Is there such a field as "Early Modern Women"? Absolutely. It is an interdisciplinary field of study comparable to that of the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Scientific Revolution, or the Enlightenment. All of these are interdisciplinary fields, involving professionals from traditional history, literature, arts, philosophy, religious disciplines (defined by methodology), or departments (defined by institution). In each case, some kind of movement or phenomenon is the object of everyone's interest: the impact of the classical tradition, or of the creation of new churches, or the reconceptualization of the cosmos, or the realignment of intellectual culture according to secular norms and concerns. In the case of the study of early modern women (my dating is 1350-1750), the phenomenon that is studied from an array of disciplinary perspectives is the clear articulation, for the first time in history and anywhere on the globe, of women's voices, the female voice. I hear the objections already. Surely there were women who spoke up before: medieval mystics, Jewish prophets, Egyptian queens, not to mention Japanese, Chinese, and Indian poets and novelists. And what about women who asserted themselves by doing, even if they had no literary voice? All of this is granted. But the early modern phenomenon is a movement, something tangible. In this period, many women in many languages and from many social vantage points claim that women, generally, may participate in the mainstream, male-dominated, intellectual culture of the age. They not only speak, but they assert their right to speak and define themselves by speaking. It is the age of the emergence of the female voice--previously unheard, and not since, as some lament, silenced. It is not, on the other hand, the age of the liberation of women from traditional social roles. The definitions of women's roles were remarkably tenacious and held most women in bondage through 1800 and beyond. In many arenas, women of early modern Europe could be said to lose ground--in religious organizations, in the realm of work, within the family. Where they make unique progress is on the ideological plane. The early modern phenomenon of the emergence of the female voice, of women's claim to participation in culture, is not just a transitional stage in the movement from medieval to modern Europe. It is a thing in itself. Is there a discipline specific to the study of early modern women? No, I think not. Women's presence and absence on the early modern stage can be studied using the same tools used to study the texts, documents, and objects that enable us to understand the experience of early modern men, or war, or theology, or physics. Some adjustments must be made, of course. The documents may be harder to find because the documentary record is suited to a male-dominated world, recording mercantile contracts, or judicial investigations, or guild constitutions, that pertain mostly to male lifestyles. But scholars have learned to read the documents from a different perspective, to elicit from them what is said--sometimes because nothing at all is said--about women. The objects, too, are different. The scholar must turn away from the grand monuments: the palaces, cathedrals, fortifications, and most of the painted and sculpted works of art. To understand women, it is necessary to look at the objects most associated with them: textiles, above all, spun, woven, sewn, embroidered by female hands; their boxes, books, and toys; the beds, chairs, stools, and buckets associated with cooking, laundering, and giving birth; the rooms in which they sat to spin, sew, weave, embroider, cook, and talk. The texts--the consciously composed literary texts by and about women--are suddenly rich in the early modern period. They are written in the same languages and, generally speaking, according to the same formats that works by men are written, and can be read by persons equipped with the same skills. …


Many similarities have been drawn between the activities of gambling and video-gaming. Both are repetitive activities with intermittent reinforcement, decision-making opportunities, and elements of risk-taking. As a result, it might be tempting to believe that cognitive strategies that are used to treat problem gambling might also be applied to problematic video gaming. In this paper, we argue that many cognitive approaches to gambling that typically involve a focus on erroneous beliefs about probabilities and randomness are not readily applicable to video gaming. Instead, we encourage a focus on other clusters of cognitions that relate to: (a) the salience and over-valuing of gaming rewards, experiences, and identities, (b) maladaptive and inflexible rules about behaviour, (c) the use of video-gaming to maintain self-esteem, and (d) video-gaming for social status and recognition. This theoretical discussion is advanced as a starting point for the development of more refined cognitive treatment approaches for problematic video gaming.


We propose a renormalon-inspired resummation of QCD perturbation theory based on approximating the renormalization scheme (RS) invariant effective charge (EC) beta- function coefficients by the portion containing the highest power of b = (11N'-2N(_f))/6, the first beta-function coefficient, for SU(N) QCD with N(_f) quark flavours. This can be accomplished using exact large-N(_f) all-orders results. The resulting resummation is RS-invariant and the exact next-to-leading order (NLO) and next-to-NLO (NNLO) coefficients in any RS are included. This improves on a previously employed naive leading-6 resummation which is RS-dependent. The RS-invariant resummation is used to assess the reliability of fixed-order perturbation theory for the e(^+)e(^-) R-ratio, hadronic tau-decay ratio R(_r), and Deep Inelastic Scattering (DIS) sum rules, by comparing it with the exact NNLO results in the EC RS. For R and R(_r), where large-order perturbative behaviour is dominated by a leading ultra-violet renormalon singularity, the comparison indicates fixed-order perturbation theory to be very reliable. For DIS sum rules, which have a leading infra-red renormalon singularity, the performance is rather poor. We show that QCD Minkowski observables such as the R and R(_r) are completely determined by the EC beta-function, p(x), corresponding to the Euclidean QCD vacuum polarization Adler D-function, together with the NLO perturbative coefficient of D. An efficient numerical algorithm is given for evaluating R, Rr from a weighted contour integration of D(se(^10)) around a circle in the complex squared energy .s-plane, with p(x) used to evolve in s around the contour. The difference between the R, R(_r) constructed using the NNLO and leading-b resummed versions of pi(x) provides an estimate of the uncertainty due to the uncalculated higher order corrections. We estimate that at LEP energies ideal data on the R-ratio could determine a(_s)(M(_2)(_Z)) to three-significant figures. For R(_r) we estimate a theoretical uncertainty δa(_s)(m(^2)(_r)) ~ 0.001, corresponding to δa(_s)(m(^2)(_r)) ~ 0.002. This encouragingly small uncertainty is much less than has recently been deduced from comparison with the analogous naive all-orders resummation, which we demonstrate to be extremely RS dependent and hence misleading.


Modulation of some Kv3 family potassium channels by protein kinase C (PKC) regulates their amplitude and kinetics and adjusts firing patterns of auditory neurons in response to stimulation. Nevertheless, little is known about the modulation of Kv3.3, a channel that is widely expressed throughout the nervous system and is the dominant Kv3 family member in auditory brainstem. We have cloned the cDNA for the Kv3.3 channel from mouse brain and have expressed it in a mammalian cell line and in Xenopus oocytes to characterize its biophysical properties and modulation by PKC. Kv3.3 currents activate at positive voltages and undergo inactivation with time constants of 150-250 ms. Activators of PKC increased current amplitude and removed inactivation of Kv3.3 currents, and a specific PKC pseudosubstrate inhibitor peptide prevented the effects of the activators. Elimination of the first 78 amino acids of the N terminus of Kv3.3 produced noninactivating currents suggesting that PKC modulates N-type inactivation, potentially by phosphorylation of sites in this region. To identify potential phosphorylation sites, we investigated the response of channels in which serines in this N-terminal domain were subjected to mutagenesis. Our results suggest that serines at positions 3 and 9 are potential PKC phosphorylation sites. Computer simulations of model neurons suggest that phosphorylation of Kv3.3 by PKC may allow neurons to maintain action potential height during stimulation at high frequencies, and may therefore contribute to stimulus-induced changes in the intrinsic excitability of neurons such as those of the auditory brainstem.


For the first time the Deparment of Health and Human Services is part of the national security apparatus of the United States. That reflects a change in our views on chemical and biological defense programs. Almost 5 years ago at the bidding of the president we began to look at what has come to be known as "asymmetrical threats," ways in which opponents (be they nations or terrorist groups) could attack us without directly engaging our military forces. At the same time we were faced with two events that drew our attention to chemical and biological threats. Iraq used chemical weapons on Iran and on its own citizens and appeared to be concealing a biological weapons program. Also, the hitherto unknown Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo used sarin nerve agent in the Tokyo subway; the cult failed in an attempt to use biological weapons against Americans in Japan. In 1998, the president launched the first national effort to create a biological weapons defense for the United States. While some believe that the response is not strong enough, many others think that the proposed program exaggerates the threat, that biological weapons are too unpredictable, and that the only big biological weapons program died with the Soviet Union. However, the former Soviet Union was not the only state engaged in biological weapons research and development. Almost every nation on the State Department's list of nations that sponsor terrorism has engaged in chemical and or biological weapons development. If these nations have armed, trained, funded, and advised terrorist groups, they could cross the line and provide terrorists with chemical or biological weapons. Finally, some critics say that until we really know about a specific threat to use these weapons against the United States, we should not be raising the specter of horror; instead we should be quietly working in Geneva to improve the ban on biological weapons. We are pushing in Geneva, but that is not enough. When we learn of a specific threat, it will be too late to do research and development, too late to procure medicines, too late to train local authorities. The current bioterrorism initiative includes a new concept: the first-ever procurement of specialized medicines for a national civilian protection stockpile. As new vaccines and medicines are developed, that program can be expanded. The initiative includes invigoration of research and development in the science of biodefense; it invests in pathogen genome sequencing, new vaccine research, new therapeutics research, and development of improved detection and diagnostic systems. The 2-year program provides for Department of Health and Human Services research, almost tripling the previous 2-year effort, in addition to ongoing work in the Defense Department, and it includes a reinitiation of the federal program to help state and local public health infrastructure and surveillance systems. The biological weapons protection program is part of the overall chemical and biological protection effort, which includes aid to state and local governments for first-responder training, planning, exercises, and equipment.


