Raisin grapes are potentially more profitable than wine grapes in San Juan, Argentina, although the traditional system of grape drying requires an extensive use of costly labour. Production costs might be reduced by adopting the dry-on-vine (DOV) raisin-making system, but the feasibility of DOV in Argentina has not been assessed, and neither have the costs and pruning schemes. Thus we determined drying time and yields, estimated wages per hectare, and determined the influence of pruning severity on Flame Seedless raisin grapes. A completely random design with six treatments and six replicates was used in the 2013 to 2016 seasons. The treatments comprised differences in the nodes per cane, nodes per vine, distribution of nodes, and sugar content. Descriptive statistics and variance analysis were calculated for fresh fruit weight, dry fruit weight, drying ratio and drying time. The leaf area and its relationship with dried fruit weight also were calculated. These data were processed with the Infostat program. The DOV system demands between 11 and 31 additional days during the drying period and reduces labour costs by between 38% and 64% compared to the traditional system. Long pruning with the same load of buds is better. Furthermore, the DOV system is not associated with a lower production and thus appears to be a financially sustainable alternative to traditional production systems for Flame Seedless raisin grape producers in Argentina.


Detecting human presence automatically is a challenging task since several environmental parameters may affect the quality and the continuity of detection. Although many techniques have been developed so far in the literature to solve this problem, they generally rely on well-defined operational context. Hence, they are sensitive to uncontrolled variables and unpredicted events. In this work an ontology-based approach to human telepresence detection is presented. Contrarily to classic sensor-driven techniques, a top-down methodology is applied. Starting from a formal description of the problem ontology, a set of high-response rate and low-response rate sensors is employed in a computational model. As a consequence of this model, a multi-sensor equipped device has been experimentally setup to conduct measurements on real scenarios. Experiments have been devised to estimate the robustness of the detection. In particular, some preliminary evaluations related to using a minimal set of chemical sensors are reported.


Most of the schemes for "noiseless" amplification of coherent states, which have recently been attracting theoretical and experimental interest, share a common trait: the amplification is not truly noiseless, or perfect, for non-zero success probability. While this must hold true for all phase-independent amplification schemes, in this work we point out that truly noiseless amplification is indeed possible, provided that the states which we wish to amplify come from a finite set. Perfect amplification with unlimited average gain is then possible with finite success probability, for example using techniques for unambiguously distinguishing between quantum states. Such realizations require only linear optics, no single-photon sources, nor any photon counting. We also investigate the optimal success probability of perfect amplification of a symmetric set of coherent states. There are two regimes: low-amplitude amplification, where the target amplitude is below one, and general amplification. For the low-amplitude regime, analytic results for the optimal amplification success probabilities can be obtained. In this case a natural bound imposed by the ratio of success probabilities of optimal unambiguous discrimination of the source and amplified states can always be reached. We also show that for general amplification this bound cannot always be satisfied.


Background: Potato ( Solanum tuberosum ) is one of the most important sources of carbohydrates in human diet. Because of its high carbohydrate levels it recently has also received attention in biohydrogen production. To exploit the natural variation of potato with respect to resistance to major diseases, carbohydrate levels and composition, and capacity for biohydrogen production we analyzed tubers of native, improved, and genetically modified potatoes, and two other tuberous species for their glucose, fructose, sucrose, and starch content. Results: High-starch potato varieties were evaluated for their potential for Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus -mediated biohydrogen production with Desiree and Rosita varieties delivering the highest biohydrogen amounts. Native line Vega1 and improved line Yagana were both immune to two isolates (A291, A287) of Phytophthora infestans . Conclusions: Our data demonstrate that native potato varieties might have great potential for further improving the multifaceted use of potato in worldwide food and biohydrogen production .


The microRNAs are endogenous, non-coding RNAs that play key roles in a range of pathophysiological processes by up- or down-regulating gene expression. Recent studies have shown that some microRNAs have oncogenic or tumour suppressor activity. Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is an aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma with a heterogeneous biology, which has impeded the clinical assessment of patients. The currently-used clinically-based IPI provides useful information for treatment decision making, but has limited predictive power. Recent immunohistochemical approaches have identified two different prognostic groups: the more indolent germinal centre (GC)- and the higher risk activated B-cell (ABC)-like phenotypes. Although useful, prediction based on immunophenotype has limitations. The present study uses microRNA profiling and a number of well-characterised B-cell lymphoma cell lines to identify microRNA signatures that are correctly assigned to the DLBCL prognostic subgroups and distinguish DLBCL from other more indolent lymphoma, including follicular lymphoma (FL). MicroRNA microarray analysis was based on miRBase version 12.0 and analysis was performed using an unsupervised hierarchical clustering model. Discriminatory microRNAs were validated by qRT-PCR. We identified a 9 microRNA signature that discriminated between ABC- and GC-like DLBCL. This included 3 newly identified microRNAs, not previously associated with DLBCL and predicted to target genes that are de-regulated in lymphoma. DLBCL was distinguished from FL by 4 microRNAs and a total of 18 microRNAs were identified that differentiated between all lymphoma and control populations. Most of the discriminatory microRNAs have been reported previously to be known oncomiRs or act as tumour suppressors. In conclusion, the present study identified a microRNA signature that correctly classified GC and ABC phenotypes in DLBCL cell lines. This signature has yet to be assessed for prediction in clinical samples.


Studies were conducted at the private farm to evaluate the efficacy of botanical extracts in reducing snails' populations on different host plants. Because snail's populations have become important economic pest attacking various vegetation's in last decade in Egypt. According to this study, the molluscicidal activity of plant extracts against some snail species was investigated. The obtained data indicated that Euphorbia helioscopia and Mentha spicata were the most effective materials against snails. The effect of plant extracts on the population's dynamics of the pest species, the level of infestations and plant damage were assessed. Significantly more of the pests infested the control plants than the treated plots (P<0.01). The mean percentage of damage of cabbage heads (size or weight) on the treated plots was significantly heavier than that of the control unsprayed plots. The use of these plant extracts can be incorporated into an overall control programme of these pests. The same trend for data recorded among lettuce and clover was equal. Lettuce plants more susceptible to snails than cabbage or clover due to its soft leaves.


Abstract Understanding the perception of Sustainable Development can help to identify misconceptions surrounding the concept in order to design better education plans and public policies on this subject. Evaluating the perception of sustainability issues by focusing on the young generation as is an important proxy to imagine what the future holds for in terms of addressing sustainable development. We conducted 177 in-person interviews on a heterogeneous group of students and random volunteers in four cities in Poland to assess their perception of Sustainable Development. The vast majority (89.3%) of the respondents were familiar with the term 'Sustainable Development'. However, part of them (57%) associated it only to the human and social development dimensions and its institutions, whereas 17.5% related it with its environmental aspects. The results supported by the literature review highlight challenges concerning the path towards a comprehensive perception of Sustainable Development and hence the achievement of the SDGs. Based on these results, we identify opportunities and incentives to bring Poland towards 2030 Agenda.


Pervious concrete is a paving material that has a number of stormwater and other environmental benefits. Most current applications of pervious concrete are in residential streets, parking lots, driveways, and sidewalks, and it is being considered for shoulders and more high volume applications. Characterizations of stress distribution and deflection patterns in pervious concrete systems may be useful parameters in the structural design of these high volume uses. Pervious concrete panels with tandem axle dual wheel loads were analyzed using finite element analysis. The wheel position was considered in the corner, center, and edge of the pavement. The critical stresses obtained from the analyses were compared against experimental tensile and compressive strengths obtained from samples from a field application for various pervious concrete layer thicknesses, and additional experimental data. It was found that pervious concrete panels of sufficient thickness have adequate strength to support the applied wheel loads. To compare the long term performance when subjected to cyclic loading, the critical tensile stresses for various pavement thicknesses were compared with pavement condition index (PCI) rating data obtained from a field application reflecting pavement performance of approximately 131,000 cycles of an 80 kN single-axle load. For this particular field application, it was found that, for cyclic loading, the required thickness of the pervious concrete layer was approximately 40 %–80 % higher compared with that for the static loading condition.


textabstractUveal melanoma (UM) is the most common primary intraocular malignancy in adults
with an incidence of 7-10/ million and has a predilection for hematogenous dissemination
to the liver. Despite improvements in diagnosis and treatment of this intraocular
tumor, there has not been a change in survival in the past decades. There is no effective
treatment for liver metastases resulting in tumor-related death in about 45% of UM
patients within 15 years after the initial diagnosis.
Uveal melanoma usually arises 'de novo' from melanocytes derived from neural crest
cells that have migrated to the epidermis and uveal tract during embryogenesis. Intraocular
melanoma may arise in the choroid (70-80%), ciliary body (10-20%) and iris
(5-10%). Iris melanomas are the least common and tend to present at a smaller size,
probably because pigmented lesions of the iris are usually visible to the patient. Iris melanomas
can cause drainage angle blockage and secondary elevation of the intraocular
pressure.4 Melanomas located in the ciliary body are associated with a high metastatic
potential. Choroidal melanomas compromise the majority and grow subretinal in a
discoid, dome-shaped or mushroom-shaped pattern.
The diagnosis is based on the clinical appearance of the tumor on ophthalmic examination.
Ancillary tests include (Doppler-) ultrasonography, transillumination, fluorescein
angiography and optical coherence tomography. For the diagnosis of melanoma, biopsy
is reserved for tumors of uncertain origin. Conversely, tumor biopsy gains territory in
vision-sparing therapies for cytogenetic analysis providing risk assessment of metastatic
disease.
Upon diagnosis of the primary tumor, patients are screened for metastases by liver
enzyme tests and liver ultrasound. At time of diagnosis less than 2% of the patients have
detectable metastases.


