The nature of process accidents is discussed, and the relevant definition of Horst Rittel's social phenomenon, "wicked problems," is examined. Existing accident models are reviewed for inclusion of social drivers thought to dominate process accidents. A suggested method, new to process safety and termed morphological analysis, is offered to uncover unacknowledged drivers. Give the purported fit of process safety as a wicked problem, an assessment of the US Chemical Safety Board's "Most Wanted" is made doubting its potential reduction in accidents. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog 36: 14–17, 2017


Abstract Objective To examine exposure to energy drink marketing among youth and young adults, and test perceptions of energy drink advertisements (ads) regarding target audience age and promoting energy drink use during sports. Design A between-group experiment randomly assigned respondents to view one of four energy drink ads (sport-themed or control) and assessed perceptions of the ad. Regression models examined marketing exposure and perceptions. Setting Online survey (2014). Subjects Canadians aged 12–24 years (n 2040) from a commercial panel. Results Overall, 83 % reported ever seeing energy drink ads through at least one channel, including on television (60 %), posters/signs in stores (49 %) and online (44 %). Across experimental conditions, most respondents (70·1 %) thought the ad they viewed targeted people their age or younger, including 42·2 % of those aged 12–14 years. Two sport-themed ads were more likely to be perceived as targeting a younger audience (adjusted OR (95 % CI): 'X Games' 36·5 %, 4·16 (3·00, 5·77); 'snowboard' 19·2 %, 1·50 (1·06, 2·13)) v. control (13·3 %). Participants were more likely to believe an ad promoted energy drink use during sports if they viewed any sport-themed ad ('X Games' 69·9 %, 8·29 (6·24, 11·02); 'snowboard' 76·7 %, 11·85 (8·82, 15·92); 'gym' 66·8 %, 7·29 (5·52, 9·64)) v. control (22·0 %). Greater reported exposure to energy drink marketing was associated with perceiving study ads as promoting energy drink use during sports. Conclusions Energy drink marketing has a high reach among young people. Ads for energy drinks were perceived as targeting youth and promoting use during sports. Such ads may be perceived as making physical performance claims, counter to Canadian regulations.


Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) from sunlight is the primary effector of skin DNA damage. Chromatin remodeling and histone post-translational modification (PTM) are critical factors in repairing DNA damage and maintaining genomic integrity, however, the dynamic changes of histone marks in response to solar UVR are not well characterized. Here we report global changes in histone PTMs induced by solar simulated UVR (ssUVR). A decrease in lysine acetylation of histones H3 and H4, particularly at positions of H3 lysine 9, lysine 56, H4 lysine 5, and lysine 16, was found in human keratinocytes exposed to ssUVR. These acetylation changes were highly associated with ssUVR in a dose-dependent and time-specific manner. Interestingly, H4K16ac, a mark that is crucial for higher order chromatin structure, exhibited a persistent reduction by ssUVR that was transmitted through multiple cell divisions. In addition, the enzymatic activities of histone acetyltransferases were significantly reduced in irradiated cells, which may account for decreased global acetylation. Moreover, depletion of histone deacetylase SIRT1 in keratinocytes rescued ssUVR-induced H4K16 hypoacetylation. These results indicate that ssUVR affects both HDAC and HAT activities, leading to reduced histone acetylation.


In this chapter, the authors introduce the concept of preferred customer status as a means for creating supply-side induced advantages in highly competitive supplier markets. For the authors, being a preferred customer means that a buyer is awarded preferential treatment of important suppliers compared to what their other customers receive. Taking this into account, having Preferred Customer Status might also have a positive impact on the generation of innovation upstream the supply chain. As there is a lack of knowledge of what motivates suppliers to serve selected buyers better than others, the research presented here focuses on the suppliers' evaluation of customers and how it can be influenced by buyers. Based on an extensive literature review, an overview is provided of recent contributions on customer attractiveness and supplier satisfaction as the prerequisites for becoming a preferred customer of strategic suppliers. Furthermore, the authors stress the importance of being a preferred customer particularly in a new product development context by empirically testing the impact of preferred customer status on supplier innovativeness in a buyer-seller relationship. They conclude that implementing a preferred customer policy in buying firms can improve the conditions for innovating with suppliers.


We present a hyperbolic formulation of the evolution equations describing nonradial perturbations of slowly rotating relativistic stars in the Regge–Wheeler gauge. We demonstrate the stability properties of the new evolution set of equations and compute the polar w-modes for slowly rotating stars.


Thirteen invited papers from a two-day discussion session held in September 1999 are collected in this issue of Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society. All the papers have been revised and edited, and the discussion following the presentation of each paper has been transcribed and appended. In addition, the editors have contributed a paper-length introduction. The contents are as follows:


For thirty-three years and through three editions, Bass & Stodgill'sHandbook of Leadershiphas been the indispensable "bible" for every serious student of leadership. Since the 3rd edition came out in 1990, the field of leadership has exploded. This completely revised and updated fourth edition reflects the growth and changes in the study of leadership over the past 17 years. This new edition offers shifts in both content and method. Ethics and transformational leadership, for example, have become increasing subjects of inquiry. Distinctly separate fields of inquiry, such as political science and psychology, have been joined in this edition to build a broader appreciation of the phenomenon of leadership. Throughout the Handbook, the contributions from cognitive social psychology and the social, political, communications, and administrative sciences have been expanded.


The purpose of this study was to compare the single-isocenter, four-field hybrid IMRT with the two-isocenter techniques to treat the whole breast and supraclavicular fields and to investigate the intrafraction motions in both techniques in the superior direction. Fifteen breast cancer patients who underwent lumpectomy and adjuvant radiation to the whole breast and supraclavicular (SCV) fossa at our institution were selected for this study. Two planning techniques were compared for the treatment of the breast and SCV lymph nodes. The patients were divided into three subgroups according to the whole breast volume. For the two-isocenter technique, conventional wedged or field-within-a-field tangents (FIF) were used to match with the same anterior field for the SCV region. For the single-isocenter technique, four-field hybrid IMRT was used for the tangent fields matched with a half blocked anterior field for the SCV region. To simulate the intrafraction uncertainties in the longitudinal direction for both techniques, the treatment isocenters were shifted by 1 mm and 2 mm in the superior direction. The average breast clinical tumor volume (CTV) receiving 100% (V100%) of the prescription dose (50 Gy) was 99.3%±0.5% and 96.4%±1.2% for the for two-isocenter and single-isocenter plans (p<0.05), respectively. The breast CTV receiving 95% of the prescription dose (V95%) was close to 100% in both techniques. The average breast CTV receiving 105% (V105%) of the prescription dose was 32.4%±19.3% and 23.8%±13.3% (p=0.08). The percentage volume of the breast CTV receiving 110% of the dose was 0.4%±1.2% in the two-isocentric technique vs. 0.1%±0.2% in the single-isocentric technique. The average uniformity index was 0.91±0.02 vs. 0.91±0.01 in both techniques (p=0.04), but had no clinical impact. The percentage volume of the contralateral breast receiving a dose of 1 Gy was less than 2.3% in small breast patients and insignificant for medium and large breast sizes. The percentage of the total lung volume receiving g>20 Gy (V20Gy) and the heart receiving >30 Gy (V30Gy) were 13.6% vs. 14.3% (p=0.03) and 1.25% vs. 1.2% (p=0.62), respectively. Shifting the treatment isocenter by 1 mm and 2 mm superiorly showed that the average maximum dose to 1 cc of the breast volume was 55.5±1.8 Gy and 58.6±4.3 Gy in the two-isocentric technique vs. 56.4±2.1 Gy and 59.1±5.1 Gy in the single-isocentric technique (p=0.46, 0.87), respectively. The single-isocenter technique using four-field hybrid IMRT approach resulted in comparable plan quality as the two-isocentric technique. The single-isocenter technique is more sensitive to intrafraction motion in the superior direction compared to the two-isocentric technique. The advantages of the single-isocenter include elimination of isocentric errors due to couch and collimator rotations and reduction in treatment time. This study supports consideration of a single-isocenter four-field hybrid IMRT technique for patients undergoing breast and supraclavicular nodal irradiation. PACS number: 87.55.D, 87.55.de, 87.55.dk.


Purpose: To evaluate patients with carcinoma of cervical stump (CCS) and analyse different clinico-pathologic factors affect prognosis. Patients and Methods: This study was carried out through review of clinical records of patients. Recorded data included information on age, tumor stage, presenting symptoms, size of tumor, histopathology, grade, type, cause of subtotal hysterectomy (STH), treatment and follow-up results. Staging according to International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) staging system was done through: PHYSICAL examination, pelvic examination under anaesthesia, chest X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the abdomen and pelvis, cystoscopy, rectosigmoidoscopy and intravenous pyelography. Prognostic factors as age, size of tumor, stage, lymph node (LN) involvement, pathological type, grade and type of CCS either true or coincidental were analysed through multivariate analysis. Results: 62% of patients are above 50 years with stage II in 48.7%. Squamous cell carcinoma was more common but 54% are of GIII. 89% were true CCS. Positive lymph nodes were reported in 27%. The predominant reason for STH was abnormal bleeding (73%). In about 95% of cases, women seeked medical attention because of symptoms and the most common presenting symptom was bleeding (54%). According to the stage and performance status of patients, treatment consisted of radiotherapy either external or interstitial, chemotherapy and chemoradiotherapy. Through multivariate analysis, the following was found to have adverse impact on survival: Coincidental type (P = 0.04), high grade (P = 0.03), advanced stage (P = 0.01), larger tumor size (P = 0.02), lymph node involvement (P = 0.029) and older age (P = 0.035). While pathological type was not (P = 0.52). After median follow-up of 52 months; 5-year overall survival was 65%. Conclusion: CCS has a low morbidity. Adverse survival outcomes can be anticipated in those patients with: high grade lesions, advanced stages, large tumor size, coincidental type, older age and positive lymph node involvement.


