iStar has been extended since its initial proposal in the 90's. In a previous work we have identified that 96 extensions had been proposed until 2016. It is worth noting that since 2016 the language notation is under standardisation. However, new extensions continue to be proposed. So, it is essential to discuss extension mechanisms to be included in the new standard. Hence, in this paper, we present some preliminary results related to this topic. We performed an exploratory study to analyse previous extensions and identified patterns of lightweight representations. The results of this study point out to 8 objectives and their representations. Furthermore, we used a survey to identify the opinion of 12 experts about this theme. Most of the participants considered important to include extension mechanisms in iStar, and indicated the light-weight representations of extensions that should be considered in this proposal. Finally, we discuss possible ways to propose the extension mechanisms in iStar 2.0 and present a preliminary proposal of these mechanisms.


ABSTRACT The authors examined the testimonials of 60 elementary school students about their experience during class discussions of assigned readings. They randomly assigned 12 classrooms to 2 treatments: Philosophy for Children (P4C) and Regular Instruction. P4C is an alternative educational environment that places dialogue at the center of its pedagogy. Ten students from each classroom were interviewed. According to the results, significantly more P4C students stated that they enjoyed expressing disagreement with peers, taking on new responsibilities, and explaining their thinking to others. More P4C students complained about the difficulties with getting the floor to speak, and suggested that changes are needed to better balance group participation. The authors discuss these findings and suggest implications for research and teaching.


This article takes up the distinctive text of Synkellos for 1 En. 8:1 and asks whether it offers the preferred reading or at least may be defended as an early variant rather than as an interpolation of the Byzantine chronographer. To that end, the article examines the Greek translation featured in Synkellos's Chronography and compares the text to other manuscript traditions, especially to the Aramaic fragments of Enoch found in Cave 4 of Qumran. Close examination leaves the author reluctant to dismiss the reading of Synkellos. Further, the author argues that Genesis 4 and 6 might have provided a warrant for this sort of interpretative tradition inasmuch as culture bringers (i.e. the Cainites) precede the account of the angels' descent and mating with women as one finds in Synkellos's version of 1 En. 8:1.


Using the principle of adiabatic invariance the authors find approximate semiclassical energy levels for the hydrogen atom in a magnetic field. Very good agreement with other available results is found over a wide range of magnetic field strengths, from the weak- into the strong-field regime. Some simple tests to estimate the onset of irregular motion are proposed and found to be consistent with each other and with other predictions.


The origin of French postmodernism approach is to be attributed to Martin Heidegger, who, in his translation of Anaximander, investigates the primaeval ("auroral") state of the Greek language and thought, identifying these in Ionic and Homer. The great philosopher does not take into account the fact that the Ionic compilation of Greek epos is a mere historical accident; being unable to foresee, towards the end of 1948, the imminent decipherment of Mycenaean, he makes philosophical and linguistic origins coincide, and therefore confers to Anaximander's dicta a lexicon which is unconfirmed by Greek historical tradition, while corresponding exclusively to the theoretical postulates of his book Sein und Zeit. We are thus dealing with a totally unfounded a posteriori projection, bearing little or no respect for the scientific protocol of diachronic linguistics.


To ensure a secure computing in a cloud environment, recommendation and trust-based access control model is proposed. The proposed model allows calculation of direct trust and indirect trust based on recommendations. It handles cases where the requesting entity may have a past interaction experience or fresh entity without any past experience with the service. It includes the capability to cause human reasoning performance and can change by behavioral pattern modifications. Positive and negative threshold limits are used to handle malicious recommendation. The results of security mechanism so integrated with the proposed model against attacks such as bad mouthing attack, Sybil attack, and on-off behavior attack are verified. General Terms Cloud, Security, Algorithm.


Although climatologically dry, the western slopes of the southern Andes of Peru (WSA) can experience precipitation extremes (PEs) during the summer (December–February) resulting in great economic and human losses. Generally, WSA has a positive upslope gradient in precipitation, meaning more rain falls at higher elevations, but observations have shown this gradient can become negative with higher rainfall near the coastal cities. In this study we analyse 2000–2019 regional atmospheric patterns associated with different upslope precipitation gradients and PEs in WSA using principal component analysis methods and surface station observations. Results show important changes in the atmospheric circulation patterns during the occurrence of PE events. A prevailing pattern of negative southerly wind anomalies and regional warming of the southeastern Pacific Ocean leads to significant increases in moisture along the coast of WSA. Eastern moisture flows associated with the presence of the Bolivian High are observed at upper levels of the atmosphere and transport water vapour from the Amazon to the western side of the Andes. Additionally, there is a blocking effect aloft in response to an intense gradient of geopotential height that attenuates the easterly circulations. These large‐scale mechanisms act to concentrate high precipitable water amounts and high levels of convective available potential energy in the troposphere which favours the vertical velocities essential to trigger PEs. These results increase our knowledge of the large‐scale characteristics of PEs to help with forecasting these impactful events and protecting the more than 1.8 million people living in WSA.


(Trimillos). The changeable role of text in acculturation and identification processes was discussed by Slobin. Among the papers concentrating on terminology, the paper of the author of this report has to be mentioned: it enables the discovery of the corpomorphic nature of Kazakh musical terminology, i.e., it discloses it symbolic significance that evidently had to be interpreted in shamanistic terms. The richness and diversity of the contributions to the Colloquium reflected the multi plicity of academic interests and traditions of those present. Discussions focused on the basic dilemmas of contemporary theory of culture and, in particular, ethnotheory. It was interesting to realize in how many different ways the relationship between music and language could be approached and understood.


Analyses within celebrity studies of the increasing use of Twitter as an effective tool of communication by stars and their fans emphasise shifts in the parameters of stardom. The convergence, connection and the potential for interactive address between star and audience that the online platform creates appears to position the concept of stardom in the twenty-first century as something new. This article argues that while Twitter may represent a deviation from older models of stardom, there remain important continuities and contexts between 'old' and 'new' celebrity behaviours and media forms. It argues that Twitter exposes, rather than creates, the multiple ways in which stardom and celebrity status can exist and be analysed, and that many online practices characterised as new have clear antecedents in wider histories of stardom. It suggests that much of the value of exploring celebrity Twitter accounts lies in how the site, its usage and its content, renders historical negotiations around the construction and presentation of stardom visible. In order to do this, it draws upon a range of examples –with a particular focus on the Twitter account of John Cusack – examining how the management of online behaviour and identity illustrates significant debates around the subject of authenticity within celebrity culture.


Mucosal Schwann cell hamartoma (M-SCH) of the intestinal mucosa is a rare entity and incidental finding in histological examination. Histological characteristics are Schwannonian cell proliferation in lamina propria with S100-positivity. M-SCH-like lesion in the gall bladder is even rarer and is a recently reported entity. We report this extremely rare lesion in a cholecystectomy specimen of a 4-year-old boy, which makes it the youngest patient to be having M-SCH-like lesion in the gall bladder.


Introduction. In high-income countries, tamoxifen has been replaced by aromatase inhibitors such as anastrozole in adjuvant hormone therapy for early breast cancer. These drugs target patients with positive hormone receptors, due to the better results achieved for disease-free survival. The cost-effectiveness of this treatment change has not been evaluated in middle income countries. Objective. The cost effectiveness of anastrozole vs tamoxifen was assessed during five-years of adjuvant treatment of hormone receptor-positive, post-menopausal early breast cancer patients. Materials and methods. This is a literature-based analysis. The natural history of the breast cancer and the effects of treatment were modeled as a Markov process. Effectiveness was defined as disease-free survival. Transition probabilities for the disease and adverse effects were obtained from the literature. Costs were defined as the median of actual costs provided by health insurance companies and the Colombian National Cancer Institute expressed in 2007 Colombian pesos. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis was performed, along with one way sensitivity analysis was for the costs. Results. Compared with tamoxifen, anastrazol results in an additional relapse-free period of 0.5 years. Each relapse-free year obtained by tamoxifen cost 27,210,604 pesos, or with anastrazol 37,071,337 pesos with a discount rate of 3%. The cost for a sustained-effects scenario were 23,617,400 pesos for tamoxifen and $16,140.282 for anastrazol. Conclusions. The use of anastrazol has an additional cost per relapse-free year of 7,521,363 pesos (2007). Therefore, for postmenopausal, early breast cancer hormone receptor positive women in Colombia, the cost-effective alternative is tamoxifen used as adjuvant therapy for five years.


This paper describes the use of fibre Bragg grating (FBG) sensors to measure strains at a mandible surface that are caused by static or impact loads on a dental implant. The measuring apparatus uses a fixed optical filter reference scheme and is able to detect dynamic signals with frequency components of up to 10 kHz. A dried implanted cadaveric mandible was used with strain gauges and FBG sensors placed at the outer surface in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the implant. The implants were loaded statically and dynamically and uniaxial strains recorded. The study demonstrates the ability of the FBG as a biomechanical sensor.


The authors study the dynamics of an impurity spin coupled to a spin-boson dissipative system. They calculate the transverse correlation function of the impurity spin and compare the result with that obtained from an equivalent stochastic model. A phenomenological rate parameter in the stochastic model is represented in terms of microscopically obtained quantities. The authors also calculate the NMR lineshapes for various temperatures which are relevant in the context of a particular physical realization of the model. Motional narrowing of lines is observed at high temperatures.


Using the bioautography method, the antibacterial activity of fractions from Aster lanceolatus Willd have been evaluated against stumps from Staphylococcus aureus. The results demonstrated that the hexane and diclorometane fractions present antibacterial activity against the tested microorganism.