Models of human dimensions of fisheries are important to understanding and predicting how fishing industries respond to changes in marine ecosystems and management institutions. Advances in computation have made it possible to construct agent-based models (ABMs)—which explicitly describe the behaviour of individual people, firms, or vessels in order to understand and predict their aggregate behaviours. ABMs are widely used for both academic and applied purposes in many settings including finance, urban planning, and the military, but are not yet mainstream in fisheries science and management, despite a growing literature. ABMs are well suited to understanding emergent consequences of fisher interactions, heterogeneity, and bounded rationality, especially in complex ecological, social, and institutional contexts. For these reasons, we argue that ABMs of human behaviour can contribute significantly to human dimensions of fisheries in three areas: 1) understanding interactions between multiple management institutions; 2) incorporating cognitive and behavioural sciences into fisheries science and practice; and 3) understanding and projecting the social consequences of management institutions. We provide simple examples illustrating the potential for ABMs in each of these areas, using conceptual ('toy') versions of the POSEIDON model. We argue that salient strategic advances in these areas could pave the way for increased tactical use of ABMs in fishery management settings. We review common ABM development and application challenges, with the aim of providing guidance to beginning ABM developers and users studying human dimensions of fisheries.


In this paper we bring together institutional, contextual, and behavioral perspectives in a comprehensive model that explores determinants of executive and legislative approval based on economic performance in Brazil and Chile. Our main question is, do voters attribute responsibility for the state of the economy to their representatives in the Legislative Branch as they apparently do to officeholders in the Executive Branch? We search for answers to this question with an eye on how active the distinct branches of government are in economic policy-making and voters' levels of political sophistication. Our main hypothesis is that less sophisticated voters will blame politicians indiscriminately for the state of the economy, independent of how influential each branch of government is on economic policy. More sophisticated voters will better discern the role each branch plays in economic policy-making and will not blame representatives in the Legislative Branch for the state of the economy when Congress is not active in economic policy-making. The cases of Brazil and Chile under Cardoso and Lagos offer the perfect opportunity to test this hypothesis, which is confirmed by our data.


Spatial planning in Poland undergoes constant changes due to the activity of the legislative body. These changes to a varying extent affect the activity of local authorities of rural gminas in the scope of spatial planning. The diversity in rural gminas is especially noticed in the application of land-use plans, and consequently also the planning permissions. Similarly, this diversity concerns changing the status of farmland from agricultural to residential and deforestation of agricultural and forest land. These factors are the elements forming the level of spatial planning culture that results from the regulations forming the spatial planning system. The equivalent element that forms the spatial planning culture is use of tools available by law, taking into consideration their gradation due to their complexity. These assumptions allowed for using the Central Statistical Office's resources to form indexes related to the area of spatial planning. These indexes became the component parts involved in the construction of Hellwig's synthetic measures of development. By using synthetic measures, it was possible to form the classification of rural gminas in the central region of Poland due to their level of spatial planning culture. The obtained results allowed for the evaluation of the level of spatial planning culture both in the central region and in the particular voivodeships comprising the region. The obtained results enabled the analysis of spatial diversity of spatial planning culture The results also confirmed a great diversity of rural gminas regarding the adopted attitude with reference to the application of spatial planning tools. An important conclusion


A novel speckle reduction technique for digital holography is proposed. Multiple off-axis holograms are recorded using a circularly polarized illumination beam and a rotating linearly polarized reference beam. The speckle noise in the reconstructed images is suppressed by averaging these fields. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique experimentally and conduct additional statistical evaluation.


This data set maps and describes the geology of the Conejo Well 7.5 minute quadrangle, Riverside County, southern California. The quadrangle, situated in Joshua Tree National Park in the eastern Transverse Ranges physiographic and structural province, encompasses part of the northern Eagle Mountains and part of the south flank of Pinto Basin. It is underlain by a basement terrane comprising Proterozoic metamorphic rocks, Mesozoic plutonic rocks, and Mesozoic and Mesozoic or Cenozoic hypabyssal dikes. The basement terrane is capped by a widespread Tertiary erosion surface preserved in remnants in the Eagle Mountains and buried beneath Cenozoic deposits in Pinto Basin. Locally, Miocene basalt overlies the erosion surface. A sequence of at least three Quaternary pediments is planed into the north piedmont of the Eagle Mountains, each in turn overlain by successively younger residual and alluvial deposits. The Tertiary erosion surface is deformed and broken by north-northwest-trending, high-angle, dip-slip faults in the Eagle Mountains and an east-west trending system of high-angle dip- and left-slip faults. In and adjacent to the Conejo Well quadrangle, faults of the northwest-trending set displace Miocene sedimentary rocks and basalt deposited on the Tertiary erosion surface and Pliocene and (or) Pleistocene deposits that accumulated on the oldest pediment. Faults of this system appear to be overlain by Pleistocene deposits that accumulated on younger pediments. East-west trending faults are younger than and perhaps in part coeval with faults of the northwest-trending set. The Conejo Well database was created using ARCVIEW and ARC/INFO, which are geographical information system (GIS) software products of Envronmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI). The database consists of the following items: (1) a map coverage showing faults and geologic contacts and units, (2) a separate coverage showing dikes, (3) a coverage showing structural data, (4) a point coverage containing line ornamentation, and (5) a scanned topographic base at a scale of 1:24,000. The coverages include attribute tables for geologic units (polygons and regions), contacts (arcs), and site-specific data (points). The database, accompanied by a pamphlet file and this metadata file, also includes the following graphic and text products: (1) A portable document file (.pdf) containing a navigable graphic of the geologic map on a 1:24,000 topographic base. The map is accompanied by a marginal explanation consisting of a Description of Map and Database Units (DMU), a Correlation of Map and Database Units (CMU), and a key to point-and line-symbols. (2) Separate .pdf files of the DMU and CMU, individually. (3) A PostScript graphic-file containing the geologic map on a 1:24,000 topographic base accompanied by the marginal explanation. (4) A pamphlet that describes the database and how to access it. Within the database, geologic contacts , faults, and dikes are represented as lines (arcs), geologic units as polygons and regions, and site-specific data as points. Polygon, arc, and point attribute tables (.pat, .aat, and .pat, respectively) uniquely identify each geologic datum and link it to other tables (.rel) that provide more detailed geologic information.


This study examined laypeople's evaluations of judicial decision making, specifically of the judicial decision‐making process and the judiciary's legitimacy. Seven‐hundred participants were presented with three judicial decisions, which were portrayed as following on the heels of solid and appropriate legal procedure. Each decision was accompanied by one of four types of reasoning. Participants were asked to evaluate the acceptability of the decisions, focusing on the manner in which they were made and to evaluate the legitimacy of the decisionmaker, all regardless of their outcomes. The study yielded four findings. First, laypeople's judgments were highly contingent on the outcome of the judges' decisions. Consistent with the theory of motivated reasoning, participants found the decisions highly acceptable when they agreed with the judges' decision, but deemed them relatively unacceptable when they disagreed with them. Second, participants were indifferent to the modes of reasoning offered by the judges when they agreed with the outcomes of the decisions, but were differentially sensitive to the modes of reasoning when the judges' decisions frustrated their preferred outcomes. Third, when participants were sensitive to the modes of reasoning, they gave higher ratings of acceptability to decisions that openly admitted to good reasons on both sides of the case as compared with decisions accompanied by reasons that supported one side of the case exclusively. Giving no reasons at all was found to be more acceptable than giving a single, curt reason. Fourth, the findings replicated the coherence effect. Implications for the legitimacy of the judiciary are discussed.


Research has identified many success factors that are associated with project performance, but mostly they are conceptually described. They need to be operationally defined to be properly measured and used. This paper defines the operational levels for the qualitative architect/engineer (A/E) consultant performance measures, proposed in a previous paper (Chang & Ibbs, 1998). These levels, represented by descriptive conditions, were acquired by analyzing performance norms from research studies and by comparing data from 8 design project documents and interviews. These levels were then used to evaluate A/E consultant performance. The evaluation results show that the scores derived from the defined levels effectively differentiate performance, which means the levels were well designed. By using these performance levels, A/E consultant performance can be evaluated more accurately and systematically, which allows the owner to better manage the A/E project.


This project's goal is the production of biopolymeric microparticles of different sizes and chemical specifications and to use them as microcarriers in dynamic cell cultures. The cell culture conditions are to be optimized to allow the highest seeding and proliferation rate possible for cells.
This work is divided into two main parts. First, polylactic acid microparticles of two different sizes are fabricated by using a green method, and functionalized with proteins carrying adhesive motives. This functionalization aims at giving the particles the ability to carry and deliver cells to a specific tissue. Secondly, those microparticles are used as microcarriers in a dynamic cell culture. The impact of different parameters on the cells' seeding and proliferation, such as the size of the microparticles, the grafted protein, the type of impeller, the stirring rate, or the impeller geometry, are studied.
Microparticles of appropriate sizes have been successfully produced. The functionalization process has led to an effective attachment of collagen and elastin-like recombinamer (ELR) molecules.
Large microparticles functionalized with collagen yielded higher seeding rates than all other types of microparticles. Nevertheless, cells do not proliferate for all samples with the spinner flask design we used.
The impact of the mechanical stirring has also been assessed. Indeed, a lower stirring rate triggers a slightly higher seeding efficiency. Furthermore, the use of an anchor-shaped impeller yields slightly higher seeding efficiencies than a paddle-shaped impeller.
Stirring during the seeding phase has as well an important impact on cells seeding. No stirring during the first 24 hours of the cell culture proved to yield higher seeding efficiencies than alternate stirring during 2 hours.
Proliferation was not achieved during this project. Nevertheless, various seeding efficiencies were obtained, depending mainly on the microparticles' physical and chemical features, and the mechanical stirring conditions.