Discusses Shewhart's control charts and how they have been confined traditionally to the shopfloor in manufacturing industry. Contends that now practitioners are leading a growing interest in the charts' wider application in areas such as sales, marketing, customer service, and inventory management. Shewhart discovered that variation in a process can result either from common causes (part of the process) or special causes (not part of the process). Shewhart's charts enable us to learn about processes and improve them with the aid of his plan‐do‐study‐act continuous improvement cycle. Research conducted in Japan showed that companies which won the Deming Prize consistently outperformed the averages in financial measures for the industry.


China's emergence as a major global power is reshaping the cyber domain. The country has the world's largest internet-user community, a growing economic footprint and increasingly capable military and intelligence services. Harnessing these assets, it is pursuing a patient, assertive foreign policy that seeks to determine how information and communications technologies are governed and deployed. This policy is likely to have significant normative impact, with potentially adverse implications for a global order that has been shaped by Western liberal democracies. And, even as China goes out into the world, there are signs that new technologies are becoming powerful tools for domestic social control and the suppression of dissent abroad. Western policymakers are struggling to meet this challenge. While there is much potential for good in a self-confident China that is willing to invest in the global commons, there is no guarantee that the country's growth and modernisation will lead inexorably to democratic political reform. This Adelphi book examines the political, historical and cultural development of China's cyber power, in light of its evolving internet, intelligence structures, military capabilities and approach to global governance. As China attempts to gain the economic benefits that come with global connectivity while excluding information seen as a threat to stability, the West will be forced to adjust to a world in which its technological edge is fast eroding and can no longer be taken for granted.


The contribution of three actin cross-linking proteins, alpha-actinin (alphaA), gelation factor (ABP-120), and the 34 kDa actin-bundling protein to cellular functions has been studied in three single mutant (alphaA-, 120-, and 34-) and three double mutant (alphaA-/120-, 34-/alphaA-, 34-/120-) strains of Dictyostelium generated by homologous recombination. Strains alphaA-/120- and 34-/alphaA- exhibited a reduced rate of pinocytosis, grew to lower saturation densities, and produced small cells in shaking cultures. All strains grew normally in bacterial suspensions and on agar plates with a bacterial lawn. Slow growth under conditions of reduced temperature and increased osmolarity was observed in single mutants 34- and alphaA-, respectively, as well as in some of the double mutant strains. Motility, chemotaxis, and development were largely unaltered in 34-/alphaA- and 34-/120- cells. However, 34-/alphaA- cells showed enhanced aggregation when starved in suspension. Moreover, morphogenesis was impaired in both double mutant strains and fruiting bodies of aberrant morphology were observed. These defects were reverted by re-expression of one of the lacking cross-linking proteins. The additive and synthetic phenotypes of these mutations indicate that actin cross-linking proteins serve both unique and overlapping functions in the actin cytoskeleton.


TO evaluate the molecular mechanisms that mediate the effect of learning on morphine tolerance in rats, we examined striatal c-Fos, and c-Jun protein expression, and AP-1 DNA binding. Morphine paired with a conditioned stimulus (CS) led to analgesic tolerance in the presence of the CS. Rats receiving morphine unpaired with the CS displayed significantly less tolerance than paired morphine animals. Striatal c-Fos protein levels and AP-1 DNA binding activity were increased in rats receiving paired morphine compared with rats that did not receive morphine but not in rats receiving morphine without the CS. No differences were found in c-Jun levels. These results suggest that Pavlovian conditioning may account, in part, for the molecular mechanisms associated with morphine tolerance.


User interactions with personal assistants like Alexa, Google Home and Siri are typically initiated by a wake term or wake-word. Several personal assistants feature "follow-up" modes that allow users to make additional interactions without the need of a wakeword. For the system to only respond when appropriate, and to ignore speech not intended for it, utterances must be classified as device-directed or non-device-directed. State of the art systems have largely used acoustic features for this task, while others have used only lexical features or have added LM-based lexical features. We propose a directedness classifier that combines semantic lexical features with a lightweight acoustic feature and show it is effective in classifying directedness. The mixed-domain lexical and acoustic feature model is able to achieve 14% relative reduction of EER over a state of the art acoustic-only baseline model. Finally, we successfully apply transfer learning and semi-supervised learning to the model to improve accuracy even further.


The actual relationship between periodontal and pulpal disease was first described by Simring and Goldberg in 1964. Since then, the term "perio-endo" lesion has been used to describe lesions due to inflammatory products found in varying degrees in both the periodontium and the pulpal tissues. The pulp and periodontium have embryonic, anatomic and functional inter-relationships. The simultaneous existence of pulpal problems and inflammatory periodontal disease can complicate diagnosis and treatment planning. A perio-endo lesion can have a varied pathogenesis which ranges from quite simple to relatively complex one. Knowledge of these disease processes is essential in coming to the correct diagnosis. This is achievable by careful history taking, examination and the use of special tests. The prognosis and treatment of each endodontic-periodontal disease type varies. Primary periodontal disease with secondary endodontic involvement and true combined endodontic-periodontal diseases require both endodontic and periodontal therapies. The prognosis of these cases depends on the severity of periodontal disease and the response to periodontal treatment. This enables the operator to construct a suitable treatment plan where unnecessary, prolonged or even detrimental treatment is avoided.


Europe is the region of the world where the network of security institutions is the densest. Yet, these institutions did not erase differences about conceptions of force employment among European countries and between European countries and the United States. Why have concepts of military power and force employment remained distinct and varied in Europe, and yet, what facilitates their convergence at the European Union level into the ambiguous notion of crisis management? We argue that an important answer to these questions is endogenous to the military: both role conceptions and organizational frames of military institutions are key underlying aspects of the differences at the national level and of the common ground at the European Union level. We examine and compare empirically the role conceptions and organizational frames of the armed forces in France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom since the early 1990s.


Would urban air quality and climate improve if we replaced the fossil fuels by molecular hydrogen (H2) as an energy carrier? A quantitative answer to this question requires a thorough understanding of the current role of H2 in the Earth's atmosphere. On its own, H2 does not impact climate, as for example carbon dioxide or methane. However, increasing levels of H2 in the stratosphere can lead to increased ozone loss due to the formation of polar stratospheric clouds. Additionally, the atmospheric lifetime of methane could increase because both H2 and methane are removed by photochemical oxidation with the hydroxyl radical. Consequently, the lifetime of the strong greenhouse gas methane could be prolonged. During the last two decades, more and more experimental data have become available to put tighter constraints on the different sources and sinks that contribute to the global H2 cycle. However, the main removal process, dry deposition due to microbial/enzymatic decomposition of H2 in the soils, still has a rather large uncertainty between 40-99 Tg/yr globally. This is a highly uncertain number compared to the estimated overall amount of 136-166 Tg present in the troposphere. The photochemical removal of H2 from the atmosphere is estimated at 14-24 Tg/yr. Together with the estimates for the burden and dry deposition, this implies a tropospheric lifetime of H2 between 1.1-3.1 years. The atmospheric H2 is replenished by emissions from the Earth's surfaces due to fossil fuel burning (5-25 Tg/yr), biomass burning (7-21 Tg/yr) and nitrogen fixation processes in the oceans (1-11 Tg/yr) and soils (0-11 Tg/yr). H2 is photochemically produced from methane (15-21 Tg/yr) and non-methane hydrocarbons (10-25 Tg/yr) in the atmosphere. These uncertainties suggest that at present, the global hydrogen cycle is poorly understood. However, this statement would do little justice to the scientific quality of most studies so far. The main purpose of the research in this thesis is to show that the global tropospheric budget of H2 can be constrained quite well with available measurements. The study starts with the derivation of a full hydrogen isotope chemistry scheme to use the measured deuterium content in atmospheric H2 as an additional constraint for the global budget. This new chemistry scheme is subsequently evaluated and the most important parameters in the photochemistry are identified. A condensed version of the new chemistry scheme is implemented in the global TM5 model. The new model results are verified using available measurements of H2 mixing ratios and isotopic compositions from two global flask sampling networks and the EuroHydros network. Finally, a new tropospheric budget is derived for H2. The tropospheric burden is estimated at 165±8 Tg and the removal of H2 by deposition and photochemical oxidation are estimated at 53±4 and 23±2 Tg/yr, respectively. The main (photochemical) source is estimated at 37±4 Tg/yr. From these numbers, a tropospheric lifetime of 2.2±0.2 yr for H2 is derived. These new ranges of uncertainty allow for a much more accurate evaluation of the impact of future increases in H2 emissions on air quality and climate.


This case study explores HomeGround Real Estate, an innovative model of delivering affordable housing pioneered by HomeGround Services (now Launch Housing) in Victoria. While most affordable housing initiatives focus on increasing stock of new social housing, HomeGround Real Estate represents an intervention in a sector largely neglected in the housing affordability space – the mainstream private rental market. Launched in 2014 as "Australia's first not for profit real estate", HomeGround Real Estate essentially comprises two streams, commercial and affordable. Through the commercial stream, properties are offered for rent at market rates. The agent commission subsidises the agency's affordable housing initiative, under which property owners forego a proportion of rental income so the property can be provided at an affordable rate to low income tenants. A key element of the HomeGround Real Estate model is the unique tax ruling obtained by Launch Housing from the Australian Tax Office. This enables its landlords to claim a concession for the difference between market rent and the affordable rental rate agreed with the agency, regardless of how low that rate is, representing an innovative way of leveraging the tax system to facilitate provision of affordable housing. The HomeGround Real Estate experience provides valuable insights into the conditions which foster innovation in the not for profit sector and the challenges of growing a profit-for-purpose entity whilst staying true to purpose. Further, it demonstrates the importance of affordable housing initiatives driven by agencies that understand homelessness, are able to work effectively with those in most need of affordable housing and are committed to "housing justice."


