Accepting that one of the main duties of an architect is mastering the tectonic expression of the building and its architectural effect, could there be a mechanism that allows a building or object to change its expression? Could the envelope of a building respond to its exterior context or internal function by changing its appearance? How can the elements of a building screen whether in wall or roof change their orientation and configuration to express a response to environments inside or outside? We know that the modern ideas of "wall-free structure" and "transparency" have begun to change the concept of building envelopes. These changes have allowed envelopes to become lighter, less opaque, and more flexible; and as a result the architect has more freedom in exterior expression. In the Seagram Tower, for instance, while I-beams emphasize the vertical effect of the tower, the glass envelope allows the building to change its surface effect from day to night. Having more freedom in the exterior expression of buildings has not only brought transparency but also opened a door for a greater interaction between inside and outside. If, in the past, the exterior walls of a building, limited by structural needs, had to carry its weight, today, analogous with living nature, the use of a structural skeleton gives much more freedom of expression and interaction to the exterior envelope of the buildings. Rooted in the ground and running through the building's mass, instead of outside it, the skeleton takes on the load of the building, and masonry walls can be replaced with partitioning envelopes that are open to freer interpretation. Influenced by engineers and architects like Chuck Hoberman and Santiago Calatrava, my areas of study since 1997 have been focused on the subject of movement in structures and kinetic architectural elements. I have approached this subject from two points of view. While my first study models explored the ways structures can be folded and transformed, this book is about the investigation and study of envelopes and tectonic planes that can be manipulated through operable mechanisms to change their interior or exterior expression. This study is based on the separation between the mechanisms which are the cause of the movements in the models and the kinetic planes in envelopes that have the duty of interaction between inside and outside. If folding of structures in the early stages of my studies resulted in "metamorphosis", my current work is about studying mechanisms that change the surface of an envelope and result in "transmutation".


Single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT) have been extensively studied over the last decade due to their excellent comprehensive properties for a variety of applications. This study is focused on the applications of SWNTs as reinforcement for polymer matrices. Due to van der Waal interactions, SWNTs form bundles of about 30 nm diameters. In order to take full advantage of the SWNT mechanical properties, SWNT must exfoliate or at least disperse in small diameter bundle size. Optical microscopy and SEM only give qualitative information of dispersion. Quantitative characterization through TEM or AFM can be time consuming in order to get statistical result. In this study, simple method is developed to quantitatively estimate the size of SWNT bundle in dispersion based on the geometry controlled electrical percolation behavior. The SWNTs can be dispersed /exfoliated via PVP wrapped SWNT aqueous dispersion assisted by surfactants such as sodium dodycel sulfate. PVA / SWNT composite films prepared through PVP wrapped SWNTs exhibit improved mechanical properties as well as the evidence of load transfer from the polymer matrix to the SWNT as monitored by the Raman spectroscopy. SWNT can also be well dispersed into PVA/DMSO/H2O solution. Gel spinning of PVA/SWNT composite fiber has been successfully carried out with improved mechanical properties. Functionalized tubes can be used to enhance SWNT dispersion and exfoliation. Oxidation in strong acids is one method used for functionalizing nanotubes. SWNTs have been functionalized in nitric acid. The structure and properties of films (buckypaper) processed from nitric acid functionalized tubes have been studied exhibiting high tensile strength and high electrical conductivity. Nitric acid treatment results in selective degradation of the small diameter tubes.


Peter Zumthor, Pritzker laureate 2009, unarguably ranks among the most important contemporary architects. He is revered worldwide for the stringency of his architectural concepts, the clarity of his designs, his sensitiveness for location and context, and for his conscious and careful use of materials. He is celebrated for the pure and atmospheric spaces he has created, such as Kunsthaus Bregenz (Bregenz, Austria), Therme Vals (Vals, Switzerland), Kolumba Art Museum (Cologne, Germany), or in 2011 the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London, Hortus Conclusus. Yet his lesser known residential buildings in Switzerland or the Field Chapel for Brother Klaus (near Mechernich, Germany) have also won great acclaim from architectural critics. Zumthor is much admired by students and teachers of architecture alike also for his philosophical approach to the task of building and for his writings on architectural thought. The new five-volume set is the first comprehensive monograph on Zumthor's work in more than fifteen years. Around 40 of his buildings and unrealised projects are presented in detail with brief descriptive texts by Zumthor himself, with photographs, sketches, drawings and plans. A complete list of works 1975-2013 rounds out the book. Photographs are contributed by Helene Binet, Hans Danuser and others.


SOMMARIO: 1. Brevi cenni introduttivi - 2. Il Fondo Edifici di Culto: struttura e patrimonio - 3. La missione del Fondo Edifici di Culto - 4. Conclusioni.
Worship Buildings Fund. Protection, promotion and sustainable development
ABSTRACT: In the XIX century (mainly dating to the Sixties), laws were enacted for the secularization of all the religious assets. In order to protect, maintain and run this extremely rich, diversified and priceless estate, a Worship Buildings Fund (called Fondo Edifici di Culto = FEC) established by Law no. 222 (1985). Its holdings include many worship buildings (about 840 churches, abbeys, monasteries and convents), sacred objects, artworks, museums, archaelogical sites, book collections; as well as non-religious buildings (farms, schools, barracks and so on), and protected natural areas. Therefore FEC's purposes need a renewed attention. A new governance will help to achieve the double goal, that is to administer faithfully the policies and objectives which best fulfill the needs, concerns and interests of this precious heritage and to support sustainable development.


The Maternal and Child Health Bureau commissioned the American College of Medical Genetics to outline a process for the standardization of outcomes and guidelines for state newborn screening programs and to define responsibilities for collecting and evaluating outcome data, including a recommended uniform panel of conditions to include in state newborn screening programs. The expert panel identified 29 conditions for which screening should be mandated. An additional 25 conditions were identified because they are part of the differential diagnosis of a condition in the core panel, they are clinically significant and revealed with screening technology but lack an efficacious treatment, or they represent incidental findings for which there is potential clinical significance. The process of identification is described, and recommendations are provided.


We present a cross-entropy (CE)-based method to design 2-D zero reference codes (ZRCs) with minimum diffractive effects. Without diffraction effects, the optimum ZRC design problem is known as autocorrelation approximation. However, in high-resolution grating systems, limitations are given by the diffraction in the design of ZRCs. If the diffraction is considered, the output signal registered in the photodiode will widen and degrade, invalidating the autocorrelation approximation for the 2-D ZRC design. To minimize the diffractive effects in the design of 2-D ZRC, this paper first formulates the 2-D ZRC design problem with diffractive effects as a particular combinatorial optimization problem. Next, it proposes the application of the CE method to solve the problem. Compared with the conventional genetic algorithm (GA)-assisted 2-D ZRC design method, the simulation results show that the proposed CE method obtains better 2-D ZRCs that are less sensitive to diffractive effects. About 11.43 times less searching is required for the proposed CE method than for the GA. This indicates that the proposed CE method can obtain good ZRCs with minimum diffractive effects while maintaining low complexity.


Recapitulating the spatial and temporal complexity of tissues or organs represents one of the biggest challenges in engineering tissue-like living constructs in vitro. Inkjet printing with its high positioning precision (±1μm) and reliable droplet generation (<5% variation) should fulfill the requirements to pattern biomaterials into complex three-dimensional (3D) geometries. However, there exists no biologically relevant ink that could afford 3D shape retention after drop deposition and fast stabilization of a printed structure. To address this issue, we have been developing an alginate hydrogel-based inkjet printing platform. Alginate solutions can be reliably dispensed on a hydrogel substrate storing calcium ions that quickly diffuse into the alginate solution inducing rapid cross-linking. We characterized the crosslinking kinetics and optimized printing parameters towards homogeneous stacking of droplets. Since living tissues are multi-component entities comprised of several types of cells and extracellular environments, we then focused on optimizing the dispensing system for synchronized multi-component deposition. We successfully matched the ejection characteristics of multiple nozzles by evaluating droplet diameter, jet speed and jet angle of each nozzle for variable dispensing voltage and pulse length.. Finally, proof-of-concept experiments were conducted to successfully print living 3D structures in the form of a simplified blood vessel.


The mission of healthcare systems in Africa to deliver compassionate and effective care has been constrained by growing populations, increasing burden of disease, political conflict and limited resources. The impacts of these constraints can be substantially alleviated, and the healthcare services strengthened, through the creation and adoption of affordable, accessible and appropriate biomedical engineering systems and technologies. There is an urgent need for building capacities in biomedical engineering, innovation and entrepreneurship in African countries. The African Biomedical Engineering Consortium has been organising a series of Innovators' Summer Schools to meet this need by empowering students and researchers with entrepreneurial and innovative skills, and facilitating the design and development of robust, appropriate, and commercially viable medical systems and devices. In this paper, we analyse and discuss the impact of six of these schools held between 2012 and 2017. We used a questionnaire-based survey to collect responses from students who had attended the summer schools. The results of this study demonstrate that the teaching-learning model adopted in the ABEC summer schools was largely effective in promoting biomedical engineering skills, career choices, professional networks and partnerships amongst young African engineers and life scientists who attended the summer schools.