Ultrasound technology is available for accurately measuring intramuscular fat (IMF) in live pigs. This report provides information on the costs for pig producers and processors to implement this technology and what consumers are willing to pay for pork with improved levels of intramuscular fat. About half the participants in the willingness to pay study preferred the high IMF chop. They paid a premium of 25 percent over the low IMF chop.


Objectives : The purpose of this paper is to estimate the completeness of the Korean Medical Insurance Data in childhood asthma. Methods : Capture-recapture method was used to estimate the prevalence of childhood asthma and case ascertainment rate(completeness) of Korean Medical Insurance Data using two source model, 'Korean Medical Insurance Committee Data (KMICD)' and 'Nationwide Study of Asthma and Allergies in Korean Children'. The asthma cases were restricted to those who were born from 1981 to 1989 and were identified by their Resident Register Number. Asthma cases in Korean Medical Insurance Data were defined as cases coded by ICD-9 493 and ICD-10 J45. In 'Nationwide Study of Asthma and Allergies in Korean Children', asthma cases were defined as the children who had been diagnosed asthma and had experienced symptoms of asthma during the past 12 months. The defined cases in two data sources were matched by 13 digits Resident Register Number. The numbers of matched patients in two data sources were 245 of 32,825 eligible total subjects. Chapman and Wittes' nearly unbiased estimation was used for capture-recapture analysis of two data sources. Results : Observed prevalence rate of childhood asthma was 5.3% and estimated prevalence rate by capture-recapture analysis was 11.6%. The highest prevalence rate was observed in 6-7 age group and the older the rate decreased. The completeness (the proportion of cases ascertained by KMICD to the total observed cases by two data sources) was 20.6%, and ranged form 10.8% to 28.8% by area. Conclusions : Invalid diagnosis of cases might overestimate the prevalence of child-hood asthma and might underestimate the completeness of Korean Medical Insurance Committee Data in this study.


Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common joint disorder and is classically defined as a progressively degenerative disease of articular cartilage. It manifests as joint pain and disability and currently has no comprehensive treatments. The primary purpose of the present study was to test the effects of probiotics, Streptococcus thermophilus (TCI633), on anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT)-induced experimental osteoarthritis (OA) in rats. In the current study, the experimental groups were given TCI633 (5x109, 5x1010 and 5x1011 CFU/kg/day) and glucosamine sulfate (250 mg/kg) between week 8 and 20 following ACLT. The results showed that oral administration of TCI633 and glucosamine had significant therapeutic effects on pain behaviors and knee swelling. Dose-dependent effects of TCI633 were also observed in ACLT-treated rats. Histopathological analysis demonstrated that ACLT+TCI633 (5x109, 5x1010 and 5x1011 CFU/kg/day) improved the synovial inflammation and cartilage damage of ACLT rats. Histology evaluation using the Osteoarthritis Research Society International system and synovial inflammatory score analysis showed the dose-dependent inhibition of TCI633 on synovial inflammation and cartilage damage. Immunohistochemical staining and TUNEL apoptosis staining showed that TCI633 could effectively increase the expression of type II collagen and reduce the amount of chondrocyte apoptosis in cartilage. Therefore, the present study demonstrated that oral intake of TCI633 could significantly suppressing pain behavior, reduce joint swelling and synovial tissue inflammation and increase type II collagen expression in cartilage. There was also a reduction in chondrocyte apoptosis and decreased progression of OA in ACLT-treated rats.


Studies on the effect of drinking and exercise on metabolic syndrome (MetS) are lacking despite the high prevalence of the disease and the high drinking rate among Korean men. This study sought to elucidate the association of MetS with alcohol consumption and physical activity. Data on male drinkers aged 19 to 65 years were obtained from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted from 2007 to 2009. Participants were divided into mild to moderate and heavy drinkers according to daily alcohol consumption. By the intensity of physical activity expressed as metabolic equivalents (METs), participants were categorized into inactive, moderate active, and health enhancing groups. Logistic regression models were used for analyses. Prevalence of MetS was significantly higher in heavy drinkers compared to mild to moderate drinkers. In heavy drinkers, low high density lipoprotein (HDL) was significantly less frequent while the remaining four components were more frequent. Compared to inactive group, health promoting group showed a 35% decrease in MetS after adjusting for confounding factors. Higher physical activity level was associated with less low HDL and high triglyceride (TG) in mild to moderate drinkers and smaller waist in heavy drinkers. In Korean men, higher level of physical activity was associated with less low HDL and high TG, and physical activity achieving more than 3,000 MET ㆍmin/wk decreased the risk for MetS. Higher physical activity level was also associated with less large waist circumference in heavy drinkers, while there was no significant association with development of MetS.


OBJECTIVE Three tests are recommended for identifying dysglycemia: fasting glucose (FPG), 2-h postload glucose (2h-PG) from an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). This study explored the prognostic value of these screening tests in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS FPG, 2h-PG, and HbA1c were used to screen 4,004 CAD patients without a history of diabetes (age 18–80 years) for dysglycemia. The prognostic value of these tests was studied after 2 years of follow-up. The primary end point included cardiovascular mortality, nonfatal myocardial infarction, stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure and a secondary end point of incident diabetes. RESULTS Complete information including all three glycemic parameters was available in 3,775 patients (94.3%), of whom 246 (6.5%) experienced the primary end point. Neither FPG nor HbA1c predicted the primary outcome, whereas the 2h-PG, dichotomized as <7.8 vs. ≥7.8 mmol/L, was a significant predictor (hazard ratio 1.38, 95% CI 1.07–1.78; P = 0.01). During follow-up, diabetes developed in 78 of the 2,609 patients (3.0%) without diabetes at baseline. An FPG between 6.1 and 6.9 mmol/L did not predict incident diabetes, whereas HbA1c 5.7–6.5% and 2h-PG 7.8–11.0 mmol/L were both significant independent predictors. CONCLUSIONS The 2h-PG, in contrast to FPG and HbA1c, provides significant prognostic information regarding cardiovascular events in patients with CAD. Furthermore, elevated 2h-PG and HbA1c are significant prognostic indicators of an increased risk of incident diabetes.


With the coming of service economy age, more and more people concern about the role of producer services to promote the development of economy. But what kind of relationship between producer services and manufacturing industries is still a controversial topic. This paper, based on the literature review, attempts to make a Co-integration analysis and Granger test on the relationship between China's producer services and manufacturing industries by adopting the data from 1978 to 2007.We found that there are long-term co-integration and causality between China's producer services and manufacturing industries, and the results also shown that transportation, storing, post and real estate which belongs to producer services also exist long-term co-integration and causality with manufacturing industries.


Within additive manufacturing, process stability is still an unsolved challenge. Process instabilities result from the complexity of laser deposition processes and the dependence of the quality of the workpiece on a variety of factors in the process. Because a stable process is dependent on many different factors, permanent precise inline monitoring is required. The suitability of the optical coherence tomography (OCT) measuring system integrated into a wire-based laser metal deposition (LMD-w) process for the task of process control results from its high resolution and high measuring speed, and from coaxial integration into the laser process, which allows for a spatially and temporally resolved representation of the weld bead topography during the process. To realize this, a spectral domain OCT (SD-OCT) system was developed and integrated into the beam path of the process laser. With the aid of suitable optics, circular scanning was realized, which allows for the 3D depth information to be displayed independently of the direction of movement of the processing head and the centrally running wire. OCT makes it possible to detect the process-typical topography deviations caused by process variations and thus paves the way for adaptive process control that could make additive laser processes more reproducible and precise in the future.


Background: It's commonly said "When you break your back you actually break your family''. In the present age spinal cord injuries are very common. Nearly 250,000 Americans are spinal cord injured which includes 52% paraplegics and 47% quadriplegics. Most common causes include road traffic accidents, violence, falls, and sports related etc.
Objectives: To determine the Causes of spinal cord injuries,Levels of spinal cord injuries,Age and Gender distribution,Mean age of patients,Patient satisfaction among patients admitted in the paraplegic center Peshawar
 Method:- Cross sectional (record based) study was carried out in Paraplegic Centre Peshawar. Sample size was 70. Convenient sampling was applied. Duration of study was from nov 2010-may 2011.Bed side records of patients and questionnaire based interviews were done and analyzed in Microsoft Excel.
Results:-We collected the data from the bed side records of the patients (handicapped) in order to determine the type cause and level of spinal cord injuries both for male and female patients. Out of 81patients 65 were male and 16 were female. The facts were F.F.H (fall from height) (33%) contributed highest in the list of the causes followed by F.A.I (fire arm injury)(27%) AND R.T.A (Road Traffic Accidents)(24%). Cervical injuries were (15%), thoracic injuries were (78%) and lumber injuries were (7%). Mean age of patients was 32±8. Among 81 patients 70 questionnaire based (PSQ 3 modified plus translated into Pashto) interviews from the patients were done. We analyzed and came up to the opinion that patients admitted they were quite satisfied with the medical treatment provided to them.
 Conclusion:- We concluded that patients were quite satisfied for the medical care including the facilities, adequate time to the patients, and proper attention by the HEAD, physiotherapists, andparamedic staff. Spinal cord injuries are very high and need proper awareness, and preventive measures to reduce the incidence and prevalence of spinal cord injuries.