We propose debiased machine learning estimators for complier parameters, such as local average treatment effect, with high dimensional covariates. To do so, we characterize the doubly robust moment function for the entire class of complier parameters as the combination of Wald and κ weight formulations. We directly estimate the κ weights, rather than their components, in order to eliminate the numerically unstable step of inverting propensity scores of high dimensional covariates. We prove our estimator is balanced, consistent, asymptotically normal, and semiparametrically efficient, and use it to estimate the effect of 401(k) participation on the distribution of net financial assets.


The stringent exhaust emission regulations of Environmental Protection Agency has forced engine manufacturers to develop alternative combustion systems and clean alternative fuels. Lean-burn natural gas engines are attracting increasing attention as a desirable alternative, especially for stationary applications. ln-cylinder pollution formation in these engines is significantly lower than that of diesel engines. However, the thermal efficiency and power density of lean-burn natural gas engines must be improved to be considered as an alternative to diesel engines. The higher octane number of methane, which is the dominant component of natural gas, allows the engines to be turbocharged and have higher compression ratio than conventional spark ignited engines. However, seasonal and regional variation in natural gas composition, which cause natural gas to have lower octane number, is the biggest constraint for the most efficient design of these engines. Under these conditions, building a competitive natural gas engine is not possible with conventional methods and requires costly engine tests. One alternative to costly engine testing is analytical engine modeling. However, conventional engine modeling tools do not properly include end-gas autoignition and multi-dimensional engine modeling codes coupled with detailed chemical kinetic codes such as KIVA-CHEMKIN combination may not be preferred by engine designers. This dissertation describes a new autoignition model that does not require extensive computational resources (2-dimensional computations from intake valve closing to exhaust valve opening take generally less than 5 minutes with a 333 MHZ personal computer), is easily portable to various computational environments, is easy to use and the accuracy is compatible with the accuracy of other subroutines of the models. It also considers variation of natural gas composition due to propane addition. Computation results show that the knock occurrence crank angle can be predicted within 2 degrees CA when the model is coupled to a Zero-Dimensional engine model, which was also developed for the present work. The results with the model incorporated into a Multi-Dimensional model (KIVA) are also promising. KJVA was able to predict if the engine was going to knock or not and also gave trends in the knock intensity.


Due to various advantages such as energy efficiency, reliability and self-monitoring, the smart grid technology has been emerging as the next-generation intelligent power grid system. Some of the well-known telecommunication, IT and power industries have already adopted smart grid technology along their daily business operations. This paper mainly focuses on the prevention of power outage issue in a smart grid environment. More specifically, consider a utility company which sets a threshold on the total power usage of households from a neighbourhood. Whenever the total power usage from the neighbourhood exceeds the threshold, some of the households need to reduce their energy consumptions, thereby avoiding the possibility of power outage. In the literature, this problem is referred to as threshold-based power usage control (TPUC). In order to solve the TPUC problem, the utility company is required to collect the power usage data of households in a periodic fashion. However, due to privacy reasons, the above problem is not straightforward in a privacy-preserving environment. We emphasise that the existing privacy-preserving TPUC algorithms are either insecure or inefficient. Therefore, this paper proposes two novel secure and distributed TPUC protocols by preserving the privacy of households in a given neighbourhood. Furthermore, we empirically show the practical value of the proposed protocols through various experiments.


Man-made law, or "positive" law, and its related legal institutions are represented in children's novels as complicated, sometimes corrupt, and often arbitrary structures that prevent the protagonists from reaching their desired goals or resolving their difficulties. Rather than presenting positive law and its related institutions as a means to resolve conflicts and provide repose to the characters, children's novels present such law and institutions as aggravating or prolonging conflict, and creating uncertainty about how the protagonist will extricate himself or herself from the legal predicament. Children's novels do not offer the child reader any known points of reference in the legal landscape so the positive law and legal institutions themselves appear imposing, largely unknown, and mysterious. Positive law and legal institutions in children's stories create dramatic tension because the protagonist must negotiate out of, or around, a predicament that a legality, or a collision with a legal institution, has complicated. In some stories, the legal situation itself is the central predicament out of which the protagonist must escape. These stories present, from a child's perspective, the law as a quagmire with few understandable points of reference or clear exits. As a complex and largely arbitrary system, this imperfect order rendered by the positive law in children's novels reflects an avenue that inevitably leads the protagonist to outcomes inferior to those if the law is avoided, ignored, or flouted. This portrayal of positive law and legal institutions is evident in two classic children's novels The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, and Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor.


A multifingered hand can reorient an object by regrasping it in a hand. This paper presents a planner which plans a sequence of repositioning of fingers for horizontal rotation of an object for a desired angle. The authors previously developed an algorithm for computing contact positions of fingers where they can maintain equilibrium. The algorithm is used to compute a new contact position of a removed finger where there is a finger which can be removed next. Based on these computations, the authors develop an algorithm for searching for a sequence of repositioning of fingers. Examples show that the algorithm can efficiently find sequences which require the number of repositioning steps.<<ETX>>


Siregar M. 2017. Spatial distribution of abundant tree species at a mixed dipterocarps forest in Bukit Bangkirai, East Kalimantan, three years after long drought and forest fire. Pros. Sem Nas Masy Biodiv Indon 3: 246-251. This study aims to determine the distribution of abundant tree species that survive or grow three years after long drought and forest fires. The tree distribution data were extracted from the database of three permanent plots at Bukit Bangkirai, namely: 1.0 ha plot at heavily damaged forest due to forest fires (HD-plot), 0.3 ha at lightly damaged forest due to forest fires (LD-plot) and 1.0 ha plot in a natural unburnt forest (K-plot). The distribution pattern was analyzed by using Morisita's indices of dispersion and Jaccard's indices of species association. Correlation of tree density with height and slope of land were also analyzed in each plot.The results showed that the most of the abundant tree species were clumped at small scales, and the clumps were randomly distributed (inter-clump distribution is random). An exception was found for Macaranga glaberrimus at K-plot and Madhuca kingiana at LD-plot which have random distribution both on small and large plots. Individuals of M. kingiana in K-plot were clumped at larger scales, and they were distributed uniformly within the clumps (intraclump distribution is uniform), which were distributed in the valley and steep slope. Inversely, Shorea laevis is rarely found in valleys and steep slopes. In HD-plot, distributions of Macaranga gigantea, Homalanthus populneus and Mallotus paniculatus were concentrated in the valley and in the lower parts of the slopes which have water availability. It can be concluded that the distribution of secondary species in HD-plot is much influenced by water availability, whereas in LD-plot and K-plot more affected by light availability


An existing 37 year old, 15.67 ft span, 9.58 ft rise structural plate pipe arch culvert installed in cohesive backfill material was instrumented with biaxial electric strain gages and position transducers and loaded with two hydraulic cylinders, simulating live load from the rear axle of a vehicle. The loads were positioned above the crown point of the pipe and increased in increments until moderate degree of structural failure was observed. During each increment of load application, biaxial strains, deflections of the upper arc, and structural settlement were recorded. These field data were utilized to determine biaxial stresses, thrusts, bending moments, and geometrical change of the pipe. The field test conditions were also simulated numerically using the Culvert ANalysis and DEsign (CANDE) computer program, and results of the numerical analysis were compared with the field data. Based on the results of this investigation, failure mechanisms resulted from plastic bending rather than thrust, and despite being installed with a silty clay backfill and exhibiting severe metal deterioration, the pipe supported exceptionally large load.


Complex robot tasks can be partitioned into motion primitives or robot skills that can directly be learned and recognized through Programming-by-Demonstration (PbD) by a human operator who demonstrates a set of reference skills. Robot motions are recorded by a data-capturing system and modeled by a specific fuzzy clustering and modeling technique where skill models use time instants as inputs and operator actions as outputs. In the recognition phase the robot identifies the skill shown by the operator in a novel test demonstration. Skill models are updated online during the execution of skills using the Broyden update formula. This method is extended for fuzzy models especially for time cluster models. The updated model is used for further executions of the same skill.


The aim for this master thesis is to create an understanding of the intersubjective processes of how individuals are experimenting with their identities in social media and the consequences for the identity and embodiment. The thesis is completed with the help of discourse analysis and a starting point in four complementary theories. Central to the implementation of the analysis is the concept of diffraction. Therefore the thesis is, which is reflected in the choice of theoretical approaches and methods, critical to many aspects of classical philosophy of science and method. The empirical material is based on interviews. During the analysis the theory is applied to empirical data received from the interviews, but the empirical data will also be used as inspiration for examining my chosen theories. The analysis covers several topics. First I discuss how a web-identity is constructed and how this can be considered as a process of negotiation with other users on the same website. Furthermore I discuss how my informants negotiate about boundaries conserning sexuality and corporeality, but that the subjective boundaries shift in the encounter between different discursive claim to legitimate expression of body and sexuality. In the final section, before the final discussion, I discuss the body's impacts on communication on a website. During the final discussion several questions are being raised. Centrally, however, is how the essays selected theories help to demonstrate how the negotiation of boundaries in social media is complex, and that experimentation with the identity of a website partly dependent on society's other discourses on gender, body and desires. But it is also discussed how discourses of gender, body and desire is shifted inside the selected websites, and that these sites creates new opportunities for identification and self-knowledge.