Children's rights education is an important part of citizenship education. Home and school are among the places where children learn about and use their rights. For this reason, family members and teachers play an important role in children's learning about their rights. This research was conducted to determine the perceptions of elementary school teachers and parents about children's rights, the applications they carry out at home and at school for children's rights education, and the problems they face. The study enrolled 24 teachers and 46 parents from three elementary schools in Eskisehir with students from different economic and cultural backgrounds. Research data were collected with semi-structured interviews and interpretive thematic analysis was used. The results revealed that parents and teachers did not have an adequate level of knowledge about children's rights and that children could not adequately learn about and use their rights at home and at school. Finally, teachers and parents had problems in children's rights education caused by economic, sociocultural, political and educational system. © 2012 IOJES. All rights reserved


Matthew Sussman, "Optative Form in Anthony Trollope's The Small House at Allington " (pp. 485–515) This essay argues that Anthony Trollope is the preeminent novelist of the optative, a term introduced by Andrew Miller that describes how people sharpen their sense of self through counterfactual speculations about themselves and others. The optative shapes Trollope's novels in two ways: first, as the main determinant of character psychology and behavior; and second, as a structural principle that governs his handling of the multiplot novel. Through an analysis of The Small House at Allington (1864)—the first of Trollope's novels in which the plot is fully motivated by psychological characterization—I show how Trollope adopts narrative strategies of fragmentation and development to distribute optative motifs across the character-space, in effect replicating at the level of structure what takes place within individual minds. In this way, Trollope finds formal means for staging the contest between freedom and contingency in the construction of the self, significantly advancing the character-plot debate of the 1860s and deepening the moral purpose of his realism.


 Abstract —Geopolymer is an inorganic material synthesized by alkali activation of source materials rich in soluble SiO 2 and Al 2 O 3 . Many researches have studied the effect of aluminum species on the synthesis of geopolymer. However, it is still unclear about the influence of Al additives on the properties of geopolymer. The current study identified the role of the Al additive on the thermal performance of fly ash based geopolymer and observing the microstructure development of the composite. NaOH pellets were dissolved in water for 14 M (14 moles/L) sodium hydroxide solution which was used as an alkali activator. The weight ratio of alkali activator to fly ash was 0.40. Sodium aluminate powder was employed as an Al additive and added in amounts of 0.5 wt.% to 2 wt.% by the weight of fly ash. The mixture of alkali activator and fly ash was cured in a 75°C dry oven for 24 hours. Then, the hardened geopolymer samples were exposed to 300°C, 600°C and 900°C for 2 hours, respectively. The initial compressive strength after oven curing increased with increasing sodium aluminate content. It was also observed in SEM results that more amounts of geopolymer composite were synthesized as sodium aluminate was added. The compressive strength increased with increasing heating temperature from 300°C to 600°C regardless of sodium aluminate addition. It was consistent with the ATR-FTIR results that the peak position related to asymmetric stretching vibrations of Si-O-T (T: Si or Al) shifted to higher wavenumber as the heating temperature increased, indicating the further geopolymer reaction. In addition, geopolymer sample with higher content of sodium aluminate showed better compressive strength. It was also reflected on the IR results by more shift of the peak position assigned to Si-O-T toward the higher wavenumber. However, the compressive strength decreased after being exposed to 900°C in all samples. The degree of reduction in compressive strength was decreased with increasing sodium aluminate content. The deterioration in compressive strength was most severe in the geopolymer sample without sodium aluminate additive, while the samples with sodium aluminate addition showed better thermal durability at 900°C. This is related to the phase transformation with the occurrence of nepheline phase at 900°C, which was most predominant in the sample without sodium aluminate. In this work, it was concluded that sodium aluminate could be a good additive in the geopolymer synthesis by showing the improved compressive strength at elevated


The deeply entrenched patterns of racial inequality in the United States simply do not square with the liberal notion of a nation-state of equal citizens. Uncovering the false promise of liberalism, State of White Supremacy reveals race to be a fundamental, if flexible, ruling logic that perpetually generates and legitimates racial hierarchy and privilege. Racial domination and violence in the United States are indelibly marked by its origin and ongoing development as an empire-state. The widespread misrecognition of the United States as a liberal nation-state hinges on the twin conditions of its approximation for the white majority and its impossibility for their racial others. The essays in this book incisively probe and critique the U.S. racial state through a broad range of topics, including citizenship, education, empire, gender, genocide, geography, incarceration, Islamophobia, migration and border enforcement, violence, and welfare.


Increased demand on power transformers, due to the extension of equipment lifetimes and a trend to lower costs, has led to a need for condition based maintenance. However, there are currently no established techniques to accurately monitor and diagnose faults in real-time while the transformer is on-line. A major factor in the degradation of transformer insulation is partial discharging which, if left unattended, will eventually cause complete insulation failure. A partial discharge detection system (PDDS) is presented for electrically identifying partial discharge pulses and determining the number of partial discharge sources while the transformer is on-line and subjected to external interference. Current and voltage transducers are placed on the transformer bushings rendering it unnecessary for the transformer to be disconnected or opened. Partial discharge pulses are identified within narrowband and pulse interference using digital signal processing techniques which include an automated Fourier domain threshold filter and a continuous wavelet directional coupling filter. If multiple sources are active, the partial discharge pulses are grouped by a clustering neural network. Two 7.5kVA, 11kV transformers were used to conduct testing of the PDDS. High recognition rates of artificial partial discharge pulses were achieved in an off-line transformer, while a previously unknown natural partial discharge source was identified in the second energised transformer.


This paper proposes a real-time, robust and efficient three-dimensional (3-D) model-based tracking algorithm for visual servoing. A virtual visual servoing approach is used for 3-D tracking. This method is similar to more classical nonlinear pose computation techniques. Robustness is obtained by integrating an M-estimator into the virtual visual control law via an iteratively reweighted least-squares implementation. The presented approach is also extended to the use of multiple cameras. Results show the method to be robust to occlusion, changes in illumination and mistracking.


This year, as the world faced a crisis like no other, the International Monetary Fund and its member countries swung into action to save lives and put a floor under the world economy. But the outlook remains uncertain. Countries now face a "long ascent" that will be difficult, uneven, uncertain, and prone to setbacks. The IMF is working to help countries focus on "policies for people" to generate a transformational recovery through job-rich growth that benefits all.


 Abstract — Machine Learning and Data Mining are the two important tools for extracting useful information and knowledge from large datasets. In machine learning, classification is a wildly used technique to predict qualitative variables and is generally preferred over regression from an operational point of view. Due to the enormous increase in air pollution in various countries especially China, Air Quality Classification has become one of the most important topics in air quality research and modelling. This study aims at introducing a hybrid classification model based on information theory and Support Vector Machine (SVM) using the air quality data of four cities in China namely Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Tianjin from Jan 1, 2014 to April 30, 2016. China's Ministry of Environmental Protection has classified the daily air quality into 6 levels namely Serious Pollution, Severe Pollution, Moderate Pollution, Light Pollution, Good and Excellent based on their respective Air Quality Index (AQI) values. Using the information theory, information gain (IG) is calculated and feature selection is done for both categorical features and continuous numeric features. Then SVM Machine Learning algorithm is implemented on the selected features with cross-validation. The final evaluation reveals that the IG and SVM hybrid model performs better than SVM (alone), Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and K-Nearest Neighbours (KNN) models in terms of accuracy as well as


This article elucidates the premises and limited meaning of medical futility in order to formulate an ethically meaningful definition of the term, that is, a medical intervention's inability to deliver the benefit for which it is designed. It uses this definition to show the two ways an intervention could become medically futile, to recommend an even more limited usage of medical futility, and to explain why an intervention need not be futile in order to be withdrawn over patient-based objections. If an intervention retains some benefit, then patients or surrogates might legitimately consider that benefit in their case and request the intervention. Physicians might still be justified in declining it on the grounds that the burdens greatly outweigh the benefits, but not on the grounds of futility. Finally, the article uses bioethics research and healthcare litigation to clarify the meaning of futility in practice and recommends alternative language when possible.


The overall aim of this investigation is to identify the strategies adopted for the implementation of gender-based linguistic reform in four European countries (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom). In addressing this aim, firstly the study explores the recommendations to eliminate discrimination of women and men from language at supranational level in order to determine whether international recommendations have influenced legislation in the four countries. Secondly, the recommendations on non-sexist language in each national context have been reviewed taking into account the structural features of each language. The study shows the diverse linguistic resources that each of the four language systems has in order to achieve non-discriminatory language and identifies the key recommendations as well as the main promoters of gender-based linguistic reform in each country. The study has found that in all four countries a significant number of measures designed to combat linguistic sexism have been introduced. The investigation also' aims at providing evidence of the adoption of guidelines for the avoidance of sexist language as well as the stages of implementation in each country. To this end, a linguistic analysis of job offers in the four languages has been carried out. This longitudinal study has helped to identify patterns of language usage across the four socia-linguistic settings as well as the preferred strategy in each language. The main finding is that, although there is no consistent strategy regarding the feminisation of occupational nomenclature in the four languages, the common intention has been to make the language of communication gender-inclusive. The study offers a contribution to the existing work in the area of cross-cultural research. Furthermore, the review of similarities and differences between the recommendations for non-sexist language and their implementation in four linguistic settings aims to provide a framework for further research and practical application which can be drawn from the linguistic analysis of naturally occurring data.