Capturing and replaying network flows are important for testing network devices. Replayed traffic should reproduce effects similar to live traffic. This work presents methods to measure the event reproduction ratio, and studies the effectiveness of stateless and stateful traffic replayers based on the events triggered by packets and connections. We use two replayers, SocketReplay and Tcpreplay, and a networking device supporting security services. SocketReplay is a stateful replayer which keeps the state of a connection during replay, while Tcpreplay is a stateless replayer that ignores the connection state. Results indicate that SocketReplay replayed a smaller ratio of the captured traffic and triggered fewer blocking events in subsequent replay tests. Triggering blocking events denotes the replayed traffic cannot fit the onsite context. SocketReplay only replayed 38.74% of the captured TCP traffic, and resulted in an effectiveness of 99.97% (0.00%) in passing (blocking) event ratio. In contrast, Tcpreplay replayed 99.99% of the captured TCP traffic, and resulted in an effectiveness of 99.73% (75.64%) in passing (blocking) event ratio. The choice of a proper replayer and the corresponding replay configuration should depend on the contents of captured traffic and avoid to a significant drop of event reproduction ratio and the effectiveness of replayers.


The paper presents an argument for a broader and more complex definition of environment than that currently offered in sustainable development discourse and practice. Sustainable development is rooted in dominant western rational and instrumental scientific representations of human-environment relationships. As such, it has been criticised as misrepresentative and meaningless for many of those for whom it is intended. Recent contributions by social scientists have emphasized the need to move beyond the narrow construction of the human-environment dichotomy found in western scientific rhetoric. These emerging 'new ecologies' advocate a reimagining of human-environment relationships as holistic, connective, and relational, and as a product of direct perception and active engagement in the world. The Boumā National Heritage Park, Fiji, a community-based ecotourism initiative is presented as a case study to identify discrepancies between indigenous perceptions of the environment and those of formally educated western development practitioners, as well as the potential for ongoing convergence.


Xenotransplantation using pig cells, tissues or organs is considered to be a solution to the shortage of human allotransplants. Pigs have been selected as optimal donor for several reasons, among them physiological and economical. Before xenotransplantation will be applied broadly in the clinic three hurdles need to be overcome: (i) rejection due to immune reactions and coagulation dysfunction, (ii) physiological incompatibility and (iii) microbiological risk. Although some clinical trials have been performed in the past and some are ongoing, most experience is gained from pig-to-non human primate experiments. To overcome immune rejection, numerous multitransgenic and knock-down animals were produced or are in preparation. The physiological compatibility is still badly studied, mainly due to the short survival time of the recipient animals. Last not least, xenotransplantation may be associated with the risk of transmission of porcine microorganisms. Most of them can be eliminated by designated pathogen free breeding of the animals; however, porcine endogenous retroviruses (PERVs) represent a special risk. PERVs are integrated as proviruses in the genome of all pigs, they can be released as viral particles and infect human cells. An extensive screening program and selection of donor animals with a low expression of PERV accompanied by the development of different strategies to prevent PERV transmission is therefore requested. Finally, a broad discussion within the scientific community and the society concerning ethical aspects of xenotransplantation had been taken place.


OBJECTIVE
To study the safety and efficacy of topical bevacizumab in the treatment of corneal neovascularization (NV).

DESIGN
In a prospective, open-label, noncomparative study, 10 eyes from 10 patients with stable corneal NV were treated with topical bevacizumab, 1.0%, for 3 weeks and followed up for up to 24 weeks.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
The primary safety variables were the occurrence of ocular and systemic adverse events throughout the course of the study. The primary efficacy variables were neovascular area, the area of the corneal vessels themselves; vessel caliber, the mean diameter of the corneal vessels; and invasion area, the fraction of the total corneal area covered by the vessels.

RESULTS
From baseline visit to the last follow-up visit, mean reductions were 47.1% (standard deviation [SD], 36.7%) for neovascular area, 54.1% (SD, 28.1%) for vessel caliber, and 12.2% (SD, 42.0%) for invasion area. The decreases in neovascular area and vessel caliber were statistically significant (P= .001 and P< .001, respectively). However, changes in invasion area did not achieve statistical significance (P= .19). Visual acuity and central corneal thickness showed no significant changes. Topical bevacizumab was well tolerated with no adverse events.

CONCLUSIONS
Short-term topical bevacizumab therapy reduces the severity of corneal NV without local or systemic adverse effects.

APPLICATION TO CLINICAL PRACTICE
Topical bevacizumab provides an alternative therapy in the treatment of stable corneal NV.

TRIAL REGISTRATION
clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00559936.


Studies have shown that the firing activity of single neurons in brainstem dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) is linked to slow-wave oscillations in the cortex, especially the frontal cortex. However, most studies consist of either single DRN neuronal or single-channel electrocorticogram (ECoG) recording. Hence, it is unclear how a population of DRN neurons with electrophysiologically diverse characteristics can coordinate and relate to the oscillatory rhythms in different cortical regions. In this work, we explored the technical feasibility of such an investigation. We simultaneously recorded extracellularly a group of DRN neurons and three cortical regions using electrocorticogram (ECoG) in two anaesthetized SERT-Cre mice. The cortical regions were the two bi-hemispheric frontal and one (right) occipital regions. We then used coherence analysis to quantify the relationship between DRN neurons and cortical activity rhythms. We also computed the coherence between firing activities of DRN neurons to quantify their relationship. We found slow-firing DRN neurons with regular and irregular spiking characteristics, potentially serotonergic neurons, were more likely to have stronger relationships with cortical ECoG signals, especially the frontal cortex. Moreover, the DRN neurons were generally found to be weakly correlated with each other. Future investigation with more samples and analytical methods will be conducted to validate our results.


OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to identify the role of race in seeking and receipt of care for symptoms of coronary heart disease.

METHODS
Data on medical care, sociodemographic characteristics, symptoms, risk factors, income, and insurance were collected in a telephone interview for a random sample of 2030 Black and White adults in inner-city Boston. Rates of care-seeking for symptoms, amounts of delay in seeking care, and rates of receipt of care were compared for Blacks and Whites after adjustment for other characteristics.

RESULTS
Before and after adjustment for other factors, Blacks and Whites were equally likely to seek care. Average delay time was shorter for Blacks, particularly Black women. With the exception of a lower rate of referral to cardiologists among Blacks, receipt of care was similar for Blacks and Whites who sought medical attention for symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS
In an urban population of Blacks and Whites who were similar in socioeconomic status and access to medical care, there were few racial differences in coronary heart disease-related care patterns.


The dominant approach to unsupervised "style transfer" in text is based on the idea of learning a latent representation, which is independent of the attributes specifying its "style". In this paper, we show that this condition is not necessary and is not always met in practice, even with domain adversarial training that explicitly aims at learning such disentangled representations. We thus propose a new model that controls several factors of variation in textual data where this condition on disentanglement is replaced with a simpler mechanism based on back-translation. Our method allows control over multiple attributes, like gender, sentiment, product type, etc., and a more fine-grained control on the trade-off between content preservation and change of style with a pooling operator in the latent space. Our experiments demonstrate that the fully entangled model produces better generations, even when tested on new and more challenging benchmarks comprising reviews with multiple sentences and multiple attributes.


Visual Inspection is the predominant nondestructive evaluation technique used in bridge inspections. However, since implementation of the National Bridge Inspection Standards in 1971, a comprehensive study of the reliability of Visual Inspection as it relates to highway bridge inspections has not been conducted. The goals of the study include: providing overall measures of the accuracy and reliability of Routine and In-Depth Visual Inspections, studying the influence of several key factors that affect Routine and In-Depth Inspections, and studying the differences between State inspection procedures and reports. Ten inspection tasks were performed at seven test bridges using State bridge inspectors. The sample of participating inspectors included 49 inspectors from 25 State agencies. Inspectors were provided with common information, instruction, and tools. Inspector characteristics were measured through self-report questionnaires, interviews, and direct measurements. Routine Inspections were completed with significant variability, and the Condition Ratings assigned varied over a range of up to five different ratings. It is predicted that only 68% of the Condition Ratings will vary within one rating point of the average, and 95% will vary within two points. Factors that appeared to correlate with Routine Inspection results include Fear of Traffic; Visual Acuity and Color Vision; Light Intensity; Inspector Rushed Level; and perceptions of Maintenance, Complexity, and Accessibility. In-Depth Inspections using Visual Inspection alone are not likely to detect or identify the specific types of defects for which the inspection is prescribed, and may not reveal deficiencies beyond those that could be noted during a Routine Inspection. The overall thoroughness with which inspectors completed one of the In-Depth tasks tended to have an impact on the likelihood of an inspector detecting weld crack indications. Other factors that may be related to In-Depth Inspection accuracy include: time to complete inspection, comfort with access equipment and heights, structure complexity and accessibility, viewing of welds, flashlight use, and number of annual inspections performed. The State procedural and reporting tasks indicated that most States follow similar procedural and reporting criteria. Several inconsistencies were noted with the use of the element-level inspection systems, but it is not known if these variations are the result of State practices or inspector use. Deck delamination surveys were found to have significant variability, with only a few teams performing a delamination survey as part of the Routine Inspection.


