine within large wind farms. Therefore, turbines must be grouped into clusters in early project phases, making time-efficient approaches essential. Optimization of design clustering is necessary to reduce design conservatism and the cost of offshore wind energy.
Hence, the goal of this thesis is to investigate load site variations and clustering. Therefore, a probabilistic fatigue load estimation method is developed and verified with aero-elastic simulations in the time domain. Subsequently, the developed method is applied for an exemplary wind farm of 150 turbines in 30-40m water depth to perform
– sensitivity studies of loads to changes in MSL, soil stiffness, and wave parameters,
– probabilistic assessments of data, statistical and model uncertainties, and
– deterministic and probabilistic design clustering.
The estimation method is based on frequency domain analysis to calculate wave-induced fatigue loads, a scaling approach for wind loads, combination of wind-wave loads with quadratic superposition, and Monte-Carlo simulations to assess uncertainties. Verification confirms an accuracy of 95% for lifetime equivalent fatigue loads compared to time domain simulations. The computational speed is in the order of 100 times faster than typical time domain tools. Sensitivity studies show a significant
influence of water depth and wave period on equivalent fatigue loads. The influence of soil on equivalent fatigue loads is minor for high soil stiffness but can increase significant for soils with low stiffness. Normal distributed input parameters in a probabilistic assessment yield a positively skewed probability distribution of equivalent fatigue loads. Design clustering is optimized based on site-specific fatigue loads using brute-force and discrete optimization algorithms. Results for the exemplary wind farm show a design load reduction of up to 13% compared to standardized design. Probabilistic clustering proved to be only relevant at cluster borders leading to a difference in allocation for 12 out of 150 turbines.
Project results show that it is essential to account for load differences in large wind farms due to varying site conditions. This study improves clustering and provides a basis for design optimization and uncertainty analysis in large wind farms. Further work is needed to extend tool verification and formulate design clustering for cost optimization.


Cooperative path-finding can be abstracted as computing non-colliding paths for multiple agents between their start and goal locations on a graph. This work proposes a fast algorithm that can provide completeness guarantees for a general class of problems without any assumptions about the graph's topology. Specifically, the approach can address any solvable instance where there are at most n-2 agents in a graph of size n. The algorithm employs two primitives: a "push" operation where agents move towards their goals up to the point that no progress can be made, and a "swap" operation that allows two agents to swap positions without altering the configuration of other agents. Simulated experiments are provided on hard instances of cooperative path-finding, including comparisons against alternative methods. The results are favorable for the proposed algorithm and show that the technique scales to problems that require high levels of coordination, involving hundreds of agents.


AN EXPLORATION OF THE OUTSIDER'S ROLE IN SELECTED WORKS BY JOSEPH CONRAD, MALCOLM LOWRY, AND V. S. NAIPAUL This thesis explores ways in which the outsider questions rather than confirms dominant cultural values whilst avoiding the crudity of overt politicisation. I argue that the outsider's preference for an observer's stance is not so much an act which denies responsibility to the world of his day, but rather a means of reassessing its priorities. In Section One, I discuss Conrad's role as an outsider in the age of Empires. I demonstrate the ways in which Conrad employs narrators, frequently using strategies of irony which can be and have been read in very different ways. I argue that Conrad uses irony as a tool for condemnation rather than condonement of imperialist practice, if not its ideology. In Section Two, I discuss Lowry as an emigre from England (so contrasting him with Conrad, the immigrant from Europe), and examine his dissenting voice which opposes bourgeois prejudice against the working class, a totalising ideology like Fascism, and a Western rationalism which sees too rigid a distinction between sanity and madness. I demonstrate how Lowry as an outsider reacts to the age of twentieth century World Wars. In Section Three, I discuss Naipaul's role as an outsider in the age of decolonisation, when bogus liberals and false redeemers fail to rebuild the newly independent post-colonial states. As in Conrad's case, I show how a failure to read Naipaul's ironic tone of voice has given rise to radically divergent views as to what he is about. I also link Conrad and Naipaul through their cultural negotiation between the 'centre' and its peripheries. By looking at these three writers in chronological order and offering a comparative perspective on their work, I highlight the outsider's disturbing, yet illuminating role within a historical context. I also draw attention to creative tensions between artistic concerns and a serious political purpose. I assess the outsider as observer and man of conscience rather than as a` mere onlooker. I conclude that the outsider also fulfils a social obligation by promoting critical awareness on the reader's side by means of his defamiliarising perspective.


[Extract] Gould's Long-eared bat Nycrophilus gouldi is widespread
along the east coast of Australia from south-western Victoria to north-eastern Queensland (Pamaby 1986;
Churchill 1998). The species is common throughout its range and is not considered rare or threatened in any of Australia's states and territories (Duncan et al. 1999).
In his review of Nyctophilus species, Parnaby (1986) suggested that N. gouldi was likely more widespread in lower rainfall areas than previously realised. Young
and Ford (2000) reported N. gouldi from central-western
Queensland (Idalia National Park, 24°55'S, 144°45'E), indicating that it is distributed further inland than just mesic coastal forests along the Great Dividing Range. Similarly Gee (1999) reports a recent specimen for Gol Gol in western New South Wales (34°10'S, 142°13'E), albeit from,a citrus orchard. This note reports two further western records of N. gouldi in northern Queensland and identifies for [he first time the possibility of cave roosting.

Two specimens of N. gOllldi were collected from harp traps
during systematic survey of the Desert Uplands Bioregion
(Kutt 2003). Both specimens were verified by lodgement with the Queensland Museum (QM). The first specimen (QM Voucher No. JM 12667) was recorded on 4 August 1999 at Fortuna Station, 100 km north of Aramac (22°46'38"S, 145°32'56"E). This adult male, weighing 6.6g with a forearm of 39.2mm, was in a patch of Lancewood Acacia shirleyi occurring in a mosaic with Silver-leaf Ironbark Eucalypus melanophloia open woodlands on deep yellow sands. Other species trapped at this site included N. geoffroyi, Scororepens greyii, Vespadelus baversrocki and V. finlaysoni, the latter two being predominantly arid-inland bat species (Churchill 1998).


Abstract. Excessive sediment discharge at karstic springs and thus, water treatment plants, can be highly disruptive. It is essential for catchment stakeholders and drinking water supplier to reduce the impact of sediment on potable water supply, but their strategic choices must be based on simulations, integrating surface and groundwater transfers, and taking into account possible changes in land use. Karstic environments are particularly challenging as they face a lack of accurate physical description for the modelling process, and they can be seen as a black-box due to the non-linearity of the processes generating sediment discharge. The aim of the study was to assess the sediment discharge variability at a water treatment plant according to multiple realistic land use scenarios. To reach that goal, we developed a new coupled modelling approach with an erosion-runoff GIS model (WaterSed) and a deep neural network. The model was used in the Radicatel catchment (106 km2 in Normandy, France) where karstic spring water is extracted to a water treatment plant. The sediment discharge was simulated for five designed storm projects under current land use and compared to three land use scenarios (baseline, ploughing up of grassland, eco-engineering, best farming practices). Daily rainfall time series and WaterSed modelling outputs extracted at connected sinkholes were used as input data for the deep neural network model. The model structure was found by a classical trial and error procedure, and the model was trained on two significant hydrologic years. Evaluation on a test set showed a good performance of the model (NSE = 0.82), and the application of a monthly-backward chaining nested cross validation revealed that the model is able to generalize on new datasets. Simulations made for the three land use scenarios suggested that ploughing up 33 % of grasslands would not increase significantly sediment discharge at the water treatment plant (5 % in average). In the opposite, eco-engineering and best farming practices will significantly reduce sediment discharge at the water treatment plant (respectively in the range of 10–44 and 24–61 %). The coupling of these two strategies is the most efficient since it affects the hydro-sedimentary production and transfer processes (decreasing sediment discharge from 40 to 80 %). The coupled modelling approach developed in this study offers interesting opportunities for sediment discharge prediction at karstic springs or water treatment plant under multiple land use scenarios. It also provides robust decision-making tools for land use planning and drinking water suppliers.