Frequency doubling of the radiation of selective and nonselective carbon monoxide lasers in nonlinear ZnGeP2and GaSe crystals has been experimentally investigated. An internal frequency-conversion efficiency as high as 7% has been obtained, with enrichment of the spectrum of the converted frequencies due to the parallel process of sum-frequency generation. The possibility is discussed of using the methods of nonlinear crystal optics to create a broad-range coherent-radiation source in the mid-IR and terahertz ranges of the spectrum, based on carbon monoxide lasers.


The toxicity of thirty para-substituted phenols on Tetrahymena pyriformis was modelled using an original methodology that uses the complex structural information of the compounds. Two models were built. The methodology allows atomic properties to be assigned to toxicity based on the selection of pairs of descriptors from the entire family, which is called Molecular Descriptors Family (MDF). One model has two independent structural descriptors and the other has four. The model with four descriptors proved to have high estimated and predictive abilities (over 97% of toxicity could be explained by structural information). The partial charge distribution by bonds (molecular topology) and space (molecular geometry) interaction proved to be related with the toxicity of para-substituted phenols on Tetrahymena pyriformis . The predictive ability of the model was tested by using the following methods: the cross-validation leave-one-out and the training versus test experiments . The comparisons among the models were performed using the correlated correlations method. The embedding of the complex information from the structure using MDF methodology can lead to further investigations of the mechanism of chemicals toxicity on Tetrahymena pyriformis .


When the Civil War halted steamboat travel on the Mississippi River in 1861, an unemployed riverboat pilot named Samuel Clemens enlisted in the Missouri militia. After two weeks of service, Clemens abandoned his post and fled westward to begin a writing career-a turn of events that precipitated the rise to fame of the man who would become known as Mark Twain. The circumstances surrounding his departure are unclear; some view Twain as a deserter, while others call into question the nature of his commitment from the beginning. Twain defended himself in speeches and in print, offering varying accounts-with varying degrees of truth-of his confusion upon enrollment, his ignorance of the moral and political forces behind the war, and his claim to have killed a man while hiding in a corncrib. Regardless of the reason for his desertion, his personal experiences and the Civil War in general are recurring topics in Twain's speeches, fiction, and nonfiction. In addition to broaching the issue in longer works, such as Life on the Mississippi and The Gilded Age, Twain directly addresses it in shorter pieces such as "The Private History of a Campaign That Failed" and "A Curious Experience." Editor David Rachels unites these selections in Mark Twain's Civil War, offering Twain fans and Civil War scholars the unprecedented opportunity to read the entire array of Twain's Civil War-influenced literature in one volume. In addition to Twain's own pieces, Rachels includes an account of Twain's war career by his official biographer as well as a story by Absalom C. Grimes, a Confederate mail runner who claims to have served with Twain early in the war. An introduction by Rachels completes the text, which analyzes Twain's military stint and assesses the war's profound influence on one of America's most celebrated authors.


Natural killer T (NKT) cells recognize lipid antigens presented by CD1d molecules and play an important role in the regulation of innate and adaptive immune responses. Here we report the identification of a membrane-associated protein, immunoglobulin-like transcript 4 (ILT4), as a novel human CD1d receptor that inhibits CD1d-mediated immune responses. We found that native CD1d tetramer generated by mammalian cells was able to specifically bind human monocytes in the peripheral blood, and this binding was at least partly mediated by monocyte-expressed ILT4. The interaction between ILT4 and CD1d involves the two N-terminal domains of ILT4 and the antigenbinding groove of CD1d (α1/α2 domain). This interaction has been identified on the cell surface as well as in the endosomal and lysosomal compartments. Functional analysis showed that ILT4 could block the loading of lipid antigens such as α-GalCer, and consequently inhibited NKT recognition. The interaction between ILT4 and CD1d may provide new insights into the regulation of NKTmediated immunity.


Naltrexone and naloxone are classical opioid antagonists. In substantially lower than standard doses, they exert different pharmacodynamics. Low-dose naltrexone (LDN), considered in a daily dose of 1 to 5 mg, has been shown to reduce glial inflammatory response by modulating Toll-like receptor 4 signaling in addition to systemically upregulating endogenous opioid signaling by transient opioid-receptor blockade. Clinical reports of LDN have demonstrated possible benefits in diseases such as fibromyalgia, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, complex-regional pain syndrome, Hailey-Hailey disease, and cancer. In a dosing range at less than 1 μg per day, oral naltrexone or intravenous naloxone potentiate opioid analgesia by acting on filamin A, a scaffolding protein involved in μ-opioid receptor signaling. This dose is termed ultra low-dose naltrexone/naloxone (ULDN). It has been of use in postoperative control of analgesia by reducing the need for the total amount of opioids following surgery, as well as ameliorating certain side-effects of opioid-related treatment. A dosing range between 1 μg and 1 mg comprises very low-dose naltrexone (VLDN), which has primarily been used as an experimental adjunct treatment for boosting tolerability of opioid-weaning methadone taper. In general, all of the low-dose features regarding naltrexone and naloxone have been only recently and still scarcely scientifically evaluated. This review aims to present an overview of the current knowledge on these topics and summarize the key findings published in peer-review sources. The existing potential of LDN, VLDN, and ULDN for various areas of biomedicine has still not been thoroughly and comprehensively addressed.


Requirements engineering is a key activity in systems development. This pa - per examines six systems development projects that have used end user development (EUD) as a requirements engineering technique for communicating across social worlds. For this purpose, we employed the theoretical lens of design boundary object in order to focus on functional and political ecologies during the development process. Four fea - tures were investigated: (1) the capability for common representation, (2) the capabil - ity to transform design knowledge, (3) the capability to mobilise for design action, and (4) the capability to legitimise design knowledge across social worlds. We concluded that EUD means a high degree of end user involvement and takes advantage of end us- ers' know-how. It has the ability to capture requirements and transfer them into the fi - nal information system without the need to make an explicit design rationale available to the systems developers. However, systems developers have little or no influence on busi - ness requirements. Their role is mainly as technical experts rather than business devel- opers. The systems developers took control and power of technical requirements, while requirements that relate to business logic remained with the end users. Consequently, the systems developers did not act as catalysts in the systems development process.


This thesis proposes a new approach to investigate insight problem solving. Introducing magic tricks as a problem solving task, we asked participants to find out the secret method used by the magician to create the magic effect. Based on the theoretical framework of the representational change theory, we argue that magic tricks are ideally suited to investigate insight because similar to established insight tasks like puzzles, observers' prior knowledge activates constraints. In order to see through the magic trick, the constraints must be overcome by changing the problem representation. The aim of the present work is threefold: First, we set out to provide a proof of concept for this novel paradigm by demonstrating that it is actually possible for observers to gain insight into the magician's secret method and that this can be experienced as a sudden, insightful solution. We therefore aimed at showing that magic tricks can trigger insightful solutions that are accompanied by an Aha! experience. The proposed paradigm could be a useful contribution to the field of insight research where new stimuli beyond traditional puzzle approaches are sorely needed. Second, the present work is aimed at contributing to a better understanding of the subjective Aha! experience that is currently often relied on as important classification criterion in neuroscientific studies of insight, yet remains conceptually vague. The new task will therefore be used to further elucidate the phenomenology of the Aha! experience by assessing participants' individual solving experiences. As a third question, we investigated the influence of insight on memory. A positive impact of insight on subsequent solution recall is often implicitly assumed, because the representational change underlying insightful solutions is assumed to facilitate the retention of solution knowledge, yet this was never tested.
A stimulus set of magic tricks was developed in collaboration with a professional magician, covering a large range of different magic effects and methods. After recording the tricks in a standardized theatre setting, pilot studies were run on 45 participants to identify appropriate tricks and to ensure that they were understandable, surprising and difficult. In the main experiment, 50 participants watched the final set of 34 magic tricks, with the task of trying to figure out how the trick was accomplished. Each trick was presented up to three times. Upon solving the trick, participants had to indicate whether they had found the solution through sudden insight (i.e. with an Aha! experience) or not. Furthermore, we obtained a detailed characterization of the Aha! experience by asking participants for a comprehensive quantitative (ratings on a visual analogue scale with fixed dimensions) and qualitative evaluation (free self-reports) which was repeated after 14 days to control for its reliability. At that time, participants were also required to perform a recall of their solutions.
We found that 49% of all magic tricks could be solved and specifically, that insightful solutions were elicited in 41.1% of solved trials. In comparison with noninsight solutions, insightful solutions (brought about by representational change) were more likely to be correct and reached earlier. Quantitative evaluations of individual Aha! experiences turned out to be highly reliable since they remained identical across the time span of 14 days. Qualitatively, participants reported more emotional than cognitive aspects. This primacy of positive emotions was found in qualitative as well as in quantitative evaluations, although two different methods were used. We also found that experiencing insight leads to a facilitated recall of the respective solutions since 64.4% of all insight solutions were recalled correctly, whereas only 52.4% of all noninsight solutions were recalled correctly after a delay of 14 days.
We demonstrated the great potential of our new approach by providing a proof of concept for magic tricks as a problem solving task and conclude that magic tricks offer a novel way of inducing problem solving that elicits insight. The reliability of individual evaluations of Aha! experiences indicates that, despite its subjective character, it can be justified to use the Aha! experience as a classification criterion. The present work contributes to a better understanding of the phenomenology of the Aha! experience by providing evidence for the occurrence of strong positive emotions as a prevailing aspect. This work also revealed a memory advantage for solutions that were reached through insight, demonstrating a facilitating effect of previous insight experiences on the recall of solutions. This finding provides support for the assumption that a representational change underlying insightful solving experiences leads to long-lasting changes in the representation of a problem that facilitate the retention of the problem's solution. In sum, the novel approach presented in this thesis is shown to constitute a valuable contribution to the field of insight research and offers much potential for future research. Revealing the relationship between insight and magic tricks, the framework of the representational change theory is applied to a new domain and thus enlarged. Combining the novel task domain of magic tricks with established insight tasks might help to further elucidate the process of insight problem solving which is a characteristic and vital part of human thinking and yet so difficult to grasp.


Titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ), which is regarded as a semiconductor photocatalyst, has drawn attention in the applications of photocatalysis, including hydrogen evolution reaction, carbon dioxide reduction, pollutant degradation, and biocatalytic or dye-sensitized solar cells due to its low toxicity, superior photocatalytic activity, and good chemical stability. However, there are still some disadvantages such as too large energy bandgap (~3.34 eV and ~3.01 eV for anatase and rutile phases, respectively) in the absorbance of all ranges of lights, which limits the photoelectrochemical performance of TiO 2 . Herein, we like to introduce photocatalytic blue TiO 2 that is obtained by the reduction of TiO 2 . The blue TiO 2 consists of Ti3+ state with high oxygen defect density that can absorb the visible and infrared as well as ultraviolet light due to its low energy bandgap, leading to enhance a photocatalytic activity. This chapter covers the structure and properties of blue TiO 2 , its possible applications in visible-light-driven photocatalysis, and mainly various synthetic methods even including phase-selective room-temperature solution process under atmospheric pressure.


Monospecific blooms of phytoplankton can disrupt pelagic communities and negatively affect human health and economies. Interspecific competition may play an important role in promoting blooms, and so we tested (1) whether the outcome of competition between the red tide dinoflagellate Karenia brevis (ex Gymnodinium breve) and 12 cooccurring phytoplankters could be explained by allelopathic effects of compounds released by K. brevis and (2) whether waterborne, lipophilic molecules, including brevetoxins, are involved. Nine of 12 phytoplankton species were suppressed when grown with live K. brevis at bloom concentrations. K. brevis extracellular filtrates or lipophilic extracts of filtrates inhibited six of these nine species, indicating allelopathy. However, these inhibitory effects were weaker than those experienced by competitors exposed to live K. brevis. Brevetoxins at ecologically reasonable waterborne concentrations accounted for the modest inhibition by K. brevis of only one competitor, Skeletonema costatum. The addition of brevetoxins also caused significant autoinhibition, reducing the maximum concentration of K. brevis. Allelopathy is one mechanism by which K. brevis appears to exhibit competitive advantage over some sympatric phytoplankters, although unidentified compounds other than brevetoxins must be involved, in most cases. K. brevis was also susceptible to competitive exclusion by several species, including Odontella aurita and Prorocentrum minimum, known to thrive during K. brevis blooms. Although field experiments are required to assess whether allelopathy plays a fundamental role in bloom dynamics, our results indicate that allelopathy occurs widely but with species‐specific consequences.


Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) usually occurs after an inciting injury. Poor understanding of pathophysiology, management, and disease awareness has led to misdiagnosis of this condition. We report a rare case of a 69-year-old male who developed CRPS following a Florida Coral snake bite on his right foot. Initially, it was misdiagnosed as recurrent cellulitis; however, he developed chronic right lower extremity (RLE) pain with worsening flares associated with right leg swelling and erythema. Examination was remarkable for nonpitting edema, erythema, and severe tenderness to light touch of the RLE, all symptoms that highly supported the diagnosis of CRPS. Treatment was initiated and consisted of physical therapy in addition to gabapentin which resulted in marked improvement. CRPS remains a challenging diagnosis due to lack of gold standard test and can be easily misdiagnosed. Clinical evaluation applying Budapest criteria can aid with diagnosis and should be routinely used for all patients with suspected CRPS.


This paper explores the productiveness of the intersecting knowledge domains of Teaching and Learning and Design. More specifically it examines the utility of an 'Assessment for Learning' (AfL) framework developed by researchers at the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) at Northumbria University for articulating the curriculum design, delivery and assessment strategies employed in 'the Global Studio' – a design module conducted at a UK university. Using a case study methodology with the aim of compiling rich, practice-based knowledge (Denzin and Lincoln 2005), we draw on data gathered throughout the development and delivery of 'the Global Studio' in order to undertake our analysis. We suggest that many Assessment for Learning elements were implicitly embedded in this module. We propose that Assessment for Learning may provide a useful conceptual frame for exploring pedagogical practices and student learning experiences more generally in the design studio.


This study aimed to explain the use of interactive whiteboards (IWBs) by English female teachers in Modern Systems School in Jordan. Viewed from the lens of Rogers' Diffusion of Innovation Theory, the study examined and reported teachers' use of IWB and its features that have impact on their decisions to adopt it in Modern Systems School . The study employed the qualitative case study approach. Data were collected through different ways such as semi-structured interviews, document reviews, and participatory observations. Rogers' (2003) diffusion of innovations theory was used to guide the investigation. The study concluded that the extent of teachers' use of IWB is related to their perceptions of the five major attributes: Relative advantages, compatibility, simplicity, trialability, and observability. The regular use of IWB has shifted the teachers' methodologies of teaching from traditional ways to using dialogues, open sources, and group work. The study finally recommended giving more attention to training workshops regarding how to integrate IWB into the educational process.


We present two algorithms for estimating sensor motion from image and inertial measurements, which are suitable for use with inexpensive inertial sensors and in environments without known fiducials. The first algorithm is a batch method, which produces optimal estimates of the sensor motion, scene structure, and other parameters using measurements from the entire observation sequence simultaneously. The second algorithm recovers sensor motion, scene structure, and other parameters in an online manner, is suitable for use with long or "infinite" sequences, and handles sequences in which no feature is always visible. We also describe initial results from running each algorithm on a sequence for which ground truth is available. We show that while image measurements alone are not sufficient for accurate motion estimation from this sequence, both batch and online estimation from image and inertial measurements produce accurate estimates of the sensors' motion.


An allele of the mouse brachyury locus, T22H, had been shown previously to involve a deletion of several markers in the proximal part of chromosome 17, and almost certainly includes deletion of the t-complex distorter gene Tcd-1. The effects of T22H on transmission ratio distortion and male sterility caused by the t-complex were compared with those of a partial t-haplotype th51, which carries the t-form of the distorter Tcd-1t. In combination with the complete haplotype tw32, T22H caused severe impairment of male fertility, but males of genotype T22H/t6 or T22H/th51 were normally fertile. These results were very similar to those obtained when th51 was in combination with the same haplotypes. In effect on transmission ratio T22H was again similar to th51, in that it produced a marked increase in the transmission of the haplotype t6. To test whether the effects of T22H were due to deletion of elements other than Tcd-1, the effect of T22H on transmission of the partial haplotype th2 was compared with that of the deletion Thp. Again T22H markedly increased transmission of the t-haplotype and the effect was significantly greater than the small effect produced by Thp. It is concluded that deletion of the distorter Tcd-1 has an effect like that of the t-form of this distorter, Tcd-1t, and hence that Tcd-1t must be an amorph or hypomorph. It is speculated that other t-complex distorters, Tcd-2t and Tcd-3t, may also be amorphs or hypomorphs.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Golden Syrian hamsters are evaluated as an animal model for light induced fluorescence (LIF) photodetection and phototherapy of early squamous cell carcinomas of the upper aerodigestive tract, the esophagus, and the traecheo-bronchial tree. Carcinomas of this type are induced on the hamster cheek pouch mucosa by the application of the carcinogen 7,12-DMBA. For phototherapeutic experiments on the animals we utilized meso-(tetrahydoxyphenyl) chlorin (mTHPC). This drug is currently in phase I and II clinical trials for ENT patients presenting superficial `early' squamous cell carcinomas. By means of LIF we measured in vivo the kinetics of the uptake and removal of mTHPC in the normal and tumoral cheek mucosa and in the skin. The photodynamic therapy (PDT) reaction of the tissue after excitation of the photosensitizer with laser light at 652 nm was studied. Both pharmacokinetics and PDT efficacy are compared between animal model and clinical results with special emphasis on selectivity between normal and tumoral mucosa. These first experiments show that this tumor model in the hamster cheek pouch seems to be suitable for testing new photosensitizers preceding their clinical application as well as for optimization of the multiple parameters of clinical PDT.


Various theories have been put forward to explain the fact that humans experience menopause while virtually no animals do. This paper aims to investigate one such theory: children provide a savings technology into old age, but as human babies are usually large and have long gestation periods, a substantial risk of death exists for the mother as she bears children. It seems therefore appropriate to impose a stopping rule for fertility. Given an objective (support for old age) and demographics (mortality of mother and children), an optimal age for menopause can be calculated. Using demographic data from populations that have seen little influence from modern medicine, this optimal age is compared to empirical evidence.


Artist, Clare Twomey transforms Tate Exchange into a factory making everyday objects from clay to explore ideas around the concept of Production. In week one you are invited to join the production line and learn the skills of working with clay. Your labour will be exchanged for another person's object from the factory. In the second week the factory is redundant and invites the visitor to clock in and consider the role of the human in various forms of production. We will ask where does production happen now? how do we experience it? what production means in the twenty-first century and beyond?

Throughout the two weeks you can hear talks from specialists, take a factory tour on the Tate Exchange Floor. The factory is a place to discuss the transactions and transformations of labour that create knowledge and community. In the factory we examine skills and how we form exchanges at work, with ourselves, and with others.