Abstract. As one spatio-temporal data mining task, clustering helps the exploration of patterns in the data by grouping similar elements together. However, previous studies on spatial or temporal clustering are incapable of analysing complex patterns in spatio-temporal data. For instance, concurrent spatio-temporal patterns in 2D or 3D datasets. In this study we present two clustering algorithms for complex pattern analysis: (1) the Bregman block average co-clustering algorithm with I-divergence (BBAC_I) which enables the concurrent analysis of spatio-temporal patterns in 2D data matrix, and (2) the Bregman cube average tri-clustering algorithm with I-divergence (BCAT_I) which enables the complete partitional analysis in 3D data cube. Here the use of the two clustering algorithms is illustrated by Dutch daily average temperature dataset from 28 weather stations from 1992 to 2011. For BBAC_I, it is applied to the averaged yearly dataset to identify station-year co-clusters which contain similar temperatures along stations and years, thus revealing patterns along both spatial and temporal dimensions. For BCAT_I, it is applied to the temperature dataset organized in a data cube with one spatial (stations) and two nested temporal dimensions (years and days). By partitioning the whole dataset into clusters of stations and years with similar within-year temperature similarity, BCAT_I explores the spatio-temporal patterns of intra-annual variability in the daily temperature dataset. As such, both BBAC_I and BCAT_I algorithms, combined with suitable geovisualization techniques, allow the exploration of complex spatial and temporal patterns, which contributes to a better understanding of complex patterns in spatio-temporal data.


Al-Furqān Foundation published this book in honour of the late Dr. Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Munajjid and his contributions. The book is divided into three parts. The first one consists of papers dealing with his life and work. The second part includes papers on Islamic manuscripts, whereas the third includes subjects on literature and history. The papers are both in English and Arabic. The book lists all al-Munajjid's academic work, his own books and the works he edited. Also included are articles he wrote which appeared in periodicals and his contributions to conferences and symposiums. The book also contains a number of photos of Dr. al-Munajjid.


Communities of Practice make intensive use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to meet their needs of interaction among their members. At present, the main supporting tool for these communities is the Internet and the software tools available for their users. With the advent of digital TV, however, new resources have become available to these interactive communities. This study aims at analyzing the basic needs of technology support for virtual communities, identifying the essential software services that can meet these needs and propose an application model for interactive digital television that can meet the main needs of a Community of Practice. To achieve that, the essential services for a Community of Practice were identified by means of a field research applied to a knowledge management Community of Practice in order to propose an application model for Interactive Digital TV to Communities of Practice. The results discussed here may be used to develop applications for Interactive Digital TV and Communities of Practice, exploring the interactive resources of this new platform.


This study presents empirical evidence of changes in farmer behavior after offering them weather index insurance contracts. To quantify the impacts of insurance on agricultural decision-making, this study makes use of the random allocation of free insurance to small-scale farmers in rural Zambia, while endogenous insurance demands are also investigated. Our empirical results show that the provision of insurance leads farmers to sow maize seeds earlier—a practice known to increase maize yield, but which is riskier in terms of rainfall variability. In addition, it is found that insured farmers enlarge the maize field size and use more fertilizer; that is, the provision of insurance encourages farmers to invest in maize production in a risky environment. We also report suggestive but interesting evidence that weather index insurance could substitute for small-livestock holdings, a conventional self-insurance tool used to mitigate income variation.


Application of Compact, Geometrically Complex Shape Memory Alloy Devices for Seismic Enhancement of Highway Bridge Expansion Joints by Emily Ruth McCarthy Highway bridges are an important part of transportation networks. They provide connectivity across waterways, ravines and other roadways, reducing commuting times and facilitating social community. The disruption of their effective operation caused by earthquake damage has lasting effects based on repair costs, road closure times, traffic rerouting causing extended commute times and additional CO2 emissions, and the potential prevention of emergency responders being able to reach affected regions. Bridge expansion joints have historically been recognized as the most vulnerable component in the bridge system during these seismic events, causing dramatic disruption to bridge functionality because of their location in bridges (points of discontinuity in deck systems). Expansion joint systems are placed in these locations of discontinuity and accommodate bridge movements from thermal effects while facilitating safe driving surfaces across large gaps in the roadway. Commonly installed systems are not designed to survive seismic events, instead failure is assumed and replacement necessary to return the bridge to its functional state. When damaged, the large gaps they span can be un-crossable without external intervention, resulting in non-functioning bridges even when the structural system remains sound. Expensive and complex expansion systems exist, which prevent seismic damage, however they are used mostly in highly seismic regions and limitedly elsewhere. This dissertation provides an expansion joint design that is economical and superior in seismic performance to the commonly installed service level expansion joints so that more bridges in moderate seismic regions can be equipped with expansion systems able to accommodate large longitudinal displacement demands from earthquakes. The use of innovative shape memory alloy (SMA) springs enables a single support bar modular bridge expansion joint (one type of large capacity expansion joint) to accommodate seismic level longitudinal displacements while maintaining existing performance behavior for service level thermal expansion demands. Through limited alteration of the existing configuration, costs are minimized. The resulting design is experimentally and analytically shown to be superior in performance and able to prevent expansion joint system failure during dynamic loading. The use of fragility curves, which are probabilistic statements of demand exceeding capacity, offers a means of measuring performance over a range of earthquake intensities. Convolution with seismic hazard curves for some moderate seismic zones in the US over a range of time intervals provide information on lifetime seismic risk, valuable information for a cost benefit analysis that concludes investment in SMA springs for enhancement of modular bridge expansion joints is worthwhile for the cost reduction they offer over the life of the bridge.


Difficulties and dangers in doing experiments on living systems and providing a
testbed for theorists make the biologically detailed neural simulation an essential part of
neurobiology. Due to the complexity of the neural systems and dynamic properties of the
neurons simulation of biologically realistic models is very challenging area. Currently all
general purpose simulator are software based. Limitation on the available processing
power provides a huge gap between the maximum practical simulation size and human
brain simulation as the most complex neural system. This thesis aimed at providing a
hardware friendly parallel architecture in order to accelerate the simulation process.

This thesis presents a scalable hierarchical architecture for accelerating simulations of
large-scale biological neural systems on field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The
architecture provides a high degree of flexibility to optimize the parallelization ratio
based on available hardware resources and model specifications such as complexity of
dendritic trees. The whole design is based on three types of customized processors and a
switching module. An addressing scheme is developed which allows flexible integration
of various combination of processors. The proposed addressing scheme, design
modularity and data process localization allow the whole system to extend over multiple
FPGA platforms to simulate a very large biological neural system.

In this research Hodgkin-Huxley model is adopted for cell excitability. Passive
compartmental approach is used to model dendritic tree with any level of complexity.
The whole architecture is verified in MATLAB and all processor modules and the
switching unit implemented in Verilog HDL and Schematic Capture. A prototype
simulator is integrated and synthesized for Xilinx V5-330t-1 as the target FPGA. While
not dependent on particular IP (Intellectual Property) cores, the whole implementation is
based on Xilinx IP cores including IEEE-754 64-bit floating-point adder and multiplier
cores. The synthesize results and performance analyses are provided.


A singular vision has propelled higher education and ministries of education in Asia since the new millennium. It is a vision launched by the once rising tide of a globalized world order that spilled into higher education: in order to be competitive on the world scene, each Asian country had to build "World Class Universities," which could be compared and rank-ordered with the pre-eminent research universities of America, Britain and elsewhere. And if the pre-eminent American and British research universities could not be quickly surpassed, punctuated jumps up the status ladder of global higher education would establish an "heir-apparent" trajectory. Now, however, the rising tide of globalism has perhaps crested. Indeed, as some scholars of globalism and higher education point out, in certain aspects of national policy the rising tide is turning into a receding one. Nation-states are recoiling from an elite-driven, transnational world order into an "inside economy" that is concerned with its own issues of development and sustainability, quite apart from measuring itself against the rest of the world. In time, higher education in Asia is likely to follow suit. Globalism created the vision of "World Class Universities" ranked in an imitative hierarchical order; its demise suggests the need for other ideals that can drive the quest for excellence in higher education in Asia. The bedrock of educational quality for the New Flagship University in Asia is excellence in all of the forms of knowledge and understanding of human experience. The stronger the excellence in each form, the better the university's earned standing amongst its peers. But this is not a relative relationship, like the World Rankings, where worth is measured against other institutions in a game of winners and losers. Rather, it is measurement against the standards of excellence inherent in each form itself.


In February 2005 the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa ruled that in deciding whether firms have contravened section 4(1)(b) of the Competition Act 89 of 1998, as amended, by engaging in, for example, 'per se' illegal price fixing, the Competition Tribunal must admit evidence relating to the nature, purpose and effect of the horizontal agreement or practice in question. This article examines the economic and legal rationale, as well as the implications, for allowing an appropriate characterisation of conduct to determine whether such conduct falls within the per se prohibition. Firstly, we comment on the rationale behind the per se rule as a standard for the adjudication of certain types of conduct. We analyse a number of cases in the United States, which, post 1979, revolutionised the approach to the strict per se rule. Secondly, we examine how the per se standard is reflected in the particular structure found in section 4(1) of the Competition Act and evaluate whether it makes for a sufficiently robust application of the per se rule. Thirdly, the content of the Supreme Court decision regarding characterisation is critically examined with a view to assessing whether such characterisation is consistent with the policy objective of achieving maximum deterrence of hard core cartel behaviour like price fixing and market division. Finally, we explore and suggest (in the absence of a Tribunal decision) a possible framework, based on decision theory, for determining a method of characterisation that is consistent with the robust application of the per se standard and is in line with the Supreme Court ruling.