In this study, Bacillus cereus was subjected to acid adaptation at pH 6.3 for 40 min. It was found that acid-adapted B. cereus exhibited a higher survival percentage than non-adapted cells after exposure to an acidic condition of pH 4.6. The viable population of both acid-adapted and non-adapted B. cereus increased during the first 12-18 hr of lactic fermentation of skim milk by Streptococcus thermophilus or Lactobacillus bulgaricus, and then declined as the fermentation extended. However, the acid-adapted cells exhibited a lower population reduction rate than the non-adapted B. cereus. A higher viable population of acid-adapted B. cereus than the non-adapted cells was also noted in Str. thermophilus-fermented skim milk and the two commercial lactic fermented products kept at 5℃. Additionally, the acid adaptation could reduce the susceptibility of B. cereus to acidity, refrigerated temperature and other detrimental principles present in lactic fermented milk products.


Although some information is available on how calanoid copepods collect and handle food, there is very little information on the labrum and paragnaths, structures that are the last to receive food before trituration and ingestion. Five species were used to examine the nature of and differences between the labrum-paragnath complex, species with a variety of feeding modes ranging from detritivore to carnivore. The nature of the complex ranged from very simple in Eucalanus bungii bungii Johnson, 1938, to the heavily sclerotized labrum and paragnaths of the carnivore Paraeuchaeta elongata (Esterly, 1913) with its specialized anterior labral lobe. The labrum, which provides a semi-enclosed space for trituration by the mandible gnathobases, is hood shape while the columnar-shaped paragnaths, which hold and help move food towards the mandible gnathobases, contain setule and spicule armature elements. Not only the shape of the complex, but also its orientation are suggested to play roles in dictating dietary choices. The range of structures, from the simple complex of Eucalanus bungii bungii to the beak like complex of Heterorhabdus tanneri (Claus, 1863), along with its claw-like gnathobase armature, provide an indication of the morphological diversity found in the labrum-paragnath complex of calanoid copepods. For supplementary material, please go here: http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.1276298 .


BACKGROUND AND AIM
Cholesteatoma usually arises in the middle ear by the formation of a retraction pocket or a tympanic membrane perforation. In some cases, cholesteatoma presents behind an intact tympanic membrane (ITMC) and the underlying mechanism of its development is controversial. The aim of this study was to describe clinical features, pathogenesis and surgical results in a series of adult patients affected by ITMC.

METHODS
We analyzed retrospectively 27 adult patients (age > 18 years) diagnosed with ITMC who underwent surgery between 1994 and 2013. We investigated the demographic data, presenting symptoms, otoscopic findings, disease location, surgical technique, postoperative complications and outcomes.

RESULTS
Diagnosis was made on the basis of a white mass seen through the tympanic membrane in 24 cases and on explorative surgery in the remaining 3 patients. In 16 cases cholesteatoma was related to an acquired cause, while in 11 ears a congenital origin was supposed. Hearing loss was the chief complaint and it was present in 19 (70.3%) subjects. Cholesteatoma was managed by purely endaural or retroauricular transcanal tympanoplasty in 12 cases, by planned staged canal wall up mastoidectomy in 10 cases (37%), by canal wall down mastoidectomy in 3 cases, and by modified Bondy technique in 2 cases. A recurrent cholesteatoma was observed in one ear; one patient experienced a postoperative profound sensorineural hearing loss.

CONCLUSIONS
ITMC in adults may have both congenital and acquired origin. It may grow silently over many years and develops into a massive size before being detected. Each patient's management should be tailored to clinical findings.


Author(s): Karali, Nihan; Marnay, Chris; Yan, Tyler; He, Gang; Yinger, Robert; Mauzey, Josh; Clampitt, Kevin; Zhu, Han | Abstract: Smart grid technology is being rolled out around the world, with the United States nearing completion of a particularly significant 4 plus billion-dollar Federal program funded under the American Recovery and Reconstruction Act (2009). Under the Climate Change Working Group Implementation Plan, Smart Grid activity comparative analyses are being conducted of benefits estimation methods with example applications to 4 case study smart grid projects, 2 in each country. In this first study, three of eight Southern California Edison's Irvine Smart Grid Demonstration Project sub-project benefits have been analysed over the period 2010-2035. The analysis uses the Smart Grid Computational Tool (SGCT) developed by Navigant Consulting Inc. for the U.S. Department of Energy based on Electric Power Research Institute methods. Results show significant benefits potential for technologies such as distribution voltage and VAR control and utility-scale batteries, while a 22-residence zero net energy home demonstration inspired by California's 2020 residential energy efficiency standard falls far short of economic breakeven at the current stage of costs and technology performance. The experience gathered indicates the SGCT being intended for widespread U.S. smart grid evaluation use is necessarily simple, and consequently has limited applicability for international applications or comparisons.


The Women in Peacebuilding Network (WIPNET) Programme was launched in November 2001 with the aim of building the capacity of women to enhance their roles in peacebuilding and post conflict reconstruction in West Africa. WANEP through WIPNET seeks to increase the number of trained women practitioners in peacebuilding as trainers, researchers, mediators and advocates. Through community mobilization and other innovative platforms, WANEP strives to provide a forum for women at the grassroots to amplify their voices on issues of peace and human security.Under the WIPNET programme, WANEP promotes mainstreaming gender perspective into peacebuilding and conflict prevention frameworks at community, national and regional level.


With the increasingly growing size of digital image collections, known image search is gaining more and more importance. Especially in collections where individual objects are not tagged with metadata describing their content, content-based image retrieval (CBIR) is a promising approach. However, the application of CBIR to known item search usually suffers from the unavailability of query images that are good enough to express the user's information need. In this technical report, we present the QbS system that provides content-based search in large image collections based on user-drawn sketches. The QbS system combines angular radial partitioning for the extraction of features in the user-provided sketch, taking into account the spatial distribution of edges, and the image distortion model. This combination offers several highly relevant invariances that allow the query sketch to slightly deviate from the searched image in terms of rotation, translation, relative size, and/or unknown objects in the background. To illustrate the benefits of the QbS approach, we present search results from the evaluation of our system on the basis of the MIRFLICKR collection with 25,000 objects and compare the retrieval results of pure metadata-driven approaches, pure content-based retrieval using different sketches, and combinations thereof.


Determination of radiation embrittlement in nuclear reactor pressure vessels is crucial to assessing safe operative lifetimes for many aging nuclear power plants. Conservative nuclear fluence estimates and trace impurity diagnosis of the weldment material are the basis of radiation embrittlement analysis. Copper is thought to be a key impurity contributing to radiation embrittlement. In this paper, the application of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) as a means to assess radiation embrittlement by the detection and quantification of copper in A553b steel was investigated. A LIBS configuration completely coupled by fiber optics was attempted, but because of low laser power and fiber losses, fiber-optic delivery of the laser beam was unsuccessful. Consequently, hard optics (lenses and mirrors) were employed for laser beam delivery. The plasma emission was delivered successfully via fiber optics to the detection apparatus. Copper measurements were made from custom-fabricated steel samples. Comparison of the LIBS results to an independent atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) analysis showed LIBS to be of comparable accuracy, especially in low-level copper samples.


Reason for withdrawal from publication
The completion of the last task is overdue for more than one year. New authors are being sought to take over this protocol.


Nowadays, there are increased amount of distributed generation and renewable resources (including geothermal, ocean tides, solar and wind) used in the microgrid systems, which are connected via the power inverters. Microgrid is a concept that the systems include at least one distributed generation resources and local loads can switch to islanded power distributed systems, [1]. Duo to the small scale of microgrid, the voltage and frequency of system will carry more severe fluctuations then the larger grids, which will be able to stable these fluctuations via the wider systems, [9]. The inverters can provide the stability and redundancy to the power systems. For the normally working of the high current electronic devices, it is deviation that several inverters operate in parallel in the systems, [3]. The inverter control methods which should be able to bring the reliable and efficient electricity to microgrid system have attracted much attention in recent years. Various droop control methods are regarded as the effective solving technique in conventional generation system.

The droop control strategy is associated with using local power to detect the load changes of complex powers in the system and adjusting the outputs, automatically, [2]. The advantage of droop control method is to allow the distributed generators in the system can operate without external mechanism communications, [3]. No mechanical communication means the system can adjust and share the loads among distributed generators (connected via inverters) automatically when the loads change happen. This is based on the calculation of droop control characteristics. The droop control uses the real power to adjust the frequency of loads, and vary the reactive power to vary the voltage of loads. However, droop control scheme are different when the impact of complex impedance is considered. The experimental simulation results will be presented to illustrate how the droop control scheme impacts the power distributions of parallel-connected inverters.


Many survey questions ask respondents to provide responses that contain quantitative information, often using either numeric open-ended responses or vague quantifier scales. Generally, survey researchers have argued against the use of vague quantifier scales. However, no study has compared accuracy between vague quantifiers and numeric open-ended responses. This study is the first to do so, using a unique data set created through an experiment. 124 participants studied word lists of paired words, where the experiment employed a 2 (context) x 2 (response form) x 6 (actual frequency) factorial design, with the context and form factors manipulated between subjects, and the frequency factor manipulated within subjects. The two conditions for the context factor are same-context and different-context conditions where the context word either was the same or different for each presentation of the target word. The other between subject factor was response form, where participants responded to a recall test using either vague quantifiers or numeric open-ended responses. Translations of vague quantifiers were obtained and used in accuracy tests. Finally, a numeracy test was administered to collect information about respondent numeracy. Different accuracy measures are estimated and analyzed. Results show context memory did not have a significant effect. Numeracy has an effect, but the direction depends on form and context. Actual frequency had a significant effect on accuracy, but did not interact with other variables. Importantly, results suggest vague quantifiers tend to improve accuracy more often relative to numeric open-ended response. DOI:10.2458/azu_jmmss_v5i2_Al_baghal


Excessive alcohol consumption results in a broad range of health problems and other social issues, such as violence, social disorder and family breakdown. As such, alcohol consumption is considered as a critical social policy issue in Australia. In this study, we have used ordered logit models to estimate the probability of an Indigenous person consuming alcohol and to assess the impact of alcohol consumption on self‐perceived life satisfaction. A heteroscedasticity‐corrected ordered logit model is used to identify the gender difference in such effects. For this purpose, we use the latest National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey (NATSISS) 2014/2015 data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The estimation results reveal that age, gender, employment status, income and the experience of unfair treatments significantly affect Indigenous people's (level of) alcohol consumption. The results also reveal that any level of alcohol consumption is linked with reduced overall life satisfaction, which is another reason why prevention of alcohol misuse should be a priority. A significant gender differences in the medium‐risk‐level alcohol consumption were also observed. These findings could be used as an alcohol prevention message in developing and implementing alcohol prevention strategies and policies.