We show that the symmetry properties of the two outputs from a push-pull Mach-Zehnder modulator can be exploited to reject dispersion-induced second-order distortions in the time-stretch analog-to-digital converter (TS-ADC). Using differential operation and signal processing in the digital domain, we experimentally demonstrate suppression of the signal harmonics generated due to system nonlinearities. Simulations predict that distortion-limited dynamic range improves from 34 to 57 dB. In addition, differential signaling improves the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) by 3 dB and rejects an even-order nonlinear distortion added by an electronic digitizer in the TS-ADC. It is also shown that this approach is robust even in the presence of mismatches in the differential signal paths. In general, the approach can also be applied to any ultrawideband (multioctave) optical link to obtain a high dynamic-range system.


The governance of food markets is a crucial element for efficiency and distributional effects. In this paper, we use a conceptual model to show that this governance itself is endogenous in an environment of weak contract enforcement and imperfect markets, and importantly depends on the value in the chain. We relate the predictions of the theory to empirical evidence on differences in supply chain governance in Africa across different commodity types. In doing so we offer an explanation as why private sector governance systems with interlinked market transactions have emerged for higher value crops but not for staple food crops. We discuss the efficiency and equity effects and the implications for policy.


Numerous anonymity revocation mechanisms have been proposed for off-line e-cash system in the last decade. Within this category of payment systems, two primary considerations are double-spending detection and tracing capability. However, most designs and existing solutions for these two basic requirements are inefficient or impractical. In this paper, an efficient e-cash with anonymity revocation is proposed by exploiting both a developed new blind signature scheme and a batch processing of e-cash withdrawal operation. Analysis shows that the proposed new e-cash system is both secure and efficient. Furthermore, the system provides double-spending detection as well as tracing capability as existing alternative solutions.


Resource allocation involves assigning the resources to the resource users. Where the resources and the resource users do not change with time, the resource allocation problem can be solved as a scheduling problem. Where the resources and the resource users change with time then some different allocation mechanisms are needed. In this paper an environment is considered in which the resources emerge and the resource requests also emerge unpredictably as time goes. The resources emerge with different capacities and in the same way the resource requests also emerge from the users with different demands as time goes. In this dynamic environment the resource allocation performance of the first price sealed bid and the Vickrey auctions are explored and compared. The system allocation performance is measured using the number of the emerging resource provisions and the resource requests that get matched. The simulation results show that there is no performance difference between the two mechanisms apart from the fact that the Auctioneer's earnings are higher for the first price sealed bid auction.


Astrocytes are the most abundant cells in the central nervous system (CNS) with wide-ranging functions.
The first part of my thesis deals with Neuromyelitis optica (NMO), an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the CNS. Aquaporin 4 (AQP4), a water channel expressed in high density at perivascular astrocytic endfeet, has recently been identified as a target of the humoral immune response in NMO. I developed two in vivo models to assess the extent, time course, and mechanisms of tissue damage and repair after astrocyte depletion. A patient derived, recombinant anti-AQP4 (rAb-53) antibody was i.v. transferred into immunized rats (experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE)/NMO model) or focally injected into the rat cerebral cortex (focal NMO model). One hour after a single cerebral injection of complement-binding rAb-53, a selective depletion of astrocytes was found. 3hrs after antibody injection, in addition, a diminution of oligodendrocytes was observed. 24hrs after antibody injection the astrocyte depleted areas reached their full extent and revealed loss of oligodendrocytes and oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs). After two weeks, astrocytic repopulation of the lesion was nearly complete. However, the prelesional density of oligodendrocytes was not yet achieved. To assess the role of excess glutamate and ATP on oligodendroglial cell death, N-methyl D-aspartate (NMDA) and P2X7 receptor antagonists were applied in vivo and in vitro. However, no clear-cut effect of NMDA and P2X7 receptor antagonists on oligodendroglial cell death was observed. In the systemic EAE/NMO model, administration of rAb-53 to preimmunized rats demonstrated huge perivascular astrocyte depleted areas in the spinal cord accompanied by significant loss of oligodendrocytes and OPCs after 30hrs. In addition, kidney pathology with detached cells of the inner medullary collecting ducts, where AQP4 is expressed, and infiltrating macrophages were observed.
In summary, both models successfully mimicked human NMO lesions. The human rAb-53 was able to induce astrocyte depletion with a single cerebral injection or when administered to immunized rats. Activation of the complement system was found to be a prerequisite for astrocyte lysis. Furthermore, this work demonstrates that oligodendroglial cell death follows astrocyte depletion quite rapidly. However, oligodendroglial repair of astrocyte depleted lesions is slow compared to classical demyelinated lesions.
In the second part of my thesis the role of fibroblast growth factor 9 (FGF9) on demyelination (DM) and remyelination (RM) was assessed. To provide overexpression of this growth factor in vivo, an adeno-associated virus 6 (AAV-6)-based vector containing the cDNA of FGF9 under the control of the GFAP promoter was constructed. This FGF9-AAV-6-based vector was intracerebrally injected in cuprizone-fed mice and rats with focal EAE to study a possible role of FGF9 on DM and RM. In both models, no clear effect of FGF9 on RM was found. However, in both models FGF9 led to widespread activation and proliferation of astrocytes and similarly, activation and proliferation of oligodendroglia.
Thus, my results indicate that FGF9 has an important role for the homeostasis of glial cells, however, rather influences cell number and activation state than repair.


Most of the people who keep tabs on the workings of the federal government, no matter what the reasons for their interest, seem to take for granted the power and autonomy of the chiefs of the bureaus that make up the executive branch. Because so much is taken for granted, there have not been many studies of what the chiefs actually do day by day. Of all the participants in the governmental process who wield--or are thought to wield--great influence, bureau chiefs are among the least examined.Believing that he could narrow this gap in the materials on the federal government somewhat, Herbert Kaufman set out to report his observations of six bureau chiefs at their jobs in the course of a year. The group consisted of the commissioners of the Internal Revenue Service, the Customs Service, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Social Security Administration; the chief of the Forest Service; and the administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service--a set diversified enough to include a wide variety of organizational situations and experiences, yet with enough in common to allow comparison and generalization.The objective of his research was to describe the chief's activities so as to explain how they exercise their power. And he hoped to find out whether they are as powerful as they are said to be.From his efforts emerges a detailed picture of the work of the bureau leaders and of their role in their agencies and in the government generally. The picture reveals that some of the common beliefs about these officials, and perhaps about the system as a whole, are not altogether accurate. Kaufman traces the implications of his findings for organizing the executive branch, for training administrators, and for organization theory.


The problem is that prior studies examining the impact of monetary policy instruments on the equity market have produced mixed results. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of changes in money supply (M2), federal funds rate (FFR), and federal funds futures on the expected rate of returns of publicly traded companies. We developed and tested a multifactor capital asset pricing model and applied regression methodologies suitable for panel data analysis to analyze the data. The multiple regression results showed positive moderation effect of M2, and negative moderation and mediation effects of FFR and federal funds futures on the expected rate of returns of publicly traded companies. The socioeconomic implication of these findings is that the Federal Reserve decisions on changing M2 is not influenced by changes in the equity prices, but changes in the equity prices are a signal for the Federal Reserve to adjust its decision on changing the FFR.


