On the Darling Downs the growth and yield of a semi-dwarf wheat (cv. Oxley) under supplementary irrigation was increased by the application of up to 400 kg/ha of nitrogen (N) at planting. Nitrogen at 50 or 100 kg/ha applied at the boot stage to supplement 100 kg/ha applied at planting increased grain yield by 459 and 478 kg/ha, respectively. However, yields were still below those where all the N was applied at planting. In contrast, supplementary N (0, 25, 50 or 100 kg/ha) at flowering or after flowering generally did not increase grain yield. One exception to this was where only 50 kg/ha was applied at planting; an additional 100 kg/ha at flowering increased grain yield by 602 kg/ha. Applied at planting, more than 200 kg/ha of N was needed to produce premium grade wheat (i.e. protein content above 11.4%). To achieve this protein content where 100 kg/ha had been applied at planting an additional 100 kg/ha was needed at the boot stage or 50 kg/ha at flowering. Applied after flowering, up to 100 kg/ha of additional N produced wheat of a protein content too low to attract a premium payment. A similar quantity of N was assimilated whether the entire N application was applied at planting or where the application was split between planting and boot or flowering. Less N was assimilated when the application was split between planting and after flowering. More N was assimilated from soil than from foliar applications at the boot stage. Soil and foliar applications were equally effective at flowering in increasing the amount of N assimilated as well as the grain protein content. However, after flowering foliar application was the more effective method. The application of N at flowering to increase the protein content of this semi-dwarf cultivar is not an attractive commercial practice. The price ratio of premium to Australian Standard White wheat in recent years (<1.071 ) is less than that needed (1.0954-1.3013) to justify splitting the N application to lift grain protein content above 11.4% at the expense of yield.


Scientific and technological advances in the area of integrated circuits have allowed the performance of microprocessors to grow exponentially since the late 1960's. However, the imbalance between processor and memory bus capacity has increased in recent years. The increasing on-chip-parallelism of multi-core processors has turned the memory subsystem into a key factor for achieving high performance. When two or more processes share the memory subsystem their execution times typically increase, even at relatively low levels of memory traffic. Current research shows that a throughput increase of up to 40% is possible if the job-scheduler can minimizes the slowdown caused by memory contention in industrial multi-core systems such as high performance clusters, datacenters or clouds. In order to optimize the throughput the job-scheduler has to know how much slower the process will execute when co-scheduled on the same server as other processes. Consequently, unless the slowdown is known, or can be fairly well estimated, the scheduling becomes pure guesswork and the performance suffers.
The central question addressed in this thesis is how the slowdown caused by memory traffic interference between processes executing on the same server can be predicted and to what extent. This thesis presents and evaluates a new slowdown prediction method which estimates how much longer a program will execute when co-scheduled on the same multi-core server as another program. The method measures how external memory traffic affects a program by generating different levels of synthetic memory traffic while observing the change in execution time. Based on the observations it makes a first order prediction of how much slowdown the program will experience when exposed to external memory traffic.
Experimental results show that the method's predictions correlate well with the real measured slowdowns. Furthermore, it is shown that scheduling based on the new slowdown prediction method yields a higher throughput than three other techniques suggested for avoiding co-scheduling slowdowns caused by memory contention. Finally, a novel scheme is suggested to avoid some of the worst co-schedules, thus increasing the system throughput.


Although physicians generally are expected to secure their patients' informed consent to medical treatment, an emerging body of legal opinion holds that in certain situations nurses and allied health care professionals may be found similarly responsible. Failure of a health care provider to protect a patient's right of informed consent might result in a lawsuit alleging that serious harm was sustained needlessly because the patient plaintiff was not informed of certain significant risks of or consequences that resulted from treatment. As a professional group that puts patients at risk of harm during treatment, physical therapists need to know about their legal duty to facilitate a patient's awareness of and consent to treatment. This article discusses the nature of that duty and how a patient plaintiff might try to prove negligence against a physical therapist who allegedly fails to secure a valid statement of informed consent. The article also provides recommendations so that physical therapists might protect themselves from malpractice suits alleging "uninformed" consent.


This thesis aims to investigate how the pedagogical instruction of the cellists Evangeline Benedetti and Christopher Bunting can be applied to inform my performances of Grieg's Sonata in a minor for cello and piano Op. 36 (1883) and Carl Vine's Inner World for cello and pre-recorded CD (1994). This study involves the analysis of the technical approaches of Benedetti and Bunting, and the synthesis of these with those of other published pedagogues and my own observations regarding cello technique. The most reliable and musically successful technical approaches are then discussed in relation to Grieg's Sonata and Vine's Inner World and applied to the performances. The scope of the repertoire allows for assessments of the functionality of the ideas across very different musical styles. The compositions of Grieg and Vine were selected for this study for a number of reasons. The inclusion of a Romantic work is important as this period is representative of much of the cello's core repertoire. Grieg's work contains many instances where the technical approaches of Benedetti and Bunting can be discussed. Carl Vine's Inner World suits very well as a contrasting work due to its rhythmic complexity, unique sound world and use of extended techniques.


PAGE: 1 OF: 5 • If a product excludes coverage for a service, it is not covered, and medical policy criteria do not apply. • If a commercial product, including an Essential Plan product, covers a specific service, medical policy criteria apply to the benefit. • If a Medicare product covers a specific service, and there is no national or local Medicare coverage decision for the service, medical policy criteria apply to the benefit.


One of the biggest challenges in the design of educational systems concerns how vocational education and training (VET) systems are best organized for the labour markets of tomorrow. Do we need more specialized craftsmen with practical and specific skills that tightly link to specific occupations, or do we need a shift towards broader craftsmen with more general skills? Using microdata from France, Germany, and The Netherlands, we show that there are different ways by which the VET sector establishes school-to-work linkages. Linkages between school to work are on average stronger in systems with a dual VET sector compared to a full school-based model. However, an important reason why linkages are stronger is because of compositional differences, as in dual VET systems more students tend to be enrolled in strongly linking educational programs. Moreover, VET systems are far from homogeneous, and there are large differences in how strong educational programmes link to occupations within and between countries. In general, employment is highest among the stronger linking programs, and this effect is strongest in dual VET systems. These results suggest that there is still room for occupationally oriented schooling.


Sequestering atmospheric CO2 is necessitated by its present concentration of 385 ppm and increasing at the rate of 2 ppm y−1. Increase in atmospheric emission of CO2 with the attendant global warming and environmental degradation are driven by global energy demand. In comparison with the emission of 300 Pg C between 1850 and 2000, total emission during the 21st century is estimated at 950 to 2195 Pg, with an annual rate of emission of 20 to 35 Pg C y−1. Reduction of CO2 atmospheric loading can be achieved by biological, chemical and technological options through either reducing or sequestering emissions. This article describes technological options of sequestering atmospheric CO2 into other global pools. Geologic sequestration involves underground storage of industrially emitted CO2 into the geosphere for long-term and secure storage. Liquefied CO2 is injected about 1000 m below the ground surface either in stable porous rocks, oil wells, coal beds, or saline aquifers. Co-injecting CO2 along with H2S and SO2 is also possible. Over time, the trapped CO2 reacts with minerals to form carbonates, enhances oil recovery, or displaces coal bed methane. Deep injection of CO2 under the ocean creates a CO2 lake which eventually penetrates into the sediments. Iron fertilization is another technique of enhancing the C pool in marine biota, notably phytoplankton. The so-called "biological pumping" is based on the "iron hypothesis" of transferring C to the ocean floor. Terrestrial C sequestration is based on the natural process of photosynthesis. Transfer of CO2 into the biotic pool and soil C pool via humification and formation of secondary carbonates has numerous ancillary benefits through enhancement of ecosystem services. Soil C sequestration is essential to improving soil quality, increasing use efficiency of agronomic input, and advancing world food security. It is also needed to improve water quality by filtration and denaturing of pollutants, and enhancing biodiversity by saving land for nature conservancy. Soil C sequestration is a low hanging fruit, and a bridge to the future until low-C or no-C fuel sources take effect.


We have investigated the magnetoresistance of metal-semiconductor hybrid structures at 4.2 K. The devices consisted of polycrystallineAu and an InAs-based heterostructure that hosted a high-mobility two-dimensional electron system. We have varied the electrical parameters and, in particular, the width-to-length ratio W ∕ L of the linear hybrid structures. The recently discovered extraordinary magnetoresistanceeffect is most pronounced for narrow devices with W ∕ L ⩽ 0.05 , consistent with our theoretical prediction. Relative resistance changes with a factor of 1000 are observed at 1 T. To achieve this an interfaceresistance of only 10 − 8 Ω cm 2 is a prerequisite. This can be prepared routinely by in situ cleaved edge overgrowth.


Direct rule generation is a possible alternative to tree building for classifiers. Here, we use the association rule framework to build classifiers. The rule generator performs direct enumeration (no generation of candidate sequences or so, and no preliminary enumeration of large sets) with online pruning to keep combinatorial explosion under control. The rule set thus generated is ultimately and drastically decimated so that a final non redundant rule system with reduced learning bias is produced. Decimation is modeled as a minimum cost and minimal set covering problem solved with a genetic algorithm. Experiment results are presented and compared to results obtained with a tree building based classifier (C4.5).