Protein stability in detergent or membrane-like environments is the bottleneck for structural studies on integral membrane proteins (IMP). Irrespective of the method to study the structure of an IMP, detergent solubilization from the membrane is usually the first step in the workflow. Here, we describe a simple, high-throughput screening method to identify optimal detergent conditions for membrane protein structural biology. We apply differential scanning fluorimetry in combination with scattering upon thermal denaturation to study the unfolding of integral membrane proteins. Nine different prokaryotic and eukaryotic membrane proteins were used as test cases to benchmark our detergent screening method. Our results show that it is possible to measure the stability and solubility of IMPs by simple diluting them from their initial solubilization conditions into different detergents. We were able to identify groups of detergents with characteristic stabilization and destabilization effects for transporters. We further show that fos-choline detergents may lead to membrane protein unfolding/destabilization. Finally, we determined which thermodynamic parameters are most reliable as indicators for IMP stability.


The Bayt al-Māl (literally meaning the House for Money, is used as an equivalent for the Treasury House where public fund is kept) is an Islamic concept built upon three main factors: wealth, trust and socio-economic justice. It is clear that attainment of socio-economic justice is an immediate objective of the Bayt alMāl. The Bayt al-Māl bears the responsibility of the undertaking of the society's fiscal system and welfare provisions. Accordingly, the Bayt al-Māl acts as a treasury complemented with the task of planning and distributing society's wealth in the whole socio-economic and political set-up of the nation. Hence, it is the financial pulse to the development process of the nation. In this paper I intend to briefly consider the philosophy and sources of wealth in the Bayt al-Māl and then examine zakāt as its main part, elaborating on coverage, rates and the distribution of zakāt. Finally, I will try to show the role of zakāt in the socio-economic justice of Muslim countries.


A number of objective functions in clustering problems can be described with submodular functions. In this paper, we introduce the minimum average cost criterion, and show that the theory of intersecting submodular functions can be used for clustering with submodular objective functions. The proposed algorithm does not require the number of clusters in advance, and it will be determined by the property of a given set of data points. The minimum average cost clustering problem is parameterized with a real variable, and surprisingly, we show that all information about optimal clusterings for all parameters can be computed in polynomial time in total. Additionally, we evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm through computational experiments.


The cultural cognition hypothesis holds that individuals are disposed to form risk perceptions that reflect and reinforce their commitments to contested views of the good society. This paper reports the results of a study that used the controversy over mandatory HPV vaccination to test the cultural cognition hypothesis. Although public health officials have recommended that all girls aged 11 or 12 be vaccinated for HPV - a virus that causes cervical cancer and that is transmitted by sexual contact - political controversy has blocked adoption of mandatory school-enrollment vaccination programs in all but one state. A multi-stage experimental study of a large and diverse sample of American adults (N = 1,500) found evidence that cultural cognition generates disagreement about the risks and benefits of the HPV vaccine. It does so, the experiment determined, through two mechanisms: biased assimilation, and the credibility heuristic. In addition to describing the study, the paper discusses the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.


The regulation of the ADH2 gene from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is carbon source-dependent. Expression of ADH2 requires the activity of the transcriptional activator ADR1. This dissertation addresses three separate aspects of the regulation of ADR1 activity. We have identified eleven additional ADR1$\sp{c}$ mutations which allow ADH2 to partially escape glucose repression. These eleven new mutations cluster to one region of the ADR1 peptide between amino acids 227 and 239, previously identified by four other ADR1$\sp{c}$ mutations. These are the only mutations in ADR1 which have been isolated by virtue of their ability to activate ADH2 transcription under repressed conditions. These mutations have previously been shown not to affect ADR1 mRNA or protein levels suggesting that they likely affect the ability of ADR1 to interact with other proteins. This may entail relief of repression or an increased ability to interact with other transcription factors. We have used an in vivo transcription assay to identify three distinct regions of the ADR1 protein which are capable of transactivation function. The location of these activation domains coincide with regions of the protein that were shown to be important for activation function by previous deletion analyses. We also identified two regions which display repressor function with this assay. One of these regions corresponds to the site of the ADR1$\sp{c}$ mutations. In a modified in vivo transcription assay, we show that the UAS2 element, located adjacent to the binding site for ADR1 in the ADH2 promoter, is able to repress the activity of LexA-ADR1 fusions containing various activation domains of ADR1 as well as diminishing the activity of other transcriptional activators. The extent of repression varied depending on the particular activation domain of ADR1 present. Under derepressed conditions, inclusion of the UAS2 element in a hybrid promoter containing the LexA binding site increased the activity of the promoter when coexpressed with LexA-ADR1 fusions. This increase in activity was not specific for ADR1 as we also observed an increase in activity when other activators were bound to the template. These results suggest that ADR1 transcriptional activity is the mediated by complex interactions between activation and inhibition domains located within the molecule and that the ability of ADR1 to function at the ADH2 locus is governed by other factors which bind to the promoter region at UAS2.


Previous studies of the Chinese nominal marker de 的 attempted to explain its optionality in ways that have fallen short in providing a full account. In this paper, a comprehensive nominal continuum is hypothesized with proper nouns and common nouns prohibiting the use of an internal de at one end. In the middle of the continuum, depending on the degree of lexicalization, there are compounds that may have word-like (no de option) or phrase-like (with de option) properties. At the other end are noun phrases that have individual member, or members, of a type/set readings. The more a compound is lexicalized into a word, the less likely de can occur in front of its determinatum. Whereas the use of 我的爸爸 "my dad" is more likely in a title for its thematic importance, the use of 我爸爸 "my dad" is found tied to its uniqueness in a discourse context.


Case study on validation of effeteness of Business Procedure Reengineering: BPR for local government in Saga prefecture, Japan is conducted. As the results, if it found that BPR is effective. The local government, environment established a government CIO room introduction of a number system was a long-cherished wish is determined in 2013, it is possible to promote e- government and e-municipality and the banner of great incredibly plan called "world-leading creative nation" is being put into place some. We would like you to realize the municipality a cloud can be enhanced administrative services to pour our best to take this opportunity, give the impression to the residents as possible; the operational efficiency of the civil service, the foundation is reduced large flower IT costs


Since the first oil price escalation of 1974, there has been considerable reduction in total energy use per unit of total output. This development has many names: increasing energy conservation, increasing energy productivity, or, conversely, decreasing energy intensity.

This study is concerned with the empirical analysis of factors directly responsible for this trend in the US manufacturing sector during the 1974-1980 period. Escalating oil prices are commonly believed to have prompted energy savings and conservation in the manufacturing sector -- just as they did to some extent in the case of household fuels and gasoline demand. However, the decreasing energy intensity of US manufacturing (and US industry) is a long-term development, coinciding at times with falling or stable energy prices, e.g., in the post-World War II period. In other words, the current energy intensity decrease was not created by rising oil prices alone. Hence for this period in history, at least, the role of price-induced substitution (as implied by the incorporation of energy resources in the production function) is less important than has some times been assumed. This is so because the forces at work to shape the energy intensity of the industry sector reflect the characteristics of an aging industrial society -- the shift from energy- (and labor-) intensive industries toward industries with lower energy (and labor) requirements and higher value added. This aging or maturing of the industrial sector is in sharp contrast to the rapidly increasing energy intensity of developing countries such as Mexico and Brazil.

The analysis is based on detailed statistics on structure and technology impact at two levels: aggregate of all sectors (total manufacturing) and the most energy-intensive industries that together absorb about 80% of total manufacturing input. The conclusions, and the underlying data, should be useful for further work in the study of industrial change as well as energy modeling.


The effects of Soret and Dufour parameters on the boundary layer flow in nanofluid over stretching/ shrinking with time dependent is studied using Buongiorno model. The system of partial differential equations is transformed to the system of ordinary differential equations by applying similarity transformation. The results are obtained numerically using bvp4c in Matlab. The reduced skin friction coefficient reduced Nusselt number, velocity, temperature and concentration profiles are shown graphically with different values of Soret effect, Dufour effect, mass flux parameter, unsteadiness parameter, thermophoresis as well as Brownian motion parameter where the dual solutions are obtained. The unsteadiness parameter and mass flux parameter expand the range of solution for stretching/ shrinking parameter. Meanwhile, the Soret and Dufour parameters are found to affect the heat transfer rate at the surface. In order to determine the stability of the solutions, stability analysis is performed.