We consider an estimation procedure for discrete choice models in general and Multivariate Extreme Value (MEV) models in particular. It is based on a pseudo-likelihood function, generalizing the Conditional Maximum Likelihood (CML) estimator by Manski and McFadden (1981) and theWeighted Exogenous Sample Maximum Likelihood (WESML) estimator by Manski and Lerman (1977). We show that the property of Multinomial Logit (MNL) models, that consistent estimates of all parameters but the constants can be obtained from an Exogenous Sample Maximum Likelihood (ESML) estimation, does not hold in general for MEV models. We propose a new estimator for the more general case. This new estimator estimates the selection bias directly from the data. We illustrate the new estimator on pseudo-synthetic and real data.


"Introduction: Correct assessment of community knowledge, attitude and practices can assist reformulation of malaria control strategy and form basis of appropriate health education messages. This study was carried out with the objective to assess knowledge, attitude and practices regarding malaria of people living in rural areas of Central India.
Methodology: A cross-sectional study involving 400 households from 8 villages was carried out from August-November 2011. Socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge regarding transmission of disease, symptom of disease, breeding of mosquitoes and control programs, attitude towards seeking treatment and practices; waste disposal, keeping the surroundings clean and use of personal protective measures were assessed by a structured questionnaire.
Results: Only 50% believed that malaria is fatal disease, only 33% had closed water drainage system in their houses and 62.50% prac-ticed of throwing garbage in open or in-front of their house. Seepage of water was present in 42.37% houses. 15% households did not use any type of personal protective measure.
Conclusions: The study showed high knowledge regarding malaria but the attitude and practices on various aspects of malaria was not proper. There is need to focus on Behaviour Change Communication Strategy and improve the Quality of Life of people living in this rural area."


Background:
Nutrition
education
programmes
are
frequently
implemented
in
developing
countries
with
the
aim
of
improving
dietary
practices.
Few
studies
have,
to
date,
examined
the
various
steps
in
such
an
education
process
in
a
developing
country
setting.
This
study,
uses
McGuire's
"Communication/Persuasion"
model
to
assess
the
impact
among
poor
rural
women
in
Mozambique
of
two
nutrition
education
delivery
methods:
group
classes
only
versus
group
classes
plus
individual
classes.
Methods:
Study
participants
were
randomly
selected
from
the
total
population
of
RCT
taking
place
in
rural
Mozambique:
the
Towards
Sustainable
Nutrition
Improvement
project.
Participants
were
female,
had
a
child
under
5
years
of
age
and
had
been
randomised
to
receive
the
nutrition
education
program.
McGuire's
output
steps
(exposure,
attention,
understanding,
memorisation/recall,
skills
acquisition,
and
attitude
change)
were
assessed
for
both
nutrition
education
delivery
methods
using
a
range
of
tools
developed
by
the
investigator,
ranging
from
direct
observations
to
questionnaires.
The
sample
size
varied
for
each
output
step
depending
on
pre-defined
criteria.
Results:
The
methods
devised
in
the
current
study
for
the
assessment
of
McGuire's
output
steps
were
able
to
detect
a
good
degree
of
variability
in
response.
Mothers
receiving
both
the
group
and
individual
classes
(intervention
II)
scored
higher
in
most
output
steps
than
those
receiving
only
the
group
classes
(intervention
I),
even
after
adjusting
for
possible
confounding
influences.
For
example,
those
mothers
in
intervention
II
had
significantly
higher
skills
acquisition
scores
than
those
mothers
in
intervention
I
(difference
of
means
1.03,
independent
t-test,
p<0.001).
Within
the
sample
of
intervention
II
mothers,
the
scores
from
measurements
taken
in
individual
classes
were
significantly
higher
than
those
taken
in
the
group
classes.
For
example,
while
there
was
no
difference
in
observed
attention
scores
between
intervention
II
and
intervention
I
mothers
when
assessed
at
group
classes,
observed
attention
scores
at
individual
classes
were
Significantly
higher
(for
intervention
II
mothers)
than
those
of
intervention
I
mothers
at
group
classes
(Independent
t-test,
p=0.031).
Further
analysis
appeared
to
suggest
that
this
advantage
was
due
to
the
added
benefit
of
receiving
individual
classes
in
addition
to
group
classes;
although
this
cannot
be
confirmed
in
the
current
study
given
the
lack
of
a
study
'arm
providing
only
individual
classes.
2
Conclusions:
This
study
has
for
the
first
time
used
McGuire's
model
to
systematically
investigate
and
compare
the
communication
process
in
two
nutrition
education
delivery
methods
in
a
developing
country
and
attempted
to
develop
tools
to
measure
McGuire's
output
steps
in
such
a
setting.
McGuire's
model
emerged
as
a
good
conceptual
framework
to
use
for
this
purpose
as
it
is
practical,
and.
allowed
for
the
breakdown
of
the
process
into
_,
discrete
steps
that
permitted
comparisons
to
be
made
between
two
delivery
methods.
The
analysis
suggested
that
there
was
an
advantage
in
providing
individual
classes
in
addition
to
group
classes,
although
this
clearly
has
important
resource
implications.


An Er:Yb co-doped P2O5-La2O5 based glass has been synthesized and used for producing 1.6 cm-long active optical waveguides using a low repetition (1 kHz) rate Ti:Al2O3 fs-laser amplifier. Before processing, the laser energy deposition profile for an elliptically shaped beam was simulated, and the best processing conditions for optimizing the focal volume shape, minimizing non-linear propagation effects, were determined. Under these conditions, a multi-scan writing approach was used to maximize the refractive index change induced and to minimize the transmission losses. After processing, the optical powers propagating inside the waveguide (pump absorption, co- and counter-propagating ASE, low signal gain, …) were measured for uni- and bi-directional pumping schemes, and the measurements were simulated and fitted using an ad hoc developed model to describe the behavior of laser written waveguides. The measurements provide internal gain figures comparable to the best ones reported in phosphate glasses for low repetition rate writing even with larger insertion losses. The simulations provide access to key parameters of the waveguide characteristics (coupling losses and propagation losses, Yb3+ ⇔ Er3+ energy transfer rates, Er3+ upconversion coefficient), which have been used to model the expected performance of these structures in terms of length and doping level. A moderate increase of the Er3+ and Yb3+ doping level would potentially lead to net gain values up to 9.4 dB for a waveguide length of 25 mm.


Louise Bogan joked that in a former life she had been "Felicia Hemans." A lush Romantic and an austere Modernist, Hemans and Bogan appear polar opposites, yet these learned women poets shared a laureate poetics of Love and Fame. Hemans alludes directly to Petrarch's laureate triumph in "The Magic Glass"; in poetry and prose she portrays the difficult laureateships of Sappho and Tasso. Both Hemans and Bogan seemed laureates to their contemporaries and successors, yet both found laurels an ambiguous donnee, Bogan a "burden" among flowers, Hemans a fiery crown for the likes of "the Bride of the Greek Isle." Petrarch gained his laurels in a formal triumph at Rome, a scene mandating abjuration and entailing defeat. His I trionfi enacted triumph and its reversals in a sequence mounting from Love to Chastity, Death, Fame, Time, and Eternity. Bogan's laurels were similarly fugual, a "subtle wreath" combining "the line of feeling" of "sentimental" women's poetry with "the line of thought" in masculine Metaphysical Modernism. The poems of Bogan and Hemans that most vex critics – Bogan's life-denying "Henceforth, from the Mind," Hemans's fame-abjuring "Corinne at the Capitol" – read differently as Petrarchan triumphs, that is, as abjurations signaling fresh triumphs to come.


M. Scribonius Drusus Libo has always been considered an inexplicable victim of predatory prosecutors, destroyed in the changed conditions of Tiberius' succession to the founder of the Principate. This is wrong. Drusus Libo conspired with a group of Tiberius' opponents to challenge Tiberius' right. The senate's investigation of Drusus Libo will be examined in Chapter One and Chapter Two. It will be shown that Drusus Libo was treated in a way reminiscent of Catiline's associate P. Lentulus Sura in 63 bc. Drusus Libo's collaborators are then identified as a group of persons who supported first Gaius Caesar, then L. Aemilius Paullus and finally Agrippa Postumus. It is argued that the relationship of this group to Tiberius was beyond repair long before he succeeded Augustus. Tiberius' succession to the supreme power in ad 14 signalled, therefore, a decisive defeat for this group. The succession is thus reconsidered from a new point of view: it was by no means sewn up. Drusus Libo is central to our understanding of Tiberius' behaviour at this time. This is what the book examines in detail. A new historical model for the years 6 bc to ad 16 is offered, which has repercussions for the study of both the preceding and subsequent periods. The book is therefore a contribution to the study of the invention of the Principate at Rome.


Summary.  A methodology is developed to estimate comparable international migration flows between a set of countries. International migration flow data may be missing, reported by the sending country, reported by the receiving country or reported by both the sending and the receiving countries. For the last situation, reported counts rarely match owing to differences in definitions and data collection systems. We report counts harmonized by using correction factors estimated from a constrained optimization procedure. Factors are applied to scale data that are known to be of a reliable standard, creating an incomplete migration flow table of harmonized values. Cells for which no reliable reported flows exist are then estimated from a negative binomial regression model fitted by using an expectation–maximization (EM) type of algorithm. Covariate information for this model is drawn from international migration theory. Finally, measures of precision for all missing cell estimates are derived by using the supplemented EM algorithm. Recent data on international migration between countries in Europe are used to illustrate the methodology. The results represent a complete table of comparable flows which can be used by regional policy makers and social scientists to understand population behaviour and change better.