Very few studies have investigated the service quality of the system development process. In this study, an instrument based on SERVPERF's service quality dimensions, i.e., tangibles, reliability, empathy, responsiveness, and assurance, was developed to study the service quality for in-house and outsourced system development process. Analysis of the data collected from 152 system users who had also involved in the development of those systems supported the validity and reliability of the newly developed measures. The relative contribution of the individual service quality dimensions to the overall system development service quality was found to vary between the outsourcing and in-house group, so as the impact of the overall system development service quality on the perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. These results suggest that users may evaluate the services provided by outsourcing vendors and in-house IT personnel differently.


Optical endoscopy suffers from several problems which increase the difficulties of a successful intervention. Among these problems are the limited spatial or depth perception, and the fish-eye effect which virtually flat- tens the geometry of the anatomical structures. Standard virtual endoscopy is inflicted by similar problems. In this paper, we present stereoscopic VIVENDI, an approach for the endoscopic visualization of complex anatomical data which increases the depth and spatial perception significantly. The stereoscopic examinations can be viewed with standard shutter-glasses, or with simple red/blue anaglyph glasses which additionally enable stereoscopic viewing with low-end PC hardware. Efficient rendering has been achieved by modifying an existing culling approach to accommodate stereoscopic imaging.


This article analyzes the EC law conformity of Section 15 German Foreign Tax Code ('GFTC'), a special regulation concerning the taxation of foreign family trusts according to German domestic tax law. In particular, it reflects on the current infringement proceeding initiated by the European Commission dating 23 July 2007 and the proposed new amendment of Section 15 GFTC by the German annual tax law for 2009 recently introduced by the German government as a consequence of the infringement proceeding. According to the current German legislation, in case a family trust established its registered office or its management in Germany, the settler as well as the beneficiaries must pay tax on benefits deriving from the family trust. However, for tax anti–avoidance reasons, if the family trust is domiciled abroad, the family trust assets as well as the trust income is attributed to the settler and to the beneficiaries and regarded as derived for domestic tax purposes, irrespective of whether and in what amount benefits are actually derived from the family trust. As a matter of fact, Section 15 GFTC lays down that the income of a foreign family trust is taxed (on a yearly basis) even though no income is distributed to the settler or the beneficiaries but maintained within the family trust. Consequently, this income derived according to Section 15 GFTC has to be declared in the annual income tax return and the non–compliance in doing so should be qualified as tax evasion according to Section 370 German Fiscal Code. The importance of Section 15 GFTC was shown just recently, when the global tax evasion scandal was discovered in February 2008 in Germany. The respective tax evasion discovered was based on the non– disclosure of income derived by family trusts located in Liechtenstein according to Section 15 GFTC.


Genomics is a scientific discipline concerned with the study of genome structure, function and evolutionary changes. The field relies on systematic approaches to study the genome architecture and DNA sequence (structural genomics) as well as the regulation of genome expression (functional genomics). Resulting knowledge and technological tools may find numerous applications in the equine industry, such as genetic disease screening, identification of animals susceptible to various diseases, training management as well as genetic improvement and breeding. Equine veterinarians have a major role to play in the design and implementation of such work, which in turn should also provide new opportunities. Indeed, veterinarians may benefit from this genomic information to develop genetic counselling, to suggest relevant changes in breeding practices or to design novel treatment strategies.


The purpose of the work reported here was to experimentally clarify the interconnection between changes in the electro-physical characteristics of microbial suspensions and processes of the metabolism of certain toxic compounds (acrylamide and p-nitrophenol (PNP)) in cells containing enzyme systems of the initial metabolism of these compounds. In this work, we used cells of two strains, Acinetobacter calcoaceticum A-122 and Brevibacterium sp. 13PA, which are capable of utilising PNP and acrylamide, respectively, as the sole source of carbon. Suspensions of these cells exhibited appreciable decreases in the magnitude of the electro-optical signal when the microbial metabolism of PNP and acrylamide was inhibited under conditions of limited O2 supply. This attests to a relationship between the electro-physical characteristics of microbial suspensions and cellular metabolic reactions and also to the negligibly small effect that the non-specific interaction of substrate with the cells has on the suspensions' electro-optical properties.


We study the discovery potential of the $cg \to tA\to tZH$ process at the LHC, where $A$ and $H$ are CP-odd and even exotic scalars, respectively. The context is the general Two Higgs Doublet Model, where $cg \to tA$ is induced by the flavor changing neutral Higgs coupling $\rho_{tc}$. We find that the process $cg \to tA\to tZH$ can be discovered for $m_A \sim 400$ GeV, but would likely require high luminosity running of the LHC. Such a discovery would shed light on the mechanism behind the observed Baryon Asymmetry of the Universe. We also study $cg \to tA\to tZh$, where $h$ is the observed 125 GeV scalar, but find it out of reach at the LHC.


Activity of sympathoadrenal system in patients with infectious-allergic bronchial asthma treated with reflexotherapy by monitoring alterations in spontaneous and L-DOPA stimulated daily excretion of adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine and L-DOPA with urine. Before and after the reflexotherapy course spontaneous excretion of catecholamines and L-DOPA with urine was found to be similar to the physiologically normal level. The test with per oral administration of 250 mg of L-DOPA showed that before the reflexotherapy the course of consumption of L-DOPA was impaired and, hence, the functional state of sympathoadrenal system was altered. The reflexotherapy improved the L-DOPA consumption suggesting normalization of catecholamine metabolism. The data obtained suggest that normalization of sympathoadrenal system activity is one of important effects of the acupuncture therapy.


The incidence of allergic diseases has increased dramatically over recent years in most industrialized countries of the world. Air pollution from motor vehicles has been implicated as one of the factors that are responsible for this increase. Epidemiological studies carried out in different geographical regions in the world have shown a significant and consistent association between ambient levels of pollutants and increased asthma and rhinitis symptoms. Recent human and animal exposure studies, as well as laboratory-based studies, have demonstrated that diesel particles, ozone and nitrogen dioxide induce an inflammatory response that involves various inflammatory cells, mediators and adhesion molecules, which could contribute to worsening of the allergic disorders. The present review describes our current understanding of the mechanisms by which pollutants such as diesel exhaust and ozone enhance the underlying allergic inflammatory response, and possibly explain the associations between pollutants and increasing allergic diseases noted in epidemiological studies.


We review experimental results on the electromagnetically induced modification of atomic continua and ionization characteristic. Results are presented on laser induced continuum structure (LICS) in smooth and structured continua, in A and ladder type of couplings. Coherent control of the ionization rates is demonstrated in four photon resonant, five photon ionization schemes in rare gases.


Background Ketamine and dexmedetomidine are commonly used for sedation and analgesia in patients. We tried to compare the effects of intravenous ketamine and dexmedetomidine infusion on spinal block with bupivacaine. Methods Ninety American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status class I or II patients, who were scheduled to spinal anesthesia were randomly assigned to one of three groups (n = 30). Normal saline 10 ml, 5 ml/hr (loading dose for 10 minutes, infusion) (Group NS), dexmedetomidine 1 µg/kg, 0.5 µg/kg/hr (Group DEX), or ketamine 0.2 mg/kg, 0.5 mg/kg/hr (Group KET) was infused intravenously before spinal anesthesia. We recorded the time to highest sensory block level, sensory and motor regression, and hemodynamic changes. Results Patients in Groups KET had a significantly faster onset time of sensory block than patients in Group NS. The highest sensory block levels were not significantly different between groups. Average time of sensory regression and knee flexion, was significantly longer in the Group KET and Group DEX than the Group NS. Conclusions Intravenous dexmedetomidine and ketamine were found to have a similar synergistic effect with intrathecal bupivacaine. Hemodynamic stability showed better results in Group KET.


CONTEXT
Hypoglycemia is a major barrier to optimal glycemic control in insulin-treated diabetes. Recent ADA guidelines have sub-categorized 'non-severe' hypoglycemia into level 1 (<3.9 mmol/L) and 2 (<3 mmol/L) hypoglycemia. Gastric emptying of carbohydrate is a major determinant of postprandial glycemia but its role in hypoglycemia counter-regulation remains under-appreciated. 'Marked' hypoglycemia (~2.6mmol/L) accelerates gastric emptying and increases carbohydrate absorption in health and type 1 diabetes, but the impact of 'mild' hypoglycemia (3.0-3.9mmol/L) is unknown.

OBJECTIVE
To determine the effects of two levels of hypoglycemia, 2.6mmol/L ('marked') and 3.6mmol/L ('mild'), on gastric emptying in health.

DESIGN, SETTING AND SUBJECTS
Fourteen healthy male participants (mean age: 32.9 ± 8.3 years, BMI: 24.5 ± 3.4 kg/m 2) from the general community underwent measurement of gastric emptying of a radiolabeled solid meal (100g beef) by scintigraphy over 120 min on 3 separate occasions, while blood glucose was maintained at either ~2.6mmol/L, ~3.6mmol/L, or ~6 mmol/L in random order from 15 min before until 60 min after meal ingestion using glucose-insulin clamp. Blood glucose was then maintained at 6mmol/L between 60-120 min on all days.

RESULTS
Gastric emptying was accelerated during both mild (P=0.011) and marked (P=0001) hypoglycemia when compared to euglycemia, and was more rapid during marked, when compared to mild, hypoglycemia (P=0.008). Hypoglycemia-induced gastric emptying acceleration during mild (r=0.57, P=0.030) and marked (r=0.76, P=0.0014) hypoglycemia was related to gastric emptying during euglycemia.

CONCLUSION
In health, acceleration of gastric emptying by insulin-induced hypoglycemia is dependent on the degree of hypoglycemia and baseline rate of emptying.