The anthropogenic activities on the environment cause topographic changes that have strong repercussions, some positive (afforestation, embankments) but other negative (deforestation, soil erosion, inning). The present study aims to analyze the current situation of the main anthropogenic activities in the area of Titu Plain, to highlight the negative impacts on the quality of the environment, and at the same time it proposes ways of reducing their adverse effect. Thus, there were studied the three essential components: water, air and soil, and were established the main problems that they currently acts as a result of the work carried out in this geographical area. It is also highlighted the human concern for the conservation and improvement of the quality of the environment, because the man begins to become more aware of the negative impacts of his activities on the environment


A special class of linear precoder-equalizer pair with equalizers formed by simple tapped delay lines is proposed. With this special equalizer structure, the equalizer of this system not only can enjoy the minimal implementation complexity, but also can avoid the noise amplification effect. Moreover, using nonmaximally decimated filterbank structure, this precoder-equalizer pair is proven to be able to guarantee intersymbol interference (ISI)-free communication by zero-forcing approach, even if spectral nulling exists in the physical channel. Another advantage of this system is that the length of the guard period introduced by the precoder can be any positive integer values, thus the guard period can be designed to maximize the spectral efficiency by selecting it to be as short as one symbol per block of transmitted signal. A systematic method for designing a minimal transmit power finite-impulse response (FIR) precoder under the proposed precoder-equalizer pair structure is presented. Under the ISI channel with independent additive white Gaussian noise, the design of this minimal transmit power FIR precoder is shown to be a minimum mean square error precoder design. Simulation results are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed precoder-equalizer structure and that of the transmit power minimized precoder.


The success of jazz in France in the 1950s resulted from both pro-American sentiment following the Liberation and, paradoxically, Cold War anti-Americanism, which was then in full swing. This ambivalence illustrates the complexity of certain acculturation-linked phenomena whereby the imported object is sometimes reinterpreted by the host country, the latter then transforming it into a symbol of resistance to the cultural invaders. Anthropologists have defined this process as "counter-acculturation." The history of jazz in France can be looked at from such a viewpoint, since French acculturation of American jazz was marked by a specific form of intellectualization : After welcoming it as an object of admiration in the 1930s, the French used it during the Cold War to show the superiority of a dismantled Europe over a dominating America. This process will be referred to here as "counter-Americanization."


The CoFeB thickness, t dependence of the effective first- and second-order magnetic anisotropy, K1eff and K2, for MgO/(Co1-xFex)80B20/Ta films (x=0.3-1.0) is investigated. As Co40Fe40B20 thickness decreases, K1eff increases and shows a perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for t=1.2 nm. On the other hand, in-plane magnetic anisotropy is observed for t≥1.4 nm. Also, a 1.3-nm-thick CoFeB sample demonstrates an easy-cone behavior, which suggests that the magnitude of K1eff and K2 becomes comparable. By plotting the product of K2 and t-td as a function of t-td, where td is a magnetic dead layer thickness, linear dependences with negative y-axis intercepts are displayed for all ranges of x. The extracted interfacial K2, Ki(2) are varied depending on the compositions in the range of-0.024 to −0.042 erg/cm2 for x=100% and 30, 50%, respectively. A magnetic phase diagram summarizing the results of K1-2πMs2 and K2 suggests that the ratio of K2 against K1-2πMs2 is varied depending on the compositions. These results give us a guideline to achieve the desired magnetic properties of CoFeB for spintronic applications.The CoFeB thickness, t dependence of the effective first- and second-order magnetic anisotropy, K1eff and K2, for MgO/(Co1-xFex)80B20/Ta films (x=0.3-1.0) is investigated. As Co40Fe40B20 thickness decreases, K1eff increases and shows a perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for t=1.2 nm. On the other hand, in-plane magnetic anisotropy is observed for t≥1.4 nm. Also, a 1.3-nm-thick CoFeB sample demonstrates an easy-cone behavior, which suggests that the magnitude of K1eff and K2 becomes comparable. By plotting the product of K2 and t-td as a function of t-td, where td is a magnetic dead layer thickness, linear dependences with negative y-axis intercepts are displayed for all ranges of x. The extracted interfacial K2, Ki(2) are varied depending on the compositions in the range of-0.024 to −0.042 erg/cm2 for x=100% and 30, 50%, respectively. A magnetic phase diagram summarizing the results of K1-2πMs2 and K2 suggests that the ratio of K2 against K1-2πMs2 is varied depending on the compositions. These results give...


As the result of P1-mediated cotransduction with serB from Salmonella potsdam to the Escherichia coli/Salmonella typhimurium hybird 4617, one recombinant, L4004, was isolated which had a restriction-modification (R--M) system different from the SB and SP systems of its parents, and was designated SQ. The genes of SQ were allelic to those of the SB system of S. typhimurium and were shown by complementation experiments to be functionally related to those of the K system of E. coli. Evidence that the SQ system in L4004 arose as the result of a recombination event within the hsdS genes of SB and SP is discussed.


Storytelling is often cited as an important device for recovery and transformation in societies emerging from war and conflict. When official storytelling processes are problematic or non-existent, the process of addressing a conflicted past is often tackled creatively. Existing forms of unofficial storytelling have been identified as therapeutic and empowering but also as having limitations. The potential of an emerging form of narrative representation known as interactive documentary has been used to help negotiate themes of conflict, but remains under-researched. This paper explores four modes of interactivity (Gaudenzi 2013) and applies key factors in Jessica Senehi's (2002) constructive storytelling to explore essential commonalities and differences between the two. The paper argues that interactive documentary has the potential to offer a unique contribution to the negotiation of complex and contested narratives of conflict but may contain limitations depending on how technologies are applied to realise the aims of constructive storytelling.


A simple model of the thermohaline circulation of the World Ocean is considered, in which fluctuations in internal oceanic mixing and in freshwater forcing are represented by stochastic processes. The effects on the stationary probability density function of correlations between fluctuations in mixing and freshwater forcing, and of finite autocorrelation time in oceanic mixing, are determined using a mixture of analytical and numerical techniques. The quantitative behaviour of the system is found to depend on the strength and correlation character of the noise processes, quite sensitively so in some regions of parameter space. The results of this analysis suggest the importance of accurately modelling high-frequency variability in nonlinear models of the climate system.


The first medical visit is an essential moment of asthma management because it is a chronic disease needing a long term follow-up. This initial assessment which takes time, can be done gradually, on several days or even weeks. Once the differential diagnosis is excluded, the diagnosis of asthma is confirmed and its severity assessed. The identification of precipitant factors of asthma exacerbations goes through a detailed interview. Planning a therapeutic and supervision strategy with the patient has for goal the control of the disease and improvement of quality of life. Including the patient in the management of his asthma is only possible if he has been educated, patient education must be controlled and reinforced all the long of further medical visits.


Recent research in 4D saliency detection is limited by the deficiency of a large-scale 4D light field dataset. To address this, we introduce a new dataset to assist the subsequent research in 4D light field saliency detection. To the best of our knowledge, this is to date the largest light field dataset in which the dataset provides 1465 all-focus images with human-labeled ground truth masks and the corresponding focal stacks for every light field image. To verify the effectiveness of the light field data, we first introduce a fusion framework which includes two CNN streams where the focal stacks and all-focus images serve as the input. The focal stack stream utilizes a recurrent attention mechanism to adaptively learn to integrate every slice in the focal stack, which benefits from the extracted features of the good slices. Then it is incorporated with the output map generated by the all-focus stream to make the saliency prediction. In addition, we introduce adversarial examples by adding noise intentionally into images to help train the deep network, which can improve the robustness of the proposed network. The noise is designed by users, which is imperceptible but can fool the CNNs to make the wrong prediction. Extensive experiments show the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed model on the popular evaluation metrics. The proposed method performs favorably compared with the existing 2D, 3D and 4D saliency detection methods on the proposed dataset and existing LFSD light field dataset. The code and results can be found at https://github.com/OIPLab-DUT/ ICCV2019_Deeplightfield_Saliency. Moreover, to facilitate research in this field, all images we collected are shared in a ready-to-use manner.


Hyperthermia and liposomal drug delivery are treatment modalities that have been used to treat cancer over the last two decades. More recently, the two therapies have been used together in an attempt to exploit their mutual interactions against cancer. The goal of this review is to explore the literature related to combined hyperthermia and liposomal drug delivery for cancer therapy. The motivation behind combining hyperthermia and liposomal drug delivery is discussed from a physical chemical and physiological standpoint. Two types of therapeutic ratios were calculated for in vivo studies from across the literature. These ratios compared the results obtained from hyperthermia and liposomes to hyperthermia and free drug as well as to liposomes without hyperthermia. These two therapeutic ratios were applied to both tumour drug uptake and tumour growth delay studies. In all studies reviewed, hyperthermia in combination with liposomal drug showed an enhanced therapeutic effect compared to either treatment modality alone or hyperthermia and free drug. Future work needs to be focused on optimizing thermosensitive liposomes and understanding the effect of thermal dose on liposomal drug delivery. Though not currently used in the clinic, this combination therapy seems to hold great promise towards improving current cancer therapeutic regimens.


1.
Some of the key life history characteristics that make modular marine invertebrates such as corals vulnerable to disturbance and stress are susceptibility to damage, slow growth, longevity, and philopatry. This may be particularly so for marginal populations at the limits of their range and, for instance, that are attractive to scuba divers.

2.
In this study we examined the population structure and incidence of damage, quantified growth rates and estimated gene flow to assess the effects of divers on the deep-water emergent populations of the fragile red coral Errina novaezelandiae in the Te Awaatu Marine Reserve in Fiordland, New Zealand.