School is a significant ecology of adolescents' life and influences strongly their subjective well-being. With the prevalence of violence and bullying at school being high,many students feel unsafe and insecure, which have a detrimental effect for academic achievements, motivation and psychological adjustment. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the cross-lagged relations between subjective well-being and feeling safe at school over one year period among girls and boys. Data used for this research was taken from the on-going Positive Youth Development project.2 Data from 1,556 adolescents was collected. 628 (40.4%) boys and 928 (59.6%) girls, aged 14–18 (M=16.26; SD=0.94), participated in the research. The measures used in this research were the Feeling of Safety at School Scale (Weissberg, Voyce, & Kasprow, 1991) and Subjective Wellbeing Scale (Diener et al., 1985). Data from two measurement points was used in the study. The second measurement took place in a one year period after the first one. The results of the research showed that (1) girls had higher subjective well-being at T2 and feeling of safety at school on both measurement points while boys had higher subjective well-being only at T1; (2) measures of subjective well-being and feeling of safety at school across one year time showed moderate stability in boys' and girls' samples however, the stability in the girls' sample is higher; (3) bidirectional relationship between subjective well-being and feeling of safety at school over a one-year period was established in the girls' sample while in the boys' sample only the feeling of safety at school at T1 predicted subjective well-being at T2.


Gordon [Appl. Opt.42, 542 (2003)] argues that use of external rather than internal mixing when aerosol optical properties are computed will not seriously affect atmospheric correction of ocean color imagery, in spite of the fact that top of the atmosphere reflectances computed with the two approaches differ significantly as shown by Yan et al. [Appl. Opt.41, 412 (2002)]. We apply an algorithm for simultaneous retrieval of aerosol optical properties and chlorophyll concentrations to demonstrate that use of the internal-mixing approach leads to atmospheric corrections that differ significantly from those obtained with the more realistic external-mixing approach. For relative humidities of 90% or more, the differences in retrieved aerosol optical properties and chlorophyll concentrations, incurred by application of the internal-mixing approach, become unacceptably large.


The Blue-throated Macaw (Ara glaucogularis) is a Critically Endangered species endemic to the Llanos de Moxos ecosystem of Beni, Bolivia. To aid conservation of the northwestern population that utilizes the Barba Azul Nature Reserve during the non-breeding season, we set out to learn the sites where these birds breed using satellite telemetry. We describe preliminary tests conducted on captive birds (at Loro Parque Foundation, Tenerife, Spain) that resulted in choosing Geotrak Parrot Collars, a metal, battery-operated unit that provides data through the Argos satellite system. In September 2019, we tagged three birds in Barba Azul with Geotrak collars, and received migration data for two birds, until battery depletion in November and December 2019. Our two migrant birds were tracked leaving Barba Azul on the same date (27 September), but departed in divergent directions (approximately 90 degrees in separation). They settled in two sites approximately 50–100 km from Barba Azul. Some details of the work are restricted out of conservation concern as the species still faces poaching pressures. Knowing their likely breeding grounds, reserve managers conducted site visits to where the birds were tracked, resulting in the discovery of breeding birds, although no birds still carrying a transmitter were seen then. A single individual still carrying its collar was spotted 13 August 2021 at Barba Azul. The work suggests that the Blue-throated Macaws of Barba Azul use breeding sites that are scattered across the Llanos de Moxos region, although within the recognized boundaries of the northwestern subpopulation. We conclude that the use of satellite collars is a feasible option for research with the species and could provide further conservation insights.


We demonstrate apodized fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) inscribed with a point-by-point (PbP) technique. We tailor the grating phase and coupling amplitude through precise control over the longitudinal and transverse positions of each laser-inscribed modification. This method of apodization is facilitated by the highly localized, high-contrast modifications generated by focused IR femtosecond laser inscription. Our technique provides a simple method for the design and implementation of PbP FBGs with complex apodization profiles.


TGF-β modulates numerous diverse cellular phenotypes including growth arrest in epithelial cells and proliferation in fibroblasts. Although the Smad pathway is fundamental for the majority of these responses, recent evidence indicates that non-Smad pathways may also have a critical role. Here we report a novel mechanism whereby the nonreceptor tyrosine focal adhesion kinase (FAK) functions as an adaptor necessary for cell type-specific responses to TGF-β. We show that in contrast to Smad actions, non-Smad pathways, including c-Abl, PAK2, and Akt, display an obligate requirement for FAK. Interestingly, this occurs in Src null SYF cells and is independent of FAK tyrosine phosphorylation, kinase activity, and/or proline-rich sequences in the C-terminal FAT domain. FAK binds the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) p85 regulatory subunit following TGF-β treatment in a subset of fibroblasts but not epithelial cells and has an obligate role in TGF-β-stimulated anchorage-independent growth and migration. Together, these results uncover a new scaffolding role for FAK as the most upstream component regulating the profibrogenic action of TGF-β and suggest that inhibiting this interaction may be useful in treating a number of fibrotic diseases.


In the study of psychology, Māori men are often only seen as the perpetrators of the problems. There is very little focus on finding solutions for Māori men, with Māori men. In the top eight causes of death for Māori males aged 15 to 24 are car crashes, homicide, and suicide. With respect to car crashes, there is a close link between alcohol-related car crashes and suicide. As a nation, we should be concerned with all of the above issues, as each of them is preventable. Invariably, we fail see the deaths of these young men as warning signs of much wider issues about why they wanted to die, or why they felt the need to kill someone close to themselves. The argument tendered in this paper is that the same way in which Māori as a group have been researched, as being "the problem", equally applies to the way in which Māori men have continued to be have been researched: Māori men are only ever portrayed as "the problem" and are never portrayed as part of a solution subjected to this process as well. The lyrics of a well known song by UB40, One in Ten, exemplify this notion of being unknown, even though Māori men do exist in Aotearoa.


Abstract The determination of 16 elements in raw tobacco by neutron activation analysis is discussed. The 8 elements Al, Ca, Mg, Cl, Mn, K, Na and Br can be determined by purely instrumental means; this leads to a high sample capacity per working day and to a fast availability of analyticaI results. Contrary to this, the determination of the heavy metals Hg, Cu, Mo, Cd, Zn, Co, As and Sb has to be preceded by chemicaI separation which is accomplished by extractions with different metal-diethyldithiocarbamates as reagents. The variation coefficient is typically ± 4 %. The Iowest and highest values of the concentrations which were found in the analysis of 20 different raw tobaccos are given.


This paper proposes a novel zone or grid-based network deployment framework for energy efficient selection and reselection process of Zone-Head (ZH) in the WSNs. The proposed zone head reselection process ensures energy efficiency, load balancing, and stability which further prolongs the network lifetime. Instead of carrying out periodic reselection of Zone-Head (ZH) that leads to extra energy consumption and network overhead, the protocol dynamically initiates the process of reselection based on residual energy level of ZH. In the proposed approach the process is segregated into four phases; deployment phase, the zone formation phase, zone head selection phase, data transmission phase and reselection phase. We implemented the proposed algorithm in MATLAB and its result outcomes reveal that the proposed method outperforms the competitive algorithms for parameters such as load balancing, total energy consumption and network lifetime.


Debugging and diagnostic tools are some of the most important software development tools, but most expect developers choose the right code to inspect. Unfortunately, this rarely occurs. A new tool called the Whyline is described which avoids such speculation by allowing developers to select questions about a program's output. The tool then helps developers work backwards from output to its causes. The prototype, which supports Java programs, was evaluated in an experiment in which participants investigated two real bug reports from an open source project using either the Whyline or a breakpoint debugger. Whyline users were successful about three times as often and about twice as fast compared to the control group, and were extremely positive about the tool's ability to simplify diagnostic tasks in software development work.