Previous research has shown that listeners with absolute pitch identify white-key pitches (as on the piano) more quickly and accurately than they identify black-key pitches. Related research has shown that the timbre of tones also affects pitch identification. Our experiments extend the investigation of color and timbre effects on pitch recognition from isolated pitches to more complex musical textures, using both musicians with absolute pitch and musicians without absolute pitch as participants. In Experiment 1, listeners named isolated pitches in synthesized violin or piano timbres; in Experiment 2, they named the tonal center of classical string quartets or piano solos; in Experiment 3, they identified the tonal center of the same musical excerpts by humming. We replicated the color effect for both groups of participants in the response times for all three experiments, but found a color effect on accuracy rates only in Experiment 2. Timbre effects were found only in Experiment 1, where response times were quicker for piano tones than string tones. Participants9 instrumental training affected response times: string players identified isolated tones most quickly; keyboard players identified the keys of compositions most quickly.


Immunoperoxidase methods using two antibodies were developed for detection and quantitation of DNA damage in single cells. A monoclonal antibody that recognizes 4-aminobiphenyl (4-ABP)-DNA adducts was initially tested on liver tissues of BALB/c mice treated with 4-ABP, then applied to the detection of adducts in oral mucosa and exfoliated urothelial cells of smokers and nonsmokers. Levels of 4-ABP-DNA in exfoliated urothelial cells were elevated in each of 20 smokers (mean relative staining intensity, 517 +/- 137) compared with age-, race-, and sex-matched nonsmokers (313 +/- 79; P < 0.0005). Significantly higher damage levels were also observed in oral mucosa cells of smokers compared with nonsmokers (552 +/- 157 versus 326 +/- 101; P < 0.0005). A polyclonal antiserum that recognizes benzo(a)pyrene and structurally related polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) diol epoxide-DNA adducts was also applied to the same study samples after validation by staining of 10T1/2 cells treated with (+/-)-trans-anti-benzo(a)pyrene diol epoxide. Smokers had higher levels of PAH-DNA damage in oral mucosa and exfoliated urothelial cells than nonsmokers (oral mucosa cells, 684 +/- 107 versus 370 +/- 83; P < 0.0005; urothelial cells, 689 +/- 72 versus 495 +/- 57; P < 0.0005). A similar 2-3-fold range in relative staining was found in smokers and nonsmokers for both 4-ABP- and PAH-DNA, suggesting the importance of individual differences in capacity to metabolize the carcinogens and/or repair damaged DNA. Significant correlations were found among the biomarkers in both cell types. This noninvasive method, requiring small numbers of cells and with a relatively low cost, will be useful for monitoring DNA damage in large-scale molecular epidemiology studies.


The clinical environment remains a key area for learning, and practitioners continue to make a huge contribution to the education of students. Varieties of theories of learning are available for trainers to use in medical education, it is very important to identify the principles of learning and understand how individual differences affect the learning process. It is interesting to think about your own particular way of learning and to recognize that everyone does not learn the way we do. In this review the Behaviorism and Humanism theories have been explored within the field of learning. The distinction made between these two major approaches would seem to suggest that each might be appropriate for different kinds of learning situations. This way, educators who understand the rational behind each of the two theories are provided with some key information for structuring their teaching around teaching models which can be the most successful for particular kind of learning.


Choosing a well-designed framework for fiscal and monetary policies is a challenge for economic authorities. Although they have chosen the same objectives to promote economic growth—price stability and fiscal sustainability—the Canadian and European economic authorities have adopted different frameworks in which to attain them. The author examines some principles of the Canadian framework that have gained broad public support and provide a good degree of macroeconomic stabilization, and examines whether the European authorities might wish to consider adopting some of those principles.


Disease prediction and diagnosis is one of the complex applications where data mining tools and techniques are used to providing successful results because of significant improvements in technology. This research identifies gaps in the research on disease prediction, diagnosis and treatment and it also proposes a model to systematically close those gaps. Data mining have great potential for healthcare industry to enable health systems to systematically use data and identify the efficiency and improve care with reduce cost. The data mining techniques to Multi disease treatment it can provide reliable performance. So the system can be effective in reducing the death toll. The healthcare industry collects huge amounts of healthcare data which, unfortunately are not "mined" to discover hidden information for effective decision making. Advanced data mining techniques can be helpful and can provide an efficient remedy to these kinds of problems. This proposed work has developed a prototype for the Multi Sickness Prediction System (MSPS) using data mining techniques by to compute the chance of prevalence of explicit unwellness from medical knowledge by using k-means, Large Memory Storage And Retrieval (LAMSTAR) and Medical diagnosis methodology. The system uses service oriented architecture (SOA) whereby the system elements of diagnosis, data portal and alternative miscellaneous services are provided. This reduces the multiple diseases showing the similar symptoms problem and it will increase the accuracy of such diagnosis. This proposed system will provide some reliable decision finding the disease for healthcare support. Results show that each technique has its unique strength in realizing the objectives of the defined mining goals from the analysis.


In Germany, many stables are constructed with subsidies from the Farm Investment Scheme (FIS), a measure of the EU Rural Development Programme. The FIS is considered to be "the most important measure for the promotion of investments into welfare friendly housing systems" by the Federal Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection. We evaluated the effect of the FIS on animal welfare in dairy and pig farms, applying and adapting an environment based method. Information on animal housing conditions before and after the investments was gathered in a telephone survey carried out in 2007. The farms were selected in a random disproportional sample, stratified according to the federal states. The sample sizes amount to 18 % of the population of assisted dairy farms and 32 % of assisted fattening pig farms. The analysis shows that the FIS does not achieve important improvements in the behavioural aspect of animal welfare at the examined farm types. Although there are some meliorations in the dairy farms, these are mainly due to the abandonment of tethered-stalls. At the pig farms, restriction of animal behaviour is a much more severe problem, and the FIS can not account for any progress. Should the FIS strive for achievements in the field of animal welfare, expert based definitions of investments which really lead to improvements in animal welfare are a precondition. Additionally, the measure needs to be integrated into an approach involving tightened legislation, guidelines for welfare friendly housing systems, consumer information campaigns and possibly even compensation payments.


Mosquitoes, as well as its larvae, are important food for aquatic animals such as birds, bats, and other arthropods. However, mosquitoes transmit pathogens that cause some of the worst diseases known, including malaria, yellow fever, encephalitis and most of all, dengue fever. Sugars are the smallest carbohydrates containing five to six carbon atoms, hydrogen, and oxygen. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, commonly called yeast, is a single-celled organism that feeds on glucose, and through fermentation converts carbohydrates to alcohols while releasing carbon dioxide (CO2). Carbon dioxide is attractive to mosquitoes. Therefore, solution containing sugar and yeast can be used as baits. This study aimed to examine the feasibility of using brown sugar and yeast solutions as baits for mosquitoes. Two types of sugar were used -brown sugar and dark brown sugar (muscovado). Four mixtures were prepared consisting of the same amount of water (200 ml) and yeast (1 g) but with different types and amounts of sugar: 1) 50 g brown sugar, 2) 100 g brown sugar, 3) 50 g dark brown sugar, and 4) 100 g dark brown sugar. Another four mixtures were prepared with the same quantities of water and sugar but without added yeast, which served as the negative controls. The mosquito traps are made of soda 1.5 plastic, covered with newspaper make the inside of the trap dark. The mosquito traps were placed in different corners of the classrooms. The OMT was left in the classrooms for 3days. Three trials were made with two sets of the OMT. Trapped mosquitoes averaged to 14 and 8.6 for solutions with yeast-100 g dark brown sugar and yeast-50 g dark brown sugar, respectively. For solutions with yeast-100 g brown sugar, and yeast-50 g brown sugar, the average trapped mosquitoes were 12 and 6, respectively. For the control solutions (without yeast), the average trapped mosquitoes were 11 for solutions with100 g dark brown sugar solution, 8 for those with 50 g dark brown sugar, 6 for those with 100 g brown sugar, and 3 for those with 50 g brown sugar. Comparison of results in mosquito traps with and without yeast (control) showed that the best mosquito traps are the solutions with yeast containing brown sugar. Solutions with 100 g or 50 g Corresponding author: Belinda Abdon-Liwanag, St. Dominic College of Asia, Bacoor City, Cavite Province, 4102 Philippines / Philippine Normal University, Taft Avenue, Metro Manila. Philippines. Email: email@example.com. Feasibility of Brown Sugar and Yeast Solution as a Potential Organic Mosquito Trap (OMT) 358 brown sugar with yeast showed 50% increase in trapped mosquitoes compared to those of the control. Based from the result, the OMT is a good enough as a preliminary study for eliminating pathogenic mosquitoes and a better and cheaper alternative as well.


Due to the good biological properties of coumarinocoumarin and the importance of cysteine (Cys) in organisms, a novel coumarinocoumarin-based probe (CCx) has been designed and synthesized for detecting intracellular Cys. CCx was prepared as a latent fluorescence probe from salicylaldehyde using a simple 3-step procedure to achieve a large Stokes shift (90 nm), high sensitivity (LOD 388 nM) and a fluorescent turn-on response (F/F0 = 15) towards Cys. Owing to the specific conjugate addition-cyclization reaction between Cys and an acrylate moiety, CCx displayed high selectivity toward Cys over other various natural amino acids under physiological conditions. Then, CCx was successfully used for the fluorescence imaging of Cys in HeLa cells, and a rapid response was observed after incubation with CCx for 5 min. Furthermore, two-photon fluorescence images of mice tumor tissues were obtained, and the viability was measured to be more than 80%, which shows that CCx can be used as a rapid and biocompatible probe for Cys in vivo.


Cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD) is an autosomal dominant disorder, features of which include a patient anterior fontanelle, a bulging calvarium, hypoplasia or aplasia of the clavicles, a wide public symphysis, dental anomalies, vertebral malformation, and short stature. The Cape Town kindred which is under our genetic management was originally described more than four decades ago and now consists of more than 1000 people. Following reports of rearrangements on chromosomes 6 and 8 in people with CCD, we have carried out linkage analyses between highly information microsatellite dinucleotide repeat markers in the rearranged regions and the disorder in a branch of this South African CCD kindred, consisting of 38 subjects, 18 of whom are affected. Maximum lod scores (at theta = 0.00) of 7.14 (for marker D6S459), 4.32 (TCTE), 4.99 (D6S452), 5.97 (D6S269), and 3.95 (D6S465) confirm linkage of the disorder to the short arm of chromosome 6. Our data indicate that the CCD gene is located within a minimal region of approximately 10 cM flanked by the marker D6S451 distally and D6S466 proximally. This information is vital towards isolating and characterising the gene for CCD, and is being used to construct a physical map of 6p21.1-6p21.3. More importantly, mapping of the locus in the South African kindred of mixed ancestry, in which the "founder" of the disorder was of Chinese origin, suggests that a single locus is responsible for classic CCD.


The presence of pharmaceutical compounds in the aquatic environment and their possible effects on living organisms has emerged as a serious environmental concern particularly as conventional wastewater treatments such as adsorption, ozonation, UV and bio-degradation can only partially remove them. Among various treatment technologies, considerable attention has been paid to semiconductor photocatalysis due to complete degradation of organic compounds, minimization of waste disposal and energy consumption and cost reduction. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is the most widely studied semiconductor photocatalyst for water treatment. However, there are few problems associated with TiO2 photocatalysts such as UV light requirement due to wide band gap, poor photocatalytic efficiency due to high recombination rate of photo-generated electron-hole pares, particle aggregation, small porosity and specific surface area, expensive recovery and reuse which impede its application as an industrial wastewater treatment process. Graphene, the most recent member of carbonaceous nanomaterials has been extensively studied for wide variety of applications due to its unique electronic, mechanical and thermal properties. High surface area exfoliated graphene sheets with tuneable surface chemistry is an attractive two-dimensional platform for anchoring various type of metallic and semiconducting materials in order to enhance their performance for catalysis, sensing, electronic, optoelectronic, thermoelectric, energy conversion and storage application. This research has focused on the synthesis and modification of TiO2 nanomaterials with graphene to overcome TiO2 disadvantages and modify TiO2 photocatalysts with a primary objective of enhancing its photocatalytic performance under UV light irradiation and developing visible-light responsive TiO2-based photocatalysts. For this purpose different TiO2 nanostructures with different dimensionality (nanoparticle, nanotube, nanofiber and beads) were modified with graphene oxide via solution mixing, sol-gel and hydrothermal methods. The result were compared with commercially available Degussa P25 TiO2 particles as a bench mark. Few pharmaceutical model compounds (diclofenac, carbamazepine, famotidine etc.) were used in order to study photocatalytic efficiency of these composites and degradation kinetics of drugs under UV and visible light using HPLC. Promising results were obtained proving the enhancement of UV and visible light photocatalytic activity of graphene incorporated composite comparing to pure TiO2 nanostructures. In synthesis procedure graphene acts like a structure directing agent. For example more uniform TiO2 nanoparticles with smaller crystallite size, higher visible absorption, higher surface area and higher porosity can be synthesised in presence Development of novel integrated photocatalytic adsorbents (IPCAs) for organics removal from water & wastewater Zahra Gholamvand ii of graphene oxide compared to similar materials without graphene. It was found that TiO2 nanotubes with diameters less than 15 nm immobilised on the surface of the graphene showed the highest photocatalytic activity under both UV and visible light as a result of mesoporous structure of nanotubes and facilitated charge transfer between one-dimensional TiO2 and two dimensional graphene sheets. We found that hydrothermal process is an efficient method to produce graphene/TiO2 composites from graphene oxide since crystallisation of TiO2 and reduction of graphene oxide can be done in one pot without need for post annealing or reduction treatments. Analytical techniques such as FTIR, RAMAN and UV-Vis spectroscopy, AFM, SEM and TEM microscopy, XRD, contact angle, four point probe conductivity measurements and BET had revealed that high adsorption and photocatalytic activity is related to graphene oxide planar structure, oxygen containing functional groups, and large surface area. Adsorption properties of graphene oxide were studied using freeze dried graphene oxide sponge under different experimental conditions. The result indicate that graphene oxide is extraordinarily capable of extracting wide range of pharmaceutical compounds rather rapidly (equilibrium reached in less than an hour comparing days for activated carbon) with a higher efficiency than that of activated carbon. According to microscopic images, XRD, EDX, NMR and thermal analysis we suggested that GO initiates crystallisation of the pharmaceutical on its surface and entire solution rather than physical adsorption. It can be due to low surface energy of graphene oxide as a suitable nucleation and growth site for compounds dissolved in water. An important highlight of current work is using Graphene oxide which is produced economically and in large scale with improved dispensability and adsorption properties instead of expensive pristine graphene. Finally nanomaterials especially catalysts prepared by these simple and scalable method are potentially attractive for commercial employment.


The usefulness of Göttingen minipigs as models for obesity and obesity-related pathologies is well established. The low-grade inflammation associated with obesity involves a range of innate immune factors; however, to our knowledge, the impact of obesity on innate immune factor expression has not been studied in Göttingen minipigs. Therefore, we studied the expression of innate immune genes in liver and adipose tissues as well as serum concentrations of cytokines and acute phase proteins in obese vs. lean Göttingen minipigs. In the liver, of 35 investigated genes, the expression of nine was significantly different in obese pigs (three up-regulated, six down-regulated). Of 33 genes in adipose tissues, obesity was associated with changed expression of 12 genes in the visceral adipose tissue (VAT) (three up-regulated), 11 in the abdominal retroperitoneal adipose tissue (RPAT) (seven of these up-regulated) and eight in the subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) from the neck (five of which were up-regulated). Obesity-associated expression changes were observed for three genes in all adipose tissues, namely chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 3-like 1 (up-regulated), CD200 molecule (down-regulated) and interleukin 1 receptor antagonist (up-regulated) with interleukin 1 receptor antagonist being the most highly regulated gene in both VAT and RPAT. Looking at patterns of expression across the three types of adipose tissues, obesity was associated with an increased number of acute phase proteins differentially expressed between adipose tissues and a decreased tissue-specific expression of cytokines and chemokines. In contrast to obese humans, no changes in serum concentrations of haptoglobin, C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin 6 were found in obese Göttingen minipigs.


An overview is given of the various techniques and issues involved in providing indexing support for similarity searching. Similarity searching is a crucial part of retrieval in multimedia databases used for applications such as pattern recognition, image databases, and content-based retrieval. It involves finding objects in a data set S that are similar to a query object q based on some distance measure d which is usually a distance metric. The search process is usually achieved by means of nearest neighbor finding. Existing methods for handling similarity search in this setting fall into one of two classes. The first is based on mapping to a vector space. The vector space is usually of high dimension which requires special handling due to the fact indexing methods do not discriminate well in such spaces. In particular, the query regions often overlap all of the blocks that result from the decomposition of the underlying space. This has led to some special solutions that make use of a sequential scan. An alternative is to use dimension reduction to find a mapping from a high-dimensional space into a low-dimensional space by finding the most discriminating dimensions and then index the data using one of a number of different data structures such as k-d trees, R-trees, quadtrees, etc. The second directly indexes the objects based on distances making use of data structures such as the vp-tree, M-tree, etc.


Several recent phylogenetic studies of Rubiaceae have dealt with enigmatic taxa whose systematic positions have been previously unknown or controversial. We address evolutionary relationships in the Spermacoceae alliance (Rubioideae) with special emphasis on the Asian genera Mouretia and Neohymenopogon, here sequenced for the first time. Both genera belong in the tribe Argostemmateae and have persistent calyx lobes on the fruit in common with Argostemma and Mycetia. Other previous uncertainties are resolved with strong support; Saprosma is sister to Paederieae s. str. and Carpacoce is sister to remaining Anthospermeae. Our results further reveal some phylogenetic problems. Danaideae is sister to remaining taxa in the Spermacoceae alliance with high posterior probability, which contradicts results in a recent study. The uncertainty concerning evolutionary relationships of Dunnia and Theligonum is reinforced, despite a denser taxon sampling in the Spermacoceae alliance compared with earlier studies. We also demonstrate yet another example of the controversial correlation between molecular substitution rate and plant life history.


This thesis is based on an ethnographic investigation of concepts related to mental health and madness among the Yolŋu peoples of north-east Arnhem Land, with a particular focus on Elcho Island and its main settlement, Galiwin'ku. Over the past decade, there has been a proliferation of medically oriented research and mental health intervention programs in Indigenous health. Most of these refer to the principle that ‗culture' must play a fundamental role in Indigenous health care. However, lack of in-depth investigations about Indigenous knowledge related to health indicates that this principle plays only a nominal role in the implementation of these programs and has not resulted in a rethinking of basic assumptions guiding mental health services. The ethnographic research which informs this thesis started from the assumption that all societies around the world have developed ideas of ‗madness' or ‗abnormality', but that these are not necessarily understood in terms of ‗health' or ‗illness'. Accordingly, the fieldwork focused on Yolŋu concepts related to ‗madness': what are the signs indicating mental or emotional problems? What causes madness? What are the responses of the ‗normal' members of society? What kinds of issues are elicited by the encounter with Western psychiatry? What are the self-representations of the ‗mad' person? The ethnography demonstrated the existence of an articulated body of knowledge related to ‗mental illness', although not one fashioned in medical terms. Understanding Yolŋu reflections about madness clearly involved embracing wider categories of life, person and relationships which their stories convey. The aim of this thesis is not to provide material for cross-cultural comparison between a Western and an Indigenous medical system but to clarify the relationship between Yolŋu conceptualizations of the world, person and relationships and Yolŋu representations of illness and healing. The work adds to understanding of some issues in the anthropological literature about healing and illness in Yolŋu society.