: With the rapid development of the Internet of Things and advanced sen-sors, vision-based monitoring and forecasting applications have been widely used. In the context of the Internet of Things, visual devices can be regarded as network perception nodes that perform complex tasks, such as real-time monitoring of road traf fi c fl ow, target detection, and multi-target tracking. We propose the High-Performance detection and Multi-Correlation measurement algorithm (HPMC) to address the problem of target occlusion and perform trajectory correlation matching for multi-target tracking. The algorithm consists of three modules: 1) For the detection module, we proposed the You Only Look Once(YOLO)v3_plus model, which is an improvement of the YOLOv3 model. It has a multi-scale detection layer and a repulsion loss function. 2) The feature extraction module extracts appearance, movement, and shape features. A wide residual network model is established, and the coef fi cient k is added to extract the appearance features of the target. 3) In the multi-target tracking module, multi-correlation measures are used to fuse the three extracted features to increase the matching degree of the target track and improve the tracking performance. The experimental results show that the proposed method has better performance for small and occluded targets than comparable algorithms.


how energy in Indonesia ABSTRACT Having surfaced many times, issues of energy subsidy reduction have been a problem for every administration and have resulted in diverse political and social outcomes. Stakeholders keep on debating about what should have been done and should be done. This brief explains the challenges faced by the current policies and later provides reform policy recommendations to tackle the challenges. It contends that with careful measures, such as being undertaken with good social safety nets, Indonesia ' s reform policy package would arguably soften the adverse impacts of energy subsidy cuts on many Indonesians' lives, especially those of the unfortunate. If well applied, the measures could protect them from the increasing energy prices and even potentially free them from poverty. current reform policies policy


The dinucleotide 3′,5′-cyclic diguanylic acid (c-di-GMP) is a critical second messenger found in bacteria. High cellular levels of c-di-GMP are associated with a sessile, biofilm lifestyle in many bacteria, which is associated with more than 70% of clinically resistant infections. Cellular c-di-GMP concentrations are regulated by diguanylate cyclases (DGCs) and phosphodiesterases (PDEs), which are responsible for the production and degradation, respectively, of c-di-GMP. Therefore, DGCs and PDEs might be attractive drug targets for controlling biofilm formation. In this study, a simple and universal high-throughput method based on a c-di-GMP-specific fluorescent probe for the determination of DGC and PDE activity was described. By using the proposed method, the c-di-GMP content in samples was rapidly quantified by measuring the fluorescence intensity in a 96-well plate by using a microplate reader. In addition, the probe molecule A18 directly interacted with the substrate c-di-GMP, and the method was not limited by the structure of enzymes.


The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between early warning signs (EWS) and early help-seeking behaviours (HSB) and to identify the characteristics of patients with schizophrenia who sought early help. A cross-sectional study was carried out in 2004 using a self-reported questionnaire. Participants were recruited from social rehabilitation facilities for the mentally ill; 224 subjects participated, 170 of whom had schizophrenia. The survey included questions about demographic characteristics, self-care behaviours (HSB, recognition of EWS and others) and current service utilization and satisfaction. Fisher's exact test and Student's t-test were used to compare the characteristics of study participants. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the association between recognition of EWS and early HSB.We found that 96 (56.5%) of 170 patients with schizophrenia reported at least one occasion of early HSB during their deterioration. Early HSB were related to the following factors: recognition of EWS, consultation with non-professional and professional support persons during deterioration, consulting with public mental health workers and living with family. Care and support should be offered to patients with schizophrenia to enable them to recognize their own mental deterioration.


Abstract. The temperature sensitivity of soil organic carbon decomposition is critical for predicting future climate change because soils store 2-3 times the amount of atmospheric carbon. Of particular controversy is the question, whether temperature sensitivity differs between young or labile and old or more stable carbon pools. Ambiguities in experimental methodology have so far limited corroboration of any particular hypothesis. Here, we show in a clear-cut approach that differences in temperature sensitivity between young and old carbon are negligible. Using the change in stable isotope composition in transitional systems from C3 to C4 vegetation, we were able to directly distinguish the temperature sensitivity of carbon differing several decades in age. This method had several advantages over previously followed approaches. It allowed to identify release of much older carbon, avoided un-natural conditions of long-term incubations and did not require arguable curve-fitting. Our results demonstrate that feedbacks of the carbon cycle on climate change are driven equally by young and old soil organic carbon.


Although there is a large volume of research on the relationship between social identity and volunteerism, little attention was given to national identity in volunteerism research. This study examined the role of national identity in motivating people to volunteer in the Chinese culture and its role in differentiating those who showed no interest in voluntary work (i.e. non-volunteers) from those who wanted to volunteer but did not (i.e. potential volunteers). Two hundred ninety-nine participants (age, M = 34.14 years) filled out a questionnaire on their demographics, experience of volunteering, intention to volunteer, volunteer motivations, and national identity. Results showed that a stronger national identity was associated with greater volunteer motivations. Mediation analyses further supported the positive indirect effect of national identity on intention to volunteer through strengthening volunteer motivations. Marital status was the only significant factor that differentiated current volunteers from potential volunteers. We concluded that citizens' volunteer motivation increases with national identity, yet concrete measures to bring potential volunteers to actual volunteering need to be further explored. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Objective: To assess the association of various factors with the presence of urinary tract infections among patients suffering from stroke.
Study Design: Comparative cross-sectional study.
Place and Duration of Study: Department of Medicine, Pak Emirates Military Hospital, Rawalpindi Pakistan, from Jun to Sep 2021.
Methodology: A total of 130 patients with ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke diagnosed by the consultant medical specialist or neurologist based on clinical and neuro-radiological findings were included in this study. Urinary tract infection was diagnosed based on urine culture and sensitivity test. Age, gender, type of stroke and severity of stroke was associated with the presence of urinary tract infection among the study participants.
Results: Out of 130 patients with acute stroke included in the study, 81(62.3%) were males, while 49(37.3%) were females. The mean age of the stroke patients included in the study was 56.823±8.737 years. In addition, 33(25.4%) patients had urinary tract infections confirmed on the culture and sensitivity report, while 97(74.6%) had no evidence of urinary tract infection.Statistical analysis revealed that female gender and stroke severity had a statistically significant relationship (p-value <0.05) with the presence of urinary tract infection among patients suffering from acute stroke.
Conclusion: Around one-fourth of our patients presenting with acute stroke had urinary tract infections in our study participants. Female patients and patients with severe stroke symptoms were more at risk of urinary tract infctions than male patients and patients with less severe symptoms.


A new synthetic approach to chiral imidazolium salts makes possible the first synthesis of an N-mesityl substituted, aminoindanol-derived N-heterocyclic carbene precursor, 1.ClO4. The successful synthesis allows the first direct comparison of otherwise identical imidazolium and triazolium precursors across a number of NHC-catalyzed processes. These studies confirm striking differences in reactivity and mechanism between the two classes.


The finite difference or finite element method, which has been applied successfully to the numerical analyses of many engineering problems, consists of synthesizing linear equations for nodal points of mesh of continuous solids and solving these simultaneous linear equations by a proper algorithm using a conventional computer, which has one or a few arithmetic units (AU). If an array computer is designed, which has hundreds of AUs connected in a network fashion, the time-consuming finite difference or finite element computations can be executed very fast, provided each AU is attached to each nodal point and parallel computations are performed at each AU according to common timing diagrams. This report deals with the development of parallel computation algorithms using Jacobi method and discusses the computation efficiencies, aiming at the development of an array computer which can be used profitably to solve many engineering problems.


Contracts form an integral part of our existence, both in our work and personal environments. They are an unavoidable consequence of our participation in the commercial world. As such they are important since they will determine the distribution of wealth and power in society. South African law has always stuck religiously to the principles of freedom of contract and pacta sunt servanda. That is to say, everyone should have the utmost freedom to enter into contracts with whomever they please and once that agreement has been struck it must be adhered to. Through the application of these principles the law of contract obtained a high degree of certainty which is important for the parties to a contract because they know what their rights and obligations are. Furthermore they are safe in theknowledge that the contract is enforceable. While this may be an ideal situation we do not live in an ideal world. A large percentage of our society has had little contractual experience and even those that have are still regularly involved in contacts over which they have no control. Whilst consumers supposedly have freedom to contract, they very often have no leverage to negotiate the terms of the contract since a business will often make use of a standard form contract. As a consequence of this lack of bargaining power, consumers entering into contracts may not bother to read the terms since they are bound by them no matter what. Another reason is that they may be drafted and set out in such a way as to dissuade consumers from reading them.


Geiger charges that the Defense Department's plan for the Civilian-Military Hospital Contingency System, to be activated in the event of a "large-scale" war overseas, is actually based on a scenario of "limited" nuclear war. He argues that physician participation in a plan aimed at coping with the consequences of nuclear war is unethical because there can be no effective medical response to any nuclear war. Moreover, physician participation in nuclear war "disaster" planning may increase the risk that such a war will occur by misleading the government and the public into believing that adequate medical care would be available.


In this paper, we prove interior gradient estimates for the Lagrangian mean curvature equation, if the Lagrangian phase is critical and supercritical and $C^{2}$. Combined with the a priori interior Hessian estimates proved in [Bha21, Bha22], this solves the Dirichlet boundary value problem for the critical and supercritical Lagrangian mean curvature equation with $C^0$ boundary data. We also provide a uniform gradient estimate for lower regularity phases that satisfy certain additional hypotheses.