Offers new perspectives on basic elements of linguistic analysis Subject is of interest to all linguists Important for both theoretical and empirical research Written by prominent, international scholars This book presents a critical overview of current work on linguistic features and establishes new bases for their use in the study and understanding of language. Features are fundamental components of linguistic description: they include gender (feminine, masculine, neuter); number (singular, plural, dual); person (1st, 2nd, 3rd); tense (present, past, future); and case (nominative, accusative, genitive, ergative). Despite their ubiquity and centrality in linguistic description, much remains to be discovered about them: there is, for example, no readily available inventory showing which features are found in which of the world's languages; there is no consensus about how they operate across different components of language; and there is no certainty about how they interact. This book seeks at once to highlight and to tackle these problems. It brings together perspectives from phonology to formal syntax and semantics, expounding the use of linguistic features in typology, computer applications, and logic. Linguists representing different standpoints spell out clearly the assumptions they bring to different kinds of feature and describe how they use them. Their contrasting contributions highlight the areas of difference and the common ground between their perspectives. The book brings together original work by leading international scholars. It will appeal to linguists of all theoretical persuasions. Readership: Linguists of all theoretical persuasions - including syntacticians, morphologists, computational linguists, and typologists - and their postgraduate students.


This volume aims to address the question of political communication in the Roman world. What constitutes political communication in the Roman world? In what ways could information be transmitted and represented? What mechanisms made political communication successful or unsuccessful?


In the central part of the Krusne hory (Erzgebirge) Mountains (Saxothuringian domain of the Bohemian Massif) in the Czech Republic, mafic eclogites are associated with a horizon of garnetiferous micaschists. In these rocks, analysis of stable mineral assemblages together with thermodynamic modelling of their evolution shows that the two-phase AFM assemblage garnet-kyanite in the Měděnec area has equilibrated at 640°C and 22 kbar, whereas the two-phase assemblage garnet-chloritoid in the Srni area represents amphibolite-facies conditions. The matrix mineral assemblages show that subsequent decompression is not associated with temperature increase. The observed metamorphic evolution suggests rapid exhumation of the eastern margin of the Saxothuringian domain after its subduction below an already thickened orogenic root.


Conflicts in Pakistan emanate from a configuration of factors relating to the state system, the unstable regional setting, and the global system at large. The state system in Pakistan has been characterised by problems of constitutionally underdeveloped provincial set-ups, dysfunctionality of elections for the prevalent system perceived by a privileged migrant leadership, a centralist authority structure, and a domineering role of army. During the last five decades, the state system passed through various phases of centralism, populism, and constitutional engineering by the military-bureaucratic establishment as well as Islamisation, largely at the expense of provincial autonomy and a sense of participation in the business of the state shared by all communities. Non-recognition of electoral mandate as the final source of legitimacy led to the emergence of ethnic movements in East Pakistan, the NWFP, Balochistan, and Sindh. The perceived Punjabisation of the state has created feelings of ethnic hostility among all regions other than Punjab. Social insecurities caused by rapid social change, such as urbanisation in general and in-migration in Karachi in particular, have fuelled ethnic hatred all around. Similarly, the influx of refugees from neighbouring countries, along with arms and drug trafficking, has led to new pattems of identity politics and higher levels of political violence. The state's relative non-performance at the local level has pushed many sectarian groups to exit from the parliamentary framework of politics towards a blatant use of arms. What is needed is the creation of a third tier of government at the district and sub-district levels. At the top of the priority list should be a policy of decentralisation and a continuity in the electoral process to bring the recalcitrant elements into the mainstream, de-weaponisation, and strengthening of political parties as interest-aggregating and policy-bearing institutions.


The supergiant Olympic Dam Cu-U-Au-Ag ore deposit of South Australia occurs in a tectonic-hydrothermal breccia complex that is surrounded by Mesoproterozoic granite. The breccia is composed mainly of granite clasts and minor amounts of Mesoproterozoic volcanic clasts. Very thick (>350 m) sections of bedded sedimentary facies that occur in the breccia complex include laminated to very thin planar mudstone beds, thin to medium internally graded sandstone beds, and thick conglomerate beds. The bedded sedimentary facies extend continuously across a 1.5 km × 0.9 km area and are not limited to small separate maar craters, as previously thought. Detrital chromite and volcanic quartz in the bedded sedimentary facies cannot be matched with local sources, and imply that the provenance extended beyond the area of Olympic Dam. The lateral continuity, provenance characteristics, great thickness, below-wave-base lithofacies, and intracontinental setting suggest that the bedded sedimentary facies are remnants of a sedimentary basin that was present at Olympic Dam prior to formation of the breccia complex. We conclude that the Olympic Dam hydrothermal system operated beneath and partly within an active sedimentary basin, was not confined to maar craters, and did not vent. This new view of the setting raises the possibility that sedimentary processes were involved in ore genesis.


We present the fabrication of nano-magnet arrays, comprised of two sets of interleaving SmCo5 and Co nano-magnets, and the subsequent development and implementation of a protocol to program the array to create a one-dimensional rotating magnetic field. We designed the array based on the microstructural and magnetic properties of SmCo5 films annealed under different conditions, also presented here. Leveraging the extremely high contrast in coercivity between SmCo5 and Co, we applied a sequence of external magnetic fields to program the nano-magnet arrays into a configuration with alternating polarization, which based on simulations creates a rotating magnetic field in the vicinity of nano-magnets. Our proof-of-concept demonstration shows that complex, nanoscale magnetic fields can be synthesized through coercivity contrast of constituent magnetic materials and carefully designed sequences of programming magnetic fields.We present the fabrication of nano-magnet arrays, comprised of two sets of interleaving SmCo5 and Co nano-magnets, and the subsequent development and implementation of a protocol to program the array to create a one-dimensional rotating magnetic field. We designed the array based on the microstructural and magnetic properties of SmCo5 films annealed under different conditions, also presented here. Leveraging the extremely high contrast in coercivity between SmCo5 and Co, we applied a sequence of external magnetic fields to program the nano-magnet arrays into a configuration with alternating polarization, which based on simulations creates a rotating magnetic field in the vicinity of nano-magnets. Our proof-of-concept demonstration shows that complex, nanoscale magnetic fields can be synthesized through coercivity contrast of constituent magnetic materials and carefully designed sequences of programming magnetic fields.


The strong national voice at Abramtsevo, based on a sense of harmony among native landscapes, religious and folk life, and estate culture was intrinsic to Slavic revival movements of the late nineteenth century. The estate and its surroundings were settings for Russian-themed paintings and inspired artists to seek and express a Russian "spirit of nature." The search for a national landscape was connected with literary and intellectual culture fostered at Abramtsevo and neighboring estates, and with the presence of religious centers in the area. Local topography and collaboration among the Abramtsevo artists in the 1880s led to new ideas about a national landscape as artists ranged further afield in the next decade. Landscapes of mood and decorative works based on natural forms shifted the role of landscape from concrete subject to a source for formal experimentation.


In this project the added value in education is investigated in two components: the academic and the social added value. By using the case study method I have attempted to define the different aspects of the added value and via interviews, questionnaires, school data and statistical analysis to measure them.
During the period 1 was working on my thesis I faced major challenges: demanding workload combined with my family as well as personal challenge to stay unbiased and arrive to objective conclusions. If I was successful or not will be certainly judged by the educational community to which this work is donated.
The whole study shows that SABIS® and especially ISF (Internationale Schule Frankfurt-Rhein-Main) offer to the students added value in sciences, in discipline, in team building, in the quick integration to the international environment. The languages are the important weapon of every International School. Each from our graduates speaks at least three languages which opens the doors to an international career and to various
Universities. The individual fostering to students and the continuous monitoring of their academic results is to be commended as a positive aspect of the system.
The margin for improvement is also important: the policy makers of that system must review the materials, the method of instruction and the financial reward of the staff in order to achieve not only the successful continuity of the network but mainly to become leaders on the quality international education market.
I found it necessary to include some suggestions for the improvement of the SABIS® system but also my thoughts about the education in general as my main goal is to contribute to the upgrade of the education worldwide and provoke other colleagues to work further in that direction.


Aspects of the ecology of Microgaster demolitor, a larval parasitoid of Helicoverpa punctigera and Helicoverpa armigera in Australia. M. demolitor (Wilkinson), a solitary braconid parasitoid of Heliocoverpa spp in Australia, displays a humidity related diapause strategy. At low humidities, diapause is more likely to be initiated and is maintained longer than at high humidities. This strategy is effective in areas where decreases in rainfall, resulting in a decrease in the number of hosts, due to increased mortality and/or migration, leave the parasitoid without suitable oviposition sites. Diapause initiation and maintenance were not affected by photoperiod or temperature.

The incidence of diapause in M. demolitor increased with latitude in both hosts, being lowest at Mareeba, (the most northern sampling site), and highest at Grafton, (the most southern site). This correlates with a similar pattern in the diapause distribution of the host, that is, with increasing latitude the incidence of diapause in the host also increases.

At Mareeba, host species affected diapause incidence: parasitoids reared in H. armigera never entered diapause, while those reared in H. punctigera did. This is thought to be related to the differences in seasonal distributions of the hosts. That is, H. armigera is present all year round in Mareeba but H. punctigera is not. The higher migratory tendencies of H. punctigera result in periods of the year when, although conditions may be suitable for it, it may migrate from the area. Thus the possibility of some of the parasitoids entering a diapause state if they emerge from H. punctigera would then safeguard against the possibility of the hosts migrating from the area and leaving the parasitoid population to perish due to a lack of hosts.