A through life non-destructive evaluation technique is presented in which a key solder joint feature, nucleating at the bump to silicon interface and propagating across a laminar crack plane is captured and tracked using acoustic microscopy imaging (AMI). The feasibility of this concept was successfully demonstrated by employing the measurement technique in combination with Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to study the impact of component floor plan layout on the reliability of electronics systems subjected to thermal cycling. A comprehensive review of current and emerging packaging and interconnect technologies has shown increasingly a move from conventional 2D to 3D packaging. These present new challenges for reliability and Non Destructive Evaluation (NDE) due to solder joints being hidden beneath the packaging, and not ordinarily visible or accessible for inspection. Solutions are developed using non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques that have the potential to detect and locate defects in microelectronic devices. This thesis reports on X-ray and Acoustic Micro Imaging (AMI) which have complementary image discriminating features. Gap type defects are hard to find using X-ray alone due to low contrast and spot size resolution, whereas AMI having better axial resolution has allowed cracks and delamination at closely spaced interfaces to be investigated. The application of AMI to the study of through life solder joint behaviour has been achieved for the first time. Finite Element Analysis and AMI performance were compared to measure solder joint reliability for several realistic test cases. AMI images were taken at regular intervals to monitor through- life behaviour. Image processing techniques were used to extract a diameter measurement for a laminar crack plane, within a solder joint damage region occurring at the bump to silicon interface. FEA solder joint reliability simulations for flip-chip and micro-BGA (mBGA) packages placed on FR4 PCB's were compared to the AMI measurement performance, with a reasonable level of correlation observed. Both techniques clearly showed significant reliability degradation of the critical solder joints located furthest from the neutral axis of the package, typically residing at the package corners. The technique also confirmed that circuit board thickness can affect interconnect reliability, as can floor plan. Improved correlation to the real world environment was achieved when simulation models considered the entire floor plan layout and constraints imposed on the circuit board assembly. This thesis established a novel through life solder joint evaluation method crucial to the development of better physics of failure models and the advancement of model based prognostics in electronics systems.


This paper examines fundamental problems underlying difficulties encountered by pattern recognition algorithms, neural networks, and rule systems. These problems are manifested as combinatorial complexity of algorithms, of their computational or training requirements. The paper relates particular types of complexity problems to the roles of a priori knowledge and adaptive learning. Paradigms based on adaptive learning lead to the complexity of training procedures, while nonadaptive rule-based paradigms lead to complexity of rule systems. Model-based approaches to combining adaptivity with a priori knowledge lead to computational complexity. Arguments are presented for the Aristotelian logic being culpable for the difficulty of combining adaptivity and a priority. The potential role of the fuzzy logic in overcoming current difficulties is discussed. Current mathematical difficulties are related to philosophical debates of the past.


the present contribution deals with an ongoing italian research which includes several steps and it is approaching to its final stage. the main goal is analysing and testing the feasibility of municipal waste reuse for designing building envelopes for near zero Energy Buildings (nzEB), so as to contribute to the decreasing demand for energy and improve eco-friendly waste management in urban areas. first, prefab building components have been designed using selected waste and their thermal and acoustic behaviours have been calculated, according to the European rules; then the economic costs of the obtained building envelopes have been assessed and compared to common building structures to verify their possible appeal on the italian market, and finally the components have been assembled in the project for a small nzEB building: a didactic classroom for the mira porte primary school (venice, italy). this paper refers to the in-depth elaboration of the project, mainly concerning fire and pollutant protection, and it focuses on the reliability check of the Building information modeling (Bim) parametric model, especially as concerns non-conventional materials and components. the relative building energy behaviour has been obtained exporting the Bim energy simulation model using the Ec770 integrated design for revit plug-in. finally, a comparison between the results obtained with the traditional energy assessment (according to d.m. 26/06/2015) and those using the Bim model has been made to evaluate the interoperability between architectural modeling software and the energy simulation one.


This article outlines the profile of the population over 65 years old in Brazil. It describes the aging of the population and the differences in life expectancy in regions with different income levels. It discusses income and its distribution among people over 65 years old and shows that the income distribution among them is more egalitarian compared to the population under 65 years old. Finally, by reviewing some aspects of the discussion on pension reform, it concludes by perceiving the need for an agenda for training and qualification of the workforce throughout the life cycle.
JEL Classification: D13; D63; J14.


Understanding the features of weather system around and over the Arabian Gulf is a prerequisite for setting up of a numerical weather forecasting system. The reanalysis, ERA-Interim data with a spatial resolution of ∼80 km has been utilized for analyzing the wind climatology for a period of 35 year. It is found that in the Arabian Gulf, throughout the year, the predominant wind is from north-west and the average wind speed is high in the summer between June and August. The high wind speed systems in summer are known as summer Shamals and have a typical duration of one week. Often, the high speed and long duration of the Summer Shamals makes it a good carrier of sand/dust. The winter season is dominated by south-east passage of frontal systems. The presence of land-sea contrast can cause mesoscale wind systems such as land-sea breeze. Qatar being a narrow peninsular region with width less than 100 km, the setting up of these land-sea breeze systems can be from either of the sides. This can lead to the interaction of two sea breezes from opposite sides, which may lead to the development of a convergence zone. This complex systems can affect the local weather and air-quality of coastal areas. These mesoscale phenomena and complexities are not well represented through a global model. Though the low resolution (80 km) data (ERA-interim) shows the presence of Shamal winds, the data misses the detail structure and their spatial variability. This necessitates for setting up of a high resolution mesoscale simulation approach. A non-hydrostatic mesoscale model, Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) developed by NCAR (Skamarok et al 2008) is used here for simulating and forecasting the wind systems associated with the Arabian Gulf. The model is run on an operational basis to forecast the wind fields, for a 48 hr. The modeling suite consists of a preprocessor, WPS, the model, WRF and a post processor, ARWpsot. The total suite has been compiled and installed successfully using FORTRAN and C compilers. A two way nested WRF domains with a grid size ratio of 1:3 is configured. The resolutions for the outer domain and inner domain are set to 9 km, and 3 km respectively. Various physical parametrization schemes are available within WRF modelling system. The physical parameterization schemes used in the current configuration includes MYJ boundary layer parametrization, Janjic Eta Monin–Obukhov surface layer scheme, Dudhia shortwave radiation, Rapid Radiative Transfer Model (RRTM) long wave radiation, WRF Single-Moment 6-Class (WSM6) microphysics, and the NOAH land surface scheme. Cumulus scheme, Grell is used only for the outer domain. Both of the model domains have a total of 39 vertical levels, with the topmost level at 50 hPa and lowermost level at approximately 30 m above the ground level. The initial and boundary conditions are obtained from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction's (NCEP) Global forecast System (GFS) available at resolution 0.50 (∼50 km), and the boundary conditions are updated at 6 hr interval. The entire process is automatized and run on RAAD Linux HPC cluster computing system. A two day simulation of WRF is analyzed and the sea breeze system of Qatar peninsula is examined and compared with the automatic weather station (AWS) data of Qatar Meteorological Department. The time of onset and duration of sea breeze are identified. The simulation of WRF clearly shows the development of a thermal internal boundary layer over the coastal city Doha. The existence of a convergence zone with high vertical updraft was also found. This may be due to the interaction of sea breezes coming from opposite sides of Qatar peninsula. Understanding the system of sea breeze would benefit the overall understanding pollutant transport and the dispersion mechanisms.


A selection of cyanobacterial isolates (n=28), obtained from twelve WA freshwater systems, was used to compare the performance of three phylogenetic markers commonly used for identification and classification of members of this phylum. Phylogenetic analysis was carried out using degenerate primers targeting the small subunit rRNA gene (16SrDNA), the γ-subunit of the DNA-dependent RNA polymerase (rpoC1) locus, and the phycocyanin (cpc) operon.

For the three markers, amplification efficiency was: 92.9%, 46.4%, and 71.4% respectively, with amplicon lengths, for each locus, ranging between 318-482, 548-663, and 484-746 bp, respectively. BLAST-searches identified the isolates as belonging to chroococcales (n=7), oscillatoriales (n=6), and nostocales (n=14), while identification of one isolate was dubious, and varied depending on the marker used.

Phylogenetic reconstructions were generated using different approaches, consisting of combinations of methods, models and parameters. Results were generally in agreement, with isolates showing similar grouping patterns, regardless of the locus considered. The 16S rDNA and rpoC1 loci, in particular, appeared to consistently provide coherent identifications and classifications. Two isolates from the oscillatoriales subgroup, however, displayed a significantly different clustering pattern when the highly variable cpc locus was used. This result was consistent even when different phylogenetic reconstruction approaches were adopted for this locus.

This study confirms the potential for different phylogenetic markers to affect proper identification and classification of cyanobacteria, and clearly advocates the implementation of complementary strategies based on the analysis of DNA and morphology. The selection of phylogenetic markers should be carefully considered to obtain reliable information. In fact, at least for some data-sets, this selection appears more critical than the phylogenetic reconstruction approach adopted.