Community consultation provides numerous benefits to communities, government and associated public health planners. However there are a number of barriers to effective community consultation. This paper aims to explore the benefits, barriers, role and levels of community consultation in health planning through the findings of a literature review and municipal public health planning experiences in Queensland, Australia. Community consultation can occur at a number of levels, generally the continuum of consultation includes community involvement, community representation and community control (Chu, 1995). The appropriateness of the level of consultation is often related to the level of 'agenda sharing'. To establish the level of consultation appropriate, an agency or planning project needs to establish their need and ability to share agendas. If the aim is to surrender the agenda to the community, community control is the ideal. However, if the consultation is needed to ensure a sharing of priorities and decision-making, community representation is recommended. If the agenda is set and inflexible, community involvement would be the appropriate level. The Municipal Public Health Planning model used in Queensland aims to develop local health plans collaboratively between community members, local agencies and program providers. Local governments and regional state government providers play a key role in facilitating these projects. Partnership development and collaboration are key principles. Research is being developed at Griffith University to further understand the role of community consultation in Municipal Public Health Planning. The research will document the appropriate level of consultation required in municipal public health planning.


Tumours can be benign or malignant based upon their behavior, growth and invasion capability. Various mathematical models have been developed to capture different dynamics of tumours. Our aim was to model the growth dynamics of the benign tumour at cellular level with and without the extracellular matrix (ECM), cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion and finally the movement of the cells. We developed an artificial Neural Network based intelligent model to demonstrate the tumour growth dynamics and cell movement and compression based upon its adhesion capabilities. In our model, we considered the heterogeneity in cell proliferation, death, degradation of the matrix and cell movement. We counted the total number of tumour cells at the end of every phase and presented it in the form of tumour growth curve. Then we compared the invasive distance tumour covered in these three phases. Finally, we compared the proposed growth curve model with the growth curve of DLD1 colorectal cancer cell line and achieved almost similar results. It is worth mentioning that the approach is new and so far there is no reported work of the similar form.


The article aims to show that the task of grounding categorial constituents in the specific founded acts of perception yields the problem field of phenomenological inquiry, within the framework of which remains Heidegger's project of fundamental ontology. To achieve this goal the article reconstructs, first, the problem of the possibility of a priori correspondence between meaning and intuition of the intentional act; second, the phenomenological justification of extension of the traditional concept of truth, as a result of which truth characteristic expands to intentional acts structured in a certain way, namely acts of total agreement between meaning and intuition (identification acts); third, the problem of the "categorial" in the phenomenological analysis of perception, which includes the extension of the concept of perception, limited in transcendental philosophy to the area of sensible intuitions, and justification of the specific categorial acts. On this basis, the article demonstrates that (1) phenomenology in a certain sense continues the project of transcendental philosophy, but the idea of a priori correspondence between notion and intuition within the framework of structural analysis of intentionality forms a new research problem. (2) The phenomenological understanding of truth in terms of the dynamics of empty and filled meaning intention is significant for the concept of truth presented by Heidegger in Being and Time. Heidegger explicates the concept of the truth in fundamental ontology based on the idea of identification. (3) The extension of the concept of object to its categorial constitution justified by Husserl provides fundamental ontology with the research subject. Heidegger interprets the categories, phenomenally represented in acts of categorial intuition, as a priori structures of the being of beings. The study also ascertains that new concepts of Husserl's phenomenology saturate the conceptual framework of fundamental ontology. However, Heidegger also rethinks the key concepts of phenomenology in accordance with objectives which are different from the original objectives of the project of phenomenology designed by Husserl.


The results of brain scanning in a series of 97 children are reported. Brain scanning would seem to be a safe, accurate diagnostic screening procedure for suspected intracranial neoplasms. The higher frequency of infratentorial neoplasms in children limits its usefulness as a definitive diagnostic procedure. With the exception of space occupying lesions, the value of scanning in nonneoplastic lesions such as brain abscesses or arteriovenous malformations has not been well established.


This paper presents a conceptual framework for the study of the vulnerability of Bhutan, Maldives, and Nepal with a particular focus on the structural vulnerability.Three kinds of vulnerability have been considered for each country: economic, climatic, and political. Comparative assessment of countries is likewise undertaken using available and comparable indicators, e.g., economic vulnerability index and fragile state index. The assessment shows that each of the three countries seems the most vulnerable in one of the three dimensions of vulnerability: Bhutan for structural economic vulnerability, Maldives for physical vulnerability to climate change, and Nepal for state fragility.Source(s): Asian Development Bank (ADB)


During a trip to the Dzungarian Gobi in south-western Mongolia a group of German birdwatchers found several territorial Lesser Grey Shrikes Lanius minor, and documented an active nest. The species had not previously been recorded from Mongolia. Observations were made near Bulgan gol (Bulgan river; nest coordinates: 46°6'N 91°32'E, 1190 m a.s.l.) in Khovd aimag (Khovd province) on 24 June 2006. Besides two territorial pairs, of which a female could be photographically documented on the nest, at least four more territorial adults were found within an area of about 1.5 km. Based on these records, an abundance of 4 pairs/km can be assumed for this riparian site, which consists mainly of open meadows with scattered bushes and tress.


BACKGROUND
Patient involvement in care in the intensive care unit (ICU) is complex. Knowledge about the nature and extent of patient involvement in the Intensive care unit is scarce.

AIM
The aim of the study was to explore the critical care nursing staff's perception of patient involvement in their care in the ICU.

DESIGN
A phenomenological, hermeneutic research study was carried out using qualitative data. Data were collected in two focus group interviews analysed using Ricoeur's theory of interpretation. The study was conducted in a level 2 medical-surgical 8-bed ICU in a regional hospital in Southern Denmark.

RESULTS
Critical care nurses found it important to maintain involvement in intensive care. Depending on the patient's ability to partake in care, approaches for patient involvement ranged from (1) continually adjusting care activities according to the patient's bodily responses, (2) formation of a relationship with the patient to enable personalized care and (3) making room for self-determined care progressing with the patient's recovery.

CONCLUSION
Critical care nurses' perception of patient involvement depended on the patient's level of consciousness. When unconscious, patient involvement was possible but took a physical approach. However, the power inequality in the nurse-patient relationship must be expressed if patient involvement in the ICU is to take place.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE
Results suggest that nurses' perception of patient involvement in the ICU depends on the patient's level of consciousness. Patient involvement may be possible even when the patient is unconscious but it takes a more physical approach. It is essential that the power inequality in the nurse-patient relationship must be expressed if patient involvement in the ICU is to take place.


Summary. A conservative time integration algorithm for rigid body rotations is presented in a purely algebraic form in terms of the four quaternions components and the four conjugate momentum variables via Hamilton's equations. The introduction of an extended mass matrix leads to a symmetric set of eight state-space equations where constraints are embedded without explicit use of Lagrange multipliers. The algorithm is developed by forming a finite increment of the Hamiltonian, which defines the proper selection of increments and mean values that leads to conservation of energy and momentum. The accuracy and conservation properties are illustrated by examples.


This chapter considers the question of what amounts to copyright infringement, first by discussing 'primary' infringement and 'secondary' infringement. It then explains the three criteria used to determine whether copyright in a work has been infringed: whether the defendant carried out one of the activities that falls within the copyright owner's rights; whether there is a causal link between the work used (that is, reproduced, issued, rented, performed, communicated, or adapted) by the defendant and the copyright work; and whether the restricted act has been committed in relation to the work or a substantial part thereof. It also looks at the European approach to finding infringement in relation to authorial works and compares it with the British approach before concluding with a description of non-literal copying of such works.


A capacitive silicon microphone has been fabricated. The component consists of two freestanding polysilicon membranes, a low-stress bending membrane and a high-stress backplate, which are separated by an air gap. Sound pressure changes the capacitance between the membranes. A backchamber is arranged by encapsulation and static pressure changes are prevented with small equalisation holes in the bending membrane. The component is fabricated combining bulk and surface micromachining techniques. Silicon substrates are etched in TMAH and sacrificial oxide between the membranes is etched in PSG-etch followed by freeze drying to prevent sticking. The measured acoustic sensitivity of the microphone with 1 × 1 mm2 membrane was 2 mV/Pa (1 kHz frequency) and the resolution 35 dB (A-weighted sound level).


This paper describes a new multifunction MMIC expressly designed for a reconfiguration matrix equipment.This MMIC has been developed using a standard PHEMT process and includes two switches,a totally switchable-off amplifier and a temperature compensation circuit.The complete circuit has also been designed to interface a standard CMOS control level. Performed simulations and obtained results demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach in reaching compactness and reliability of satellite equipment.


We report the in-phase response in the AC magnetic susceptibility measurement of In-doped Bi-2212 under varying applied field. For all the samples, the intragrain response showed that the samples remain superconducting, independent of the applied field. The intergranular responses however showed a delay in transition for increasing Indium content. The weakening of the grain coupling is attributed to the increasing amount of impurities in the due to unsuccessful doping that act as weak links. For sample x = 1, the grains become decoupled but nonetheless exhibits superconductivity with Bi-2212 phase.


Dioxins is one of the chemicals groups that cause liver toxicity, live weight reduction, immune suppression, reproductive impairments, eggshell thinning, birth defects, cancers and death in animals. The 2,3,7,8- tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is the most poisonous environmental chemical and many studies were showed high dosage of TCDD affects all animal group. Also TCDD increase cancer risk in human so this chemical described as carcinogenic by International Agency for Research on Cancer. Dioxins are stored in animal foods such as meat, milk, eggs and fish, because they are soluble in oil and remain in these products for many years. Dioxins can dissolve in fat and high stability therefore it can be infected to meat, milk, egg, and fish and store there for long time as a result people could be contained with dioxin during daily life. Animal feed additives such as organic acids, pH modifiers, starch, sugar, vegetable oil, fat, fruit and by-products of plant, kaolinite, rendering products, pelleting aids cause dioxin contamination. The maximum dioxin content in plant-origin feedstuffs and their by-products is 0.75 ng toxic equivalent/kg body weight. In this rewiew, the effects of dioxins on livestock feeding was examined.