This study explores how selected West African war novels employ non-realist narrative modes to portray disruptions in the child's development into adulthood. The novels considered are Chris Abani's Song for Night (2007), Ahmadou Kourouma's Allah is Not Obliged (2006), Uzodinma Iweala's Beasts of No Nation (2005) and Delia Jarrett-Macauley's Moses, Citizen and Me (2005). These novels strain at the conventions of realism as a consequence of the attempt to represent the disruptions in child development as a result of the upheavals of war. A core proposition of the study is to present why the authors in question are obliged to employ non-realist modes in representing disrupted childhoods that reflect the social and cultural disorder attendant upon war. The dissertation also asks pertinent questions regarding the ideological effect of these narrative strategies and the effect of the particular stylistic idiosyncrasies of each of the authors in figuring childhood in postcolonial Africa. The novels in question employ surrealism, the absurd, the grotesque and magical realism, in presenting the first person narratives of children in war situations, or the reflections of adult narrators on children affected by war. This study further analyses the ways the aesthetic modes employed by these authors underscore, in particular, children's experiences of war. Through strategic use of specific literary techniques, these authors highlight questions of vulnerability, powerlessness and violence on children, as a group that has been victimised and co-opted into violence. The study further considers how these narrative transformations in the representations of children in novels, capture transformations in ideas about childhood in postcolonial Africa. CITATION STYLE: MLA (Gibaldi, 7 ed.) http://etd.uwc.ac.za


In management of metabolic syndrome, the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an excellent representative in alternative and complementary medicines with a complete theory system and substantial herb remedies. In this article, basic principle of TCM is introduced and 25 traditional Chinese herbs are reviewed for their potential activities in the treatment of metabolic syndrome. Three herbs, ginseng, rhizoma coptidis (berberine, the major active compound) and bitter melon, were discussed in detail on their therapeutic potentials. Ginseng extracts made from root, rootlet, berry and leaf of Panax quinquefolium (American ginseng) and Panax ginseng (Asian ginseng), are proved for anti-hyperglycemia, insulin sensitization, islet protection, anti-obesity and anti-oxidation in many model systems. Energy expenditure is enhanced by ginseng through thermogenesis. Ginseng-specific saponins (ginsenosides) are considered as the major bioactive compounds for the metabolic activities of ginseng. Berberine from rhizoma coptidis is an oral hypoglycemic agent. It also has anti-obesity and anti-dyslipidemia activities. The action mechanism is related to inhibition of mitochondrial function, stimulation of glycolysis, activation of AMPK pathway, suppression of adipogenesis and induction of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor expression. Bitter melon or bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) is able to reduce blood glucose and lipids in both normal and diabetic animals. It may also protect beta cells, enhance insulin sensitivity and reduce oxidative stress. Although evidence from animals and humans supports the therapeutic activities of ginseng, berberine and bitter melon, multi-center large-scale clinical trials have not been conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of these herbal medicines.


We present a local Fourier slice equation that enables local and sparse projection of a signal. Our result exploits that a slice in frequency space is an iso-parameter set in spherical coordinates. The projection of suitable wavelets defined separably in these coordinates can therefore be computed analytically, yielding a sequence of wavelets closed under projection. Our local Fourier slice equation then realizes projection as reconstruction with "sliced" wavelets with computational costs that scale linearly in the complexity of the projected signal. We numerically evaluate the performance of our local Fourier slice equation for synthetic test data and tomographic reconstruction, demonstrating that locality and sparsity can significantly reduce computation times and memory requirements.


The shortage of special education teachers in the United States, and the adverse consequences flowing from factors related to this condition provide a unique opportunity for scholars to study these issues through interdisciplinary research. Educational scholars have typically focused their research on educational practice and institutional policy. Although this scholarship frequently acknowledges the statutory and regulatory foundations of the IDEA, the literature does not generally adopt a legal framework for research purposes. This is not a criticism of educational scholars. It is merely an observation that opportunities exist to study special education teacher issues in a broader context. This Article argues for such an approach, and thus, seeks to analyze the psychological and emotional impact of Special Education Law upon special education teachers through the lens of Therapeutic Jurisprudence. Therapeutic Jurisprudence is one of the vectors of a comprehensive law movement that began during the last few decades as a means to assess ways by which law and its processes could better serve the needs of society. Examples of other vectors of this movement include: collaborative law, creative problem solving, holistic justice, preventive law, problem solving courts, procedural justice, restorative justice, and transformative mediation. The list is not exhaustive, and the vectors are not exclusive. Indeed there have been occasions where the interests among vectors have overlapped creating synergies and opportunities for collaboration found useful to both. An example of this paradigm is the successful collaboration between Preventive Law and Therapeutic Jurisprudence.


BACKGROUND
Residents of communities without local access to clinical oncology care face significant challenges that can be addressed through the use of technology. Teleoncology uses secure, interactive video- and audioconferencing and telephone communication to remotely deliver quality cancer care.

OBJECTIVES
This article introduces the role of the oncology nurse navigator (ONN) as a collaborative caregiver and virtual resource for patients and teleoncology providers.

METHODS
The literature on telehealth, nurse navigation, and teleoncology was reviewed to describe the ONN role and its integration with eHealth technologies.

FINDINGS
As a member of the interprofessional provider team, the ONN works collaboratively with patients and their family members and serves as a virtual resource. The ONN also provides clinical communication among clinical oncology providers and support staff. The ONN supports eHealth as a method of providing clinical care to patients close to their homes.


Appeal to emotion is a key technique of persuasion, ranked by Aristotle alongside logical reasoning and arguments from character. Although ancient philosophical discussions of it have been much researched, exploration of its practical use has focused largely on explicit appeals to a handful of emotions (anger, hatred, envy, pity) in 5th–4th century BCE Athenian courtroom oratory. This volume expands horizons: from an opening section focusing on so-far underexplored emotions and sub-genres of oratory in Classical Athens, its scope moves outwards generically, geographically, and chronologically through the "Greek East" to Rome. Key thematic links are: the role of emotion in the formation of community identity; persuasive strategies in situations of unequal power; and linguistic formulae and genre-specific emotional persuasion. Other recurring themes include performance (rather than arousal) of emotions, the choice between emotional and rational argumentation, the emotions of gods, and a concern with a secondary "audience": the reader.


A key goal of pre-college engineering programs is to increase the number and retention of students pursuing engineering degrees. The researchers conducted a transcript analysis in order to compare the retention of entering engineering majors at a university based on whether or not they participated in Project Lead the Way (PLTW) in high school. PLTW Engineering is a high school pre-engineering curriculum that offers a series of courses to increase student awareness and scaffold an understanding of engineering design. The findings from this study offer little support regarding the impact of students' PLTW participation on engineering degree completion. However, findings do suggest some support for the impact of PLTW participation on retention from freshmen to sophomore year, particularly among minority freshmen.


Today's software systems often use many different computation features and span different abstraction levels (e.g., user code and runtime-system code). To build foundational certified systems, it is hard to have a single verification system supporting all computation features. In this paper we present an open framework for foundational proof-carrying code (FPCC). It allows program modules to be specified and certified separately using different type systems or program logics. Certified modules (i.e., code and proof) can be linked together to build fully certified systems. The framework supports modular verification and proof reuse. It is also expressive enough so that invariants established in specific verification systems are preserved even when they are embedded into our framework. Our work presents the first FPCC framework that systematically supports interoperation between different verification systems. It is fully mechanized in the Coq proof assistant with machine-checkable soundness proof.


OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to evaluate the geometric pattern and the intensity of artifacts around titanium implants in cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) using an in vitro model.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
Ten test models, each containing one 4.1-mm-diameter titanium implant, were cast from a human mandible using silicone impression material and dental stone. Each model contained an implant in one of the following single-tooth gaps: 37, 36, 34, 33, 31, 41, 43, 44, 46, and 47. For control purposes, three models without implants were produced. Each model was scanned five times using a CBCT scanner. Gray values (GV) were recorded at eight circumferential positions around the implants at 0.5 mm, 1 mm, and 2 mm from the implant surface (GVTest ). GV were measured in the corresponding volumes of interest (VOI) in the models without implants (GVControl ). Differences of gray values (ΔGV) between GVTest and GVControl were calculated as percentages. To detect differences between GVTest and GVControl , the 95% confidence interval (CI) was computed for the values of ΔGV. Repeated measures ANOVA was used for the comparison of ΔGV at 0.5 mm, 1 mm, and 2 mm from the implant surface.

RESULTS
Artifacts reflected by altered GV were always present in the proximity of titanium implants, regardless of the implant position. When comparing GVTest and GVControl , increased GV were found at the buccal and lingual aspects of the implant sites, whereas regions with reduced GV were located along the long axis of the mandibular body of the test models. A significant decrease in artifact intensity was found with increasing distance from the buccal implant surface (ΔGV0.5 mm : 45 ± 10% [SD], ΔGV1 mm : 28 ± 14% [SD], ΔGV2 mm : 14 ± 7% [SD]) (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION
Artifacts around titanium implants in CBCT images were distributed according to a geometrical pattern.


Meat processing industries produce large volumes of high strength wastewater. Conventional technologies used in Australia and similar countries for treatment of effluent from meat processing and similar industries, such as wineries and processed food industry, are treatment ponds with or without a mechanical treatment system.