Background. The availability of suitable lung and heart-lung allografts for transplantation remains poor. Accepting organs from donors with positive serological studies for hepatitis B could potentially expand the donor pool. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of donor hepatitis B core antibody (HBcAb) status on outcomes of lung and heart-lung transplant recipients. Methods. Using United Network for Organ Sharing/Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network data, we compared outcomes of 13,233 recipients of HBcAb negative organs with 333 recipients of HBcAb positive donor organs. Results. We found that the unadjusted 1-year survival of recipients of HBcAb positive donor was worse, but there was no difference in survival after adjusting for baseline donor and recipient differences. On multivariate analysis, recipient and donor age, procedure type, era of transplant, baseline medical condition, diagnosis, and donor hepatitis C antibody status impacted 1- and 5-year survival. However, donor HBcAb status did not impact 1- or 5-year survival posttransplant. Conclusions. Lung and heart-lung allografts from HBcAb positive donors may be safely used, which would increase the number of transplants performed without compromising recipient outcomes.


Purpose. As a young man growing up in the Korean Seventh-day Adventist Church, there were several women in the church who influenced my life. Later on, at Sahm Yook University, I was in theology courses with both young men and women. I was impressed with the passion and talents that the women brought to their studies and witnessing activities. However, once out of university not many of them became pastors or leaders in their churches. And those that did left their positions soon after marrying. For me this seems a loss of leadership potential, especially for a church in Korea whose membership is 70% female. I have two young daughters, and I would hope that someday the doors of leadership would be open to them if they are capable and willing to serve. Thus, this project paper has a three-fold purpose. The first is to investigate the factors that would 3 possibly influence the acceptance of women in leadership roles in the Korean Seventh-day Adventist Church. The second is to examine the level of awareness of Seventh-day Adventist church leaders and members in Korea in order to predict their influence on implementation effectiveness of women's ministry in Korea. The third is to develop theoretical and practical strategies for implementing a ministry of women's leadership for Seventh-day Adventist churches in Korea and, ultimately, to cultivate a better environment for women so that they can maximize their potential and free them from social prejudice among Adventists. Method. This study used a questionnaire survey instrument to identify the factors that might influence women's participation in ministry. It was divided into six sub-sections according to the question themes: Bible Interpretation, Cultural Understanding, Current Situation Interpretation, Diagnosis of the Problems, Possible Solutions, and Expectations from Women's Ministry. The Adventist church structure in Korea is made up of the Korean Union Conference. The Union has 5 Local conferences. The surveys were sent to a church leaders in 10 churches in each of the local conferences. After a public announcement between church services, individuals self-selected to participate in the study by filling out the survey. The population group for this survey is made up of local church pastors and adult church members in the Seventh-day Adventist churches in the Korean Union Conference who are older than eighteen years. Results. The survey data showed that Korean Adventists are not gender biased because they believe that leaders should be determined not by gender but by abilities and qualifications. The lack of equal opportunity is the main obstacle for women. The survey data showed that Korean Adventists believe that women's participation in mission work is closely related to church growth. The Korean Adventist Congregation is positive toward women's participation in church work, including leadership roles, and members do have more hope and expectation than concerns regarding this issue. Conclusion. The findings of this study show that women's devotion is directly related to the status of healthy churches. An atmosphere welcoming women leaders in local churches and church administration would be essential to maximize the potential of women in the church. Korean Adventist women need more opportunities to take part in the actual leadership positions. The survey findings suggest that constitutional and institutional reforms are needed to increase the number of women delegates and pastors to develop women's participation in church leadership roles.


Quantitative serum HBsAg has been considered as a marker that reflects the immune effect on clearance of HBV. The HBsAg level varies in different genotypes and phases of infection. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the serum HBsAg level and its correlation with HBV DNA in different phases of Vietnamese CHB patients, predominately infected with genotype B and C. 267 chronic HBV treatment naive patients (156 genotype B and 61 genotype C) were recruited in this cross-sectional study. Patients were categorized to 5 groups: immune tolerance (IT), HBeAg positive chronic hepatitis B (CHBe+), inactive carrier (IC), viral reactivation (VR), HBeAg negative chronic hepatitis B (CHBe-). The serum HBsAg level was measured by ECLIA method. Correlations between HBsAg and HBV DNA were analyzed by Spearman's correlation. The median HBsAg values were different between groups of CHB 4.56 log10 IU/mL (IT), 3.85 log10 IU/mL (CHBe+), 2.72 log10 IU/mL (IC), 3.21 log10 IU/mL (VR) and 3.09 log10 IU/mL (CHBe-) (p= 0.001). The significant correlations between HBsAg levels and HBV DNA were found in all CHB groups (r = 0.3 to 0.5). The ratios of HBsAg/HBV DNA were distributed around 0.5. The wide distribution of HBsAg and the highest ratio of HBsAg/HBV DNA were found in the IC groups. Our study demonstrated that serum HBsAg levels were significantly different in natural stages of CHB.  Significant correlations between HBsAg and HBV DNA were found in all CHB phases. The wide distribution of HBsAg in the IC group raises the question on the existence of HBsAg integration in CHB patients.


We discuss in this paper the influence of the height of an elevated strike object on the magnitude of lightning radiated electric and magnetic fields. For the analysis, the transmission line (TL) return stroke model for the lightning channel is adopted and the strike object is represented by a uniform lossless transmission line. Analytical expressions derived recently by the authors for the radiated electric and magnetic fields are used to investigate the influence of the height of the elevated strike object Two specific cases of electrically-long and electrically-short strike objects are considered in the analysis. It is shown that, for both cases, the presence of a strike object results in an enhancement of the radiated electromagnetic field, compared to that of return strokes initiated at ground level. However, the enhancement is considerably larger for tall structures compared to short ones. The paper investigates additionally the effect of other parameters such as return stroke speed and reflection coefficients at the top and at the bottom of the strike object on the field enhancement.


The connection between patents for pharmaceuticals and access to affordable medicines has elicited considerable attention and highly stimulating debates since the emergence of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (the TRIPS Agreement) as part of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing WTO in 1994. The TRIPS Agreement is the first international convention to make it mandatory for all countries to make patents available in all fields of technology provided the invention to be patented meets the criteria for patentability. Consequently, countries like India, Brazil, China and Thailand that used to refuse to grant patents for pharmaceuticals were constrained to amend their patents laws to bring them in line with the WTO standard. Many developing countries did not even have legislation for a number of the intellectual property rights areas covered by the agreement at the time it was adopted. The TRIPS Agreement has been criticised as being a significant part of the global access to medicines problem and strong arguments have been raised for having more flexible standards for the protection of patents particularly in relation to pharmaceuticals.
This thesis examines the WTO regime for patent protection in the context of pharmaceuticals and the existing flexibilities in the TRIPS Agreement that countries seeking access to affordable patented pharmaceutical products might adopt. The effectiveness of the TRIPS compulsory licensing regime is examined, with particular focus on the limitations resulting from the TRIPS requirements for test data protection. The concepts of parallel importation and exhaustion of intellectual property (IP) rights are also examined with aview to ascertaining the extent to which they may serve as legal stratagems for developing countries seeking access to affordable medicines. The thesis argues that the existing frameworks for the right to health and the right to development in international law may provide a strong justification for the broad interpretation of the existing flexibilities in the TRIPS Agreement without the need for going through the very rigorous process of amending it. The thesis considers the patents and access to medicines problem in the context of the special and highly complex challenges people in Sub-Sahara Africa are currently encountering. It recommends the establishment of an African Free Trade Area to make it easier for Africa as a continent to make better use of the TRIPS flexibilities. The thesis argues that more than ever before, the time has come for Africa to harness her resources to address her access to medicines problem through the use of all the available options in international economic law and international human rights law.