3.
We found that population structure in red corals is skewed, with small colonies the most abundant. Damage was up to eight times higher in dived than in non-dived populations of red coral, and large colonies were more likely to be damaged. Growth in red corals can be high (up to 7 cm −1), although net growth is much lower (0.7 cm yr−1) due to the effects of partial mortality. On the basis of the slow growth rate, we estimate that large corals (>20 cm diameter) will be in excess of 30 yr old. We also found high genetic subdivision among red coral populations and evidence of inbreeding, indicative of limited larval dispersal among neighbouring populations.

4.
Overall, our results indicate the shallow-water populations of red coral in Fiordland will be susceptible to impacts from scuba diving, and the development of a management strategy to ensure ecologically sustainable tourism and to minimize the effects of divers will be essential for their conservation.

Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Batak Pakpak ethnicity that reside in the area of Pakpak Bharat regency, North Sumatra province, can be classified as customary law community because the whole surrounding village and forest area belong to certain clans communally which is also known by the term sukut ni talun. Sukun ni talun clan can be described as the rightful clan that possesses ulayat rights (the owner of land rights or forest area). There are dozens of clan names that have ulayat right in this area of Pakpak ethnicity, such as: Padang, Solin, Berutu, manik, Banurea, Bancin, Cibro, Sinamo, Tinendung, Sitakar, Kebeaken, Padang Batanghari, Angkat, and Lembeng among other clans. It means that every clan have a certain ulayat right which consists of designated forest area owned by the same clans collectively. Generally, the clan members in the community are well aware of ulayat right and the borders of ulayat right area with another clans. Besides getting a higher social status, the clans that own ulayat right in every area play important role in various social activities and decision makings, including the management of forest. Pakpak community who live around the forest have a strong connection with the forest in many aspects. The location of forest itself is the source of life with many daily activities. The forest becomes not only the place for farming, hunting, gathering the products such as timbers or non-timbers, but also becomes the source of inspiration to get medicinal materials. In those activities, they have certain knowledge, value and rule that are both derived from previous generations and gained from their real life experiences or other people's outside the community. This shared knowledge in this article is called local wisdom.


This chapter focuses on parliamentary sovereignty. The term 'parliamentary sovereignty' is normally defined as the 'legislative supremacy of Parliament'. Since the constitutional settlement brought about by the Bill of Rights 1689, the UK Parliament has had unchallenged authority to create primary law. Parliament's legislative supremacy means, therefore, that there is no competing body with equal or greater law-making power and there are no legal limits on Parliament's legislative competence. Parliament has broad legislative power but cannot make unchangeable statutes, and a current parliament can reverse laws made by a previous parliament. Nobody but Parliament can override Acts of Parliament. The Enrolled Bill rule requires that, if a Bill has passed through the House of Commons and House of Lords and received royal assent, the courts will not enquire into what happened before or during the legislative process.


With the emergence of antibiotic-resistant Staph. sp., search for antimicrobial agents other than antibiotic is of great concern. The study aimed to determine both MIC and MBC of different honey samples against these strains. The study was conducted with 64 different Staph sp. isolated from bovine mastitis and tested in vitro against 11 antimicrobial agents. The most MDR strains (19) were tested in vitro against six honey batches; marjoram, cotton, two fennel samples and two different trefoil samples as well as against 10% propolis-fennel honey mixture. Both MIC & MBC of the tested honey samples against every tested strain were determined. Propolis-fennel honey mixture showed the lowest both MIC & MBC values against all Staph sp. all over the study with highly significant differences, while against different Staph sp., also it had the lowest MIC and MBC values against S. intermedius followed by S. aureus.


An immortalized cell line (designated MDCT) has been extensively used to investigate the cellular mechanisms of electrolyte transport within the mouse distal convoluted tubule. Mouse distal convoluted tubule cells possess many of the functional characteristics of the in vivo distal convoluted tubule. In the present study, we show that MDCT cells also possess a polyvalent cation-sensing mechanism that is responsive to extracellular magnesium and calcium. Southern hybridization of reverse transcribed-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) products, sequence determination and Western analysis indicated that the calcium-sensing receptor (Casr) is expressed in MDCT cells. Using microfluorescence of single MDCT cells to determine cytosolic Ca2+ signaling, it was shown that the polyvalent cation-sensing mechanism is sensitive to extracellular magnesium concentration ([Mg2+]o) and extracellular calcium concentration ([Ca2+]o) in concentration ranges normally observed in the plasma. Moreover, both [Mg2+]o and [Ca2+]o were effective in generating intracellular Ca2+ transients in the presence of large concentrations of [Ca2+]o and [Mg2+]o, respectively. These responses are unlike those observed for the Casr in the parathyroid gland. Finally, activation of the polycation-sensitive mechanism with either [Mg2+]o or [Ca2+]o inhibited parathyroid hormone-, calcitonin-, glucagon- and arginine vasopressin-stimulated cAMP release in MDCT cells. These studies indicate that immortalized MDCT cells possess a polyvalent cation-sensing mechanism and emphasize the important role this mechanism plays in modulating intracellular signals in response to changes in [Mg2+]o as well as in [Ca2+]o.


During a human papillomavirus infection (HPV), a set of spliced messenger RNAs (mRNA) are produced from the coding strand of the 8-kilobase virus DNA genome. These mRNAs have been isolated from cervical intraepithelial neoplasia biopsies, tumor biopsies and HPV type 16 (HPV-16)-containing cell lines, and subsequent analyses have shown that the different mRNAs are obtained by often complex splicing events. In the present study we have investigated the coding capacity of the HPV-16 E5 open reading frame (ORF) in an in vitro translation system and by the expression of a HPV-16 E5-CAT fusion gene from bicistronic messenger RNAs derived from polycistronic mRNAs which have previously been identified by others. Our results show that the HPV-16 E5 protein synthesis can only be initiated from the authentic ATG codon in the presence of E2 ORF translation. The E5 gene is found to be expressed only from a bicistronic mRNA with an E2 ORF upstream of the E5 gene indicating that the E5 protein is synthesized coordinated with the E2 protein. The supposition that the E5 protein is synthesized early in infection is discussed.


Well developed desmosomes can be seen between the C-cells and follicular cells in the rat thyroid gland. They are structurally similar to the desmosomes at the boundaries of homotypic cells. This observation speaks in favour of the development of C-cells from the initial cells of thyroid embryonic analage.


In this paper, we propose an original and biologically-inspired leg prosthesis control system. We demonstrate that human walk periodic patterns can be modeled by a Programmable Central Pattern Generator (PCPG) algorithm. Assuming that high-level commands reflecting the user's intention (such as accelerate, decelerate or stop) - and optionally, with their associated confidence level - are available, we show that the PCPG can generate an output signal directly exploitable to control the prosthesis actuators at different desired walking speeds in a smooth way. Thanks to an adequate tuning of the PCPG parameters relying on realistic human walk kinematics, such a prosthesis would undoubtedly increase the comfort of the patient. In this study, we modeled the kinematics of foot angle of elevation of seven subjects walking on a treadmill at 10 different speeds. The method we used to modify at best the PCPG parameters is presented. We found that a low-level order polynomial interpolation of the PCPG parameters as a function of speed provides good similarity indices between real walk and generated patterns at different speeds. This proves the relevancy of our approach and paves the way for numerous applications of human walk rehabilitation. Additionally, results suggest that walk would be advantageously modeled by two PCPGs.


Growing interest in the theoretical as well as applied aspects of superconductivity has focused considerable attention upon the static London equations. These macroscopic relationships describe the spatial distribution of magnetic fields and currents in superconductors. In this paper a novel analog method of obtaining solutions in complicated geometries is discussed. The method makes use of the similarity in form of the static London equations and the dynamic skin-effect equations of normal conduction under exponentially-growing steady-state conditions. Conveniently scaled copper models of superconducting geometries of interest can be constructed and excited from a growing-exponential function generator. Field distributions measured in the space around the normal conductors of the model correspond with the desired distributions in the analogous superconductor geometry. Fields within conductors themselves cannot be determined directly by this method, but the surface fields are generally most important. The method is particularly useful in studying thin films which are appreciably penetrated by magnetic fields. The experimental setup and the measurement technique are discussed. Illustrative results from a copper model of a long rectangular superconducting strip, 1830 penetration depths wide and 3.81 penetration depths thick are presented.


The proposal that the time-averaged paleomagnetic field is not strictly that of a geocentric axial dipole but that of an axial dipole displaced slightly northward from the geocenter is examined in terms of spherical harmonic expansions. Standard procedures for spherical harmonic expansions such as are applied to the present instantaneous geomagnetic field are not necessarily applicable to paleomagnetic data. A technique is proposed that enhances the time-averaging process that is a necessary part of determining the paleomagnetic field. This involves analyzing the inclination anomaly ΔI around latitude strips to determine the zonal harmonics and the declination anomaly ΔD around longitude sectors to determine the first nonzonal harmonics. The technique is applied to a carefully selected data set covering the last 5 m.y. All data are divided into normal or reversed sets providing 266 land-based points (171 normal, 95 reversed) and 100 deep-sea core results with inclination data only (50 normal, 50 reversed). These data demonstrate clearly that the time-averaged field is not simply that of a geocentric axial dipole and also that it is different for the normal and reversed fields. With respect to the present field the zonal harmonics of the time-averaged field are reduced less than the nonzonal harmonics, the indication being that westward and/or eastward drift of the nondipole field is dominant over 5 m.y. The magnitude of the second zonal harmonic suggests that on the average, paleomagnetic poles could be in error by about 3° when calculated by the usual geocentric axial dipole assumption. The data show clear asymmetries between the northern and southern hemispheres and possibly between the oceanic (Pacific) and continental hemispheres. Possible explanations of these asymmetries include variations in topography and/or temperature at the core-mantle interface. Large-scale asymmetries in the boundary conditions at this interface could affect the magnetic field through alteration of the convection pattern in the core. The asymmetries correlate with other global asymmetries such as the distribution of continents and oceans and the locations of subduction zones. They also apparently correlate with seismic velocity anomalies observed in the lower mantle. All these may reflect large-scale inhomogeneities related to dynamic processes that have occurred in the lower mantle. Although all the Gaussian coefficients determined change sign when the axial dipole field reverses, there are significant differences between the normal and reversed fields, suggesting that the distribution of sources for these fields is not identical. This is consistent with the cyclonic convection models for reversal of the geomagnetic field proposed by Parker and Levy.