This study was conducted to investigate the role of specific phosphodiesterase-3 (PDE-3) in-hibitors like amrinone and milrinone in the generation of seizures in albino Swiss mice. Generation of seizures were carried out in the animals by subjecting them to injection of a chemical convulsant, isoniazid (INH) at the dose of 500mg/kg, s.c and by subjecting them to maximal electroshock (MES) at 60 mA for 0.2 sec. The animals were pre-treated with vari-ous dose levels of amrinone (0.5 mg/kg, 0.6 mg/kg and 0.7 mg/kg, i.p) and milrinone (50μg/kg, 100 μg/kg, 200μg/kg, 300 μg/kg, i.p) 20 mins prior to the INH or MES. The control group of animals received normal saline (5 ml/kg i.p) 20 mins prior to the injection of INH , or before subjecting the animals to MES. PDE-3 inhibitors significantly enhanced the onset of seizures induced by INH and MES. In particular, milrinone potentiated the convulsive phenomenon more significantly (p<0.05 and p< 0.001) when compared with amrinone.


In this study I describe and interpret the transition students made when they graduated from a processoriented, learner-centered eighth grade to attend a traditional high school. I explore the students' shared understandings of school literacies, the climate of the two schools, and the adaptations students made to their new learning environment. I gathered descriptive data during two years of participant observation among adolescents in the elementary and high school; conducted formal and informal interviews with students, teachers, administrators, parents, and community members; collected school and town documents; and analyzed students' school work. In order to compare the ethos of schools and the students' place in them, I employed Ferdinand Tonnies's concepts of gemeinschaft (community) and gesellschaft (society). I examined students' adaptive strategies in terms of literacy demands and opportunities for literacy development. I also explored the impact that a sense of community has on school learning. In the transition, students experienced a narrowing of school literacy demands, a shift in the nature of relationships with school adults, and loss of familiar communal supports for learning. To various degrees, students felt disconnected from the adults in high school and the work they were asked to do. Accustomed to writing, collaborative projects, and peer talk as vehicles for learning, students found that their work at the high school was primarily limited to textbook related instruction. Students were resilient in their adaptive behaviors, even though adaptation masked literate and social abilities that had been developing in elementary school. They were academically and socially prepared for more than they were asked to do at the high school.


In his opening essay, Ed Yourdon forecasts both a happy and an unhappy future. His bright future promises challenging projects, exciting technologies, innovative applications, giant salaries, and lucrative stock options. His gloomy future warns of US federal and state government departments unable to solve their Year 2000 problem, a business revolt against expensive and troublesome software that delivers no apparent economic benefits, and a consequent drying up of money to buy new releases of COTS software or to finance new software development. The good news and the bad news are essentially commercial. But the dark cloud of Yourdon's bad future offers a silver lining: if it comes to pass, there might be demands for certification and licensing of software professionals and for a formal approach to software development. In a word, we might be expected to become serious software engineers. We won't, of course. Yourdon is confident that we have learned a lot about soft-ware processes, methods, and techniques; he says that we have a vast body of knowledge in requirements, risk management, metrics, testing, and quality assurance incorporated into the SEI Capability Maturity Model. So that's all right, then. We don't really need software engineering in the narrow academic sense.


Extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli infection is a serious health threat in the world. They show a high degree of resistance in various groups of antibiotics as biofilm production is one of the causes of antibiotic resistance. The aim of the present study is to detect in vitro biofilm formation by ExPEC isolates and resistance pattern of commonly used antibiotic, and patient's clinical outcome. A total of 300 isolates were screened for biofilm formation by the method described by O'Toole and kolter. Haemolysin production was tested on 5% sheep blood agar. Production of Extended spectrum-β-lactamases (ESBL) was detected by combination of disk diffusion method and in the same way AmpC was detected by AmpC disk test. Carbapenemase production was detected by modified Hodge test. Identification of Metalloβlactamases (MBL) activity was performed by MBL Etest. Of the 300 isolates 129 (43%) were biofilm producers. Twenty eight percent of the biofilm producing isolates showed clear zone of haemolysis in blood agar plate. Out of 129 isolates 72% were ESBL producers, ampC type β lactamase production were seen 31% isolates. Among the other group of antibiotics most number of resistance were seen in ciprofloxacin (73%). Most active antibiotic were amikacin and carbapenem class of drugs. Seventy and half percent patients were improved with proper antibiotic treatment were as relapses/ re-infection were seen in 14% patients and mortality seen in 11% patients. Biofilm producing isolates are associated with high level of drug resistance, mortality and relapses. They are producing ESBL, ampC along with carbapenemases which is a major problem worldwide. Early use of appropriate empirical antibiotic will probably reduce the mortality and morbidity of the patients.


Abstract This investigation was motivated by the lack of ultraviolet radiation (UVR, 280–400 nm) studies on Antarctic benthic marine microalgae. The objective was to estimate the impact of UV-B (280–315 nm) and UV-A (315–400 nm), on photosynthetic efficiency, species composition, cell density and specific growth rate in a semi-natural soft-bottom diatom community. In both experiments, cell density increased over time. The most frequently observed species were Navicula cancellata, Cylindrotheca closterium, Nitzschia spp., and Petroneis plagiostoma. For both experiments, a shift in species composition and a decreased photosystem II (PSII) maximum efficiency (Fv/Fm) over time was observed, irrespective of treatment. UVR significantly reduced Fv/Fm on days 3 and 10 (Expt 1), disappearing on the last sampling date. A similar trend was found in Expt 2. A significant UV effect on cell density was observed in Expt 1 (day 10) but not in Expt 2. No treatment effects on species composition or specific growth rate were found. Thus, the UV effects were transient (photosynthetic efficiency and cell density) and the growth of the benthic diatoms was generally unaffected. Overall, according to our results, UVR does not seem to be a threat to benthic marine Antarctic diatoms.


Tide-influenced deposits of the Pennsylvanian Rock Lake Shale Member, Stanton Formation, Missouri and Kansas (U.S.A.), contain well-preserved evidence of the burrowing activities of protobranch bivalves, including locomotion (Protovirgularia) and locomotion-resting (Protovirgularia-Lockeia) trace fossils. Protovirgularia shows three distinct morphotypes, the morphological variability of which was controlled by external factors such as substrate conditions, toponomy, and undertrack deficiency. Extreme morphological modifications of Protovirgularia and/or Lockeia, represented by irregular bilobate structures, probably result from erosion and subsequent partial passive filling of the original biogenic structures. In addition, very well-preserved trace fossils showing intergradation of a fan-shaped cluster of ridges with Protovirgularia-Lockeia structures are interpreted as a compound biogenic structure that represents locomotion, resting, and feeding activities of burrowing protobranch bivalves.


One approach to contrastive linguistics is to set up typological categories and then to compare languages in relation to these categories. A valuable concept here is a typological cluster, a development of prototype theory. We review prototype theory in psychology and lexical semantics, in grammar, in typology, and in previous work on modality and then propose a set of criteria which identify the category of modality. When English and German modal verbs are analysed with respect to the criteria, some of them turn out to meet all the criteria and can be said to have a high degree of modality. Others, however, frequently fail to meet the criteria and are therefore not central members of the category – in other words, they have a low degree of modality. Our analysis sheds new light on several differences between modals in English and German. Using data from a translation corpus, our analysis can explain some contrasts between CAN and KONNEN, and between SHOULD and SOLLEN.


OBJECTIVE
to identify and interpret the main trends of the labor market for nurses in Rio Grande do Norte, based on the opinion of managers of training institutions and employers.

METHOD
Data were collected through interviews with key informants, organized using Atlas.ti software resources and examined under the thematic content review.

RESULTS
the study showed six trends in the labor market of nurses: availability of professionals to the market; worsening working conditions with precariousness; indication for insertion in employment; unemployment for nurses; shortage of nurses; and the existence of a cooperative of nursing professionals.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
the current scenario of growth in the number of registered nurses without the expansion of the job supply has remained, unemployment tends to increase and work conditions will worsen.


Free trade agreements (FTAs) have become a prominent feature of the multilateral trading system and an important instrument of trade policy for members of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The proliferation of FTAs is the result of a number of factors, from the economic to the political. East Asia is with no exception involved in the process and witnessing the establishment of multilayered FTAs. Pioneered by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1992 when it initiated the ASEAN FTA (AFTA), and encouraged by ASEAN+1 (ASEAN plus one country) FTAs, more and more economies in east Asia are involved in FTAs, although the characteristics of these FTAs differ according to their background and circumstances. When the proliferation of FTAs in east Asia benefits the regional trade and economic growth, questions have been raised about "Asian noodle bowl†effect, pointing out multi-layered FTAs in east Asia have created new trade barriers and raised the cost of business in the region. To this end, east Asia needs to progress from the proliferation of multilayered FTAs to a region-wide FTA with wider participation and broader coverage.


International economic integration is often blamed for the deteriorating fortunes of unskilled workers in industrial countries. We look at the labor market impact of trade and foreign direct investment in the case of Italy. Our empirical framework allows for trade, technology and factor supply effects. We find that international trade did not contribute to Italy's labor market problems. Indeed, given that Italy holds quite a distinct pattern of trade specialization, compared to other industrialized countries, international integration as reflected in falling import prices may have boosted the demand for labor there. We also argue that the inability of the Mezzogiorno's economy to adjust to the changing international environment is one of the main stumbling blocks in Italy's economy. Finally, we find that greater firm's mobility may have weakened the power of trade unions and contributed to wage moderation.


We live in an epoch of reforms, consultants, experts – a time when political decisions are very much dependent on the extent of their being informed by a sober observance of reality and the willingness to learn from experience. But social analysis is also employed as a weapon in the ideological struggle of parties and social movements. In order to achieve their goal, they necessarily exaggerate, understate, simplify. The undiminished relevance of Karl Mannheim's 1929 essay "Ideologie und Utopie" consists in the analysis of this dilemma between realism and rhetoric, between knowledge and the ineptness for appropriate comprehension in the discussion of collectively binding norms. Mannheim discusses the political consequences of the fact that the same world appears different to different observers, as well as the possibility of political rationality under these circumstances.