Monitoring the refractory lining integrity is essential to assure the safety of the operators and to determine the remaining campaign life of a furnace. Early detection of refractory lining degradation is essential to avoid sudden furnace failures and prevent unscheduled shutdowns. In mid-1990s a stress wave propagation technique was developed and since then is has been utilized by Hatch Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) Group to evaluate furnace linings. For the last 17 years the AU-E technique evolved in terms of hardware, software and signal acquisition and interpretation. Most importantly, based on more than a decade of commercial applications, an extensive database of various failure modes, refractory deterioration trends and material properties has been created. This knowledge base is an integral part of AU-E which progressed from a NDT technique towards a comprehensive approach for furnace condition monitoring. All of the improvements introduced over the last several years have greatly improved the accuracy of the measurements. The data analysis process has also become more time efficient making the critical results available to the furnace operators in a more timely manner. Today the AU-E technology is used on a variety of process vessels in non-ferrous, glass, chemical and iron and steel industries. In this paper we are reviewing the available techniques for furnace refractory lining measurement and discussing the pros and cons of each method. The need for continuous improvement and development of new techniques for refractory monitoring is also emphasized. Finally, we are presenting a number of case studies and comparisons between the physical verifications and the AU-E measurements.


A model predicting seedling emergence is described and applied to sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.). The input variables are the soil surface texture, soil temperature, rainfall, aggregate size distribution and position in the seedbed, sowing depths, characteristics of the seeds (initial seed mass distribution, germination time, and hypocotyl elongation distributions). A three-dimensional seedbed layer is created where the aggregates and seeds are placed. Soil water content is assumed not to limit sugarbeet emergence (sowing conditions in northern Europe). The time needed to reach the soil surface is calculated using germination thermal time, soil temperature, the presence or absence of aggregates, and the hypocotyl elongation function. The ability of seedlings to break through the soil surface is a function of crust development and moisture. The seedling growth after emergence is calculated with reference to seed mass distribution, emergence delay, and the presence or absence of mechanical obstacles. The emergence prediction was tested in field experiments with four seedbeds, from fine earth to cloddy structure, and a sowing depth of 17 to 35 mm. The predicted number and sizes of clods encountered by seedlings and the calculated hypocotyl length were not significantly different from measured ones. Predicted germination times were longer than the observed ones (differences <5°C d); final rates were well predicted. Predicted vs. measured final emergence rates differed by less than 10%; changes with time differed from 15 to 30°C. This was due to the hypocotyl elongation functions, which must be improved. Further improvements will be to predict soil water content variations and effects on emergence via water stress and soil strengthening.


This Article proposes a paradigm shift in takings law, namely "inclusionary eminent domain." This new normative concept provides a framework that molds eminent domain takings and economic redevelopment into an inclusionary land assembly model equipped with multiple tools to help guide municipalities, private developers and communities construct or preserve affordable housing developments. The tools to achieve this include Community Benefit Agreements ("CBAs"), Land Assembly Districts ("LADs"), Community Development Corporations ("CDCs"), Land Banks ("LABs"), Community Land Trusts ("CLTs") and Neighborhood Improvement Districts ("NIDs"). The origin of the concept derives from the zoning law context, where exclusionary zoning in the suburbs excluded affordable housing for the poor. Courts intervened, applying exclusionary zoning doctrines, which led to the enactment of inclusionary zoning programs to achieve a fair share of housing. Exclusionary eminent domain in urban areas, similarly, has displaced and decreased the stock of or denied access to affordable housing through the power of takings. Under an exclusionary eminent domain doctrine, courts would apply heightened review to condemnations in a locality that has less than its fair share of affordable housing. But in a post-Kelo era of takings, doctrinal solutions may not be enough. Analogous to inclusionary zoning, inclusionary eminent domain helps us rethink how to fix the exclusionary eminent domain phenomenon that displaces low-income residents. Indeed, this Article moves us beyond the doctrinal muddle and instead incorporates both the intellectual musings of takings and zoning law with an assessment of how innovative tools can be practically applied to construct and preserve affordable housing in eminent domain takings for economic redevelopment.


Abstract In an effort to contribute to the discussion concerning the age of rocks of the Moldanubian Variegated Group, we have undertaken Re-Os dating of molybdenite of banded carbonatite-like marbles (CLM) from the graphite mine Václav at Bližná (Southern Bohemia), which belong to the metamorphic sequence of this group. The Re-Os model ages for the molybdenites range between 493 and 497 Ma and apparently correspond to the early stages of metamorphism connected with pre-Variscan rift-related tectono-metamorphic events, which affected and recrystallized sedimentary CLM material rich in Mo-Th-Nb-REE. The molybdenite bearing carbonatite like marbles situated in the footwall of Bližná graphite mine have been interpreted as carbonates with a large share of volcano-detritic material derived from contemporaneous primitive alkaline (carbonatite-like) volcanism deposited in a shallow marine lagoonal environment. There is no geological evidence for the participation of fluids mobilized from host rocks in the formation of the CLM. Because the Re-Os chronometer in molybdenite is demonstrably stable through later Variscan facies metamorphism, the molybdenite chronometer has not been affected by subsequent thermal overprints associated with the Variscan orogeny.


This conceptual paper addresses Management Accounting and Control Systems (MACS) from a communication process perspective as opposed to a functional design perspective. Its arguments originate from a social-constructionist perspective on the organization. Its line of argument is that building a social theory of a social phenomenon such as MACS, demands that attention be paid to the characteristics of the communication process. An existing theoretical framework that does the same is Giddens' structuration theory, but it is only partly satisfactory because it refuses to consider communication-as-interaction from a dynamic contextual perspective, instead falling back on an argument related to the behavioural aspects of agency. An alternative is a semiotic-based communication perspective that includes context as well as addresses the epistemological level of a MACS theory based on communication. The semiotic model of Jakobson is provided and developed as a specific alternative.


This technical report summarizes the Prioritization of Capacity Improvements Study (PCIS), the purpose of which was to develop a new methodology for prioritizing mobility improvement projects to reflect State Transportation Policy Plan objectives. This report includes a discussion of the preexisting Category C prioritization formula, an overview of state-of-the-art prioritization methods for regional and statewide project programming elsewhere, a detailed discussion of the proposed ranking methodology for mobility improvements, and finally, a description of the implementation process for the 1995-97 biennial programming cycle at the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). This study focused on the safe, cost-effective movement of people and goods; the encouragement of high occupancy vehicles and alternative modes; land use-transportation compatibility; environmental conservation; social and economic impacts; institutional coordination; and local support, all of which are explicit goals in the State Transportation Policy Plan. The new prioritization framework has several advantages. It is flexible enough to accommodate future changes in state policy. Additionally, it represents a significant step toward the ability to evaluate and rank multimodal mobility projects in direct response to transportation policy and service objectives. WSDOT is clearly in the forefront of such planning efforts nationwide. There are many opportunities for further study, and it is recommended that the Washington State Department of Transportation continue to push the known boundaries of economic analysis as innovative, multimodal solutions are considered increasingly frequently in the mobility improvement program. Such efforts will allow decision makers to make the best use of limited state resources.