This study examined daily streamflow response over up to four decades in northwest conifer forest and eastern deciduous forest sites in the United States. We used novel methods to analyze daily observations of climate and streamflow spanning more than 900 basin years of record at 14 treated/control basin pairs where forest removal and regrowth experiments were underway in the period 1930–2002. In the 1 to 5‐year period after forest removal, maximum daily increases ranged from 2 to 3 mm at deciduous forest sites, to 6 to 8 mm at conifer forest sites. Significant spring surpluses persisted for up to 35 years in conifer forest basins, but winter and spring streamflow deficits appeared after 10 to 15 years of forest regrowth in eastern deciduous forest basins. In all 5‐yr posttreatment periods, absolute changes in daily streamflow were significantly more likely during moist, warm seasons, or during snowmelt seasons, but relative changes were more likely during warm seasons irrespective of moisture status. Both relative and absolute streamflow changes in the 1 to 5 and 15 to 25‐year periods after forest removal were significantly positively related to the age of the forest at the time it was cut. Eastern deciduous forests had been disturbed by logging or hurricane 12 to 56 years prior to forest removal, while Pacific Northwest conifer forests had been not experienced logging or wildfire for 90 to 450 years. Paired basin experiments provide a continuous, and continuously changing, record of vegetation structure, composition, and climate, and their effects on streamflow.


1. A series of large oligonucleotide fragments derived from tRNA Cys, were separated chromatographically and the sequence of each was deduced by examination of the products of digestion with pancreatic and T1 ribonucleases. 2. The location of the specific cleavage points in the nucleotide chain was similar to that produced by brief treatment with pancreatic ribonuclease. 3. The fragments could be arranged into two alternative sequences. The correct sequence was deduced by the sequential removal and identification of the first nine nucleotides from the 3'-end of the terminal half of the molecules.


The dye-doped silica nanoparticles can be used as nanobiosensors that are able to recognize and detect specific DNA sequence. In this paper, spherical nanosized luminol/SiO2 composite particles have been synthesized with reverse micells via hydrolysis of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) in the microemulsion. The nanoparticles were modified with chitosan and used to label DNA, forming the DNA probe which was used to hybridize with target DNA immobilized on a PPy modified Pt electrode. The hybridization events were evaluated by electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) measurements and only the complementary sequence could form a double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) with DNA probe and give strong ECL signals. A three base mismatch sequence and a non-complementary sequence had almost negligible responses. Due to the large number of luminol molecules inside silica nanoparticles, the assay allows detection at levels as low as 2.0×10^-12 mol/L of the target DNA. The intensity of ECL was linearly related to the concentration of the complementary sequence in the range of 5.0×10^-12—1.0×10^-9 mol/L.


In this paper we present, for a CMOS n-diffusion photodiode, the effects of various doping concentrations on the behaviour of two of the main parameters that characterize the performance of these devices: the photocurrent (for low and for high levels of the illumination) and the dark current. We performed simulations aided by T-CAD tools for each type of layer of the CMOS photodiode structure (substrate, p-epitaxial layer, n-diffusion layer) and evaluated the behaviour of the photocurrent and dark current in various levels of the doping concentrations of these layers. These results may be helpful in the process of fabricating these devices, where controlled amounts of impurities may be added to some layers (or their level might be reduced in some other layers), in order to maximize the photocurrent and to minimize the dark current in these structures.


A sophisticated hierarchical nanoarray consisting of a conducting polymer (polypyrrole, PPy) core and layered double hydroxide (LDH) shell are synthesized via a facile two-step electrosynthesis method. The obtained PPy@LDH-based flexible all-solid-state supercapacitor meets the requirements of both high energy/power output and long-term endurance, which can be potentially used in highly-efficient and stable energy storage.


This paper illustrates 'the turn' to biographical approaches in the study of adult learning and considers some contested issues in this 'family' of approaches. Especial attention is paid to issues of subjectivity and objectivity and the role of the researcher in shaping the subject (s) of her enquiry. However, the paper concludes by suggesting that, whatever the differences, such approaches offer unique and more holistic insights into the complexities of learning, lifewide and lifelong. Introduction The turn to biographical approaches in social science, and the study of adult and lifelong learning, has become pronounced in recent years (Chamberlayne et al, 2000; West et al, 2007). There have been several conferences, under the auspices of the European Society for Research on the Education of Adults (ESREA), with increasing numbers of researchers using such approaches, in diverse contexts, leading to a new book (West et al, 2007). The book builds on an earlier publication, which chronicled the re-emergence of biographical methods in Europe in the early 1990s (Alheit et al, 1995). There is evidence of an increased popularity of similar methods in North America, (see, for example, Sork, Chapman and Sinclair, 2000), drawing, in part, on feminism and the application of oral, life history and narrative approaches among marginalized peoples (Plummer, 2001). Feminist, black, North American First Nation and gay consciousness movements have enabled more people to chronicle their own experiences, on more of their own terms, and to challenge myths projected on to them by powerful others, including experiences of learning and education (Plummer, 2001). These developments, with particular reference to Europe, provide an opportunity to reflect on the current state of theory and practice in this methodological 'family'. There are many similarities, despite different terms used – biography, life history, life writing, auto/biography, narrative etc – not least the historic influence of the Chicago School, social constructivism, symbolic interactionism, and to an extent feminism and oral history. But as in all families, there are differences too, some quite strong. In particular, surrounding the assumed 'objectivity' of research or the extent to which interview and narrative material represent the 'truth' of a life, or of learning, in a realist sense. Differences of language, disciplinary backgrounds and academic cultures, as well as epistemological and methodological assumptions, can be detected. Notwithstanding, the range and depth of work is impressive while disciplinary boundaries are to an extent being transcended, as in the emergence of psychosocial perspectives (West et al, 2007). Using biographical approaches challenges comfortable disciplinary assumptions: there is a need to conceptualise learning, like life histories as a whole, in more holistic and dynamic ways; as situated, relational, embodied, social, psychological, historic, lifelong and lifewide at one and the same time. This paper illustrates aspects of 'the turn' to biographical approaches ('biography' is used, for present purposes, as an umbrella word for a family with many names, as indicated above, each having some distinctiveness). It highlights particular developments in Europe before delineating how the space is contested: around notions of objectivity or subjectivity in research as well as surrounding the role of the researcher. Nothing New Biographical approaches, however, are not new in social science or in the study of history. They have existed as submerged streams in sociology, history, and even psychology, for decades. They reach back to studies of the French Revolution and to the seminal contribution of Polish researchers, such as Thomas and Znaniecki in their epic study The Polish Peasant in Europe and America (1918-20). This had considerable influence on the Chicago School and the development of biographical approaches in diverse national contexts. A strong theoretical influence in Chicago school sociology was symbolic interactionism, which regarded the things that the members of society do as being performed by them, as actors, rather than by the system, in some abstract sense, itself. The social order (including in educational contexts) is created in, through and from the interactions of members of society. Biographical researchers, of whatever kind, tend to take that as axiomatic (West et al, 2007). Other Influences Such perspectives, however, became marginalized as positivism took hold, especially in psychology but also sociology as social psychology formed its own distinct discipline. The "turn", or re-turn, is partly due of the advent of a sophisticated body of feminist theory, in which learning, like politics, became personal. Feminism was, arguably, the decisive influence in the United Kingdom, as it was in France (West et al, 2007), although less so in some other continental traditions. It has been influential in Denmark, not least when combined with critical theory in the study of subjectivity, working life and learning. This includes chronicling the different and highly gendered responses to training programmes in care settings, with men tending to seek recognition of their autonomy, before coping with intimacy, mirroring, perhaps, patterns in earlier experience. To the extent that socialization patterns make themselves known in everyday life, men, it seems, tend to need autonomy as a precondition for intimacy, whereas women strive to establish intimacy – and perhaps recognition – as a precondition for demonstrating autonomy in learning (Weber, 2007)). Feminism has also been concerned with the pervasive influence of gender in people's lives, including in learning, and the power of phallocentric language to construct subjects, and learning, in particular ways. Moreover, feminist research was increasingly presented and celebrated as a participatory enterprise in the study of adult and lifelong learning (Armstrong, 1998). There was commitment to giving voice to women previously hidden in research. Feminism similarly challenged the practice of treating interviewees as subordinates as researchers sought to build more equal relationships between interviewers and interviewees. The process of interviewing became central to the method, while research was conceived as a selflearning experience for the interviewer, in its own right. Feminist researchers tend to view interviewees as collaborators. Participants can be involved in the analysis of texts while researchers may involve participants dialogically in the process by, for example, sending them a copy of their transcript to ensure that they feel that it is an accurate representation of what they said. Some researchers provide feedback of research findings to interviewees in a further attempt to build shared understanding in a collaborative, trusting, empowering as well as an iterative process (Merrill, 1999; West, 2007). Postmodern epistemological perspectives have also been influential in their hostility to meta-narratives and universalisms; in their celebration of difference, diverse subjectivities and the potential for human agency in a variety of contexts. A renewed focus on lived experience as a basis for research also fits with elements of late or postmodernity, such as uncertainty, social and technological change, which are proving influential in theorising learning in terms of reflexivity. This is the territory in which 'the self becomes a reflexive project' (Giddens, 1991, p 32). Giddens sees the globalising tendencies of the present as ushering in profound changes in social life and personal experience, which results in efforts to construct and sustain the self through narratives of self-identity. The shift from adult education to lifelong learning in policy discourse reflects some of these tendencies, as boundaries between learning and personal experience become increasingly difficult to draw, and learning is recognised as an important phenomenon in a wide variety of intimate, domestic, social and work-based, as well as educational settings (West et al., 2007). And partly, as least in the United Kingdom, oral history has played an important role in the field, not least with referenced to human agency. The British social historian Edward Thompson placed this at the core of historical processes. Class, for instance, was not so much a structure, nor even a category, but something that is made in (and can be shown to have happened) in human relationships. Class is embodied in real people in real contexts: 'the finest meshed sociological net', Thompson insisted, 'cannot give us a pure specimen of class, any more than it can give us one of deference or of love' (Thompson, 1980, p 8). You cannot have love, Thompson argued, without lovers or deference without squires and labourers, or learning without learners. Class happens when some men and women, as a result of common experiences (shared, inherited and even imagined), feel and articulate – to which we would add reflexively 'learn' – some identity of interest in comparison to another group. How people actively 'learn' their world, and their place in it, as well as how this can change, lies at the heart of much biographical research endeavour. One further element in the rise of biographical approaches in the United Kingdom was a reaction against the dominance of survey methods in studying adult learning, which could easily neglect the complexity of learners' narratives by seeking to freeze experiences into crude categories. For instance, there was a tendency to distinguish between 'vocational' and 'nonvocational' motivation in learning – work related or personal which seemed to unravel given that vocational motives could be rooted in deeply personal issues, for example, as illuminated by in-depth biographical research (West, 1996). However, despite these trends, the pressure for highly instrumental and quantitative forms of research – i