A properly designed activated sludge treatment system would be capable of biological removal of phosphorus and nitrogen in addition to BOD5. These systems, however, require substantial electrical power, skilled operational support and produce large quantities of biosolids or sludge which require further on-site treatment or off site disposal. Application of sub-surface flow constructed wetland (SSF-CW) systems could provide a sustainable solution for treatment of meat processing industry effluent and other similar high strength wastewaters. There are, however, only very limited studies on application of SSF-CW for secondary treatment of high strength wastewaters. Although there have been a number of cases where SSF-CW have been used as the secondary treatment unit for municipal wastewater, this technology has not still become a common practice for the same purpose in Australia. Most of the applications are for either polishing of secondary or tertiary treated municipal wastewater or for greywater treatment.

This research was funded by National Meat Industry Advisory Council (MINTRAC). Sustainable wastewater treatment has been taken up as a very important issue by meat industry. The industry provides Ph.D research scholarships through MINTRAC to develop new technologies for wastewater treatment and nutrient removal from meat processing effluent.

The main objective of the research was to develop process engineering design parameters for sub-surface flow constructed wetland (SSF-CW) with Monto vetiver (Vetiveria zizanioides recently reclassified as Chrysopogon zizanioides) as the emergent vegetation for treatment of high strength, nutrient rich wastewater. The study also investigated the phosphorus retention properties of pea gravel for use in SSF-CW system as bed media or as an external phosphorus removal system for meat processing industry effluent. In addition, chemical methods for phosphorus removal from meat processing industry effluent were also investigated.

The thesis is based on experimental research. The research consisted of three types of experimental set up; a) using two laboratory experimental SSF-CW reactors (one with vetiver grass and the other reactor with no vegetation) in a greenhouse with batch feeding of artificial wastewater that simulates meat industry effluent, b) experiment with pea gravel of different particle sizes and solutions of different phosphorus (P) concentrations in a constant temperature room, c) laboratory experiment using actual meat processing industry effluent with alum and sodium aluminate for P removal.

The structure of the thesis is as follows. Following the Introduction is the section of Literature Review, then sections on the experiments that follow a journal paper format, followed by a General Discussion, Conclusions and Recommendations. A list of references is provided at the end of the thesis.

The literature review section has four chapters (Chapter 2 to Chapter 5). Chapter 2 describes a review of meat processing industry effluent characteristics and current treatment technologies. Chapter 3 is a critical review of current literature on COD removal using sub-surface flow constructed wetlands (SSF-CW). Chapter 4 and 5 describe a review of various processes and models on the fate of nitrogen and phosphorus in SSF-CW system respectively.

Chapters 6 to 10 deal with experimental research part of the thesis. Chapters, 6, 7 and 8 share a common methodology section which is described in Chapter 6. Results of the batch experiments with the laboratory SSF-CW systems on COD removal, nitrogen removal and phosphorus retention are discussed in Chapters 6, 7 and 8 respectively. Chapter 9 explains a detailed experimental study on phosphorus adsorption dynamics of pea gravel. Chapter 10 discusses the results on experiments using sodium aluminate and aluminium sulphate for P removal from meat processing industry effluent as an alternate P removal method for such effluent.

An overview of the major results of the experimental section is discussed in chapter 11, in the General Discussion section. Conclusions and Recommendations of the research are provided in Chapter 12.

In this study, it was observed that Monto vetiver grass performed better during nitrification than in denitrification, where the plant did not survive. Ammonium N removal followed a first order decay in both vegetated and un-vegetated experimental SSF-CW system with average removal ranging from 40 to 60 % of the influent. Denitrification was found to be the pathway for nitrate removal. As long as the carbon source was available, the denitrification followed a first order exponential decay, with over 80% of nitrate was removed in 48 hours. Vetiver grass sustained elevated ammonium levels of approximately 200 mg/L or more, however it was under stress during denitrification and it eventually died.

The experimental SSF-CW systems with pea gravel as bed media could effectively retain soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) in the wetland cells during experiments of COD reduction and nitrification (with ammonia and high COD input). However, during denitrification study, both experimental SSF-CW cells did not show significant removal of SRP from wastewater. The vegetated cell removed nearly 50% of the input SRP, however, the un-vegetated cell did not show any trend for SRP removal, and in some cases the effluent SRP was nearly 90% of the input value.

The role of Monto vetiver grass for N and P removal was found to be very minor and this study concluded that nutrient removal (N and P) by plant uptake could be neglected in the design of SSF-CW system with Monto vetiver grass.

Adsorption is the major mechanism for P removal from the experimental SSF-CW systems, where pea gravel was used as bed media. The P adsorption capacity of pea gravel increased with decrease in particle size. For 16 to 18 mm, the Langmuir adsorption maximum was 99 mg/kg, whereas for very fine pea gravel powder (>150 mcg) the maximum adsorption observed experimentally was 3950 mg/kg. In a typical wetland with pea gravel as bed media for meat processing industry, the media would be capable of P retention for about 2 to 3 years of operation. Supplementary chemical removal method is needed for sustainable P removal once the adsorption maximum of wetland cell is reached.

A chemical P removal system using liquid alum and NaOH for pH stabilisation is more appropriate than sodium aluminate. Application of sodium aluminate for P removal for meat processing industry effluent is found to be less effective as it would need higher dosage, longer settling period, coloured supernatant, acid addition for pH adjustment. Liquid alum application rate is recommended to be between a molar ratio of Al: P of 3 for TP value of <1 mg/L in the treated effluent.

This research study concludes that horizontal flow SSF-CW system with Monto vetiver grass is suitable for COD removal and nitrification from high strength wastewater. Current design equation of horizontal flow SSF-CW system is mostly plug flow exponential decay method, but in this study, it has been concluded that retarded first order rate constant is the most appropriate design method for horizontal flow SSF-CW system for COD removal.


We argue that standard modeling practices often overstate the potency of general-equilibrium (GE) mechanisms. We formalize the notion that GE adjustment is weak, or that it takes time, by modifying an elementary Walrasian economy in two alternative manners. In one, we replace Rational Expectations Equilibrium with solution concepts that mimic Tâtonnement or Cobweb dynamics, Level-k Thinking, Reflective Equilibrium, and certain kinds of cognitive discounting. In the other, we maintain rational expectations but remove common knowledge of aggregate shocks and accommodate higher-order uncertainty. This permits us, not only to illustrate the broader plausibility of the notion that the GE adjustment may be weak or slow, but also to illustrate the sense in which our preferred approach—the one based on lack of common knowledge—can be seen as a disciplined substitute to certain kinds of bounded rationality. We finally discuss possible applications, including how our results may help reduce the gap between the macroeconomic effects of interest and the micro or local effects estimated in a growing empirical literature.


Jellies are typically considered difficult organisms to raise in the lab by many scientists. This is due to their requirements for constant water current and the absence of corners. In the wild, jellies such as moon jellies (Aurelia aurita) rarely encounter habitats outside of the open ocean where they are part of the plankton, so they are not adapted to navigate obstacles or get out of small spaces such as the corners of aquaria. In order to conduct an experiment utilizing live moon jellies to assess their utility in bioremediation of oil spills, we designed and built 4 pseudo-kreisel aquaria to house our jellies using a limited budget and many readily-available materials. Here, we present the methods used to construct these aquaria inexpensively (important for undergraduate research!) and evidence of their effectiveness in long-term housing of live jellies so that other researchers interested in jelly research can construct similar housing. Briefly, we removed the corners from 10 gallon aquaria and also provided for continuous circular water currents by adding quarter pieces of the sides of 5 gallon buckets attached via silicon sealant. Current was provided by spray bars that provided even water flow in all areas of the aquaria, driven by pumps in the external sump and filtration systems. We built the sump/filtration systems using 5-gallon buckets containing bio-balls and filter floss. Water was delivered to the sumps via PVC overflow plumbed into the aquaria via a bulkhead set into the glass at the desired water level. The overflows were covered with a small piece of fine screen and directly behind the spray bars in order to prevent jellies from becoming stuck as water leaves the system for filtration. Results of husbandry including survival and indicators of jelly health such as pulsing rate and holes in their bells over approximately 3 months will be presented.


Introduction: Nursing education expects the students to be competent enough to render quality care for their patients in hospital as well as community setting. To reach the level of expected competency, the students must undergo vigorous training during their undergraduate education. The learning experience of the students is influenced by many factors. Aim: To identify the factors, affecting learning as perceived by the students. Materials and Methods: This descriptive survey was conducted among 414 undergraduate nursing students enrolled in selected Nursing Colleges. Background information was collected using Demographic Proforma and the factors affecting learning were identified using Likert Scale. Factors were identified by exploratory factor analysis using extraction method of principal component analysis with varimax rotation. Results: Majority (73.7%) of the samples were between 22-25 years of age, 93.2% were females, most (38.9%) were studying in the fourth year of nursing, 50% of the students enrolled in the study had chosen nursing as a career due to job security in future, 58.7% students did not spent time every day for their studies and majority (89.1%) had English as their medium of instruction in Pre-university college. Factor analysis identified five factors (Learning environment, Supportive services, Teacher characteristics, Learner challenges and Personal factors) that affect the student learning. Conclusion: From the present study it can be concluded that perception of students do have an influence on factors affecting learning. The study findings will help the faculty members to bring in changes for the best learning outcome.


This guide has been created with the purpose of reviewing, synthesising and distilling the various regulation innovation initiatives of the Financial Conduct Authority in recent years with a primary focus on Project Innovate and in particular, the much-lauded Innovate Regulatory Sandbox which has been replicated in well over twenty countries to date. The guide seeks to provide valuable insights into the UK's experience of fostering financial innovation for the benefit of other regulators and authorities seeking to address and stimulate both financial and regulatory innovation in their respective jurisdictions and for their objectives.