This study was aimed to compare the uncertainty of two hydrological models in discharge modeling and their performance and catchment hydrological response to climate change in Megech river catchment. In this study, large scale regional climate model (REMO) output was downscaled statistically to metrological variables at a daily resolution using SDSM model version 5.11. The two hydrological models, HBV-Light and GR4J, were successfully calibrated (1991-1995) and validated (1998-2000) using current climatic inputs and observed river flows. The overall performances of the two models in reproducing historical records were good at daily and monthly time scale both on calibration and validation (NSE=0.91 for HBV and NSE=0.88 for GR4J). The models results in predicting hydrological response of changed climate (2015-2050) was simulated using statistically downscaled 20 ensembles climate scenario data for both A1B and B1 scenarios. Both model results showed a reduction of the peak discharge in August and September The total annual discharge for future period (2015-2050) showed a decreasing trend for HBV-Light simulation and an increasing trend for GR4J simulation. More studies using different hydrological models on different catchments need to be carried out in order to provide more general conclusions about the reliability of the model output. Keywords: Gr4J, HBV-Light, Megech, REMO, SDSM DOI : 10.7176/JNSR/9-1-03


The article aims to explore the fundamental driving forces and trends that influence the future of statehood and democracy in general. It also aspires to build upon the view that such a macro perspective will open, and to generate some new insights and knowledge for those idealists among us who endeavour to advance and improve the global social order in general.


This renowned book offers a comprehensive yet practical exploration of basic electrical and electronic concepts, hands-on applications, and troubleshooting. Written in a clear and accessible narrative, theSeventh Edition focuses on fundamental principles and their applications to solving real circuit analysis problems, and devotes six chapters to examining electronic devices. Some key features include: Symptom/Cause problems, and exercises on Multisim circuits on CD-ROM. Key terms glossaryFurnished at the end of each chapter. Vivid illustrations. Numerous examples in each chapterIllustrate major concepts, theorems, and methods. For professionals with a career in electronics, engineering, technical sales, field service, industrial manufacturing, service shop repair, and/or technical writing.


As a division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Security Branch, the Terrorist Screening Center maintains the Terrorist Watchlist, a central database for identifying individuals known or suspected to engage in terrorism or terrorist activities. Subsumed under the Terrorist Watchlist is the No Fly List, which prohibits individuals from boarding commercial aircrafts in and out of the United States. Placement on either list presumes named individuals as a potential threat to U.S. national security, yet there is no restriction preventing them from legally purchasing firearms. Following a mass shooting at an Orlando nightclub in June of 2016, which was perpetrated by an individual recently removed from the Terrorist Watchlist, the Senate proposed two gun control measures specifically aimed at preventing individuals on the Terrorist Watchlist from purchasing firearms. Both proposals were rejected. This article explores the constitutional and procedural concerns that led the Senate's rejection of both proposals, and concludes by introducing gun control regulation tailored to address those concerns.


As part of a wider study this paper will examine the impact of the economic downturn on a research project on property developers and discuss ways in which its focus and the methodology employed have necessarily changed. Research projects seek, at least, to develop overarching understandings of situations, if not an abstract generalised theory. This requires a degree of stability which allows similarities to be identified and comparisons to be made. The impact of the economic crisis has invalidated this assumption. However, in reality, property development operates against a background of changing economic, political and social conditions and it has long been acknowledged that the development cycle is signified by an alternating cycle of booms and slumps. These continuous changing circumstances were not factored into the first stage of this research which comprised a series of semi-structured interviews with independent trader developers. It was established that the lengthy nature of development allows a degree of flexibility to occur during implementation, thus, development projects are subject to varying levels of modification during the process. Alterations to the original development proposal are often made in reaction to changing market conditions to maximise returns. However, during the process of the research the UK property market collapsed. Second stage interviews show that speculative developments have all but stopped and funding for pre-lets and pre-sales has become significantly more difficult to come by. Interviewees now recall past experiences of recessions. This step change could be regarded as invalidating the research. The methodological and theoretical implications of this will be discussed, concluding that research has been enriched by this collapse revealing more correctly the nature of the field under view.


In her review entitled "Leukaemia and Sellafield: is there a heritable link?",' Dr Tawn concludes that the Seaseale childhood leukaemia cluster could not have been caused by paternal preconception irradiation (ppi) induced germline mutation, as suggested by Gardner et al.2 Dr Tawn bases her conclusion in part on an assertion that there is little evidence that leukaemia is a heritable disease. Although there are cogent objections to the Gardner hypothesis based on epidemiological findings discussed elsewhere,3 an examination of the evidence suggests it is premature to dismiss a role for heredity in human leukaemia.' Dr Tawn presents her arguments in the context of a claim for compensation by the families of two children of preconceptionally irradiated Sellafield workers.3 These cases


We answer some questions raised by Gantert, Lowe and Steif (Ann. Inst. Henri Poincare Probab. Stat. 41 (2005) 767 780) concerning "signed" voter models on locally finite graphs. These are voter model like processes with the difference that the edges are considered to be either positive or negative. If an edge between a site x and a site y is negative (respectively positive) the site y will contribute towards the flip rate of x if and only if the two current spin values are equal (respectively opposed).


One hallmark of the insulin-resistant state of prediabetes and overt type 2 diabetes is an impaired ability of insulin to activate glucose transport in skeletal muscle, due to defects in IRS-1-dependent signaling. An emerging body of evidence indicates that one potential factor in the multifactorial etiology of skeletal muscle insulin resistance is oxidative stress, an imbalance between the cellular exposure to an oxidant stress and the cellular antioxidant defenses. Exposure of skeletal muscle to an oxidant stress leads to impaired insulin signaling and subsequently to reduced glucose transport activity. Numerous studies have demonstrated that treatment of insulin-resistant animals and type 2 diabetic humans with antioxidants, including a-lipoic acid (ALA), is associated with improvements in skeletal muscle glucose transport activity and whole-body glucose tolerance. An additional intervention that is effective in ameliorating the skeletal muscle insulin resistance of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes is endurance exercise training. Recent investigations have demonstrated that the combination of exercise training and antioxidant treatment using ALA in an animal model of obesity-associated insulin resistance provides a unique interactive effect resulting in a greater improvement in insulin action on skeletal muscle glucose transport than either intervention individually. Moreover, this interactive effect of exercise training and ALA is due in part to improvements in IRS-1-dependent insulin signaling. These studies highlight the effectiveness of combining endurance exercise training and antioxidants in beneficially modulating the molecular defects in insulin action observed in insulin-resistant skeletal muscle.


Corporate directors have a fiduciary duty to make decisions in the best interests of the shareholders. This aspect of fiduciary duty is often called the shareholder primacy norm. Legal scholars generally assume that the shareholder primacy norm is a major factor considered by boards of directors of publicly traded corporations in making ordinary business decisions and that changing the shareholder primacy norm would have an effect on the substance of those decisions. This Article challenges this view and argues that the shareholder primacy norm was never equipped to mediate conflicts between shareholders and nonshareholder constituencies of a corporation. The origins and development of the shareholder primacy norm suggest that it was introduced into corporate law to perform a much different and somewhat surprising function: the shareholder primacy norm was first used by courts to resolve disputes among majority and minority shareholders, and over time this use of the shareholder primacy norm evolved into the modern doctrine of minority oppression. This application of the shareholder primacy norm seems incongruous today because minority oppression cases involve conflicts among shareholders, not conflicts between shareholders and nonshareholders. Nevertheless, when early courts employed rules requiring directors to act in the interests of all shareholders (not just the majority shareholders), they were creating the shareholder primacy norm. Once used to resolve minority oppression cases, the shareholder primacy norm easily found its way into cases involving publicly traded corporations because courts did not routinely distinguish closely held corporations from publicly traded corporations until the middle of this century. But the application of the shareholder primacy norm to the ordinary business decisions of publicly traded corporations is muted by the business judgment rule. As a result, even though the shareholder primacy norm is closely associated with debates about the social responsibility of publicly traded corporations, it's impact on the ordinary business decisions of such corporations is extremely limited.