Designing soft robots that have greater toughness and better resistance to damage propagation while at the same time retaining their properties of compliance is fundamentally important for soft robotics applications. This study's main contribution is proposing a framework for nonlinear multimaterial architectural design of soft structures to increase their toughness and delay damage propagation. What are the limits when combining significantly different materials in one structure that will delay crack propagation while significantly maintaining postdamage toughness? Through this study, we observed that there is a very dynamic interplay when combining significantly different materials in one structure; this interplay could weaken or strengthen the multimaterial structure's toughness. In biological evolutionary terms, the Pangolin, Seashell, and Arapaima have found their answer for deflecting the crack and maintaining strength in their bodies. How does nature put these multimaterial structures together? Our research led us to find that the multimaterial toughness limits depend largely on the following parameters: components' relative morphology, architecture, spatial distribution, surface areas, and Young's Modulus. We found that a linear geometry, when it comes to morphology and/or architecture relative to surface area in multimaterial design, significantly reduces total toughness and fails to delay crack propagation. In contrast, incorporating geometric nonlinearities in both morphology and architecture significantly maintains higher total toughness even after damage, and significantly delays crack propagation. We believe that this study can open the door to further research and ultimately to promising and wide applications in soft robotics.


Deep-towed geophysical surveys require precise knowledge of navigational parameters such as instrument position and orientation because navigational uncertainties reflect in the data and therefore in the inferred geophysical properties of the sub-seafloor. We address this issue for the case of electrical conductivity inferred from controlled source electromagnetic data. We show that the data error is laterally variable due to irregular motion during deep towing, but also due to lateral variations in conductivity, including those resulting from topography. To address this variability and quantify the data error prior to inversion, we propose a two-dimensional perturbation study. Our workflow enables stable and geologically reliable results for multi-component and multi-frequency inversions. An error estimation workflow is presented, which comprises the assessment of navigational uncertainties, perturbation of navigational parameters, and forward modelling of electric field amplitudes for a homogeneous and then a heterogeneous sub-seafloor conductivity model. Some navigational uncertainties are estimated from variations of direct measurements. Other navigational parameters required for inversion are derived from the measured quantities and their error is calculated by means of error propagation. Some navigational parameters show direct correlation with the measured electric fields. For example, the antenna dip correlates with the vertical electric field and the depth correlates with the horizontal electric field. For the perturbation study each standard deviation is added to the navigational parameters. Forward models are run for each perturbation. Amplitude deviations are summed in quadrature with the stacking error for a total, laterally varying, data error. The error estimation is repeated for a heterogeneous sub-seafloor model due to the large conductivity range (several orders of magnitude), which affects the forward model. The approach enables us to utilize data from several components (multiple electric fields, frequencies and receivers) in the inversion to constrain the final model and reduce ambiguity. The final model is geologically reasonable, in this case enabling the identification of conductive metal sulphide deposits on the seafloor.


An international survey by the University of Münster's Cluster of Excellence "Religion and Politics" provides the first empirical evidence of an identity-related political cleavage of European societies that has resulted in the emergence of two entrenched camps of substantial size. "We see two distinct groups with opposing positions, which we call "Defenders' and "Explorers'", says psychologist Mitja Back, spokesperson of the interdisciplinary research team that conducted the most comprehensive survey of identity conflicts in Europe to date. "Who belongs to our country, who threatens whom, who is disadvantaged? Across all such questions of identity, the initial analyses of the survey reveal a new line of conflict between the two groups, which have almost diametrically opposite opinions. In debates over identity, these opinions have hardened into seemingly irreconcilable conflicts. The study could open up new avenues to tackle these conflicts."


The urban environment is amongst the most difficult domains for autonomous vehicles. The vehicle must be able to plan a safe route on challenging road layouts, in the presence of various dynamic traffic participants such as vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians and in various environmental conditions. The challenge remains to have motion planners that are computationally fast and that account for future movements of other road users proactively. This paper describes an computationally efficient sampling-based trajectory planner for safe and comfortable driving in urban environments. The planner improves the Stable-Sparse-RRT algorithm by adding initial exploration branches to the search tree based on road layout information and reiterating the previous solution. Furthermore, the trajectory planner accounts for the predicted motion of other traffic participants to allow for safe driving in urban traffic. Simulation studies show that the planner is capable of planning collision-free, comfortable trajectories in several urban traffic scenarios. Adding the domain-knowledge-based exploration branches increases the efficiency of exploration of highly interesting areas, thereby increasing the overall planning performance.


This paper presents an analysis of the management practices in a multinational company located in Northeastern Brazil, considered in the light of one of the predominant features of social relations the regional culture, clientelism/coronelismo. The research consisted of two stages, a survey and a case study. In the first stage, as a total of 3,000 workers were involved, we chose to perform sampling in which a simple random probability sample was obtained with a confidence level of 90%. In the second stage, we carried out semi-structured interviews and direct observation, allowing a broader view of the field under study. Based on the results obtained, we tried to make analogies between aspects of the regional culture and organizational practices observed in the company. Organizational practices typical of the 'old' Brazilian clientelism/coronelismo were found to persist, though wearing new clothes. The manager of a modern organization is representative of the old "Coronel", reformed by developmental and technological processes.


Variation in object shape is an important visual cue for deformable object recognition and classification. In this paper, we present an approach to model gradual changes in the 2-D shape of an object. We represent 2-D region shape in terms of the spatial frequency content of the region contour using Fourier coefficients. The temporal changes in these coefficients are used as the temporal signatures of the shape changes. Specifically, we use autoregressive model of the coefficient series. We demonstrate the efficacy of the model on several applications. First, we use the model parameters as discriminating features for object recognition and classification. Second, we show the use of the model for synthesis of dynamic shape using the model learned from a given image sequence. Third, we show that, with its capability of predicting shape, the model can be used to predict contours of moving regions, which can be used as initial estimates for the contour, based tracking methods.


This paper presents a web-based knowledge base system developed for identifying the most appropriate nontraditional machining process to suit specific circumstances based on the input parameter requirements such as material type, shape applications, process economy and some of the process capabilities namely, surface finish, corner radii, width of cut, length to diameter ratio, tolerance etc. The selection procedure proposed in this study is based on the idea that certain characteristics of a part restrict the choice of certain non-traditional machining processes for it to have a relatively small number of alternatives. Designers and Engineers who are geographically separated but well connected by the Internet can use this web-based system to realize process selection. Web technology has immense potential to develop a collaborative design and manufacturing environment. It simplifies the sharing of process knowledge and provides intelligent decision-making in a collaborative way through the Internet. This system employs three-tier web architecture for implementing user module to do the selection and expert module to update the knowledge base. The web-based non-traditional machining process selection system can cut down the product cost, enhance the product quality, and decrease the product lead-time considerably. A wide range of industrial parts has been evaluated in order to demonstrate the performance of the proposed selection procedure.


The dramatic fires which occurred in European road tunnels in 1999 and 2001 have led to the development of new regulations and recommendations which recognize that tunnel safety is not only determined by the infrastructure. It is indispensable to consider the whole tunnel system, which also includes the operation and the emergency intervention, the users and their vehicles. Beyond that, it has appeared necessary to truly manage safety through an appropriate organisation and procedures. To implement these new concepts, the European Directive 2004/54/EC defines (i) the responsibilities of the major players, (ii) safety references, including minimum technical requirements and provisions for risk analysis, (iii) procedures to ensure safety at the design, commissioning and operational stages, and preserve it throughout the years. The pre-existing French regulations, which inspired the Directive, have been applied for 7 years and the experience gained is described. Finally new research and recommendations are referred to. The conclusions advocate a cultural change to implement new ways of thinking and behaving regarding safety (A). For the covering abstract of the conference se ITRD E216860.


In existing literature, the closed-form solution for stress distribution around an elliptic hole has been expressed in the elliptic coordinate in textbooks of theory of elasticity. However, these conventional solutions are inconvenient for application to strength analysis. In the present paper, a new concise closed-form solution for the stress distribution around an elliptic hole under remote uniform stress, σx, σy, and τxy is given in Cartesian coordinate. The analysis of crack propagation path from the elliptic hole under pure shear stress is carried out with combination of FEM analysis. The contradiction between the crack propagation angle from an elliptic hole and that from a crack under pure shear is made clear by the numerical analysis.


This thesis describes the long-term effects of enhanced inputs of ammonium and sulphate (NS) in a spruce stand in SW Sweden on the accumulation and fluxes of nutrients in above and below ground biomass, soil chemistry and leaching of nutrients. Ammonium and sulphate were added annually at a rate of 100 kg N and 114 kg kg S ha'1, which was five to six times higher than the deposition rate of the study area. The main nutrients studied were N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S. Other important parameters were pH, NH4, N 0 3 and A1 in soil, soil solution and deposition.
The addition of NS decreased the pH in the mineral soil by 0.4 units and in the soil solution by 0.3 units. The increased acidity of the soil was almost totally buffered by dissolution of solid aluminium compounds (gibbsite). The input of inorganic nitrogen by deposition was totally retained in the ecosystem, as the stand was unsaturated with respect to nitrogen. The high additional input of nitrogen soon turned the stand into a nitrogensaturated system. About 40% of the Mg was leached from the humus layer. The NS treatment increased the leaching of all nutrients except P and K from the root zone and the water soluble concentrations of all nutrients except NH4 and S04 increased in the rhizosphere soil. The amount of fine roots (<2mm) decreased in the humus layer but increased in mineral soil and was unaffected overall when both humus and mineral soil were taken into consideration. The uptake of Ca and Mg by fine roots was blocked by ammonium in the forest floor and by ammonium and aluminium in the mineral soil. The concentrations of these nutrients decreased in the fine roots and also in the needles. The annual accumulation of N during the first six years (1988-1993) in the above and below ground biomass increased by a factor of 9 compared to control (C ) plots. However, the accumulation of P, K, Ca, Mg and S was less than double the C level. During the six year treatment, the above ground biomass increased by 47% relative to C plots. During the following years (until 1998) the yearly basal area increment in NS plots decreased and in 1997 it was lower than in C plots. Changes in the nutrient concentration in needles indicated that deficiency of P, K and later Mg could be the reason for the growth decline.
It is suggested that high NS addition may increase biomass production in a short-term perspective, although not without negative effects on soil and soil solution. In a long-term perspective, it will lead to a strong disturbance both of the stand and its environment in the form of acidified soils and high leaching rate of nutrients and aluminium to groundwater.