While this guide has been designed to be widely accessible to those interested in the FCA's innovation activities, this project emerged from an initiative led by the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office (the FCO) to primarily assist regulators and policymakers in China to understand and gather insights on the UK's financial innovation activities. The project emerged from a collaboration between the research teams at the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance and the Academy of Internet Finance at Zhejiang University, China.


Information System (IS) implementations are a risky business with studies showing only a 16% - 29% success rate. This research explores the use of social network analysis (SNA) to inform the creation of a Community of Practice (CoP) to support a Finance Management System implementation in a higher education organization. IS implementations can be equated to the diffusion of innovation. The successful diffusion of an innovation requires it to be communicated through a social system. Organizations rarely know what their social network looks like - it is not the formal organization chart. SNA can be used to gain an understanding of the social network and how individuals with high social capital can be identified. There is growing evidence that CoP support successful organizational change initiatives but it is less clear how CoP membership might be agreed. SNA provides an evidence-based approach to CoP formation. The IS implementation case described in the paper demonstrates a new approach to IS implementation grounded in social capital and CoP and illustrates how it might be conducted in practice.


Background in Ethnomusicology: The gaida bagpipe is a musical instrument highly characteristic of the agricultural societies of Western Thrace. Its special playing technique influences its repertoire (Sarris 2007). One of the main characteristics observed in most genres of the instrument's repertoire is the technique of parataxis. A music piece is constructed by a sequence of music segments, which are the structural units of the repertoire (Sarris, Kolydas, & Tzevelekos, 2010). This technique is dominant in Zonaradikos line dance, which is considered the 'backbone' of the instrumental dancing repertoire of Thrace. Background in Statistics: Statistics, as a scientific tool, has been broadly used in sciences as well as in humanities. Regarding music studies, statistics has been applied in compositional techniques, as well as in historical musicology. Regarding Greek traditional music, limited use of statistical methods has been made. Spyridis (1997) has applied the methods of descriptive statistics (distributions, graphic charts, histograms etc.) and stochastic processes for the multilateral charting of a corpus of Zonaradikos line dance songs from Western Thrace. Aims: In this study, we aim to chart instrumental Zonaradikos dance played by the gaida bagpipe in the Evros region of Western Thrace, in terms of melody, rhythm, and structure, using descriptive statistics. Data from statistic analysis are evaluated under the prism of the instrument's capabilities, hence demonstrating the instrument-repertoire relationship. Main Contribution: In order to shed light on the instrument-repertoire relationship we use statistical methods. We acquire frequency distributions of absolute pitches, frequently used melodic intervals, rhythmical patterns and other musicological elements of Zonaradikos. In a second level of analysis, we attempt to evaluate statistical data under the prism of the gaida's playing techniques and capabilities. We are based on the population of instrumental Zonaradika from the Research Programme "Thrace" archive (http://epth.sfm.gr). We conclude that instrumental Zonaradikos is characterized by 'bipolarity'(song melodies and instrumental phrases, which both have distinctive musical characteristics, are 'interwoven') hence creating the form. Implications: Our research will help us to draw parallels between the gaida, a characteristic instrument of the agricultural societies of Thrace, and Zonaradikos, the 'backbone' of instrumental dance repertoire of those societies. Further, our data may have a tutorial application for a prospective gaida player wishing to shed light on this genre of repertoire, given that the bearers of this oral tradition cease to exist.


Lead is a toxic metal that induces a wide range of biochemical and physiological effects. The present investigation was designed at evaluating the toxic effects of a prenatal exposure to lead of mothers on hepatic tissue of newborn rats, and potent protective effects of spirulina. Female rats were randomly divided into 4 groups which were given a normal diet (control),a diet enriched with spirulina (S), lead acetate administered through drinking water (Pb), or a diet enriched with spirulina and lead contaminated water (S Pb), respectively. The duration of treatments was from the 5th day of gestation to 14 days postpartum. Lead toxicity was assessed by measuring body and liver weights, blood and stomach lead levels, hepatic DNA, RNA and protein amounts, blood enzyme activities (AST and ALT), as well as lipid peroxidation level and activities of antioxidant enzymes in hepatic tissues of neonates. Lead intoxication of mothers caused reduction of liver weight as well as of hepatic DNA, mRNA and protein levels in newborns. Moreover, oxidative stress and changes in antioxidant enzyme activities were recorded. Conversely, supplementation of mothers with spirulina mitigated these effects induced by lead. These results substantiated the potential hepatoprotective and antioxidant activity of spirulina.


Planar waveguides were made from a linear epoxy copolymer of bisphenol-A diglycidyl ether and amino-nitro-tolane. The refractive indices, nTM and nTE, and the electro-optic coefficients, r33 and r13, of the poled nonlinear-optical polymer films were determined by measurements of the waveguide modes of these films at a wavelength of 632.8 nm, and the results are reported for both electrode and corona poling. The ratio of the second-order susceptibilities was found to exceed significantly the theoretically expected value of 3. The restricted motion of the nonlinear chromophores during poling provides a possible explanation of this discrepancy. Introducing a restriction parameter ν (0 ≤ ν ≤ 1), we develop a simple model that can account for electro-optic coefficient ratios ranging from 3 to 6.


Seasonal changes in the total phenolic content, flavonoid content, specific activity of the enzyme polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and that of the antioxidative enzymes-catalase (CAT) and peroxidases (POX) were analyzed in three leafy liverworts, namely Solenostoma crenulata, Chiloscyphus gollani and Fossombronia himalayensis. In the rainy season (July–September), the plants were in their young juvenile stage and the levels of activity of antioxidative enzymes catalase (CAT) and peroxidases (POX) were observed to be the lowest. The enzymes showed maximum activity during the months January–March which constitute a dormant season for bryophytes. Activity of POX is found to be higher than that of CAT in all the three seasons. Highest content of flavonoids was observed towards the end of the growing season (January–March). Total phenolic content was found to be highest in winter season (October–December). PPO showed highest activity in the rainy season (July–September) and lowest during winter season. Activity of enzyme PPO and that of phenolic content showed inverse relationship.


Segmenting text from image of rough, degraded historical document is difficult task because of higher inter variation and intra variation between foreground text and document background of different document images. This can be solved with the help of image binarization technique. We can make use of this technique to clear the historical document, making them usable for further processing. As the image of old historical documents are often in degrade form it is hard to retrieve and understand what is written on them. So it is necessary to find solution to this problem, by taking picture and binarizing it with suitable technique we can able to understand the text so here we developed a image binarization technique. Here we provide new segmentation algorithm in which each pixel has its own threshold value. In old system the contrast image is used as preprocessing step but in this technique gray scale image is used. The pixels are categorized as foreground or background pixels depending upon their comparison with threshold valued. Pixel value is compared to the threshold value. The technique is known as window thresholding .We are doing work on window of size p*q and from each window text stroke of each pixel are extracted .Again local threshold is used to segment the document text that is estimated based on intensity of detected text stroke of edge pixel in local window. KeywordsImage Processing, Image Binarization, Image Segmentation.


Initial investigations with six small and medium sized firms were carried out where innovation of products and processes played a major role. On the basis of preliminary analysis one company was chosen for an in-depth investigation and analysis through participant observation. Innovation implementation situations were identified in the manufacturing unit of a small engineering firm and studied through observation of the process and in-depth interviews with participants. The concept of technological innovation was widened to include structural innovation and a theoretical framework was developed to describe and promote the innovation implementation process. This linked a classification of innovation with organisation structure and appropriate decision making process. As a result it was found that the innovation process was only influenced marginally by overall structural characteristics of organisation. It was more influenced by the local structures made up of the individuals actively involved in the process - their decision making and communication patterns with each other and other parts of the organisation.As these local structures were composed of different people for different innovations or changed in composition as the innovation implementation process proceeded, a need for one person to act as overseer --- interpreter and integrator emerged. The researcher found herself fulfilling this role. Further work was carried out in examining this key role through an analysis of the researcher's own contribution and role within the company in innovation situations. This also contributed to the research process in its implications for research methodology, particular the Action Research model where the researcher is actively involved in learning and change.


People who deviate from the established norms of their social group can clarify group boundaries, strengthen group cohesion, and catalyze group and broader social change. Yet social psychologists have recently neglected the study of deviants. We conducted in-depth interviews of Princeton University upperclassmen who deviated from a historical and widely known Princeton norm: joining an "eating club," a social group that undergraduates join at the end of their sophomore year. We explored the themes of these interviews with two rounds of surveys during the semester when students decide whether to join an eating club (pilot survey, N = 408; and a random subsample of the pilot survey with 90% takeup, N = 212). The surveys asked: what are the social and psychological antecedents of deviance from norms? The data suggest that deviance is a pattern: compared to those who conform, students who deviate by not joining clubs report a history of deviance and of feeling different from the typical member of their social group. They also feel less social belonging and identification with Princeton and its social environment. Students who deviate are lower in self-monitoring, but otherwise are comparable to students who conform in terms of personality traits measured by the Big Five, and of their perception of the self as socially awkward, independent, or rebellious. While some of these findings replicate past research, worth further exploration is the role of previous experience with deviance and its meaning for individuals as they decide whether to deviate.