In the early morning of October 1, 1965, self-proclaimed left-wing troops raided the houses of seven top army generals in Jakarta. In the process, six of the generals were killed—three were shot during the kidnapping attempt, while the others were taken to Lubang Buaya, an air force base located in the south of Jakarta, and then killed. The seventh general, Nasution, managed to escape. The perpetrators announced on national radio that they were troops loyal to President Sukarno, and they aimed to protect the president from the danger posed by the right-wing "Council of Generals"—who, they said, were planning to launch a military coup d'etat.… This movement was very short-lived. Within one day, it collapsed. Major General Suharto…took control of the army during the morning of October 1 and quickly crushed the movement.… [W]hat happened on October 1, 1965 marked the fall of Sukarno and the rise of Suharto, who was soon to rule Indonesia under his military dictatorship for more than three decades. The brutality of Suharto's New Order is probably not news for people familiar with Indonesia. But there is "an episode the West would prefer to forget," as journalist John Pilger put it, that accompanied Suharto's rise to power: the destruction of Communism and the mass killings that followed—a phenomenon claimed by Time magazine in 1966 as "The West's best news for years in Asia." Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.


Refuting claims made by several historians that the Croix de Feu/Parti social francais were non-exclusionary, this article demonstrates the prevalence of anti-Semitism and xenophobia throughout the league's metropolitan and Algerian sections. CDF/PSF leadership and rank-and-file alike prioritized the notion of the enemy, and their plans for les exclus augured similar developments under the Vichy regime. Although less rabidly xenophobic than his colleagues, whose opinions variously promoted denaturalization and outright elimination, group leader Colonel Francaois de la Rocque was nonetheless prone to racist and exclusionary doctrine, arguing that foreign Jews and immigrants were the enemies of la patrie, and should necessarily be expunged from the new nation. The article describes the wide range of xenophobia present in group actions and discourse, while positioning the CDF/PSF within the broader context of French and Algerian society.


Catastrophic events, like hurricanes, bring lethal conditions that can have population‐altering effects. The threatened Caribbean dry forest occurs in a region known for its high‐intensity hurricane seasons and high species endemism, highlighting the need to better understand hurricane impacts in combination with habitat fragmentation and loss. However, such studies remain rare and for reptiles are mostly restricted to Anolis. Here, we used single‐season occupancy modeling to infer the impact of the intense 2017 Atlantic hurricane season on the critically endangered Lesser Antillean Iguana, Iguana delicatissima. We surveyed 30 transects across eight habitats on St. Eustatius during 2017–2019, which resulted in 344 individual surveys and 98 iguana observations. Analyses of abundance and site occupancy indicated both measures for 2018 and 2019 were strongly reduced compared to the pre‐hurricane 2017 state. Iguanas at higher elevations were affected more profoundly, likely due to higher wind speeds, tree damage, and extensive defoliation. Overall, our results indicate a decrease in population estimates (23.3%–26.5%) and abundance (22%–23.8%) for 2018 and 2019, and a 75% reduction in opportunistic sightings of tagged iguanas between 2017 and 2018. As only small and isolated I. delicatissima populations remain, our study further demonstrates their vulnerability to stochastic events. Considering the frequency and intensity of hurricanes are projected to increase, our results stress the urgent need for population‐increasing conservation actions in order to secure the long‐term survival of I. delicatissima throughout its range. Given the projected increase and poleward shift of hurricanes, our study provides important insights from a non‐model species.


[1] An inventory of air pollutant emissions in Asia in the year 2000 is developed to support atmospheric modeling and analysis of observations taken during the TRACE-P experiment funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the ACE-Asia experiment funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Emissions are estimated for all major anthropogenic sources, including biomass burning, in 64 regions of Asia. We estimate total Asian emissions as follows: 34.3 Tg SO2, 26.8 Tg NOx, 9870 Tg CO2, 279 Tg CO, 107 Tg CH4, 52.2 Tg NMVOC, 2.54 Tg black carbon (BC), 10.4 Tg organic carbon (OC), and 27.5 Tg NH3. In addition, NMVOC are speciated into 19 subcategories according to functional groups and reactivity. Thus we are able to identify the major source regions and types for many of the significant gaseous and particle emissions that influence pollutant concentrations in the vicinity of the TRACE-P and ACE-Asia field measurements. Emissions in China dominate the signature of pollutant concentrations in this region, so special emphasis has been placed on the development of emission estimates for China. China's emissions are determined to be as follows: 20.4 Tg SO2, 11.4 Tg NOx, 3820 Tg CO2, 116 Tg CO, 38.4 Tg CH4, 17.4 Tg NMVOC, 1.05 Tg BC, 3.4 Tg OC, and 13.6 Tg NH3. Emissions are gridded at a variety of spatial resolutions from 1° × 1° to 30 s × 30 s, using the exact locations of large point sources and surrogate GIS distributions of urban and rural population, road networks, landcover, ship lanes, etc. The gridded emission estimates have been used as inputs to atmospheric simulation models and have proven to be generally robust in comparison with field observations, though there is reason to think that emissions of CO and possibly BC may be underestimated. Monthly emission estimates for China are developed for each species to aid TRACE-P and ACE-Asia data interpretation. During the observation period of March/April, emissions are roughly at their average values (one twelfth of annual). Uncertainties in the emission estimates, measured as 95% confidence intervals, range from a low of ±16% for SO2 to a high of ±450% for OC.


The formation and maturation of the outer epithelial layer is essential for maximal alphafetoprotein (AFP) production during differentiation of F9 embryoid bodies in the presence of 5 X 10(-8) M retinoic acid (Grover et al., 1983. J. Cell Biol. 96:1690-1696). The critical phase is between the third and the fourth day when the components of the extracellular matrix organize into a basement membrane. The role of some of these components in the process of epithelium formation and maturation is analyzed in this paper. The role of laminin was investigated by testing the effect of exogenous laminin and antilaminin in cultures of differentiating F9 aggregates. Tests included growth rates, morphological changes, AFP production, determination of AFP mRNA levels, and fluorescent staining for basement membrane components and for epithelial markers. At concentrations greater than 5 micrograms/ml, exogenous laminin inhibited the production of AFP and prevented AFP gene transcription. On the basis of immunofluorescence tests, exogenous laminin appeared to act by preventing the accumulation of a basement membrane and by disrupting the organization of the outer layer into an epithelium. No such effects were produced by fibronectin or collagens type I or IV. Aggregates cultured in the presence of antilaminin also failed to organize an epithelium and did not produce AFP, whereas those in normal rabbit serum differentiated normally. Therefore, endogenous laminin plays a key role not only as a basement membrane structural component but also in organizing the epithelial layer of endoderm cells and hence (indirectly) in gene expression.


This thesis aims to reconstruct the history, building phases, original appearance and role in mediaeval Rome of the church of S. Maria in Aracoeli, from its origins to c. 1400.

The introduction describes the topographical setting of the church and traces its historiography . The first chapter investigates previous churches, their documentary sources, archaeological evidence and surviving components of church furniture. Patronage, date and original appearance of the so-called 'ara coeli', the extant main altar of the former church, are discussed.

The second chapter concerns the present church, constructed by the Franciscans after their arrival on the hill in the mid-thirteenth century. The first section covers the building history from a documentary point of view, while the second provides a formal analysis, dedicating a subsection to each surviving part (nave and aisles, transept and adjacent chapel, facade). Archaeological research, together with graphic, epigraphic, literary and documentary sources, establishes the transformations of the building as well as the original plan and elevation of its lost parts (apse and eastern chapels). The third section critically reconsiders the lost decoration of the original apse, its iconography and the reasons for its success. The fourth section focuses on the workshop: analysis of the building technique is combined with the information on the architect gathered from his surviving sepulchral epitaph; the use of spolia and the adoption of gothic window-tracery are also discussed.

The final chapter places Aracoeli in its context: the first section examines the civic role of the church as a setting for communal assemblies and a privileged site for judgement, the second considers its role as a favourite site for burial chapels of important Roman families.