Parasitoids that entered diapause were significantly heavier as prepupae. The increase in weight of the diapausing prepupae may result from increased fat or water reserves which enable the parasitoid to survive its dormancy period. The cocoons of diapausing parasitoids were heavier and had a ribbed appearance, with a tighter silken weave. This increase in the closeness of the weave may reduce evaporation and hence decrease the desiccation rate of the diapausing prepupae. The cocoon is a vital component in the maintenance of diapause, as partial removal of the cocoon results in termination of diapause. The duration of diapause was unaffected by the sex of the parasitoid, the host it was reared in, the weight of the prepupae or the weight of the cocoon.

Parasitoids reared in field based cultures of Heliocoverpa spp. developed slower than those reared from a laboratory based culture. This result may be due to a decrease in the genetic fitness of the laboratory maintained culture, as no field animals have been added to this population in over 14 years. Hosts in which parasitoids were reared were always smaller than non parasitised hosts of the same age, with 100% mortality occurring in all parasitised hosts once the parasitoid emerged.

The larval developmental thresholds of the parasitoid in the three sites studied were all significantly different and were all higher than that of their hosts. Similarly, the pupal developmental thresholds of the parasitoids were similar to, or higher than, their two hosts, however the Mareeba population had a significantly lower pupal threshold than the other two populations.

Longevity of the parasitoid was affected by both temperature and food. At high temperatures, longevity was short and increased as temperature decreased. A quiescence strategy was initiated in the parasitoid when temperatures dropped below 20°C, significantly increasing their longevity. Longevity could also be increased by supplying the parasitoid with a 10% honey and water solution.

Parasitoids showed a preference for 2nd and 3rd instar larvae for oviposition. This preference minimised direct injury of the parasitoid. That is, when later instars were parasitised the probability of physical damage to the parasitoid was greater. Host species preference varied with latitude. In the northern sampling sites a preference for H. armigera was displayed, in the southern areas a preference for H. punctigera, while at Toowoomba, the two hosts were attacked with equal frequency. This correlates with the relative spatial and temporal distribution of the hosts, that is, H. armigera occurs in relatively greater concentrations in the north, while H. punctigera occurs in relatively higher concentrations in the south. However, in areas such as Toowoomba, where M. demolitor displays no preference, both hosts occur in substantial numbers, but at different times of the year.

These results then suggest that M. demolitor in Australia is not a homogeneous species but that perhaps clinal variation or a group of sibling species exists. Genetic work is required to consolidate this theory.


Introduction: The study aimed to assess and improve the quality of care for congestive cardiac failure in a public sector, primary health care setting, in Cape Town. There is currently no literature available on the quality of care for the management of congestive cardiac failure in primary health care in South Africa.

Methods: A disease register was constructed by identifying patients prescribed Furosemide and checking the medical records. Altogether 95 patients with CCF were identified. The study followed the usual steps for a quality improvement cycle: Formation of an audit team; agreeing on criteria based on current CCF guidelines; collection of data from medical records to measure the criteria; analysis and feedback of results to the staff; critical reflection, planning and implementing change; re-audit of the medical records.

Results: There was a mean age of 63.4 years, 21% were male and 75% were females. The results of the initial audit revealed suboptimal management of patients diagnosed with CCF: 53% had an aetiological diagnosis recorded in the clinical notes, 24% had a documented functional capacity, 12% of patients had documented precipitating/exacerbating factors, 58% had fluid status documented, and 37% had documentation of their cardiac rate and rhythm. The intervention consisted of feedback on the audit results and critical reflection with the relevant staff members. The doctors were provided with a printed protocol to refer to for the management of CCF. Clinicians were resistant to change and to taking on new tasks in relation to the management of patients with CCF and decided to only focus on improving the clinical assessment of patients. The results of the re-audit after 5-months in 40 patients demonstrated improvement in the clinical assessment criteria: 95% of the patients had an aetiological diagnosis recorded in the notes, 50% had a documented functional capacity, 42% had documented precipitating/exacerbating factors documented, 72% had their fluid status documented, and 85% of patients had their cardiac rate and rhythm documented. None of the five assessment criteria were met at baseline but post-intervention three of the five met the target set and all showed substantial improvement. There was no improvement noted in any of the other criteria, which were not specifically focused on in the plan to improve clinical practice.

Conclusion: The current quality of care for CCF in primary health care is poor and needs to be improved. The quality improvement cycle led to substantial improvement in the clinical assessment of patients with CCF. Recommendations are made regarding future criteria, which could be included in local audit tools.


The current trend towards student-centred teaching and learning is bringing about a change in emphasis in Higher Education: a shift from promoting effective teaching towards developing an understanding of how students learn. Prevalent literature calls for more emphasis on the students" learning process through increased metacognition and critical reflection. This research revolves around the premise that learning takes place through the interaction of cognition (thinking), affectation (feeling) and conation (doing). Consequently, this study presents a model of teaching and learning in Higher Education through the integrated use of metacognitive tools, namely, Vee Heuristics and Concept Mapping along with an awareness of how students prefer to learn. This research suggests that when metacognitive tools are merged, students are empowered to embark upon a meta-learning journey which eventually leads to critical reflection and meaningful learning. In the Action Research carried out in the first phase, University students" work products, from the University of Malta, are used to trace the effect of a learner"s mental operations on the learner"s use of Vee Heuristics and Concept Mapping as the learner embeds and retrieves new and scaffolded knowledge. The analysis of data reveals the powerful effect which this combination of learning tools yielded on student achievement. The model presented yielded successful meaningful learning; however, one cannot assume that the same results will be produced if this model is used by other teachers. This reflection led to an emergent multilevel mixed method design in the second phase where the role of the teacher was highlighted to illustrate that teachers must see the purpose and value of the tools they are using. The teaching and learning process becomes most effective when teachers plan intentional approaches in response to how students are learning. Action research promotes a cyclical process and I am coming to a personal understanding that the tools and strategies did help me to create a meaningful learning environment which adequately responds to the "learning-how-to-learn" concept. However, at the heart of quality teaching was my continuous reflective approach about the learning process and my own practice. I started this research by fallaciously assuming that focusing solely on the learner would bring about meaningful learning. However, the research has demonstrated that both students and lecturers are equally important and they should be seen as partners in achieving the intended learning outcome.


Differentiable simulators provide an avenue for closing the sim-to-real gap by enabling the use of efficient, gradient-based optimization algorithms to find the simulation parameters that best fit the observed sensor readings. Nonetheless, these analytical models can only predict the dynamical behavior of systems for which they have been designed. In this work, we study the augmentation of a novel differentiable rigid-body physics engine via neural networks that is able to learn nonlinear relationships between dynamic quantities and can thus model effects not accounted for in traditional simulators. Such augmentations require less data to train and generalize better compared to entirely data-driven models. Through extensive experiments, we demonstrate the ability of our hybrid simulator to learn complex dynamics involving frictional contacts from real data, as well as match known models of viscous friction, and present an approach for automatically discovering useful augmentations. We show that, besides benefiting dynamics modeling, inserting neural networks can accelerate model-based control architectures. We observe a ten-fold speedup when replacing the QP solver inside a model-predictive gait controller for quadruped robots with a neural network, allowing us to significantly improve control delays as we demonstrate in real-hardware experiments. We publish code, additional results and videos from our experiments on our project webpage at https://sites.google.com/usc.edu/neuralsim.


We thank Sonne and Knop for their comments (1) on our article (2). They recalled that the induced AMPK pathway we investigated is not the only potential root of the observed decrease in LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) levels after metformin treatment. Sonne and Knop indicated the highly probable influence of the bile acid synthesis and the underlying mode of action (1). We fully agree with this comment. However, we would like to clarify more precisely two points referred to by the authors. First, the statement referring to "decreased concentrations of three metabolites" when case subjects were compared with control subjects in our cross-sectional study (1) would be better described with the expression "lower concentration." The term "decreased" is appropriate when referring to our longitudinal results following the same person for 7 years (2), but it can be misleading when comparing groups of different individuals. Second, Sonne and Knop stated that "the cholesterollowering effects of metformin [had] long been recognized," citing a study by Giugliano et al. (3). However, the original article did not particularly report LDL-C levels, but total cholesterol and triglycerides (3). We thus wonder if the link between the studies can be drawn in such a straightforward manner. Additionally, the study by Giugliano et al. (3) is based on the investigation of 12 obese hypertensive women without diabetes; therefore, the underlying design is different from ours (2). We appreciate that an additionalmode of action was addressed (1). In fact, our analysis indicated that approximately 29% of the decrease in LDL-C can be explained by repressed FADS activity (2). Still, about 70% of the contribution to the reduction of LDL-C is unclear. The influence ofmetformin on the bile acid metabolism has been known since the 1970s (4). Indeed, AMPK, one of the targets of metformin, is an inhibitory regulator of the nuclear bile acid receptor farnesoid X receptor (FXR). FXR is a pleiotropic regulator of lipid and glucose metabolism and controls the synthesis and enterohepatic circulation of bile acid (5). In cultured hepatocytes and enterocytes, AMPK activation led to an inhibition of FXR transcriptional activity (5). Consequently, the impact of metformin on the FADS complex and bile acid might be linked by AMPK. Probably metformin's effect on blood lipid levels is due to not only the AMPK activation in hepatocytes but also its cross talk with other tissues. Napolitano et al. (6) investigated the enterohepatic flux of bile acid inmultiple matrices of metformin-treated patients and observed poor correlations of four analyzed bile acids between feces and serum. This study indicates the complexity and diversity of metformin's pharmacological effects on bile acid in different tissues (6). However, the design of our population-based cohort study did not enable the investigation of multiple matrices, including feces (2). Additionally, bile acid was not included in our quantitative measurements of serum samples. More comprehensive insights into the mode of action could be better addressed in clinical intervention studies that include the examination of gut microbiota.