We have fabricated memory devices based on random networks of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) on a glass substrate. The characteristics of the nonvolatile memory were investigated as a function of gate voltage, pulse time, and temperature. The program/erase window was greater than approximately 3.2 V. The gate voltage sensitivity of the erase speed was greater (∼1.9 times) than that of the program speed. The activation energy was about 0.273 eV. The mechanism could be explained from the polarization of water molecules, and may provide an important insight into the program/erase operation of memory devices. We have also discussed a fast erase speed due to a work function difference and oxide trapped charges.


Managing finances is crucial for older adults who are retired and may rely on savings to ensure their lives' quality. As digital banking platforms (e.g., mobile apps, electronic payment) gradually replace physical ones, it is critical to understand how they adapt to digital banking and the potential frictions they experience. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 16 older adults in China, where the aging population is the largest and digital banking grows fast. We also interviewed bank employees to gain complementary perspectives of these help givers. Our findings show that older adults used both physical and digital platforms as an ecosystem based on perceived pros and cons. Perceived usefulness, self-confidence, and social influence were key motivators for learning digital banking. They experienced app-related (e.g., insufficient error-recovery support) and user-related challenges (e.g., trust, security and privacy concerns, low perceived self-efficacy) and developed coping strategies. We discuss design considerations to improve their banking experiences.


CS Resources is currently undertaking the construction of an 800 m 3 /day (5,000 bpd) thermal project near Senlac, Saskatchewan. The Senlac Thermal Project will use a steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process to recover as much as 3.2 e6 m 3 (20 mmbbl) of 13°API oil from a Dina channel sand. This paper discusses some of the production and facility engineering issues arising in this full scale SAGD scheme. Compared to primary or conventional thermal operations, some of the unusual aspects are : very high injection and production rates from individual wells ; the need to manage the large amount of heat in the production stream ; and a pronounced interdependence between the various project components. Reservoir description, production forecasting, and facility optimization are briefly discussed.


Purpose Colistin alone may not be sufficient for treating carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB); thus, efforts are needed to increase treatment success rates. We compared the effects of colistin plus carbapenem therapy versus colistin monotherapy in treating pneumonia caused by CRAB and attempted to identify specific populations or factors that could benefit from combination therapy. Methods We retrospectively collected data on cases of CRAB pneumonia. The patients were divided into colistin plus carbapenem therapy and colistin monotherapy groups. The primary outcome was 14-day mortality. The secondary outcomes were in-hospital mortality, clinical improvement at days 2 and 14, and microbiological improvement at day 14. Results Of 160 cases meeting criteria for CRAB pneumonia, 83 (52%) and 77 (48.0%) were treated with carbapenem combination therapy or colistin monotherapy, respectively. Among these patients, 50 (63.3%) in the combination group and 27 (39.7%) in the monotherapy group had Acute Physiologic Assessment and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II scores >24 points (p=0.010). Overall, there was no significant difference in 14-day mortality between the combination and monotherapy groups (24.1% vs 20.8%, p=0.616). Clinical improvement and sputum-negative conversion also showed no significant difference. After adjusting for disease severity according to APACHE II score, the 14-day mortality was significantly lower in the combination group than in the monotherapy group among patients with APACHE II scores of 25–29 points (9.1% vs 53.8%, P=0.020). Conclusion Despite more severe conditions, compared with colistin monotherapy, colistin plus carbapenem combination therapy showed equivalent primary mortality outcome in treating CRAB pneumonia. Combination therapy was more effective in patients with APACHE II score ranging from 25 to 29 points.


Two opposite approaches were proposed to address some scalability problem resulting from coordinated checkpointing's synchronization during failure-free operation: minimizing the number of checkpointing participants and having the checkpointing process non-blocking. However, these previous approaches, oblivious to the underlying network, may not fundamentally provide any breakthrough for ensuring high scalability required in very large-scale P2P-based systems. This paper proposes a non-blocking coordinated checkpointing protocol to significantly reduce checkpointing synchronization overhead by structuring the peer-to-peer network into a set of groups according to a particular criterion. In this protocol, among processes in a group, one is designated as representative with the following special roles, intra-group and inter-group checkpointing coordination. Intra-group checkpointing coordination addresses the checkpointing procedure among processes within a group. On the other hand, inter-group checkpointing coordination is performed only among representatives. Thanks to this beneficial feature, the proposed protocol may considerably reduce the number of checkpointing control messages routed on core networks compared with the existing ones.


Evidence to date indicates that the gene encoding cytochrome P450 aromatase (P450arom) in humans is a single member of the CYPl9 family, but multiple CYPl9 loci and isoforms have been identified in pigs. Here we report the cloning and characterization of a second member of the CYP19 family in goldfish. A search for P450arom variants was prompted by studies showing that a full-length P450arom complementary DNA (cDNA) isolated from a goldfish brain cDNA library hybridizes with a high abundance 3 kb transcript in brain RNA but fails to detect a message in ovarian RNA. A stepwise PCR cloning strategy led to isolation of a 1.9-kb cDNA, which encodes a protein of 518 amino acids and has a predicted mol wt of 58.7K. The ovary-derived P450arom (-A) shares 68-72% sequence identity with ovarian aromatases of other fish species, but only 62% identity with the homologous brain-derived P450arom (-B). Amino acid differences are distributed throughout the two goldfish P450arom forms, but presumptive functional domains are highly conserved. Both P450aromA and -B are able to aromatize [3H]androgen to [3H]estrogen when expressed in nonsteroidogenic COS cells. Southern analysis and PCR-restriction analysis of genomic DNA using discriminating probes and primers indicates that a single locus encodes the brain-derived P450aromB (CYPl9B), whereas one or two different loci encode the ovarian form (CYPl9A). Northern blot analysis revealed two P450aromA messenger RNAs (1.9 >> 3.0 kb) in ovary. Simultaneous PCR amplification with A- and B-specific primer pairs confirms that P450aromA is the only form expressed in ovaries, but shows overlapping expression of the two genes in neural tissues. Whereas P450aromB messenger RNA predominates in brain (B/A, approximately 14:1), the ratios are reversed in retina (B/A, approximately 1:25). Further studies are required to resolve the evolutionary and functional implications of multiple CYPl9 genes and P450arom isozymes in goldfish, their differential expression in brain and ovary, and whether observations can be generalized to other vertebrates.


We studied the genetic structure of the sea cucumber Holothuria (Roweothuria) polii (Delle Chiaje 1823) by analysing the mitochondrial DNA variation in two fragments of cytochrome oxidase I (COI) and 16S genes. Individuals were collected in seven locations along the Mediterranean Sea, which cover a wide range of the species distribution. We found high haplotype diversity for COI and moderate diversity for 16S, and low nucleotide diversity for both genes. Our results for the COI gene showed many recent and exclusive haplotypes with few mutational changes, suggesting recent or ongoing population expansion. The Western and Eastern Mediterranean populations exhibited slight but significant genetic differentiation (COI gene) with higher genetic diversity in the East. The most ancient haplotype was not present in the westernmost sampling location (SE Spain). The oldest expansion time was observed in Turkey, corresponding to mid-Pleistocene. Turkey had also the highest genetic diversity (number of total and exclusive haplotypes, polymorphisms, haplotype and nucleotide diversity). This suggests that this region could be the origin of the subsequent colonizations through the Mediterranean Sea, a hypothesis that should be assessed with nuclear markers in future research.