This article deals with the methodology we use on our research on internal control in french banks. First of all we analyse the epistemologic foundation of the research on control. Then we present our choice of a method based on case study with a development of the analysis and collection techniques.


Wedge resection of tumors on the lower lip can be done as an office procedure. The operative technique with special emphasis on realigning the vermilion is described.


The vascular anatomy of the cochlea had been well investigated since the end of the 18th century on account of its morphological interest. Regarding details of the modiolar vessels, however, only a few literature can be seen though its outline was clarified already.In recent years, scanning electron microscopy has been applied to medical and biological investigations with fruitful results. With a scanning electron microscope the author observed stereographically the cast of the modiolar vessels of guinea pigs reproduced by a corrosion casting technique. It seemed much more useful than the conventional contrast medium injection method in observing fine, complicated and three-dimensional distribution of the blood vessels as in the modiolus.First, u kind of resin (methacrylic methyl ester) was injected into the blood vessels of live guinea pigs. After taking the temporal bone out of the animal, it was decalcified and macerated completely. Then a cast of the cochlear vessels was taken and observed with a scanning electron microscope. A pair of photos differing in the view angle by 7- were taken simultaneously, and observed with a stereoviewer.The results obtained were as follows:1. The arteria cochleae propria taking a various serpentine or winding course runs spirally around the modiolus up to the apex, where it divides into several terminal branches, namely, the radiating arterioles.2. The primary branches of the a. cochleae propria run along the main stem, soon divide into several secondary branches, which further ramify, form spring coils and radiate to the wall of the scala vestibuli or spiral lamina. The radiating arterioles that are ramified from a secondary branch never trespass in those of the neighboring secondary branch.3. Most of the cochlear venous blood is drained to the vena spiralis posterior, but a part of the venous blood from the modiolus is drained to the v. auditiva interna. 4. Half of the specimens show a well developed venous branch which shunts venous blood of the apical turn to the v. spiralis posterior of the third turn.5. The a. cochleae propria and its main branches, especially at the basal and the second turns, give off many small twigs which form capillary mesh around the modiolus. 6. The ganglion spirale reveals a characteristic capillary network.7. A mass of capillaries supplied from tiny twigs of the a. cochleae communis and drained to the v. auditiva interna, are seen in the meatus acusticus internus.


A 58 years old lady reported with history of progressively increasing lump in the neck. Patient had earlier undergone sub-total thyroidectomy (details not available) in a private institute one year back. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) of the present lump revealed features of papillary carcinoma thyroid. Patient subsequently underwent total thyroidectomy along with excision of a tumor nodule in the larynx. Gross examination of the specimen revealed a tumor nodule in the right lobe of the thyroid. Microscopic examination of the tumor nodule in the thyroid and larynx revealed a columnar cell variant of papillary carcinoma thyroid. Very few reports describing the cytomorphologic features of this variant of papillary carcinoma are available in the published literature. These reports highlight the absence or paucity of nuclear grooves and intranuclear inclusions in this variant. We describe a case of columnar cell variant of papillary carcinoma where nuclear grooves were prominently seen. In addition, we report the occurrence of rosette-like structures which were brought out better on FNA smears. These rosette-like structures have not been emphasized earlier in the published literature. The cytomorphologic features of this rare variant are also reviewed in this report.


DSM-III personality disorder clusters had not previously been tested for their ability to distinguish between different population groups. A major obstacle - different demographic characteristics of different populations - was overcome by using logistic regression. Three out-patient psychiatric referral groups (chronic pain, disability applicants and competency to stand trial) provided subjects; adjustments were made for age, race, sex and education. The groups were significantly different in the adjusted prevalence of DSM-III personality disorder clusters. Clinical association between personality disorder and drug or alcohol abuse was again confirmed.


The local density of states is calculated for an Fe atom in various 4d transition-metal hosts on the one hand by the linear-muffin-tin-orbital method in the atomic-sphere approximation, and on the other hand by a two-centre orthogonal Slater - Koster tight-binding method supplemented by the demand for local charge neutrality. The comparison demonstrates that the latter method is able to yield accurate densities of states for metallic compounds.


Abstract While frontline employees (FLEs) are known to bend the rules or act in non-conforming ways for customers, the phenomenon of FLEs over-servicing customers is not well understood. This paper proposes a behavioural concept termed customer-oriented deviance (COD) and a conceptual model of its key drivers. Using a qualitative study involving 22 in-depth interviews with FLEs, the analysis reveals three categories of COD behaviours: deviant service adaptation (DSA), deviant service communication (DSC), and deviant use of resources (DUR). The drivers of COD are categorised as individual (risk-taking, service aptitude, and pro-social moral values), situational (resource availability, social capita with customers, legitimacy of customer problems, and avoidance of hassles), and organisational (unconducive service climate and anticipated rewards). This paper contributes to understanding how and why FLEs over-service customers and extends current research by exploring multiple categories of behaviours within a services marketing context.


Future Fantasteek! has been bubbling for some time. I commute to work, about 5 hours per day (fortunately for just 3 days per week). I sit on the train and often draw or write to while away the journey. I noticed that my drawings were generally a visual rant about what had happened that day or week. Over the course of a year I've built up many images; some typographic; others drawn in the form of fake advertisements or patronising advice. When looking at a batch of these sketchbooks together it seemed appropriate to try and re-present them as a serial zine. Themes keep reappearing - I seem to get irritated at broken machines, rude people, apathy and quick fixes, fake medical promises, fashion, celebrity endorsements, xmas, commercialism, and on and on, and on... Strangely enough, drawing down everything that made me mad, made me smile more. So now I give the illusion of a happy person. You can see the original sketchbook drawings within each zine's webpages. Exhibited at University of the Arts, London, UK, Mar/April 2011; Colorado College Special Collections, Colorado Springs, CO, US, April/May 2011; Centre for Fine Print Research, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK, April-June 2011; Sallie Bingham Centre, Duke University, Durham, NC, US, June-October 2011. Will then be exhibited at Hereford College of Arts, Hereford, UK, September/October 2011; Joan Flasch Collection, Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, US, October/November 2011; Institute of International Visual Arts, London, UK, November 2011/January 2012; University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth UK, February/March 2012. Earlier edition exhibited at Zine Fest, The Women's Library, London, January 2009.


As agents of the organisation, managers are expected to embrace its values and foster them in others. The behaviour of line managers is increasingly recognised as crucial to the delivery of human resource management practices and sustained organisational performance. However, managers operate at the centre of a web of accountabilities and allegiances, and must reconcile the demands of the organization and others with personal values and priorities. The presentation introduces qualitative case study research that explores managers' responses to the tensions and dilemmas that arise in the course of their day to day work. Developing strategies to deal with these is an essential, often neglected facet of the management role. Moreover, a number of strands of literature indicate that the strategies adopted will have differing implications for the manager and the organisation. Drawing on the researcher's theoretical framework and illustrative data from field interviews conducted in two private sector organisations, the presentation will suggest the potential impact of the research in relation to academic theory and management practice.


[1] We present a study of the climatology of thermospheric neutral wind (TNW) meridional and zonal components measured with the 630.0 nm nightglow Fabry-Perot interferometer at the Arecibo Observatory from 1980 to 2010. We show and discuss the solar and geomagnetic dependencies as well as the long-term trend of the TNW components and their variation over time and season. A main result of this study was the detection of a substantial seasonal and local time dependence of the response of the TNW to solar and geomagnetic activity. In addition, we found that there is a long-term trend in the thermospheric neutral wind, which can be of a larger magnitude than the variation found in the seasonal, solar cycle, and geomagnetic activity influences. A major signature of this trend over the last 30 years was an increase in the meridional northward component up to 1.4 m s−1 yr−1 before midnight local time during the summer.


In Study 1, the degrees of penetration and familiarity of false belief on neuroscience, especially brain imaging, among students were surveyed using a questionnaire technique. A total number of 485 students from medical school, school of nurse sciences, school of psychology, and school of informatics were given 20 items and they were requested to evaluate authenticity of the items and familiarity was rated. The results suggested that as familiarity increased, the tendency for participants to regard the item was correct. In Study 2, the question whether false belief on neuroscience can be modified by a usual class lecture was examined. Degrees of the authenticity evaluation and the familiarity of false information between student groups who took the class of neuropsychology and who did not take the class were compared. Results showed a significant difference in many items between the two groups and suggested a possibility of modifiability even by a class lecture.