In this article, we consider how corpus linguistics (CL) and conversation analysis (CA) can be used together to provide enhanced descriptions of spoken interaction in the context of small group teaching in higher education. From our analysis of the data, we show how the two approaches can be combined in an iterative process to account for features of spoken discourse at both micro (word) and macro (text) levels. Beginning with CL and focusing largely on words and combinations of words, we then use CA to highlight pertinent interactional features. Our methodology follows an iterative process: from CL to CA, back to CL and so on. This approach to analysis provides powerful insights into the ways in which interactants establish understandings in educational settings and, in particular, highlights the inter-dependency of words, utterances and text in the co-construction of meaning.


Study question: Oocyte donation is an increasingly popular treatment option for pregnancy and parenthood in women with poor ovarian reserve or advanced age. Indian literature still lacks a formal study focusing on expectations and experiences of oocyte donors. Aim: To assess demography, expectations and experiences of oocyte donors in northern India by an interview-based questionnaire. Material and Methods: This is a prospective cross-sectional study at a tertiary care IVF centre from August 2018 to January 2019. Sample size was 65 oocyte donors found fit and willing for egg donation. Interviews were taken using structured questionnaire at the time of registration and after successful oocyte retrieval. Results: Mean age of donors was 25 years. Most of the donors were housewives (70%) and rest were in a private job. Only 29% of donors were educated above tenth standard. Almost all the donors (96%) were commercial donors introduced by paid agents or friends. Most of the donors had very poor understanding of details of the oocyte retrieval procedure. Only 36% of donors felt that compensation given is adequate, rest expected a higher compensation. Average compensation given to donors was INR 15,000–25,000, which was 5000–10,000 less than their expectations. All donors were satisfied with the procedure and did not feel exploited or anxious or depressed but few complained of discomfort experienced in visits and minimal complications like pain, nausea, and fever. None of the donors developed signs/symptoms of OHSS. Average number of oocytes retrieved per donor was 17. Mean dose of gonadotropins required per donor was 1495 IU. Conclusion: Our findings show that the oocyte donation has an overall good acceptance and satisfaction among the donors. However there is a need to impart more detailed information to donors in order to prevent their possible exploitation.


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We have treated 20 patients and administered 23 total T-cell infusions on a clinical trial of autologous T cells genetically modified to express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) targeting the B-cell antigen CD19. This is the largest reported clinical trial of anti-CD19-CAR T cells. The first 9 CAR-T-cell treatments have been reported (Kochenderfer et al. Blood 2010 and Blood 2012). This abstract communicates unreported results from 14 patients who received anti-CD19-CAR T cells produced with a new 10-day culture process. These patients did not receive exogenous interleukin-2. Of these 14 patients, 5 obtained complete remissions (CR), and 6 obtained partial remissions (PR), (see [table][2]).

View this table:

Table

The CAR used in this work is encoded by a gammaretrovirus and incorporates the variable regions of an anti-CD19 antibody, part of CD28, and part of CD3-zeta. A mean of 70.5% of the infused T cells expressed the CAR, and the infused cells produced cytokines and degranulated in a CD19-specific manner. Because prior chemotherapy has been shown to enhance the activity of adoptively-transferred T cells, patients received cyclophosphamide (total doses shown in table) plus fludarabine (25 mg/m2 daily for 5 days) before a single infusion of anti-CD19-CAR-transduced T cells.

This is the first report of successful treatment of chemotherapy-refractory primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma (PMBCL) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma not otherwise specified (DLBCL) with anti-CD19-CAR T cells. All of the 8 treated patients with either PMBCL or DLBCL were chemotherapy-refractory, and 5 of these 8 patients obtained either a CR or PR on this trial. We defined chemotherapy-refractory as progression or no response 1 month after the end of the most recent chemotherapy. For example, Patient 2 had PMBCL that was refractory to 3 different chemotherapy regimens and that relapsed after radiation therapy. Patient 2 obtained a CR after infusion of anti-CD19 CAR T cells and remains in CR 19 months post-infusion.

Blood B-cell depletion lasting more than 3 months occurred in 3 of 3 evaluable patients. Most patients were not evaluable for B-cell depletion due to B-cell depletion by prior treatments. One patient died suddenly of unknown etiology 16 days after infusion of CAR T cells. Acute toxicities including fever, hypotension, and delirium occurred after infusion of anti-CD19-CAR T cells. The toxicities resolved in less than 3 weeks after the cell infusion and were temporally associated with elevated serum interleukin-6 and interferon gamma levels in most patients. Peak blood levels of cells containing the CAR gene ranged from 2.3% to 66.5% of blood mononuclear cells. These results demonstrate the feasibility of treating patients with chemotherapy-refractory B-cell malignancies by using autologous anti-CD19 CAR T cells. The numerous remissions obtained should encourage further development of this approach.

SMZL, splenic marginal zone lymphoma; PMBCL, primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma; CLL, chronic lymphocytic leukemia; DLBCL, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma not otherwise specified. CR, complete remission; NE, not evaluable; PR, partial remission; SD, stable disease. (+) indicates an ongoing response.

Disclosures: Rosenberg: Kite Pharma: Research Funding.

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 [2]: #T1


Public access to accurate and reliable information is fundamental to democracy and democratic decision-making. In conditions of uncertainty and imperfect information, such as during political crises or controversial elections in emerging democracies, reliable information is often difficult to obtain. We investigated the uses and gratifications obtained from diverse information sources available to citizens during the months leading up to Presidential elections in Mexico in July 2012. Uses and gratifications theory states that information seeking is one of several primary needs or motivations for using different media. Reliability of information sources is key to gratification of this need. We conducted a survey about diverse information sources and their reliability with an opportunity sample of young adults at a public state university in Mexico. Our findings indicate that face-to-face and telephone communication with members of a respondent's social network, as well as social media and online news sites, were the most reliable sources of information about the elections. Television broadcasting, especially from government channels, was the least reliable. These results suggest that in conditions of relative uncertainty and imperfect information, social media and alternative (online) news sources about political events are essential to sustaining an informed public.


OBJECTIVE
This paper describes the 2001-2012 progression of limitations in daily activities in the Mexican elderly population aged 60 or older and identifies how sociodemographic and health factors affect these progressions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Data come from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS), a national sample of adults born in 1951 or earlier, including a baseline survey in 2001 and follow-ups in 2003 and 2012.

RESULTS
Difficulty in getting dressed is the activity that has the highest prevalence in all three waves for both genders. In the 11-year transition, 42.8% of the respondents with no limitations in 2001 reported no limitations in 2012. In contrast, 60.8% of those who reported three or more limitations in 2001 had died by 2012.

CONCLUSIONS
With the rapid aging of the Mexican population, the knowledge of patterns of deterioration of functional limitations will prove useful for future public health policies.


Starting in late 2012, and continuing into late 2013, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York wreaked havoc on the traditional interpretation of the copyright infringement defense known as "fair use." Two cases stemming from the advent of the Google Books Project are Author's Guild, Inc. v. HathiTrust and Author's Guild, Inc. v. Google, Inc. These cases adopted a controversial interpretation of the fair use defense, codified in 17 U.S.C. § 107, when each case determined that the mass digitization of thousands of books constituted fair use merely because the digitization was what is known as "transformative use." This Comment will explore the background of the fair use defense, from its common law origins, to its codification in the 1976 Copyright Act, to its application in modern law. Keeping this background in mind will explain why the current legal state of the fair use defense, as propagated by the District Court for the Southern District of New York and the United States Courts Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, is inconsistent with traditional statutory construction principles. Proposed recommendations to solve legal inconsistencies in Section 107 can come from clarification either from Congress by way of an amendment to this Section, or by a decision from the United States Supreme Court.


n old, dense stellar systems collisions of white dwarfs are a rather frequent phenomenon. Here we present the results of a comprehensive set of Smoothed Particle
Hydrodynamics simulations of close encounters of white dwarfs aimed to explore the outcome of the interaction and the nature of the final remnants for different initial conditions. Depending on the initial conditions and the white dwarf masses, three different outcomes are possible. Specifically, the outcome of the inte
raction can be either a direct or a lateral collision or the interaction can result in the formation of an eccentric binary system. In those cases in which a collision occurs, the infalling material is compressed and heated such that the physical conditions for a detonation may be reached during the most violent phases of the merger. While we find t
hat detonations occur in a significant umber of our simulations, in some of them the te
mperature increase in the shocked region rapidly lifts degeneracy, leading to the quenching of the burning. We thus characterize under which circumstances a de
tonation is likely to occur as a result of the impact of the disrupted star on the surface of the more massive white dwarf. Finally, we also study which interactions result in bound systems, and in which ones the more massive white dwarf is also disrupted as a consequence of the dynamical interaction. The sizable number of simulations performed in this work
allows to find how the outcome of the interaction depends on the distance at closest approach, and on the masses of the colliding white dwarfs, and which
is the chemical pattern of the nuclearly processed material. Finally, we also discuss
the influence of the masses and core chemical compositions of the interacting white dwarfs and the different kinds of impact in the properties of the remnants


In the absence of the bodies of Christ and Mary, architecture took on a special representational role during the Christian Middle Ages, marking out sites associated with the bodily presence of the dominant figures of the religion. Throughout this period, buildings were reinterpreted in relation to the mediating role of textual and pictorial representations that shaped the pilgrimage experience across expansive geographies. In this study, Kathryn Blair Moore challenges fundamental ideas within architectural history regarding the origins and significance of European recreations of buildings in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Nazareth. From these conceptual foundations, she traces and re-interprets the significance of the architecture of the Holy Land within changing religious and political contexts, from the First Crusade and the emergence of the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land to the anti-Islamic crusade movements of the Renaissance, as well as the Reformation.