The constitutional changes in South Africa over the past decade have had far-reaching consequences on society. As organs of state, schools have been directly affected by the need to ensure that their operations and rules are constitutionally and legislatively compatible. Human rights do not exist purely as an ideal but must be promoted and enforced within the school sphere. One such right is the right to freedom of expression, and expression in the form of dress is a critical element of such expression within the school context. The issue of school dress codes in South Africa is examined with reference to the experiences of four other countries, in order to determine the constitutionality of such dress codes, and whether dress codes are an impermissible limitation of learners' freedom of expression, couched in permissible sounding language.
 South African Journal of Education Vol.23(3) 2003: 163-167


Abstract Balzer, Sulsky, Hammer, and Sumner (1992) demonstrated that task information, rather than cognitive information or functional validity information, is the necessary component of cognitive feedback (CFB). We designed a laboratory experiment to replicate the effects of (CFB) components while jointly investigating the impact of CFB display format and CFB elaboration on performance. Undergraduates ( N = 323) were each randomly assigned to a single experimental condition in a 4 × 2 × 2 factorial design which manipulated the CFB components (TI, CI, TI + CI, or TI + CI + FVI), CFB display format (alphanumeric or graphic), and CFB elaboration (typical or augmented). The experimental task, procedures, and dependent measures were identical to Balzer et al. (1992). A main effect of CFB components was found, with results replicating the Balzer et al. findings that task information was necessary for improved performance. The main effects of CFB display format and CFB elaboration, as well as their interactions with each other and the CFB components, had little impact on judgment performance or reactions to feedback. Practical implications of the findings are discussed.


PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES
To describe patterns of fatigue in adolescents and the impact of fatigue during one month of chemotherapy, to explore variables that affect fatigue, and to explore the feasibility of collecting daily self-report data in this population.

DESIGN
Longitudinal, descriptive.

SETTING
Two pediatric oncology centers in central Virginia.

SAMPLE
20 adolescents with a variety of cancer diagnoses receiving chemotherapy.

METHODS
Adolescents described daily fatigue for one month using rating scales and qualitative diaries.

MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES
Fatigue severity.

FINDINGS
Adolescents commonly reported a peak in fatigue in the days immediately following chemotherapy administration. The most common pattern for adolescents who received chemotherapy on a schedule every three to four weeks was a "declining rollercoaster" pattern, with fatigue severity alternating on a daily basis but gradually declining until chemotherapy was scheduled again. Adolescents who received chemotherapy weekly showed more frequent peaks and troughs (the "yo-yo" pattern) that did not diminish in severity over the weeks of the study. Adolescents associated fatigue with other symptoms, particularly sleep-wake disturbances, pain, and nausea, and frequently reported that fatigue interfered with daily activities.

CONCLUSIONS
Fatigue commonly bothers adolescents receiving chemotherapy, particularly in the days following chemotherapy administration and when other symptoms are present. Although fatigue interfered with the adolescents' abilities to maintain their usual lifestyles, many still participated in the typical activities of adolescence.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING
Fatigue is a complex and dynamic symptom. Oncology clinicians and researchers should frequently assess fatigue in adolescents receiving chemotherapy and apply timely and tailored interventions to match the factors that contribute to fatigue and influence fatigue severity. Management of fatigue during treatment will help adolescents stay involved in age-related activities and meet developmental milestones.


A changing landscape in trade policy in recent years is undoubtedly related to changing voter preferences. Based on Eurobarometer survey data, the present paper investigates both the factors determining the level of support for protectionism and the striking inconsistency of responses to questions related to free trade and protectionism. EU citizens are more likely to support protectionism when the economy runs smoothly and rejects protectionism if the national economy is not in the best shape. Unemployment, bad economic situations as well as negative feelings regarding immigration are identified as possible reasons to call for protectionism while respondents are favouring free trade at the same time. The inconsistent attitudes toward free trade and protectionism are a matter of lacking knowledge of political issues. Better educated EU citizens are all less likely to support free trade and protectionism at the same time. This applies to respondents who show a higher level of knowledge regarding basic EU-related facts as well as to those who discuss political matters with friends more often. A possible way to tackle this problem is a broad information strategy covering the topics of international econom-ics across several media channels. Especially radio, press and internet are identified as media which seem to contribute to a better understanding of these complex issues.


Objective: To assess effectiveness of hospital management system in clinical work in military hospitals:
physicians' perspective.
Study Design: Descriptive cross sectional study.
Place and Duration of Study: Military hospitals of Rawalpindi, from Apr 2013 to Jun 2014.
Material and Methods: Sample selected through convenient non probability sampling. Sixty-one (61) physicians
in clinical work: 23 (38%) specialists and 38 (62%), Health Care Administrators (HCAs) were included in the
study. Tools used were questionnaire, interviews, think aloud protocol, log book analysis and chart reviews.
Results: More than 50% of respondents agreed that hospital management system in clinical setting lacks
appropriate attributes. System is not customized to the needs of each specialty and doesn't support the continuity
of care. It does not support evidence based decision making since it lacks clinical decision support system.
Majority of physicians expect their clinical HMS to provide better support for collecting statistics for research.
Most respondents agreed that HMS often diverts attention away from the patients and physicians "worked
around" the system due to number of cofounders like lack of time, increased number of patients. Chart review
revealed majority did not add alerts.
Conclusion: This study has highlighted a significant number of usability issues which are on one hand lessening
the effectiveness and efficiency of this system; while at the other hand leading to user frustration. These findings
call for usability evaluations at all levels and the subsequent redesign of HMS application leading to a usercentered
design which is effective in providing physicians with key functionalities which support physician's
tasks and improve patient care.


As FPGA densities increase, partitioning-based FPGA placement approaches are becoming increasingly important as they can be used to provide high-quality and computationally scalable placement solutions. However, modern FPGA architectures incorporate heterogeneous resources, which place additional requirements on the partitioning algorithms because they now need to not only minimize the cut and balance the partitions, but also they must ensure that none of the resources in each partition is oversubscribed. In this paper, we present a number of multilevel multi-resource hypergraph partitioning algorithms that are guaranteed to produce solutions that balance the utilization of the different resources across the partitions. We evaluate our algorithms on twelve industrial benchmarks ranging in size from 5,236 to 140,118 vertices and show that they achieve minimal degradation in the min-cut while balancing the various resources. Comparing the quality of the solution produced by some of our algorithms against that produced by hMETIS, we show that our algorithms are capable of balancing the different resources while incurring only a 3.3%--5.7% higher cut.


Editor in Chief, East African Medical Journal; Editor in Chief, Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition; Editor in Chief, Danish Medical Journal; Editor in Chief, PLOS Medicine; Editor in Chief, The BMJ; Editor in Chief, British Dental Journal; Editor in Chief, The Lancet; Senior Adviser, UK Health Alliance on Climate Change; Editor in Chief, Revista de Saúde Pública; Editor in Chief, International Journal of Nursing Studies; Interim Editor in Chief, CMAJ; Executive Editor, Pharmaceutical Journal; Editor in Chief, Dutch Journal of Medicine; Editor in Chief, NEJM; Editor in Chief, National Medical Journal of India; Chair, UK Health Alliance on Climate Change; Editor in Chief, Medical Journal of Australia; Editor in Chief, International Nursing Review; and Editor in Chief, Pan American Journal of Public Health


In two experiments, a manual search task explored 12- to 14-month-old infants' representations of small sets of objects. In this paradigm, patterns of searching revealed the number of objects infants represented as hidden in an opaque box. In Experiment 1, we obtained the set-size signature of object-file representations: infants succeeded at representing precisely 1, precisely 2, and precisely 3 objects in the box, but failed at representing 4 (or even that 4 is greater than 2). In Experiment 2, we showed that infants' expectations about the contents of the box were based on number of individual objects, and not on a continuous property such as total object volume. These findings support the hypothesis that infants maintained representations of individuals, that object-files were the underlying means of representing these individuals, and that object-file models can be compared via one-to-one correspondence to establish numerical equivalence.


PURPOSE
We report the 5-year efficacy and safety of transurethral needle ablation of the prostate (TUNA) compared to transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) for the treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) secondary to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 121 men 50 years or older with LUTS secondary to BPH a minimum of 3 months in duration were enrolled in this prospective, randomized clinical trial at 7 medical centers across the United States. Of the participants 65 (54%) were randomly selected to receive TUNA and 56 (46%) were selected to receive TURP. International Prostate Symptom Score, quality of life, peak urinary flow rate, post-void residual urinary volume, and prostate size and configuration were evaluated before the procedure and then annually for 5 years after the procedure. Adverse events were also recorded throughout the study.

RESULTS
Improvement from baseline for TUNA and TURP retained statistical significance at each interval for International Prostate Symptom Score, quality of life and peak flow rate. Post-void residual volume was statistically significant at all time points for TURP and at year 5 for TUNA. The TURP group reported 41% retrograde ejaculation, while the TUNA group reported none. The incident of erectile dysfunction, incontinence and stricture formation was also greater in TURP than in TUNA cases with significantly fewer adverse events for TUNA than for TURP.

CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study demonstrate stable treatment outcomes after 5 years of followup and suggest that TUNA is an attractive treatment option for men with LUTS due to BPH.