This thesis clarifies the history and appearance of the Christian site before the Franciscans, and provides a reconstruction of the building stages and original aspect of the present church (as well as of the function of some annexed structures) which differs radically from previous hypotheses, thus situating Aracoeli in a different architectural and cultural framework.


Kơho [kəˈhɔ] is a Mon-Khmer (Austroasiatic) language, spoken by more than 207,000 people located in Lam Dong province, Viet Nam. Kơho is related to Khmer (Cambodian) and more distantly to Vietnamese (Author 1968).
 Since the 1930s, French, and later American, missionaries, government agencies, and educators using several different alphabets have produced scripture, primers, grammars, and dictionaries. A romanized orthography based on the Vietnamese national alphabet (quốc ngữ) was developed in 1935 for the Sre dialect of Kơho by French colonial administrators and missionaries. That orthography was the most consistently (nearly phonemic) utilized to date (Smalley 1954). Many documents were published using that alphabet. Under pressure from Jacques Dournes, a French missionary/linguist, who was compiling a voluminous Sre-French dictionary (1950), a new orthography commission met in Dalat, in 1949, to devise an acceptable replacement (Martini 1952).
 During the 1960s and 1970s, a series of pedagogical materials in Kơho was produced by the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) under contract to the former Saigon government. Writing primers, science, and health books were used in classrooms where Kơho was the language of instruction in the primary grades; in the higher grades, Vietnamese was phased in.
 Even among a newly literate people, attachment to a written tradition, lingers on. Recent proposals have gained acceptance only with difficulty. Subsequent orthographies were proposed in 1953 (Condominas 1954) and in the 1960s. The latter orthography, developed by SIL, was employed by the former Republic of Vietnam (Saigon) government for educational materials. The 1967 New Testament and 1993 Psalms were published in that orthography. After reunification in 1976, all previous (i.e., south Vietnamese) pedagogical materials were discarded. In 1983, the Vietnamese government introduced a quốc ngữ-based orthography (Vũ Ba Hung and Tạ Văn Thong, 1983), and published a Vietnamese—Kơho dictionary (Hoang Văn Hanh, et al. 1983). The Kơho people living in North Carolina have no use for that orthography. The complete Bible was published in 2010 in the SIL orthography. In the preparation of a dictionary and a reference grammar for the Kơho language, a decision on which orthography to use is crucial. There are five potential orthographies that Kơho could be written in. Currently, in North Carolina, the orthography employed depends on which church or dialect one is affiliated with. This paper explores the inherent problem of matching speakers' desires with a practical orthography that is acceptable to a majority of language users.
 References
 Condominas, Georges. 1954. Enquete linguistique parmi les populations montagnardes du sud indochinois. BEFEO 46:579-586. [Part 2: 'the new mode of transcription for Kơho']
 Dournes, Jacques. 1950. Dictionnaire Sre (Kơho)--Francais. Saigon: Imprimerie d'Extreme-Orient. 269 p.
 Hoang Văn Hanh, et al. 1983. Từ Điển Việt-Kơho [Vietnamese-Kơho dictionary]. T.P. Hố Chi Minh: Sở Văn Hoa va Tong Tin Xuất Bản.
 Martini, Francois. 1952. Notes et melanges de la transcription du Sre (Kơho), a propos du dictionnaire du R. P. Jacques Dournes. BSEI 27,1:99-109.
 Author. 1968. Basic Kơho: grammar and conversation guide. Bao-Loc. MACV.
 Smalley, William A. 1954. A problem in orthography preparation. Bible Translator 5:170-176. [Discussion of various Sre orthographies.]
 Smalley, William A. 1955. Sre phonemes and syllables. Journal of the American Oriental Society 74,4:217-222.
 Vũ Ba Hung and Tạ Văn Thong. 1983. Về hệ thống ngữ âm tiếng Kơho va sự sửa đồi chữ Kơho [The phonetic system of Kơho and the reform of Kơho writing]. Ngon Ngữ 4(58):56-65.


The present article looked into the way people construct their former working experiences in conversation. As a main analysis outcome I was interested in the narrative patterns that emerge when people recollect the stories of the jobs they had in different corporations. As a secondary analysis outcome I focused on the discursive construction of the corporate companies as working environments and on people's stories about them taking the decisions to leave the respective jobs. Using the snow-ball method, I assessed six unstructured interviews with men and women alike in terms of age, earned incomes and who held a university diploma. The following analysis was grounded on a constructivist approach and sensible to the interviewees' work of selfpresentation. I also paid attention to the interactions people talked about and to the cultural resources they used in conversation. Irony, humor, vocabularies of motives, categories and contrast structures were the discursive tools people engaged in their stories most frequently determining me to consider them key-concepts of the present study. Moreover, gender was taken into consideration as discursive pattern. The conclusions of the paper point out to the fact that various types of narrative patterns emerged when my interviewees recollected their working experiences. One of the most salient was connected with the story-like construction of the recollections. People's narrations included expositions, climaxes, all sorts of good and bad characters and trials they had to overcome. The second important pattern was given by the resembling flow of feelings as resulting from the narrations. All the interviwees were enthusiastic to enter the companies, felt alienated as time went by, deceit - in the end and resignation after some time outside the companies. The third notable pattern came with a difference in gender. In this spirit, women's stories were constructed around their interactions with the others while men's recollections were more self-centered.


ABSTRACT Anthropization has led to severe river incision in several parts of Europe. Biomonitoring is of interest to characterize this incision or, conversely, the effectiveness of ecological restoration. Mosses of the upper flood zone are good candidates for such biomonitoring as they are small organisms with limited water-intake ability. Here we studied the Dialytrichia mucronata (Brid.) Broth. – D. saxicola (Lamy) M.J. Cano species pair, both mostly encountered in the upper flood zone; the latter was hypothesized to be more resistant to water stress. We analysed 179 bryosociological relevés in the French Rhône River watershed, distributed along a wide ecological interval. We performed Pearson's Chi-square test to determine whether the latitude, altitude, substrate, and phorophyte had an effect on Dialytrichia (Schimp.) Limpr. species distribution. Assemblages between D. mucronata and D. saxicola and other moss species were tested using a multivariate procedure. Also we compiled a preliminary French departmental scale distribution map for both species. The results showed that the two species differ ecologically and might be more stenoecious than suggested by their wide synecological spectrum. Eighty-three bryophyte species were documented to be associated with the studied species of Dialytrichia. The cumulative projected inertia for the first three axes of the factorial correspondence analysis was only 23.26%, with no clear structuration. It is concluded that neither the relative occurrence of D mucronata and D. saxicola, nor the communities with these species can be used to monitor incision driven changes in vegetation.


Degradable microparticles have broad utility as vehicles for drug delivery and form the basis of several therapies approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. Conventional emulsion-based methods of manufacturing produce particles with a wide range of diameters (and thus kinetics of release) in each batch. This paper describes the fabrication of monodisperse, drug-loaded microparticles from biodegradable polymers using the microfluidic flow-focusing (FF) devices and the drug-delivery properties of those particles. Particles are engineered with defined sizes, ranging from 10 microm to 50 microm. These particles are nearly monodisperse (polydispersity index = 3.9%). A model amphiphilic drug (bupivacaine) is incorporated within the biodegradable matrix of the particles. Kinetic analysis shows that the release of the drug from these monodisperse particles is slower than that from conventional methods of the same average size but a broader distribution of sizes and, most importantly, exhibit a significantly lower initial burst than that observed with conventional particles. The difference in the initial kinetics of drug release is attributed to the uniform distribution of the drug inside the particles generated using the microfluidic methods. These results demonstrate the utility of microfluidic FF for the generation of homogenous systems of particles for the delivery of drugs.