There are many ways to understand the gap in science learning and achievement separating low-income, ethnic minority and linguistic minority children from more economically privileged students. In this article we offer our perspective. First, we discuss in broad strokes how the relationship between everyday and scientific knowledge and ways of knowing has been conceptualized in the field of science education research. We consider two dominant perspectives on this question, one which views the relationship as fundamentally discontinuous and the other which views it as fundamentally continuous. We locate our own work within the latter tradition and propose a framework for understanding the everyday sense-making practices of students from diverse communities as an intellectual resource in science learning and teaching. Two case studies follow in which we elaborate this point of view through analysis of Haitian American and Latino students' talk and activity as they work to understand metamorphosis and experimentation, respectively. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of this new conceptualization for research on science learning and teaching. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 38: 529–552, 2001


Objective To investigate the association between disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) and the rate of progressive retinal ganglion cell (RGC) and nerve fiber loss in MS. Methods One hundred five relapsing-remitting patients with MS were followed annually for a median of 4.0 years using optical coherence tomography. Twenty-five healthy subjects were also included as normal controls. The rates of global peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL), temporal RNFL (tRNFL), and ganglion cell inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) thinning were analyzed according to DMT type using a linear mixed-effects model. Optic radiation lesion volume was measured on brain MRI and included as a covariate to minimize the effects of retrograde transsynaptic degeneration. Results The annual rates of RNFL and GCIPL thinning were higher in patients treated with "platform" therapies (interferon-β and glatiramer acetate) compared with DMTs of higher clinical efficacy (including fingolimod, dimethyl fumarate, natalizumab, alemtuzumab, rituximab, and ocrelizumab) (difference = −0.22 μm/y, p = 0.02 for pRNFL; difference = −0.34 μm/y, p = 0.009 for tRNFL; and difference = −0.16 μm/y, p = 0.005 for GCIPL). Based on an analysis of individual treatments (interferon-β, glatiramer acetate, fingolimod, and natalizumab), interferon-β was associated with inferior RGC preservation, relative to the other drugs. No effect difference was found between glatiramer acetate, fingolimod, and natalizumab. Conclusions Progressive loss of RGCs in patients with MS is more pronounced in patients treated with interferon-β than other DMTs. This finding may have implications for DMT selection in MS. Classification of Evidence This study provides Class IV evidence that for patients with MS, treatment with interferon-β compared with other DMTs leads to a more pronounced rate of retinal ganglion cell loss.


Amidst increasingly constrained public budgets and inadequate service delivery, private sector participation through public private partnerships is increasingly being used as a means for delivering physical infrastructure. The government of Uganda, which is currently grappling with a crippling electricity power deficit, has over the years, pursued a number of strategies to encourage private sector participation in the electricity sector, but with limited success. This paper presents the findings of research into the relative importance as perceived by sector stakeholders, of factors that hamstring private sector participation in the development of hydropower generation facilities through public private partnerships in Uganda. The stakeholders considered in this paper are those representing the government and private sector entities in the development of the partnerships. A review of literature and project documents enabled the identification of relevant factors. Data was collected from the respondents by means of a self administered structured questionnaire and quantitative methods used for data analysis. Key findings from the research indicate that the respondents regarded the regulatory and legal frameworks as being attractive for private sector participation and this business environment is further enhanced by their confidence in the government's commitment to honour its contractual obligations. In contrast, difficulties in structuring and obtaining finance together with issues over the cumbersome approval process and resistance from environmental groups were identified as the most significant constraints to the development and implementation of public private partnerships in the Ugandan electricity sector. Recognizing the importance of an adequate and reliable supply of power in Uganda, as in so many other sub-Saharan countries, it is anticipated that the identification of the relative importance of the constraints as perceived by stakeholders, will inform the process of developing measures and strategies to mitigate the constraints thus facilitating the speedy implementation and deal closure of public private partnership initiatives with the ensuing benefits.


American courts are at times required to interpret the laws of authoritarian countries. Though such cases are increasingly common, they remain—even today—a poorly understood feature of modern adjudication. This Article seeks to fill that gap: first by describing the scope and scale of American judicial engagement with authoritarian legal systems, second by spelling out the interpretive challenges posed by authoritarian laws, and third by building out a framework and vocabulary for analyzing judicial responses to these challenges. The laws of authoritarian countries raise novel questions of legal construction. Such questions stem from a gap, mostly real but sometimes imagined, between our own local assumptions about law and certain "nonconforming" features of authoritarianism: sham laws, unwritten laws, party laws, politicized courts, and bifurcated legal systems. Judicial responses to these challenges fall along a familiar spectrum. Some methods have been more formalist, stressing strict correspondences. Others have been more functionalist, embracing jurisprudential difference. The optimal approach may be one in which judges tailor method to context, balancing an open-minded pluralism against minimal but irreducible principles of legality.


This thesis covers the development of the Reverberation Chamber as a measurement tool for cell phone tests in electronic production. It also covers the development of the Scattered Field Chamber as a measurement tool for simulations of real propagation environments. The first part is a more "general knowledge about Reverberation Chambers"-part that covers some important phenomena like unstirred power and position dependence that might occour in a small Reverberation Chamber used for cell phone tests. Knowing how to deal with these phenomenas, give the possibility to use the chamber as a measurement tool for production tests even though it is too complex for a simple test of the antenna function. The second part shows how to alter some important propagation parameters inside the chamber to fit some real world propagation environments. The 3D plane wave distribution, the polarization and the amplitude statistics of the plane waves are all altered with simple techniques that are implementable all together. A small, shielded anechoic box with apertures is used to control 3D plane wave distribution and polarization. Antennas that introduce unstirred power in the chamber are used to control the statistics.


STUDY OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical and cost outcomes of providing nutritional counselling to patients with one or more of the following conditions: overweight, hypertension and type 2 diabetes. DESIGN: The study was designed as a random controlled trial. Consecutive patients were screened opportunistically for one or more of the above conditions and randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups (doctor/dietitian or dietitian) or a control group. Both intervention groups received six counselling sessions over 12 months from a dietitian. However, in the doctor/dietitian group it was the doctor and not the dietitian who invited the patient to join the study and the same doctor also reviewed progress at two of the six counselling sessions. SETTING: The study was conducted in a university group general practice set in a lower socioeconomic outer suburb of Perth, Western Australia. PATIENTS: Of the 273 patients randomly allocated to a study group, 198 were women. Age ranged from 25 to 65 years. Seventy eight per cent of patients resided in the lower two socioecnomic quartiles, 56 per cent described their occupation as home duties and 78 per cent were partnered. RESULTS: Both intervention groups reduced weight and blood pressure compared with the control group. Patients in the doctor/dietitian group were more likely to complete the 12 month programme than those in the dietitian group. Patients in the doctor/dietitian group lost an average of 6.7 kg at a cost of $A9.76 per kilogram, while the dietitian group lost 5.6 kg at a cost of $A7.30 per kilogram. CONCLUSION: General practitioners, in conjunction with a dietitian, can produce significant weight and blood pressure improvement by health promotion methods.


Aim: To synthesize a new series of metal based therapeutic agents with good antimicrobial and antioxidant properties and their structural characterization. Methodology: Synthesis of a series of transition metal complexes of type [M(C16 H11N4O2)X2], where M=Co(II), Ni(II), and Cu(II), X = Cl−, NO3− and CH3COO−derived from template condensation of 1,3-dicarbonyl-phenyl-dihydrazide and 1H-indole-2,3-dione(isatin) and their characterization by ultraviolet-visible, Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance, mass spectral studies. Antimicrobial activity was determined using agar well diffusion method against four bacterial strains and two fungal strains. Antioxidant potential of compounds was screened by 2, 2-diphenyl-1- picrylhydrazyl scavenging activity method. Result: All the synthesized complexes were found to have six coordinated octahedral geometry. All test compounds possess varied but significant antimicrobial activity against four bacterial and two yeast strains. Minimum inhibitory concentrations lie between 32-128 μg/ml for the bacterial strains. Some of the test compounds have shown significant % radical scavenging activity. Conclusion: Tetradentate ligand derived from template condensation coordinates readily with all divalent metal salts and affords the synthesis of octahedral complexes. Detailed structural and biological investigation of this series of complexes would throw more light on the influence of metal coordination on the reactivity of macrocyclic molecules which may be further explored and used as alternative therapeutic agents.


Ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) interacting with the atmosphere generate extensive air showers (EAS) of secondary particles. The depth corresponding to the maximum development of the shower, $\Xmax$, is a well-known observable for determining the nature of the primary cosmic ray which initiated the cascade process. In this paper, we present an empirical model to describe the distribution of $\Xmax$ for EAS initiated by nuclei, in the energy range from $10^{17}$ eV up to $10^{21}$ eV, and by photons, in the energy range from $10^{17}$ eV up to $10^{19.6}$ eV. Our model adopts the generalized Gumbel distribution motivated by the relationship between the generalized Gumbel statistics and the distribution of the sum of non-identically distributed variables in dissipative stochastic systems. We provide an analytical expression for describing the $\Xmax$ distribution for photons and for nuclei, and for their first two statistical moments, namely $\langle \Xmax\rangle$ and $\sigma^{2}(\Xmax)$. The impact of the hadronic interaction model is investigated in detail, even in the case of the most up-to-date models accounting for LHC observations. We also briefly discuss the differences with a more classical approach and an application to the experimental data based on information theory.