Much has been discussed and written about the purposes, outcomes and ethics related to tobacco industry funding of research.1–9 The issue is controversial because of tobacco industry funding mechanisms that have been used by the tobacco industry to gain credibility and to advance the industry's interests, which may come at the expense of public health;6 at the same time others have argued that, given the scarcity of funding from other sources, tobacco industry support may be defensible, at least under some circumstances.10 These concerns raise the question of whether there could be a model of tobacco company funding that would be acceptable to the tobacco control research community. This paper presents a set of criteria for evaluating funding models and applies them to four diverse models.

While tobacco consumption and prevalence rates have declined in many developed countries over the past 40 years, the projections are that worldwide tobacco-related deaths will increase in the 21st century.11 Despite the disproportionate toll tobacco use takes, there remains only a modest investment in research to better understand tobacco products, tobacco product marketing, addiction, treatment and consumer behaviour. For example, in the USA, where tobacco causes almost 30% of all cancer deaths, only 2.3% of the National Cancer Institute's 2003 budget was spent on tobacco-related research funding.12 This level of research investment is inadequate relative to the magnitude of the damage caused by tobacco use.13 14

At the same time, the tobacco industry has funded tobacco and health related research at universities. In the current context of limited funding, individuals and institutions may welcome additional sources of support. However the evidence is now clear that the tobacco industry participated in a long-standing conspiracy to defraud the public regarding the health risks of smoking. In 2006, the …


Data sets involving linear ordered sequences are a recurring theme in bioinformatics. Dynamic query tools that support exploration of these data sets can be useful for identifying patterns of interest. This paper describes the use of one such tool - timesearcher - to interactively explore linear sequence data sets taken from two bioinformatics problems. Microarray time course data sets involve expression levels for large numbers of genes over multiple time points. Timesearcher can be used to interactively search these data sets for genes with expression profiles of interest. The occurrence frequencies of short sequences of DNA in aligned exons can be used to identify sequences that play a role in the pre-mRNA splicing. Timesearcher can be used to search these data sets for candidate splicing signals.


Natural ecosystems provide services such as ameliorating the impacts of deleterious human activities on both surface and groundwater. For example, several studies have shown that a healthy riparian ecosystem can reduce the nutrient loading of agricultural wastewater, thus protecting the receiving surface water body. As a result, in order to develop better protection strategies and/or restore natural conditions, there is a growing interest in understanding ecosystem functioning, including feedbacks and nonlinearities. Biogeochemical transformations in soils are heavily influenced by microbial decomposition of soil organic matter. Carbon and nutrient cycles are in turn strongly sensitive to environmental conditions, and primarily to soil moisture and temperature. These two physical variables affect the reaction rates of almost all soil biogeochemical transformations, including microbial and fungal activity, nutrient uptake and release from plants, etc. Soil water saturation and temperature are not constants, but vary both in space and time, thus further complicating the picture. In order to interpret field experiments and elucidate the different mechanisms taking place, numerical tools are beneficial. In this work we developed a 3D numerical reactive-transport model as an aid in the investigation the complex physical, chemical and biological interactions occurring in soils. The new code couples the USGS models (MODFLOW 2000–VSF, MT3DMS and PHREEQC) using an operator-splitting algorithm, and is a further development an existing reactive/density-dependent flow model PHWAT. The model was tested using simplified test cases. Following verification, a process-based biogeochemical reaction network describing the turnover of carbon and nitrogen in soils was implemented. Using this tool, we investigated the coupled effect of moisture content and temperature fluctuations on nitrogen and organic matter cycling in the riparian zone, in order to help understand the relative sensitivity of biological transformations to these processes.


ABSTRACT Background: High levels of homocysteine have been associated with increased risk for dementia although results have been inconsistent. There are no reported studies from the developing world including Africa. Methods: In this longitudinal study of two community-dwelling cohorts of elderly Yoruba and African Americans, levels of homocysteine, vitamin B12 and folate were measured from blood samples taken in 2001. These levels were compared in two groups, participants who developed incident dementia in the follow-up until 2009 (59 Yoruba and 101 African Americans) and participants who were diagnosed as cognitively normal or in the good performance category at their last follow-up (760 Yoruba and 811 African Americans). Homocysteine levels were divided into quartiles for each site. Results: After adjusting for age, education, possession of ApoE, smoking, and time of enrollment the higher quartiles of homocysteine were associated with a non-significant increase in dementia risk in the Yoruba (homocysteine quartile 4 vs. 1 OR: 2.19, 95% CI 0.95–5.07, p = 0.066). For the African Americans, there was a similar but non-significant relationship between higher homocysteine levels and dementia risk. There were no significant relationships between levels of vitamin B12 and folate and incident dementia in either site although folate levels were lower and vitamin B12 levers were higher in the Yoruba than in the African Americans. Conclusions: Increased homocysteine levels were associated with a similar but non-significant increase in dementia risk for both Yoruba and African Americans despite significant differences in folate levels between the two sites.


"If Shakespeare were alive today, he'd sound like an American."
"English accents are the sexiest."
"Americans have ruined the English language."
"Technology means everyone will have to speak the same English."
Such claims about the English language are often repeated but rarely examined. Professor Lynne Murphy is on the linguistic front line. In The Prodigal Tongue she explores the fiction and reality of the special relationship between British and American English. By examining the causes and symptoms of American Verbal Inferiority Complex and its flipside, British Verbal Superiority Complex, Murphy unravels the prejudices, stereotypes and insecurities that shape our attitudes to our own language.

With great humo(u)r and new insights, Lynne Murphy looks at the social, political and linguistic forces that have driven American and British English in different directions: how Americans got from centre to center, why British accents are growing away from American ones, and what different things we mean when we say estate, frown, or middle class. Is anyone winning this war of the words? Will Yanks and Brits ever really understand each other?


PURPOSE Continuity of care is a defining characteristic of primary care associated with lower costs and improved health equity and care quality. However, we lack provider-level measures of primary care continuity amenable to value-based payment, including the Medicare Quality Payment Program (QPP). We created 4 physician-level, claims-based continuity measures and tested their associations with health care expenditures and hospitalizations. METHODS We used Medicare claims data for 1,448,952 beneficiaries obtaining care from a nationally representative sample of 6,551 primary care physicians to calculate continuity scores by 4 established methods. Patient-level continuity scores attributed to a single physician were averaged to create physician-level scores. We used beneficiary multilevel models, including beneficiary controls, physician characteristics, and practice rurality to estimate associations with total Medicare Part A & B expenditures (allowed charges, logged), and any hospitalization. RESULTS Our continuity measures were highly correlated (correlation coefficients ranged from 0.86 to 0.99), with greater continuity associated with similar outcomes for each. Adjusted expenditures for beneficiaries cared for by physicians in the highest Bice-Boxerman continuity score quintile were 14.1% lower than for those in the lowest quintile ($8,092 vs $6,958; β = –0.151; 95% CI, –0.186 to –0.116), and the odds of hospitalization were 16.1% lower between the highest and lowest continuity quintiles (OR = 0.839; 95% CI, 0.787 to 0.893). CONCLUSIONS All 4 continuity scores tested were significantly associated with lower total expenditures and hospitalization rates. Such indices are potentially useful as QPP measures, and may also serve as proxy resource-use measures, given the strength of association with lower costs and utilization.


Abstract 1997 was an important year for Russia's Northern Sea Route (NSR) in terms of foreign interest. The first full transits of the NSR by western merchant ships were made. The International Northern Sea Route Programme (INSROP) continued into phase 2 of its research projects, and planning proceeded for a European Union-sponsored demonstration voyage to the Ob' River. The nuclear icebreaker Arktika returned to Arctic operations, while two icebreakers were removed from polar service. Information about the NSR became more widely available with the distribution of an English translation of a navigation guide. Winter operations continued in the Kara Sea, albeit reduced, and a limited number of summer voyages to Russian Arctic ports originated from the Pacific rim. RADARS AT synthetic aperture radar images of sea ice along the NSR were used for the first time during several demonstration voyages.


We systematically study the query complexity of learning geodesically convex halfspaces on graphs. Geodesic convexity is a natural generalisation of Euclidean convexity and allows the definition of convex sets and halfspaces on graphs. We prove an upper bound on the query complexity which is linear in the treewidth and the minimum hull set size but only logarithmic in the diameter. We show tight lower bounds along well-established separation axioms and identify the Radon number as a central parameter of the query complexity and the VC dimension. While previous bounds typically depend on the cut size of the labelling, all parameters in our bounds can be computed from the unlabelled graph. We provide evidence that ground-truth communities in real-world graphs are often convex and empirically compare our proposed approach with other active learning algorithms.