The present emphasis on environ m ntal preservation and human health is resulting in an increased use of chlorine for disinfection and waste treat ment. Few efforts, if any, are being made by those proposing such procedures to de termine the adverse impact of increased usage. Recent investigations, including life-cycle studies with aquatic organisms, have greatly clarified the level of signifi cance of chlorine toxicity. Several major projects in various stages of development or completion will add to this understanding, but sufficient data are available now to permit estimates of the maximum levels of residual chlorine that would protect aquatic life.


Academics attempt to understand the consequences of fragmentation, electronic markets, and trading algorithms. Practitioners, by necessity, devise ever-improving trading algorithms to achieve their trading objectives. This article is a bridge of sorts. The author uses the structural approach developed throughout decades of research on price formation to illuminate modern electronic-trading practices and algorithms. He argues that despite the constantly changing trading landscape driven by tech nology improvements, the economic trade-offs embedded in trading algorithms are, for all intents and purposes, not different from manual trading. All that has changed is the implementation.


Reaction behavior of a packed bed consisting of reagent pellets A or iron ore mini pellets B and coal composite iron ore hot briquettes was examined under the blast furnace simulated conditions until 1200°C. As a result, it was found that reducibility of the mixed bed is governed by reducibility of pellets, whereas gasification of briquettes in the mixed bed is hardly governed by it. However, promotion effects for reduction and gasification of the mixed beds were recognized for both pellets around 1050°C, where abnormal swelling of the easier reduced pellet A occurred remarkably with fine fibrous irons, showing a noticeable pressure drop through the bed. It was suggested that this swelling would be caused by gaseous sulfur derived from coal char in the briquettes. The mixed beds provided larger final shrinkage of the beds than the individual beds probably due to increment of the coupling reactions between reduction and gasification. It was concluded that reducibility of the pellet could influence not only the reducibility of the mixed bed but also the overall reaction behavior such as gas permeability and softening.


The initiative comes from a group of water boards in the Netherlands that joined their forces to fund the development of a new rainfall product. Not only data from Dutch radar stations (as is currently done by the Dutch meteorological organization KNMI) is used but also data from radars in Germany and Belgium. After a radarcomposite is made, it is adjusted according to data from raingauges (ground truth). This results in 9 different rainfall products that give for each moment the best rainfall data.


There seems to be a remarkable consensus in recent years with regards to the importance of student disruptive behaviors and/or attitudes, conflictive situations, and the lack of social support as factors hindering school life and contributing to the increase of teacher occupational malaise. However, there are few empirical studies about the relationships between said causes and personality variables. The aim of this research based on a sample of 1537 secondary education teachers was to identify which sources of stress establish significant differences between levels of optimism (low, moderate and high) derived from teachers' self-reports; also analyzed was if the facets of stress (student disruptive behaviors, lack of social support and conflict) discriminate between teachers who report low vs. high optimism. The results suggest that the considered stressors validly differentiate between levels of optimism. Likewise, student disruptive behaviors and conflict facets allow for discrimination based on teacher optimism.


The relationship between the use of Twitter by companies, a social media tool, and their financial performance was examined. Between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2020, companies listed in BIST 100 during that same period, companies included in the Fortune 500 and their financial data, as well as the use of the aforementioned social media tool and the number of shares were used as datasets. All Twitter posts were scanned using the content analytics method, within the date range determined by considering the limitations of the research. The aforementioned shared tweets, companies' turnover, export figures, etc. In compiling the data of 36 companies, with the help of Python, a general-purpose programming language, a software-based model was created to collect data from the Twitter database via the googlecolab platform. In addition, in the review of the writings; we have seen that the analyzes generally made are limited to one fiscal year, and when it is evaluated that 98,805 tweets belonging to 36 companies covering the years 2009-2020 are analyzed in detail, no study with a similar scope has been found. To study the relationship between the use of Twitter and the financial performance of companies in the BIST-100 index, a normality test was conducted with Kolmogorov Smirnov test and the distribution was found not suitable for normal distribution. Spearman's correlation analysis was performed because the variables did not match the normal distribution. As a result of the tests and analyzes applied, a weak positive relationship was found between net sales, the number of employees and the number of shares, and a very weak positive relationship between the export amount and the number of shares. No correlation was found between the number of shares and the variables of profit before interest and tax, total assets and amount of equity.


In March 1982, 6 seismic refraction lines, 70-90 km (43-56 mi) long, were shot in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico using the advanced University of Texas digital ocean bottom seismometers. Five lines were on the South Florida bank region in water depths of less than 1 km (3,300 ft) and one was in water depth of about 2.4 km (7,900 ft) off the northern coast of Cuba. After data reduction, first arrival picks were made and least squares lines were fitted to the picks to obtain the apparent velocities and intercept times for the layers. Using these values, flat layer crustal models have been initially computed. The 2 most dominant deep refractors have apparent velocities of 5.6-5.9 km/sec (3.5-3.7 mi/sec) and 6.2-6.6 km/sec (3.9-4.1 mi/sec). The top of these refractors varies in depth 2-6 km (6,600-13,000 ft) from the sea surface. They are interpreted to represent the crystalline basement. Basement rocks have been reached at a depth of 3.4 km (11,200 ft) in a well drilled in the Pinellas County arch. In the South Florida bank area, the deepest refractor observed has an apparent velocity of about 7.5 km/sec (4.6 mi/sec) at a depth of about 25 km (15 mi). Absence of any mantle velocity in these long profiles confirms the continental nature of this crust. The only possible mantle arrival (velocity = 8.4 km/sec, 5.2 mi/sec) was observed in the line off the northern coast of Cuba at a depth of about 26 km (16 mi). Similar crustal thickness has been observed in a refraction profile just northwest of this line. This deep crustal structure complements the shallow cru tal structures for this area. End_of_Article - Last_Page 473------------


We propose a protocol verification method capable of evaluating a telematics system using the ns simulation & emulation facilities. With simulation, we experiment delay and throughput performance of TCP and UDP transport layer protocols under wireless channels. In a repeatable, detailed and realistic emulator, we investigate performance of real telematics system. We make our emulation system more realistic by using the data and parameters of commercial cellular network provider. Our simulation results show that TCP and UDP protocols need some modifications to improve performance over wireless channel with high-mobility mobile nodes. We verified by emulation that our telematics system operates well using a proper retransmission scheme in an application layer.


This essay originally appeared in the LA Times book review as an obituary essay on Dominique Aury, author (under the name Pauline Reage) of the pornographic classic Story of O. The essay argues that Story of O is a fairy tale in which the heroine, O, seeks to escape from modernity's enforced virtues of equality, freedom, and choice into a world of the virtues of hierarchy - the eroticized analogues of religious submission. The novel is driven forward by a downward spiral in which O seeks to surrender herself to her masters and so escape from modernity's insistence on liberty and equality. In each instance, however, O's submission is permitted only upon the condition imposed by her masters that she consent to her enslavement, thus returning her to the condition of freedom and equality. In each iteration of the novel's trademark sado-masochism, she abases herself still further in seeking a submission that would carry her outside of modernity's conditions, and cannot obtain it. The essay also comments on the relationship of the fairy tale-novel to Aury's own life and the lover for whom she wrote it, the eminent editor and critic Jean Paulhan. (Note: The PDF takes a little while to download.)


Presents a dynamic model of the consumer complaining behavior process. Is unique in that it distinguishes between negative word‐of‐mouth that occurs prior to seeking redress (or in lieu of seeking redress) and negative word‐of‐mouth that occurs after seeking redress. Another unique aspect of this study is that it specifically recognizes positive word‐of‐mouth as a possible post‐complaint response. The results indicate that the major factor that determines why some dissatisfied consumers seek redress and give the seller a chance to remedy the problem, while others exit and engage in negative word‐of‐mouth behavior, is the perceived likelihood of success. Results also show that, once a dissatisfied customer seeks redress, that person expects to receive a fair settlement but, more importantly, to be treated with courtesy and respect. Based on these results, discusses the pervasive effects of customer service on consumer complaining behavior, and offers managerial recommendations.


:  This article examines the ability of current accounting data to explain future cash flows for UK firms, as disclosed under FRS1(1991). Rather than examining price data — from which cash flow implications have to be inferred — we follow the more direct approach used in several recent US studies, in which actual future cash flow data are examined. Specifically, our methodology is a development of the OLS regression framework employed by Barth et al. (2001). We provide a replication of their main OLS analysis, and then extend this to deal with fixed effects and time trends in the levels of cash flow data. Our study finds that the disaggregation of earnings into cash flows and accruals, generates superior explanatory power with regard to future cash flows.