A conceptual flash flood early warning system for developing countries is described. The system uses rainfall intensity data from terrestrial microwave communication links and the geostationary Meteosat Second Generation satellite, i.e., two systems that are already in place and operational. Flash flood early warnings are based on a combination of the Flash Flood Guidance method and a hydrological model. The system will be maintained and operated through a public-private partnership, which includes a mobile telephone operator, a national meteorological service and an emergency relief service. The mobile telephone operator acts as both the supplier of raw input data and the disseminator of early warnings. The early warning system could significantly reduce the number of fatalities due to flash floods, improve the efficiency of disaster risk reduction efforts and play an important role in strengthening the resilience to climate change of developing countries in Africa. This paper describes the system that is currently being developed for Kenya.


In a comprehensive survey of this highly pertinent subject, leading academic Sandy Black examines the way the fashion industry is changing to accommodate the environmental concerns of the twenty first century. She exposes the naked truth behind the clothes we wear, exploring alternate practices and assessing their feasibility.

Using case studies of designers from the catwalks and the high street, including Katharine Hamnett, Marks and Spencer and Linda Loudermilk, the book illustrates how these processes are finding their way into the industry, and shows how ethical fashion has moved on from its traditional connotations of hemp shirts and rope sandals.

Fashion and environmental awareness are two concerns that do not comfortably sit side by side. Over the past ten years, high street fashion, led by global chains, has become ever more affordable and disposable. The sourcing of materials, the manufacture and the distribution of clothes have become the dirty secrets of the beautiful industry.

2nd edition published March 2011.


The idea of religious freedom is not new in Canadian law or wider public discourse, although it has taken on a life of its own in the post-Charter era (1982 onward) and certainly in the last several years. As the courts wade more fully into the swirling abyss that is religion they find themselves struggling with the issues that preoccupy scholars of religion (and for which they have found no conclusive answer): what is "religion" and how can it be defined in a manner that is inclusive and meaningful? This article takes as its point of departure the provocative and compelling argument made by Winnifred Sullivan in her book, The Impossibility of Religious Freedom (2005), that religious freedom as a legal promise is untenable. In this article I argue that while plausible and convincing in the context of the United States, Sullivan's thesis may be less applicable in Canada for three key reasons. First, the embeddedness of Roman Catholicism in Canadian social structure has resulted in a textured and nuanced understanding of religion, or, at the very least, a recognition that religion is in some measure a multifaceted notion. Secondly, the recognition of group rights, however defined, means that there is a space created for alternative religious discourses, in part because of the constitutional recognition of multiculturalism. Thirdly, the recent turn by the Supreme Court of Canada to an understanding of the subjectivity of religious freedom strengthens the idea that religion must be conceptualized in relation to the ways in which individuals understand and practice it in their day to day lives.


Aquaculture is the dynamic pursuit of production of
organisms from water - a process analogous to agriculture
where animals and plants are cultivated from land. The
field o f aquaculture is an emerging bioindustry based upon
the culture and husbandry of all useful aquatic organisms.
it is a significant departure from the traditional "search
and capture" fisheries and may increasingly displace the
hunting and catching of wild stock. Of late there has been
a global upsurge for aquaculture. Increasing world population, the decision by various nations to produce more fish
by developing unutilised or partially utilised water
resources and depletion of natural stock due to excessive
exploitation have been some of the reasons for the need to
produce more fish through aquaculture.


Purpose: Phantoms are routinely used for image quality assessment of CT scanners. The image quality in phantom images, however, may not be representative of the image quality in patient images due to differences in physical composition and scan parameters. Access to image quality for every scan conducted would facilitate standardization of image quality across the broad range of CT scanner models present at many medical centers. Similarly, this data would aid in matching image quality between institutions. Therefore, the goal of this work was to develop an automated technique capable of measuring the noise for every CT scan conducted at a major medical center. Methods: The standard deviation was calculated by convolving the patient image with a 6mm square filter. Uniform regions of the patient anatomy were identified through histogram analysis and the standard deviations of the uniform regions were averaged to calculate the global noise of the image. The automated CT noise detection algorithm was applied to six clinical CT images. The results were compared to the noise measured by four observers placing ROIs in what they considered to be uniform sections of patient anatomy. Results: There was a one‐to‐one relationship between the noise measured by the computer algorithm and the mean observer noise with an R2 of 0.98. The average difference between the computer and observer measurements (4.7%) was less than the interobserver variability (4.8%). Running on a standard Lenovo Thinkpad T420 laptop, the computing time was less than 0.05 seconds per image. Conclusion: The noise measured using this automated technique agrees well with human observer measurements. The speed of the calculation indicates that it may be applied to every patient scan to monitor image quality on a per scan basis facilitating quality control on a level previously unachievable.


ABSTRACT During respiratory glucose dissimilation, eukaryotes produce cytosolic NADH via glycolysis. This NADH has to be reoxidized outside the mitochondria, because the mitochondrial inner membrane is impermeable to NADH. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, this may involve external NADH dehydrogenases (Nde1p or Nde2p) and/or a glycerol-3-phosphate shuttle consisting of soluble (Gpd1p or Gpd2p) and membrane-bound (Gut2p) glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenases. This study addresses the physiological relevance of these mechanisms and the possible involvement of alternative routes for mitochondrial oxidation of cytosolic NADH. Aerobic, glucose-limited chemostat cultures of agut2Δ mutant exhibited fully respiratory growth at low specific growth rates. Alcoholic fermentation set in at the same specific growth rate as in wild-type cultures (0.3 h−1). Apparently, the glycerol-3-phosphate shuttle is not essential for respiratory glucose dissimilation. An nde1Δ nde2Δmutant already produced glycerol at specific growth rates of 0.10 h−1 and above, indicating a requirement for external NADH dehydrogenase to sustain fully respiratory growth. An nde1Δ nde2Δ gut2Δ mutant produced even larger amounts of glycerol at specific growth rates ranging from 0.05 to 0.15 h−1. Apparently, even at a low glycolytic flux, alternative mechanisms could not fully replace the external NADH dehydrogenases and glycerol-3-phosphate shuttle. However, at low dilution rates, thende1Δ nde2Δ gut2Δ mutant did not produce ethanol. Since glycerol production could not account for all glycolytic NADH, another NADH-oxidizing system has to be present. Two alternative mechanisms for reoxidizing cytosolic NADH are discussed: (i) cytosolic production of ethanol followed by its intramitochondrial oxidation and (ii) a redox shuttle linking cytosolic NADH oxidation to the internal NADH dehydrogenase.


Representations of the sexual abuse of enslaved women merit a specificity of analysis that has so far eluded scholars of American literature and culture. The definition of legal character in this context calls for further study. Stone addresses the peculiar legal conundrum in which enslaved women found themselves when suffering the abuse of slaveholders. These women's shifting legal subject-positions posed theoretical problems within this particular power relationship, as the boundary distinguishing the law's treatment of slaves as property and persons blurred. An enslaved woman's admittedly slender potential civil protection as property was eroded when her abuser was simultaneously her owner. This shift in her protections produced a rift in her legal subjectivity through which systems of terror could operate legitimately. Stone closely examines Harriet Jacobs's Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1865) in conjunction with the 1855 trial of Celia, an executed murderous slave, to compare specific literary and legal interpretations of North Carolina and Missouri slave law against a more general understanding of slaves' legal "double character" to argue that both women, through criminal acts, negotiated legal and literary conventions in their pursuit of legal subjectivity. Comparing a legal case and a literary text extends scholarship on literary treatments of antebellum crime to determine how both women challenged early American legal and cultural understandings of black criminality.


The world of Wakanda, as depicted in the film Black Panther (2018), provided an opportunity for viewers to bask in the glorious scenes, heroic drama, Black feminist power, and guile of an African world bordering on the fantastic. Starving audiences seeking Black filmic culture eagerly settled for Wakandan fantasy - based on the filmmaker's magnificent achievement to build a fanciful and engaging vision for Black viewers and comic-book aficionados alike. It was a significant relief to enjoy Black Panther, even with its errant vision of thuggish conflict by an anti-hero whose rationale for sharing Wakandan technology to save Africans in the diaspora made sense - though his violent demand for war-like resolution did not. It was also an unfortunate plot line to make a white CIA agent a hero, or to depict the United Nations as the platform for peacefully bringing Wakanda to light. But these are side issues to the main conceptual framework, and dilemma, presented by the film: What does a modern African nation look like, if it has not been created though colonialism? Can African-Diasporic art, culture, language, music and cinematography provide a foundation for envisioning a "Wakandan" world that is neither utopic nor dystopic? How do we redefine Afro-Diasporic possibility, existing outside of colonial, neocolonial and postcolonial imaginations? While addressing such issues, we should not belittle Black Panther's global cinematic accomplishment, but instead seek to deploy Afrofuturist analytics to narrowly examine two questions: How does an imaginary realm of the African world - untouched by colonialism - affirm Black genius and futurity to enable current generations to de-program ourselves and combat anti-Black racism? And, how can Black speculative fiction re-fashion a de-colonial space beyond Wakanda, in the current nation-states and community places within which Afro-diasporic peoples struggle daily for sustenance, power, and joy? Using the complex array of Afrofuturist and global Pan-Africanist analyses provided by theorists such as Eshun (2003), Anderson and Jones (2015), Mudimbe (1988), and futurists such as Inayatullah (2008), Sardar (2009), and Gatune (2010, 2011), this essay examines how Wakanda exists within colonial spaces and how Black speculative fiction (as well as the Black Panther film itself) depend upon a de-colonial imagination for sustenance and legibility.