Background: The interest in the economic evaluations of "prophylactic" systemic antifungals is on the rise, especially with the emergence of newer expensive agents for prophylaxis of invasive fungal infections (IFI). Decision analytic modeling is a systematic approach that has become integral in the economic evaluation process for the purpose of simplifying the decision making. This systematic review aims to identify the prevalence of decision-analytic modeling in the pharmacoeconomic literature regarding prophylactic therapies for systemic fungal infections, and to identify variations in model designs used along with defining specific areas of strengths and weaknesses. Method: A systematic literature search was conducted using the e-databases Pubmed, Medline, Embase, Economic Evaluation, Econlit, and Cochrane to obtain all model-based economic evaluations of antifungal agents. Search terms were under three categories: (i) therapy (antifungal agent [Mesh] OR Prophylaxis); (ii) disease (mycosis [Mesh] OR fungal disease [Mesh] OR invasive OR systemic); and (iii) research design (economics [Mesh] OR decision analysis [Mesh] OR costs and cost analysis [Mesh]). Publications were included if they were journal articles, full text publications, human studies, English language. Study articles were excluded if they were reviews, studying topical antifungal, non-invasive infections, or non-economic models. Journal article inclusion and data extraction, via a data collection form, were conducted twice, each by different researcher. Results: Out of 841 citations, only 19 articles were eligible for inclusion. Most of studies were relatively recent, conducted in 2008–2013. Seventeen of them used sources of clinical data from pooled randomized control trials. Evaluations were mostly in USA (7), the remaining in Australia, Canada, Spain, The Netherland, Korea, Greece, France, Germany, and Switzerland (1–2 articles each). All articles utilized the cost-effectiveness method using decision tree models; including 10 using Markov modeling for simulating future use of medications. This was, as appropriate, associated with discounting type of cost adjustment. Drug comparisons in included studies (27/29) were mostly between an old cheaper antifungals and more expensive newer ones. The 19 articles incorporated 15 studies with cost per life year gained measure, six with cost per IFI avoided, one with cost per Quality Adjusted Life Year, and four included cost saving per patient measure. Most important, is that same clinical measures were defined differently in different studies. Most studies reported dominance state, the majority were in favor of posaconazole (9 out of 12), and five studies required incremental cost effectiveness ratio analysis. Only direct medical costs were considered in studies despite that six articles had social perspectives instead of the hospital perspective. All articles had adjusted costs either for inflation (9/19 articles) or discounting. Fourteen articles used only one way sensitivity analysis while few used a combination with multivariate (2) or scenario (3) analyses. Conclusion: Decision making in relation to prophylactic antifungals is not complex, including the economic considerations; whereby straightforward therapy dominance status was demonstrated in the majority of studies. Most important, is that the literature evidence in relation the cost-effectiveness of systematic antifungals is not cumulative in nature, which is due to that same outcomes are defined differently in studies. This also meant that literature economic models are incomparable and not generalizable since different decision makers appear to be interested in different outcomes, including for the same antifungal agent. Studies are limited by not considering cost of side effects and alternative therapy options. Further studies are needed to compare among the newer more expensive agents, where evidence is lacking. Also, studies should be enhanced by better adhering to guidelines in relation to standardized definitions of health states, enabling a cumulative evidence generation and generalizability of findings.


Elementary (primary) and high (secondary) school education in Northern Ireland (NI) is essentially segregated along religious lines. The vast majority of young people from the Protestant/Unionist/British community attend state "Controlled" schools while Catholics/ Nationalists/Irish attend schools in the Catholic Church‐based "Maintained" sector. Going to university represents for many the first opportunity to share a significant educational experience with someone from a different politico‐religious group and cultural background. This paper presents the results of a focus‐group based study designed to illuminate students' experiences of intergroup relations at a NI university. Through focus‐group discussions information was generated on cross‐community contact, the influence of group difference, prevalence, and identity, on attitudes and intergroup communication. The university environment as a factor in potential relational development, the role which student bodies and academic staff may play, and policies and practices on accepting diversity are discussed. Recommendations and considerations are highlighted for other pedagogical institutes where complex and difficult intergroup dynamics exist.


PURPOSE
To evaluate the effect on survival and quality of life of maintaining hemoglobin (Hb) in the range of 12 to 14 g/dL with epoetin alfa versus placebo in women with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) receiving first-line chemotherapy.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Eligible patients were randomly assigned to receive epoetin alfa 40,000 U once weekly or placebo for 12 months. Study drug was initiated if baseline Hb was < or = 13 g/dL or when Hb decreased to < or = 13g/dL during the study. The primary end point was 12-month overall survival (OS).

RESULTS
The study drug administration was stopped early in accordance with a recommendation from the Independent Data Monitoring Committee because of higher mortality in the group treated with epoetin alfa. Enrollment had been completed, with 939 patients enrolled (epoetin alfa, n = 469; placebo, n = 470). Most patients had Hb more than 12 g/dL at baseline (median Hb, 12.8 g/dL) or during the study. From the final analysis, 12-month OS was 70% for epoetin alfa recipients and 76% for placebo recipients (P = .01). Optimal tumor response and time to disease progression were similar between groups. The reason for the difference in mortality between groups could not be determined from additional subsequent analyses involving both study data and chart review.

CONCLUSION
In this trial, the use of epoetin alfa to maintain high Hb targets in women with MBC, most of whom did not have anemia at the start of treatment, was associated with decreased survival. Additional research is required to clarify the potential impact of erythropoietic agents on survival when the Hb target range is 10 to 12 g/dL.


Since little has been reported in the literature concerning enterprise storage system file-level request scheduling, we do not have enough knowledge about how various scheduling factors affect performance. Moreover, we are in lack of a good understanding on how to enhance request scheduling to adapt to the changing characteristics of workloads and hardware resources. To answer these questions, we first build a request scheduler prototype based on WAFL®, a mainstream file system running on numerous enterprise storage systems worldwide. Next, we use the prototype to quantitatively measure the impact of various scheduling configurations on performance on a NetApp®'s enterprise-class storage system. Several observations have been made. For example, we discover that in order to improve performance, the priority of write requests and non-preempted restarted requests should be boosted in some workloads. Inspired by these observations, we further propose two scheduling enhancement heuristics called SORD (size-oriented request dispatching) and QATS (queue-depth aware time slicing). Finally, we evaluate them by conducting a wide range of experiments using workloads generated by SPC-1 and SFS2014 on both HDD-based and all-flash platforms. Experimental results show that the combination of the two can noticeably reduce average request latency under some workloads.


Skin-cancer is the most common type of cancer among all other types of cancers spreading both developed and developing countries. In this paper, a web service is developed in order to help physicians as well as individuals to upload an image and diagnose the particular types of lesions. Computer vision is used to analyse lesions on images by providing computers with somewhat similarity as humans do. For this a Convolution Neural Network (CNN) is used with multi classification on International Skin Imaging Collaboration (ISIC) 2018 dataset with HAM10000 images. This dataset is a meta-data which has various types of images with seven different labels. At first, the model is trained with a larger training set and saved in a zip folder. Secondly, a web service is created where users or a doctor can upload an image for classification. Thirdly, the images uploaded are pre-processed as there is noise, hairs on image. Techniques like resizing, normalisation, thresholding, black-hat filtering and inpainting are used for this purpose. After this, the saved model is called to define whether the uploaded image is benign or malignant. The experimental results reveal that the proposed model is superior in terms of detection and diagnosis accuracy as compared to modern methods.


Acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a dynamic, thrombus-driven event. As understanding of its pathophysiology has improved, the central role of platelets in initiation and orchestration of this process has become clear. Key components of STEMI include formation of occlusive thrombus, mediation and ultimately amplifi cation of the local vascular infl ammatory response resulting in increased vasoreactivity, oedema formation, and microvascular obstruction. Activation, degranulation, and aggregation of platelets are the platforms from which these components develop. Therefore, prompt, potent, and predictable antithrombotic therapy is needed to optimise clinical outcomes after primary percutaneous coronary intervention. We review present pharmacological and mechanical adjunctive therapies for reperfusion and ask what is the optimum combination when primary percutaneous coronary intervention is used as the mode of revascularisation in patients with STEMI.


Over the years, life insurance industry has experienced positive growth. In 1997
when the economic downturn hit our country, the performance of the industry
has reduced drastically. Still, they manage to have a positive growth but much
lesser than the previous years. This dropped performance is mainly due to the
lost in in vestment in the stock exchange. Although it considered as on paper
loss but it gives a great impact to the ind ustry. Thanks to the people awareness
on the importance of life insurance, new premium incomes have a steady
growth and this actually helps the industry to maintain its position. The effect
seems to be effected only on the investment part.
Nevertheless the organizations in the industry are starting to find new ways to
develop their business. Research and development are their main focus in
order to search for new alternatives to capture larger sales. They are now
focusing to meet the customer needs rather than providing services to the
customers. One of the potential strategies that were seen is to go direct to the
customers without the participation of agents or any other third party. With the
advan cement of I n ternet technology and development of database banks, the
organizations in the industry are focusing towards this type of channels.
Same like any other organ izations in the ind ustry, AMAL Assurance Bhd . Have
taken a step in venturin g into a new channel which is Direct Marketing. The decision made to ve nture i nto this channel was d ue to the factors mentioned
previously. The needs of the customers. Today's customers are keener to
convenience rather than the cost. Therefore , the focus will be on p roviding
hassle free products and accord ing to their need s .
Even thoug h the strategy taken was accord ing t o today's customer's trend , it
cannot run from the possibility that the strategy chosen will fail. There will
always be another element that ca n i nfluence the environment. Therefore in this
case write-up and analysis will look at the Direct Marketing's activities in AMAL
Assu rance Bhd., the proble m that they are facing a nd the possible solutions to
the problems. The case will g ive the readers a broad view on what actually the
main issue in the organization's Direct Ma rketing channel.


Understanding the geographical distribution and correlates of special segments of the population has the potential for offering insight into human behavior. Our study examines the Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population (ETSP)—which includes what are commonly referred to as "homeless" people. We use 2010 data from two sources: United States (US) Census Bureau county-level ETSP estimates; and North America Land Data Assimilation System Phase 2 (NLDAS-2). We investigate the ecological correlates of ETSP concentration by using a geographically-aware multilevel linear model. The specic aim is to investigate if an how atmospheric temperature is related with ETSP concentration by county—after accounting for population density and percent non-Hispanic-White. We use ArcGIS® 10.1 to create a spatial weight matrix of the ten most proximal counties and use SAS® 9.3 to create an algorithm that estimates County Cluster Dyadic Averages (CCDAs). By nesting the 31,090 CCDAs over the 3,109 counties in the continental US, we nd a positive and statistically signicant relationship between ETSP density and atmospheric temperature. Ecological studies should continue to explore the spatial heterogeneity of the ETSP.