Social network analysis has been used for quite some time to analyze and understand the behavior of nodes in the network. Theses nodes could be individuals or group of persons, events or organizations, etc. In fact these nodes could be any thing, importantly, these nodes propagate or do some thing and obviously these nodes have attributes. Social network analysis (SNA) is a multi-model multi-link problem and one can imagine the challenge posed by such multidimensional task. Typically, models represent various processes and their organization including the interaction between processes. Such types of models are intellective simulation models, explaining one particular aspect of the model abstracting other factors present in the model. The standard or normal representation of a typical social network model is through a graph data structure. The dynamics of larger social networks is so complex some time it becomes difficult to understand the various levels of interactions and dependencies just by mere representation through a graph. However, to overcome this limitation many analytical methods provide relationship dependencies, role of different nodes and their importance in the social networks. Since the start of the new century many terrorism events have occurred around the globe. These events have provided a new impetus for the analysis, investigation, studying the behavior and tracking terrorist networks (individuals). In this paper we are presenting a very novel and absolutely new approach to SNA for locating important key players in the network. The system also predicts a path through these nodes which shows the vulnerability of the network and if the path along with these nodes is removed it can reduce/destabilize or even destroy the structure of the network


Daylily or Hemerocallis spp. (Xanthorrhoeaceae) is one of the most economically important flowering crops in the world. Ploidy level of 149 genotypes both local to China and introduced from the United States and New Zealand were assessed with an outcome of 79 diploids, 22 triploids and 48 tetraploids. A large proportion of introduced cultivars were tetraploid (42%), half were diploid and the rest, 8%, were triploid. Most Chinese cultivars were diploid; only one was tetraploid. Among the 29 wild genotypes collected from the Taihang Mountain range, 13 (45%) were triploid and 16 (55%) were diploid; no tetraploids were identified. For the 31 genotypes with known ploidy, 22 matched previous counts with the rest showing a lower ploidy. As different ploidy is common in daylily, we suggest that ploidy levels should be assessed in breeding programmes for specific breeding purposes. Karyotypes of three diploid, three triploid and two tetraploid genotypes were constructed and they were assigned to '3A', '2B' and '3B' categories based on Stebbins' karyotype classification.


S have shown that nanomaterials remain one of the most promising materials for modern and advance in the development of science and technology. In medicine particularly, cure and management of chronic diseases have been discovered through the application of nanochemistry. Development of synthesis protocols for realizing nanomaterials over a range of sizes, shapes, and chemical compositions and biological activity is, therefore, an important application of nanochemistry in medicine. The remarkable biological activitydependent physicochemical properties of the co-crystal system have fascinated and inspired research activity in this direction. In this presentation, therefore, attention will be focused on the background introduction, the synthesis methods to prepare a co-crystal system from two solid organic compounds for better management and treatment of infectious diseases particularly tuberculosis, and its various characterization techniques will be discussed.


In this work we present empirical network models as a new approach in the investigation of stereotype structure. We will argue that empirical network models can provide more insight into stereotype structure because they do not suffer from the inherent constraints of factor analysis and multidimensional scaling (e.g., group features interpreted homogeneously only on the basis of their shared variance, impossibility to adequately represent cognitive schemas, difficulties to make inferences on the basis of dimensions potentially overlapping). In the present research we show how empirical network models can represent stereotypes as dynamic cognitive structures clustered in different substructures. These structures will be based on both the stereotype content and the co-occurrence of features in each group target. Additionally, this research shows how using empirical networks can contribute to broadening the interpretation of stereotypes representing them in the framework of prejudice or intergroup attitudes.


The general theory of electron - photon coincidence experiments for electron impact ionization plus simultaneous excitation is developed. Orientation and alignment parameters are defined and related to the angular distribution and polarization of the light emitted by the residual ion. As a first guide to experimentalists in this field, we present results for ionization of helium atoms, as calculated within a combined DWBA+R-matrix method.


Pulmonary Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is one of the many manifestations of AIDS. There are no specific tests for its early diagnosis. Because its symptoms may be similar to tuberculosis, it may be diagnosed incorrectly and treated as such. Consequently, by the time of the correct diagnosis, valuable time will have been lost for effective medical care that could positively impact prognosis. The discussion in this case study is focused on pulmonary KS with an interest in improving premorbid diagnosis that may lead to an earlier recognition and better treatment of the disease.


Observations are recorded on the formation of secondary colonies of Bact. lactis aerogenes or of Bact. coli mutabile grown on agar plates containing various sugars to which the particular strain requires adaptation. The papillae arise during a process of ageing and may not appear until long after utilization of the specific sugar begins. Cultures derived from papillae show some at least of the adapted or mutant character, but so also may cultures derived from the primary colony. Consideration of colony morphology and of the inhomogeneities which may arise in dense bacterial cultures, suggests that the occurrence of spontaneous mutants is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for secondary colony formation.


Toxic trace metals are major environmental pollutants due to their high toxicity at low concentrations, non-biodegradability, and accumulation in the food chain. Metals are important pollutants from metal mining, a major industry in Canada. Therefore, effective means of toxic trace metal quantification in natural water and soils are required for environmental risk assessment. Although analytical chemistry provides highly accurate and precise methods for quantifying metals, complete environmental risk assessment requires a determination of whether or not a metal is bioavailable, i.e. present in toxic or benign species. Of these toxic trace metals, our focus was on Cd as it is considered to be one of the most toxic heavy metals at sublethal concentrations. The absolute Cd concentration in natural waters does not necessarily reflect the concentration of a metal that is bioavailable. Therefore, analytical methods need to be complemented with bioassays (organisms that report the presence of bioavailable metal. This thesis contributes to the development of two types of cadmium (Cd) bioassays using the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. These bioassays are intended to detect trace amounts of the bioavailable species of cadmium (Cd). Previous global transcriptome studies by Simon et al. identified 10 Cd genes that are
IV
induced by Cd2+exposure at concentrations in micromolar range. We focused on a gene encoding a predicted amino acid transporter (AOT4) because it had the highest level of induction at low [Cd2+] (1.2 μM). Reporter genes were constructed using the promoter region of this gene. Validation of the promoter region was based on Northern blot experiments. Another method used the technology of Panomics Inc. that allowed for direct quantitation of AOT4 mRNA levels. I established 2 Panomics assays and optimized them so that they could be used with C. reinhardtii. The goal of these bioassays is to make them specific and respond to environmentally relevant Cd concentrations and allow use of sensitive, simple, portable equipment for in situ Cd measurements


Autonomous control of logistic processes opens up new potentials to improve the handling of internal and external dynamics in production networks. These networks are characterized by geographically dispersed coupled transport and production processes. This coupling may influence the dynamic behavior of the complete network, due to interdependencies between production and transport quantities and time scales. This paper addresses the impact of two direct transport strategies in an exemplarily production network scenario with autonomous controlled production plants. Relevant parameters of both transport strategies, which determine the transport quantity and the transport time scale, are varied in different simulation experiments in order to explore their impact of the dynamic behavior of the entire network and its elements.


The first goal of this essay is to analyse how the historical and hagiographic figure of Saint Francis was publicly used over the last decades; from the Eighties, with a particular attention paid to the pontificate of John Paul the II, to the first Pope who chose the name of Francis in the history of the Church. This analysis will be framed within the larger history of the twentieth century, by signalling the most relevant moments in the cult and myth of Saint Francis: from the successful biography of the modernist Paul Sabatier, throughout the fascist period, to the post-war political and cultural developments until the Seventies. The second goal purports to demonstrate that the study-case Francis of Assisi allows to verify the reciprocal relations among three different levels of inquiry in the cultural history of the twentieth century: the specialized research of professional historians, the cultural, political and ecclesiological transformations, and the public use of history by the religious imagery.


A quadrature fiber optic Fabry–Perot cavity microphone based on a differential cross multiplication algorithm consists of a pair of fibers and a membrane. It has many advantages such as high sensitivity, a simple structure, and resistance to electromagnetic interference. However, there are no systematic studies on its key performance, for example, its frequency response and dynamic range. In this paper, a comprehensive study of these two key parameters is carried out using simulation analysis and experimental verification. The upper limit of the frequency response range and the upper limit of the dynamic range influence each other, and they are both affected by the data sampling rate. At a certain data sampling rate, the higher the upper limit of the frequency response range is the lower the upper limit of the dynamic range. The quantitative relationship between them is revealed. In addition, these two key parameters also are affected by the quadrature phase deviation. The quadrature phase deviation should not exceed 0.25π under the condition that the demodulated signal intensity is not attenuated by more than 3 dB. Subsequently, a short-step quadrature Fabry–Perot cavity method is proposed, which can suppress the quadrature phase deviation of the quadrature fiber optic Fabry–Perot cavity microphone based on the differential cross multiplication algorithm.


Promising approaches for efficient detection in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) wireless systems are based on sphere-decoding (SD). The conventional (and optimum) norm that is used to conduct the tree traversal step in SD is the l 2 -norm. It was, however, recently observed that using the l ¿-norm instead reduces the hardware complexity of SD considerably at only a marginal performance loss. These savings result from a reduction in the length of the critical path in the circuit and the silicon area required for metric computation, but are also, as observed previously through simulation results, a consequence of a reduction in the computational (i.e., algorithmic) complexity. The aim of this paper is an analytical performance and computational complexity analysis of l ¿-norm SD. For independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.) Rayleigh fading MIMO channels, we show that l ¿-norm SD achieves full diversity order with an asymptotic SNR gap, compared to l 2-norm SD, that increases at most linearly in the number of receive antennas. Moreover, we provide a closed-form expression for the computational complexity of l ¿-norm SD based on which we establish that its complexity scales exponentially in the system size. Finally, we characterize the tree pruning behavior of l ¿-norm SD and show that it behaves fundamentally different from that of l 2-norm SD.


In this paper, different surface treatments to reduce the surface roughness of a typical laminate for use in high frequency applications (high frequency laminate) are investigated. In particular, the importance of matching the substrate surface energy to the ink to achieve a smooth coated layer for the case of a UV cured insulator is demonstrated. This paper shows that this is achievable within the parameters of heating the platen, which is a more flexible approach compared to modifying the ink to improve the ink-substrate interaction. In printing onto the surface modified substrates, the substrate roughness was observed to affect the printed line width significantly. A surface roughness factor was introduced to take into account the phenomenon by modifying the original formula of Smith et al. (J. Mater. Sci. 2006, 41, 4153). Lastly, the authors show that the printed line widths are also influenced by the surface tension arising from charges present on the surface modified substrates.