. In the classical theory black holes can only absorb and not emit particles. However it is shown that quantum mechanical effects cause black holes to create and emit particles as if they were hot bodies with temperature ;^10~ 6 —— °K where K is the surface gravity of the black 2πk \ M , hole. This thermal emission leads to a slow decrease in the mass of the black hole and to its eventual disappearance: any primordial black hole of mass less than about 10 15 g would have evaporated by now. Although these quantum effects violate the classical law that the area of the event horizon of a black hole cannot decrease, there remains a Generalized Second Law: S+^A never decreases where S is the entropy of matter outside black holes and A is the sum of the surface areas of the event horizons. This shows that gravitational collapse converts the baryons and leptons in the collapsing body into entropy. It is tempting to speculate that this might be the reason why the Universe contains so much entropy per baryon.


Glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) are chemicals developed to control unwanted plants such as weeds or algae. These chemicals act on EPSPS enzyme that blocks the production of tyrosine, phenylalanine, and tryptophan amino acids causing plant death. This biochemical pathway exists only in plant organisms. Despite the target use, GBHs have been related to toxic effects on nonplant organisms, such as invertebrates, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, including humans. This chapter is focused on ecotoxicological effects of GBHs on aquatic environment, showing a perspective of studies since this kind of product was developed until nowadays, an analysis of how many studies for each taxonomic group. Furthermore, we analyzed specifically the toxic effect of GBHs on each taxon, and finally, we discuss future perspectives and suggestions for a better regulation and application for this chemical.


Background: After decades of under investment in health system, strengthening primary health care becomes a central focus of Myanmar's National Health Plan (2017- 2020). In 2011, a health systems strengthening programme was piloted in 20 hard-to-reach townships of Myanmar with support from the Vaccine Alliance. Programme reached the hard-to-reach population with outreach health services, and introduced Hospital Equity Fund to provide free hospitalbased MCH services for poor mothers and children. Prior to its implementation, a baseline assessment was conducted in 2010 and early 2011 and after 2 years, in 2013, programme performance was assessed. This paper reviews the baseline health system situation of 20 hard-to-reach townships in 2010 and assesses programme outputs in 2013. Further, it draws key lessons from implementing interim strategy of primary health care strengthening, to inform current primary health care reform in Myanmar.
Method: Findings from baseline assessment of 20 hard-to-reach townships in 2010-2011 are reviewed to understand township health system situation. Programme outputs after 2 years, in 2013, are assessed through routine monitoring data and reports review, in-depth interviews of total 48 key informants from two selected townships who are township medical officers and basic health staffs, and field observations by the authors.
Results: Baseline assessment uncovered large gaps and multiple challenges that impeded delivery of primary health service in hard-to-reach areas of Myanmar. For example, shortage and misdistribution of primary health workers, lack of essential medicines, equipment, infrastructure and allowances hampered the delivery of outreach and static primary health services. Only 7% of rural health centers met the 13-health workers standard; while 19% of sub centres did not have sheltered premises for service provision. Poverty, low education, financial, geographical and social barriers were key demand side barriers. After two years, in 20 townships, statistics showed increased rates of antenatal care in 19 townships, Skilled Birth Attendants in 15 townships, and coverage of 2nd dose of Tetanus Toxoid and BCG in 11 townships. The Hospital Equity Fund prevented 1,327 potential maternal deaths through obstetric emergency.
Conclusion: Outreach services in low resource setting can ensure improved access to essential health services for the hard-to reach population. While investment in Interim strategy such as outreach services and hospital equity fund demonstrates positive changes in primary health care indicators, it should be gradually replaced by a sustainable primary health care system, for progressive realization of universal health coverage.


With word meanings and word forms paired up like books in their jackets, the human lexicon is a vast and complex library. From its sparse beginnings in infancy, the lexicon incorporates thousands of words and concepts into an efficient processing system. Relationships between words provide an interconnected cross-referencing system, allowing the mature languageuser to slip between the shelves with ease. For decades, the technique of 'priming' has been used to probe organisational characteristics of the adult semantic system. In the priming method, semantic context is systematically manipulated to influence on-line language processing. When sequential activation of particular items alters task performance, inferences can be made about the psychological reality of the relationship between the items – and thereby, inferences about the nature of the system. Both visual and auditory primes are known to influence the speed of lexical access (Antos, 1979; Meyer & Schvaneveldt, 1971; Radeau, 1983) and ambiguity resolution (Swinney, 1979). Various types of semantic relationship have been demonstrated using the priming method, including word association (Moss, Ostrin, Tyler, & Marslen-Wilson, 1995; Nation & Snowling, 1999), taxonomy (Meyer & Schvaneveldt, 1971), shared semantic features (McRae, Cree, Seidenberg, & McNorgan, 2005; Moss, McCormick, & Tyler, 1997), and instrumental relationships (Moss et al., 1995). Thus, facilitation in priming tasks can be understood as a spread of activation between related items in a semantic network (Anderson, 1983; Collins & Loftus, 1975; Meyer & Schvaneveldt, 1976). Yet little is known about the development of the semantic system from first words and concepts, to this complex adult system. Is a system encoding relationships between concepts in place from the early stages of word learning? Or does it arise after extensive experience? Are early relationships adult-like? Or does reorganisation occur? The goal of this chapter is to review recent evidence for adult-like relationships between words in the second year using a recently developed method for investigating the organisational properties of the infant lexicon. Models of lexicon connectivity and development


As an unending stream of women pour into correctional facilities, it is fitting that the criminal justice community should pay more attention to whether gender makes a difference in the crimes that women commit, the pathways that they take to criminality, the sentences they receive, and the impact that their sentences have on their children. This essay reviews three books that raise different issues concerning the relationship between gender and criminal justice outcomes, provides a context for interpreting their contributions, and spotlights a number of questions they raise. The first book is WOMEN AND GIRLS IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM: POLICY ISSUES AND PRACTICE STRATEGIES, edited by Russ Immarigeon, which is a compilation of 52 articles that originally appeared in the bimonthly publication Women, Girls & Criminal Justice, and is now packaged as a one volume reference work available to a wider audience. The second is VICTIMS AS OFFENDERS: THE PARADOX OF WOMEN'S VIOLENCE IN RELATIONSHIPS by Susan L. Miller, which addresses the controversy that exists about the extent of female aggression in the domestic context, and discusses her observations from attending 12-week female offenders' programs. The third is THE FAIRER DEATH: EXECUTING WOMEN IN OHIO by Victor L. Streib, which paints vivid snapshots of the few luckless and until now forgotten women who have broken into the typically all-male death penalty club in Ohio, as well as discusses the characteristics of women who receive the death penalty nationally.Please enter abstract text here.


The subprime crisis has shown that the sophisticated risk management models used by banks and insurance companies had serious flaws. Some people even suggest that these models are completely useless. Others claim that the crisis was just an unpredictable accident that was largely amplified by the lack of expertise and even naivety of many investors. This book takes the middle view. It shows that these models have been designed for "tranquil times", when financial markets behave smoothly and efficiently. However, we are living in more and more "turbulent times": large risks materialize much more often than predicted by "normal" models, financial models periodically go through bubbles and crashes. Moreover, financial risks result from the decisions of economic actors who can have incentives to take excessive risks, especially when their remunerations are ill designed. The book provides a clear account of the fundamental hypotheses underlying the most popular models of risk management and show that these hypotheses are flawed. However it shows that simple models can still be useful, provided they are well understood and used with caution. Available in OSO:


Small business access to credit has been turned upside down in the United States over the last 30 years. It has moved from a difficult problem for small business owners and managers as a group to a relatively modest one. The transformation is largely due to financial services deregulation, information technology, and finance innovation. Prominent among the latter is credit scoring. These developments raise policy issues that are relevant to all developed countries. Among them are: how does one measure and monitor small business credit access? What reassessments need to be made now that credit scoring has mitigated the market failure argument supporting government subsidized small business finance programs? What are the dimensions of a small business credit market? How will recent financial innovation withstand a severe recession? Within the bounds of safety and soundness, what can/should be done to promote de novo bank entry? And, what is the future of conventional small business loan-backed securitization in the light of the sub-prime debacle? Global forces have transformed the financial systems of all developed countries. , Yet, when considering those changes and their implications for small business access to credit, all countries start from a different point. The author's comments focus on the changes American small business experienced accessing credit over the last 30 years, not because the U.S. experience is more instructive than any other nor because the American financial system is somehow more advanced, but simply because he knows it better and can use its context to develop implications for small business that appear applicable to most, if not all, of the world's developed countries. The paper is organized as follows: the first section briefly addresses small business use and sources of debt finance. The second discusses small business owner access to credit and change in it. The third identifies three major factors that drove credit access's decline as a major small business problem. The fourth recognizes characteristics of the American banking system that differ from other banking systems in developed countries, and how that may affect small business access to debt capital. The fifth presents six implications for small business and policymakers in the developed world and the paper concludes with brief comments.