Pituitary abscess syndrome is a neurologic disease responsible for sporadic cases and outbreaks especially in calves leading to high mortality rates. This paper aimed to report the occurrence and the clinical, laboratorial and pathologic findings in three 8 to 11-month-old calves with pituitary abscess syndrome from Mid-Western Brazil. The most important clinical findings were nervous signs of cerebral and brainstem origin with clinical evolution of 7-20 days. Hematology revealed leucocytosis by neutrophilia and hyperfibrinogenemia. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis showed neutrophilic pleocytosis. Arcanobacterium pyogenes was isolated from cerebrospinal fluid. One calf recovered after antibiotic treatment. Mortality rate was 66.6% (2/3). Necropsy findings included single para-hypophyseal abscesses or located in the glandular parenchyma; one calf showed necrotizing rhinitis and another abscedative pneumonia. Histological exams of the central nervous system reveal complete absence of normal pituitary tissue due to the wide necrosis and neutrophilic inflammatory infiltrate. The authors reiterate the importance of adequate management practices to reduce incidence of several diseases especially in calves, including the pituitary abscess syndrome.


Coronary blood flow, cardiac work and metabolism were studied in dogs under sodium nitroprusside (SNP) and trimetaphan (TMP) deliberate hypotension (20% and 40% mean pressure decrease from baseline). Regarding the effects of drug-induced hypotension on coronary blood flow, aortic and coronary sinus metabolic data (pH, pO2, pCO2) we could confirm that nitroprusside hypotension could be safely used to 30% mean blood pressure decrease from control, trimetaphan hypotension to 20% mean blood pressure decrease. Cardiac work was significantly reduced during SNP hypotension. Myocardial O2 consumption and O2 availability were directly dependent on the coronary perfusion. Careful invasive monitoring of the blood pressure, blood gases and of the ECG ST-T segment is mandatory.


Based on a review of several studies that have been carried out to determine the water use of forests in relation to other crops in different regions of the world, it is shown that the principal controls on evaporation from forests and shorter crops vary markedly between the temperate and tropical regions and between the wet and dry zones of these regions. Although there are detailed physical and physiological models available that allow calculation of forest water use, these models are not always readily applicable. It is proposed that a knowledge of the limits on evaporation can be used to devise models of varying complexity for estimating water use of forests in different regions and for predicting differences in water use between forests and shorter crops. Limits on evaporation may be related to radiation, advection, tree physiology, soil water, tree size or drop size. Examples are given of the use of models based on the limits concept for solving forest related water resource problems in Malawi and the U.K.


The post-translational processing of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) in brain remains controversial. Classically, there was thought to be a single cell group in the arcuate nucleus with long projections through limbic structures. More recently, a second cell group was discovered in the caudal medulla. This study addresses the question of POMC processing in this region. Steady-state analysis of acid extracts of dorsal caudal medulla from rat and guinea pig CNS by gel filtration chromatography and radioimmunoassay indicated that in both species the major POMC-related end products are alpha-MSH-sized material and beta-endorphin-sized. In this tissue beta-LPH and ACTH represent minor end products. Analysis of the alpha-MSH-sized material from both species by reverse-phase HPLC indicated that in the rat caudal medulla approximately 79% of the alpha-MSH-related material is acetylated, and in the guinea pig caudal medulla approximately 85% of the alpha-MSH-related material is acetylated. Analysis of the forms of beta-endorphin isolated from the rat caudal medulla by cation exchange chromatography revealed that acetylated and non-acetylated forms of beta-endorphin are present in this region of the rat CNS. Approximately 65% of the beta-endorphin in the rat caudal medulla is N-acetylated. Analysis of the forms of beta-endorphin isolated from the guinea pig caudal medulla indicated that approximately 63% of the beta-endorphin is N-acetylated in this region of the guinea pig CNS. These data indicate that the post-translational processing of POMC in the dorsal caudal medulla, the site of the nucleus tractus solitarius POMC cell group, is distinct from the processing patterns that have been reported for POMC systems in the mammalian anterior pituitary, intermediate pituitary and arcuate nucleus.


The numerical model is proposed for calculation of thermally-stratified unsteady flows in the systems of water bodies of oblong form. The basic equations governing this kind of flows are obtained by averaging the 3D equations of hydrodynamics. In addition to the initial and boundary conditions the junctions conditions are formulated in the places of stream confluence. Some numerical results are presented.


This paper reads Kevin Major's novel Hold Fast and Justin Simms's recent film adaptation according to the regional context of their creation and the wider national and global context of their distribution. It explores how shifting understandings of both region and genre underpin and orient interpretations of young adulthood in these texts. While both print and screen texts allow for fantasies of the putative persistence of childishness into young adulthood in pastoral Atlantic Canada, they also encode countervailing critical insights into the complex socio-historical realities of the region. It argues for the importance of understanding protagonist Michael's youth and agency in relation to these realities.


Solanum jasminoides Paxton (potato vine or jasmine nightshade) is a vegetatively propagated ornamental species within the Solanaceae family. Recently, symptomless plants of this species were reported as natural hosts of the quarantine pest, Potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd) in Italy (1). In January 2008, approximately 1,000 potted, 2-year-old plants of S. jasminoides growing in an ornamental nursery in Sicily showed virus-like mosaic and malformation of leaves. Symptoms were observed on approximately 60% of the plants. Leaf tissue, collected from 30 symptomatic and 10 symptomless plants, was analyzed by double-antibody sandwich-ELISA with polyclonal antisera specific to Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), Tomato spotted wilt virus, and Impatiens necrotic spot virus (Loewe Biochemica, Sauerlach, Germany). The same samples were also analyzed by tissue-printing hybridization with a PSTVd-specific digoxigenin-labelled riboprobe. All the symptomatic samples tested positive only with antisera against CMV, but negative in all other tests. The symptomless samples were negative in all the performed tests. To confirm the association of CMV with the diseased plants, total RNA was extracted from the same samples (RNeasy Plant Mini Kit; Qiagen, Hilden, Germany) and analyzed by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR using CMV-specific primers MP+5'-CATGGCTTTCCAAGGTACCAG-3' and MP-5'-CTAAAGACCGTTAACCACCTGC-3' that amplify a 844-bp fragment from the MP gene (2). The expected fragment was amplified only from samples of symptomatic tissue. CMV was also detected in mother plants grown in the same nursery and showing same mosaic symptoms. Definitive identification of the pathogen was obtained by cloning and sequencing the RT-PCR product. The obtained sequence (GenBank Accession No. EU828783) had 99 and 98% similarity with the subgroup I-A isolates CMV-LUN (GenBank Accession No. EU432183) and CMV-Fny (GenBank Accession No. DI0538), respectively. To our knowledge, this is the first report of CMV infecting S. jasminoides and it adds a new host to the more than 1,000 species (85 plant families) infected by this virus. The high incidence of the disease in the nursery could be due to propagation of cuttings from an infected source. References: (1) F. Di Serio. J. Plant Pathol. 89:297, 2007. (2) H. X. Lin et al. J. Virol. 78:6666, 2004.


The economic impacts of resource-based development are distributed unevenly across national space, and not even mining regions experience economic development in the same way. We build on the methodology of Rehner et. al. (2014) to typify resource-based economic development in Peru in the period 2001- 2015 and compare it with the case of mineral-abundant Chile. What we find is a nuanced version of the same dependency-related resource curse phenomenon. With the commodity cycle: (i) export specialization is not the same in all places; (ii) regional growth volatility is much higher in Peru than in Chile; (iii) the Dutch disease does not clearly manifest itself; and therefore (iv) economic dependence within Peru is variegated. At the national level, gold-and-copper-dependent Peru is not as vulnerable as copper-dependent Chile to external shocks. At the subnational level, outside Lima in particular, dependence-related volatility can be very high for clusters of regions. The results of the quantitative analysis are attuned to a theoretical framework of variegated dependence, which, while acknowledging the centrality of the center-and-periphery supranational structure for economic development, attributes variation in resource curse phenomena to subnational differences across space and over time in economic- geography configurations and institutional regimes. JEL Classification-JEL: F43 , O11 , O18 , Q33 , Q34 , Q37 , R58


Numerous studies have used quarterly data to estimate monetary policy rules or reaction functions that appear to exhibit a very slow partial adjustment of the policy interest rate. The conventional wisdom asserts that this gradual adjustment reflects a policy inertia or interest rate smoothing behavior by central banks. However, such quarterly monetary policy inertia would imply a large amount of forecastable variation in interest rates at horizons of more than three months, which is contradicted by evidence from the term structure of interest rates. The illusion of monetary policy inertia evident in the estimated policy rules likely reflects the persistent shocks that central banks face.


Impulsive buying makes billions of dollars for retail businesses every year, particularly in an era of thriving e-commerce. Narcissism, characterized by impulsivity and materialism, may serve as a potential antecedent to impulsive buying. To test this hypothesis, two studies examined the relationship between narcissism and impulsive buying. In Study 1, we surveyed an online sample and found that while adaptive narcissism was not correlated with impulsive buying, maladaptive narcissism was significantly predictive of the impulsive buying tendency. By investigating 304 twin pairs, Study 2 showed that global narcissism and its two components, adaptive and maladaptive narcissism, as well as the impulsive buying tendency were heritable. The study found, moreover, that the connections between global narcissism and impulsive buying, and between maladaptive narcissism and impulsive buying were genetically based. These findings not only establish a link between narcissism and impulsive buying but also help to identify the origins of the link. The present studies deepen our understanding of narcissism, impulsive buying, and their interrelationship.


A grounded theory methodology was used to explore patients' experiences with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and hemodialysis. The emerging theory suggests that a "new sense of self" is an emotional/psychological state that fluctuates with the evolving meanings of ill-ness and treatment and perceived quality of supports. The findings indicate that when con-fronted with this new way of being in the world, the individual becomes cognizant of an uncertain future, continued dependence on life-sustaining technology and the expertise of health care providers, and the demands on and sacrifices incurred by significant others. All aspects of patients' experiences with ESRD and hemodialysis treatment must be considered if health care providers are tofacilitate positive health outcomes.