This paper investigates the effect of firm owners and coworkers on hiring patterns and wages. Firstly, I explore the potential mechanisms generating their interrelation. Using a search model where social networks reduce search frictions, I develop the theoretical implications of social ties between owners and workers for individual labor market outcomes. In the model, wages are derived endogenously as a function of the efficiency of the social ties of current employees. Firms decide whether to fill their vacancies by posting their offers or by using their current workers' connections. As a result, individuals with a more efficient connection tend to receive higher wages. These findings highlight the potential importance of social connections and social capital for understanding employment opportunities and wage differentials. Secondly,using a unique matched sample from an employer-employee administrative database and a survey of characteristics of small firm owners, I analyze the impact of the birthplace of employers and individual coworkers (native versus immigrant) on firm hiring patterns and average log wages. First, I explore the effect of owner type on the composition of new hires. The results show that firms with immigrant owners are more likely to hire immigrant workers. Moreover, among immigrant owners, this prevalence is especially strong for Hispanic and Asian workers. I also find that the probability that a new hire is a native, non-Hispanic white or black is higher for native firms. Second, I estimate the impact of owners and coworkers place of birth on wage differentials across worker types, controlling for workers' human capital. The results illustrate that much of the difference between the log annual wage of immigrants and natives comes from immigrants' propensity to work in non-native owned firms, which pay the lowest average wages. Interestingly, though, native workers holding a job in immigrant firms are paid less than immigrant workers. The paper concludes by discussing the extent to which the empirical findings can account for the model.


This companion to the successful The Fashion Resource Book shows student and professional designers how to use visual research to develop a personal aesthetic as a fashion designer in a global industry. The book is divided into three sections: the first presents the research process underpinning the work of 10 designers including Kim Jones for Louis Vuitton, Yohji Yamamoto and Alexander McQueen; the second section is on research and inspiration. The subjects covered include street style and uniform, and the influence of established companies such as Barbour and Gieves & Hawkes. The concept-led work of such contemporary designers as Christopher Shannon and Walter Van Beirendonck is also explored. The third part presents detailed case studies of particular garments, trench coats, parkas and denim jackets among them. Illustrations provide an informative accompaniment to the text throughout.


Liner scattering of low frequency waves by an orifice plate has been studied using Large Eddy Simulation and an acoustic two-port model. The results have been compared to measurements with good agreement for waves coming from the downstream side. For waves coming from the upstream side the reflection is over-predicted, indicating that not enough of the acoustic energy is converted to vorticity at the upstream edge of the plate. Furthermore, the sensitivity to the amplitude of the acoustic waves has been studied, showing difficulties to simultaneously keep the amplitude low enough for linearity and high enough to suppress flow noise with the relatively short times series available in LES.


Abstract Background and aims A sizable body of research has elucidated the significant role of psychological reactions to trauma on pain coping and outcomes. In order to best inform intervention development and clinical care for patients with both trauma and pain at the tertiary care level, greater clarity is needed regarding the magnitude of these effects and the specific pathways through which they may or may not function at the time of first presentation to such a treatment setting. To achieve this, the current study examined the cross-sectional relationships between traumatic etiology of pain, psychological distress (anger, depressive symptoms, and PTSD symptoms), and pain outcomes (pain catastrophizing, physical function, disability status). Methods Using a structural path modeling approach, analyses were conducted using a large sample of individuals with chronic pain (n = 637) seeking new medical evaluation at a tertiary pain management center, using the Collaborative Health Outcomes Information Registry (CHOIR). We hypothesized that the relationships between traumatic etiology of pain and poorer pain outcomes would be mediated by higher levels of psychological distress. Results Our analyses revealed modest relationships between self-reported traumatic etiology of pain and pain catastrophizing, physical function, and disability status. In comparison, there were stronger relationships between indices of psychological distress and pain catastrophizing, but a weaker pattern of associations between psychological distress and physical function and disability measures. Conclusions To the relatively small extent that self-reported traumatic etiology of pain correlates with pain-related outcomes, these relationships appear to be due primarily to the presence of psychiatric symptoms and manifest most notably in the context of psychological responses to pain (i.e. catastrophizing about pain). Implications Findings from this study highlight the need for early intervention for patients with traumatic onset of pain and for clinicians at tertiary pain centers to include more detailed assessments of psychological distress and trauma as a component of comprehensive chronic pain treatment.


Social media offers new ways for citizens to discuss and debate politics and engage in the democratic process. These online systems could be places for rich policy relevant debate, which is favored by scholars of deliberative democracy. Alternatively, social media might be a platform for an identity driven form of political discourse that is routinely scorned by scholars of democracy. To examine these two possibilities, we analyzed tweets sent during three national elections, the defining participatory process of democracy. Our dataset includes over 760,000 tweets gathered during national elections in Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya from 2011 to 2013. In order to analyze the degree to which Twitter was being used for policy relevant discussion we developed policy term sets through a text analysis of the major political party platforms. To examine the amount of discourse focused on identity issues we created identity term sets based upon national religious, tribal, and regional differences. In Nigeria, where divisive identity politics feed violence and electoral misconduct, discussion of tribe, region, and religion dominate mentions of platform policies. In contrast Ghanaians, who enjoy the most robust democracy of the three countries, were seven times more likely to discuss policy issues rather than identity. Kenyan democracy is still undergoing consolidation, and tweets again reflect this, with almost as many tweets devoted to tribal identity as campaign policy. These findings suggest that social media discussions may echo the state of democratic deepening found in a country during its national elections.


This study attempted to uncover the paradoxical effects of an athlete's negative publicity based on the theories of negativity bias, fuzzy trace, and processing fluency. The researcher tested a boundary condition in which repeated claims about an athlete's negative publicity interacted with the temporal delay of consumers' evaluation, which, in turn, led to a decrease in the adverse effects of negative publicity. The results of two online experiments demonstrated that dividing attention and cognitive resources in order to encode and retrieve various types of information caused the detailed contextual memory of each account of the athlete's negative publicity to fade over time, leaving behind merely a gist memory of the celebrities. In the current study, infamy turned into fame, and the consumer's judgment of the athletes became more positive. The current study may help expand existing research paradigms by further developing our theoretical understanding of the negative publicity effects.


Abstract. Emission of non-methane Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) to the atmosphere stems from biogenic and human activities, and their estimation is difficult because of the many and not fully understood processes involved. In order to narrow down the uncertainty related to VOC emissions, which negatively reflects on our ability to simulate the atmospheric composition, we exploit satellite observations of formaldehyde (HCHO), an ubiquitous oxidation product of most VOCs, focusing on Europe. HCHO column observations from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) reveal a marked seasonal cycle with a summer maximum and winter minimum. In summer, the oxidation of methane and other long-lived VOCs supply a slowly varying background HCHO column, while HCHO variability is dominated by most reactive VOC, primarily biogenic isoprene followed in importance by biogenic terpenes and anthropogenic VOCs. The chemistry-transport model CHIMERE qualitatively reproduces the temporal and spatial features of the observed HCHO column, but display regional biases which are attributed mainly to incorrect biogenic VOC emissions, calculated with the Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosol from Nature (MEGAN) algorithm. These "bottom-up" or a-priori emissions are corrected through a Bayesian inversion of the OMI HCHO observations. Resulting "top-down" or a-posteriori isoprene emissions are lower than "bottom-up" by 40% over the Balkans and by 20% over Southern Germany, and higher by 20% over Iberian Peninsula, Greece and Italy. We conclude that OMI satellite observations of HCHO can provide a quantitative "top-down" constraint on the European "bottom-up" VOC inventories.


This paper investigates if the Norwegian wealth tax imposes capital constraints on small privately held businesses. A panel of 31,428 Norwegian firms from 2005 to 2009 is used to estimate two models of capital constraints. The models are estimated using the Fixed Effects method. When firms are sorted a priori into two groups based on the wealth tax burden of the primary owner, the non-taxed firms are found to be slightly more constrained than the taxed firms, at a 10% and 5% confidence level depending on the model. Sorting based on the wealth tax is the most effective method of sorting firms into more or less constrained groups, while more traditional methods proved ineffective in this panel. The negative capital constraining effects of the wealth tax are therefore minimal; the tax affects only the private firms least reliant on internal financing


Some of these dilemmas are under close scrutiny. According to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 12 of the most popular middle school science textbooks used across the nation are riddled with errors and do not have an acceptable level of accuracy (AAAS, 2000a).
In addition to this alarming information, the AAAS review of the 10 most popular high school biology text-books found numerous facts, but little to explain the underlying scientific importance of the facts. The evaluators rated all 10 textbooks poor in "demonstrating use of knowledge" and "encouraging students to reflect on their own learning" (Hoff, 2000).These reports about textbooks present serious dilemmas for most science teachers who believe that textbooks play a major role in middle level and secondary science instruction. Previous studies report that most science teachers use science textbooks for most of their instructional time (Lumpe and Beck, 1996). Using a single comprehensive science textbook has been the norm for many years, and this is unhkely to change given the current state and structure of education systems and textbook publishing.
So what can effective science teachers do to overcome the obstacles of inadequate textbooks? They can first fa-miliarize themselves with the problem and with the circumstances that have led us to this point, and second, take steps to correct textbook inadequacies in the classroom.


This study examines the dynamics of online buzz over time before product release. Employing functional data analysis, we treat the curve of prerelease buzz evolution trajectory as the unit of analysis and find that the shape of the curve significantly adds power in predicting new product performance compared with using product characteristics and firm advertising alone. Moreover, daily prerelease buzz evolution data enable accurate sales forecasting long before product release, which allows sufficient time for managers to adjust product design and/or marketing strategy. For example, the forecasting accuracy using an early buzz evolution curve ending on the 61st day before product release is not only higher than that using accumulated buzz volume until then but also higher than that using the total volume of all buzz up until product release. Beyond the sales outcome, we find that prerelease buzz is quickly reflected in firm stock returns before product release and reduces the absolute amount of postrelease stock price correction. The model accounts for endogeneity, and the results are robust after controlling for buzz sentiment. We also explore the factors influencing prerelease buzz evolution patterns, thus generating insights into how to manage prerelease buzz dynamics to enhance new product performance.


Background: Menopause represents the end of women reproductive career and it is at this time they begin to manifest morbidities such as urinary incontinence. Aim: To document proximate determinants of sexual activity and urological morbidities of menopausal women. Subjects and Methods: This was a community survey conducted among 254 menopausal women Mokola in Ibadan, Nigeria in 2008. Respondents were selected using cluster sampling technique. Interviewer administered questionnaires were used to obtain information on their characteristics, pattern of urological and sexual activities. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariable tests were performed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 15.0 (Chicago, IL USA) and statistical significance was set at P value less than 0.05. Results: The mean age of subjects was 60.3 (standard deviation = 10.2 years). About 33.5% (85/254) was still sexually active. About 68% (173/254) reported a reduction in sexual frequency since menopause while 31.5% (80/254) reported no change. The mean self-rated sexual performance score was 4.3 based on a numerical scale where 10 is the maximum obtainable. Significant predictors of reduction in sexual activity were age at menopause and education. Those between 45 and 49 years were less likely than those at 55 years or more (odds ratio [OR] = 0.21; 95% confidence interval OR = 0.05-0.87) while women with at least secondary education were thrice less likely than those with none to report a reduction in sexual activity after menopause. Less than a tenth reported urinary incontinence as a complaint. Urge incontinence was the most commonly reported followed by dysuria and stress incontinence. Less than a quarter of them had requested for a form of treatment. Conclusion: Sexual performance of Nigerian menopausal women is associated with age at menopause and education. Non-fistulous urinary incontinence is now being mentioned as a complaint contrary to the widely held view that it is part of the aging process. Therefore, awareness creation on management opportunities should be shared with them.


Through the literature review it has become apparent that low back pain is a very real problem in most societies. It has been suggested that there is enough evidence to prove the relationship between low back pain and local muscle dysfunction and that focus in management of these patients should be the rehabilitation of these muscles by exercise. Literature suggests that optimal core muscle strength, control and endurance working synergistically with the rest of the neuromusculoskeletal system is necessary for lumbar spine stability . Arthrogenic Muscle Inhibition is caused by distension and/or damage of a joint and is thought to disable the muscle from contracting all its muscle fibres. When a joint is injured it is thought that AMI causes muscle weakness, which in turn hampers the rehabilitation process of that joint despite complete muscle integrity. Spinal manipulative therapy has been shown to alter the excitability of spinal muscle motor neurons due to the stimulation of mechanoreceptors in the joint capsules suggesting that SMT could be a means to remove this inhibitory action. The literature supports the hypothesis that a decrease in the neurological deficit caused by AMI may result in a faster recovery rate. Aims The aim of this study is to determine the immediate effect of thoraco-lumbar spinal manipulation compared to lower lumbar spinal manipulation on core muscle endurance and activity in patients with mechanical low back pain by assessing the correlation between the objective and subjective measures. Method A prospective, convenience sample with purpose allocation (pre /post) clinical trial was used as the sampling method. Thirty participants where placed in two groups, group one and group two, of fifteen people each. Group one underwent spinal v manipulative therapy between L4 and S1 spinal levels. Group two underwent spinal manipulative therapy in between T8 and L1 spinal levels. The objective and subjective testing was done pre- and post-intervention. The objective data was that of a surface EMG attached bilaterally over the internal oblique as well as a prone abdominal draw in biofeedback test. The subjective data included a pain numerical rating scale (0-100). Results The results showed to partially favour group two (thoraco-lumbar), in both increased endurance time that would prove that AMI does in fact inhibit the transversus abdominis and obliques internus, thus it would hinder the rehabilitative process. Some of the statistics where not in favour of the aims, as there was no difference in the effect of group one or two on the NRS, as both improved consistently. It would be recommended that use be made of fine-wire EMG for testing the activity in both the obliques internus and the transversus abdominis, which would allow for more consistent readings, thus adding strength to the research.


This paper estimates and compares operating efficiencies of publicly owned associate degree granting colleges in the United States using data envelopment analysis (DEA) and stochastic frontier analysis (SFA). Comparisons are based on panel data for 698 colleges over four academic years, 2005-09. Included are both constant and variable returns to scale DEA estimates along with half and truncated normal inefficiency SFA estimates. The values 0.56 vs. 0.45 represent the largest mean DEA-SFA efficiency differential. DEA results indicate that 13% of colleges are fully (100%) efficient while SFA puts that percentage at only 1.7%. Comparisons of rankings based on efficiency performance generated a weak 0.65 correlation. Encouragingly, despite the financial turmoil initiated by the global crisis, the findings indicate that colleges have managed large efficiency gains over the four-year period. By 2008-09, DEA estimated efficiency increased to approximately 60%. Given continuing reductions in higher education public funding and increasing interest in public management reforms, the results should be of both managerial and public policy interest.


The ups and downs of negotiating can be challenging enough at home. But when people put themselves in another country -- where the customs and conventions are often radically different -- they've got a recipe for awkwardness and confusion at best, disappointment and disaster at worst. This new, updated edition of this long-trusted guide provides readers with the savvy they need to negotiate with finesse and ease, no matter where they are. The book provides expert advice on business practices, transactions, and attitudes throughout the world. Now expanded to include 63 countries, the book has been updated to reflect changes in the international scene as well as up-to-the-minute topics like foreign outsourcing and multicultural work teams that increasingly characterize present-day work relationships. Organized in an easy-to-access, quick-reference format, this bestselling guide is a passport to worldwide negotiation skills i?? and greater business success.


Ancient Egypt: A Very Short Introduction explores the history and culture of pharaonic Egypt, including ideas about Egyptian kingship, religion, ethics, customs, and writing systems. The ancient Egyptians are an enduring source of fascination and mystery; for generations, mummies and pyramids, curses and rituals have captured the imagination. This VSI draws on the latest archaeological discoveries and scholarship on ancient Egypt. It considers issues relating to the history of Egyptology, ethnicity, race, gender, and sexual relations. Moreover, it examines the impact of the Arab Spring on approaches to Egyptian museums and cultural heritage all over the world.


A number of marine mammal populations is currently threatened by their interactions with fisheries. The present study aimed to provide insights into the severity of potential impacts of operational and biological interactions between top predators and fisheries, in the Bay of Biscay region. Our approach was to modify an Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) model describing the overall structure and function of the ecosystem by including landings and discards of exploited stocks and estimations of the bycatch of non-target compartments. Second, a set of ecological indices and a trophic level (TL)-based model (EcoTroph, ET) were derived from the EwE model. ET was used to simulate the effects of increasing fishing pressure on the ecosystem and, more particularly, on top predators. The Bay of Biscay was demonstrated to be not far from overexploitation at the current fishing rate, this phenomenon being particularly noticeable for the highest TLs. Within the toothed cetacean community, bottlenose dolphins appeared the most sensitive to resource depletion, whereas common dolphins and harbour porpoises were most impacted by their incidental captures in fishing gears. This study provides a methodological framework to assess the impacts of fisheries on ecosystems for which EwE, or other ecosystem models, already exist.


Since 2009, all fifty states and the District of Columbia have enacted statutes to improve prevention and treatment of concussions in children's sports. Most of the statutes follow a common pattern with three core mandates. First, leagues and teams must provide parents, coaches, administrators, and players with pre-season information and education about the dangers of concussions, how to recognize their symptoms, and how to help promote healthy recovery. Second, coaches must immediately remove from a practice session or game a player who is suspected to have suffered a concussion. Third, the player may not return to action until a physician or other licensed medical professional clears the player and affirms that return is medically appropriate.Many of the new concussion laws leave the bulk of youth athletes unprotected, however, because the statutes regulate only interscholastic sports (middle schools and high schools, for example). They do not regulate private youth sports organizations that use fields, gymnasiums, and other public property that is managed by local governmental bodies, usually the city council, the parks and recreation department, or the public school district. Most private youth sports organizations are public users because they do not own their own facilities. In states where concussion legislation does not reach private youth sports organizations that use public facilities, local government authorities should permit private use only by organizations that agree to adhere to the three statewide core mandates. This "power of the permit" derives from state and local police power to protect the public health and safety.


The attitudes and self-beliefs revealed in science education can affect students' achievements. Several studies have found that students' self-beliefs are significantly associated with achievement outcomes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between their attitudes and self-beliefs and science achievements based on TIMSS 1999 results concerning Cyprus. Links between evidence of students' achievements and their relation on positive attitudes and self-beliefs towards science education have been investigated. A number of parameters concerning the effects of attitudes and self-beliefs in relation with their achievement were identified from the study. Several specific self-beliefs were examined and variance estimation statistical techniques were employed. The analysis of the results was based on Varimax factor analysis and stepwise multiple regression analysis. The results of this study indicate that several specific self-beliefs and attitudes were associated with higher levels of science achievement of the Cypriot students in this sample. In addition, these findings provide a number of directions for further research.