Since information science and communication technologies had improved significantly, data volumes had expanded. As a result of that situation, advanced pre-processing and analysis of collected data became a crucial topic for extracting meaningful patterns hidden in the data. Therefore, traditional machine learning algorithms generally fail to gather satisfactory results when analyzing complex data. The main reason of this situation is the difficulty of capturing multiple characteristics of the high dimensional data. Within this scope, ensemble learning enables the integration of diversified single models to produce weak predictive results. The final combination is generally achieved by various voting schemes. On the other hand, if a large amount of single models are utilized, voting mechanism cannot be able to combine these results. At this point, Deep Learning (DL) provides the combination of the ensemble results in a considerable time. Apart from previous studies, we determine various predictive models in order to forecast the outcome of two different case studies. Consequently, data cleaning and feature selection are conducted in advance and three predictive models are defined to be combined. DL based integration is applied substituted for voting mechanism. The weak predictive results are fused based on Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) and Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) using different parameters and datasets and best predictors are extracted. After that, different experimental combinations are evaluated for gathering better prediction results. For comparison, grouped individual results (clusters) with proper parameters are compared with DL based ensemble results.


The aim of the study was to determine certain meat quality traits of Herik lambs finished under the intensive husbandry conditions. Twenty single male lambs with an average final weight of 42 kg were used in the study. Concentrate feed and fresh water were given ad libitum, whereas 300 g of alfalfa per lamb per day was provided. At 24 h postmortem, the pH levels were 5.51, 5.63, and 5.24 for musculus longissimus dorsi, musculus semitendinosus, and musculus semimembranosus, respectively. The corresponding Warner-Bratzler shear force values (P < 0.001) of cooked meat were 3.359, 2.318, and 3.601 respectively. At 24 h postmortem, the L*(42.18) and a* (19.95) values of Herik lambs were near the acceptable values of L*(34-35) and a*(19.00). At 72 h postmortem, cooking loss and water holding capacity were 34.78% and 10.55%, respectively. Chemical composition traits, namely dry matter (26.35%), protein (22.21%), ether extraction (2.98%), and ash percentage (1.02%), were similar to those of other indigenous breeds. Consequently, these results indicated that the meat of Herik lambs may be suitable for sale after the lambs are raised under an intensive fattening system.


You can take or have responsibility. But you can also carry it, which sounds more like a burden, or hand it over – when it becomes too heavy? You can also refuse responsibility if someone wants to give it to you, but you yourself think that you cannot carry it or do not want to take it. Sounds kind of tricky, and yet "responsibility" is the competence considered most important for beginning residents by physicians from different specialties and medical schools [1]. Many activities, which for the most part may only be performed by medical students under supervision according to the Medical Licensing Regulations, must be entrusted to physicians in training from the first day of work, which at the same time means they take the responsibility. In the case of nurses, for example, it has been shown that the responsibility they receive when they start work is greater than they can bear at that time, which leads to increased stress [2]. However, taking responsibility does not begin with the first day of medical work. It begins with the first day of undergraduate training. And actually even before, because taking responsibility means recognizing the goal and scope of a task and using one's own knowledge and skills and a self-reflective attitude to work for its success. This applies to all areas of life that involve human interactions. Since responsibility is part of the professional behavior of physicians and other health care professionals, it does not seem wrong to deal with it early on in training. At a training ward for nursing students, for example, it was found that they learn to take responsibility for patients and at the same time for their own learning by actively performing clinical activities [3]. In themedical profession, responsibility has been identified as one of three aspects of humanistic behavior, along with humility and the desire to achieve a high standard of professional behavior [4]. To achieve this attitude, self-reflection was identified as an essential factor in this study. Addressing the learning of self-reflection early in medical education and integrating it into medical curricula could be an important step towards familiarizing students with and practicing the need to take responsibility – for their own learning and for their subsequent medical practice. Indeed, it has been shown that the ability to self-reflect as an essential basis for taking responsibility does not develop automatically in medical school [5]. Thus, if undergraduate medical curricula and also postgraduate medical education are or should become more strongly aligned with the concept of entrustable professional activities (EPAs) [6], [7], [8], [9], methods for learning how to take responsibility must be considered at the same time, since reliable taking of responsibility forms the basis of entrustment. It is also important that EPAs should not be confused with competencies or skills [10]. That students are familiarized early on with reflecting on themselves and taking responsibility for their thoughts and actions is not only relevant for curricular design. It also plays a role in learning how to use naturopathy, complementary and integrativemedicine, which Homberg et al. report on in a position paper in this issue [11] and especially for one's own actions in the context of a medical-experimental dissertation, for which a course was established by Griegel et al. and is presented in this issue [12]. In another position paper in this issue, Kaap-Fröhlich et al. present the current status and future perspectives of interprofessional education in the health professions [13]. In this form of learning, individual taking of responsibility and interprofessional exchange about it are of particular importance, as well as in communication courses, which had to be redesigned after 10 years of successful implementation due to the pandemic, which Schwär et al. report in this issue [14]. In these and other manuscripts in this issue of the GMS Journal for Medical Education, it can be found how essential learning to take responsibility is for all those working in the health professions. This central aspect of medical education and training in the health professions should receive even greater attention in the future. Since responsible action does not begin with training or medical work, the important aspect of taking responsibility could perhaps also come into focus in the future for admission procedures to enter undergraduate medical training.


Hereditary pancreatitis is an autosomal dominant condition, which results in recurrent attacks of acute pancreatitis, progressing to chronic pancreatitis often at a young age. The majority of patients with hereditary pancreatitis express one of two mutations (R122H or N29I) in the cationic trypsinogen gene (PRSS1 gene). It has been hypothesised that one of these mutations, the R122H mutation causes pancreatitis by altering a trypsin recognition site so preventing deactivation of trypsin within the pancreas and prolonging its action, resulting in autodigestion. Families with these two mutations have been identified in many countries and there are also other rarer mutations, which have also been linked to hereditary pancreatitis. Patients with hereditary pancreatitis present in the same way as those with sporadic pancreatitis but at an earlier age. It is common for patients to remain undiagnosed for many years, particularly if they present with non-specific symptoms. Hereditary pancreatitis should always be considered in patients who present with recurrent pancreatitis with a family history of pancreatic disease. If patients with the 2 common mutations are compared, those with the R122H mutation are more likely to present at a younger age and are more likely to require surgical intervention than those with N29I. Hereditary pancreatitis carries a 40 % lifetime risk of pancreatic cancer with those patients aged between 50 to 70 being most at risk in whom screening tests may become important.


Having worked in the Employees and Commercial Payments Branch of the Financial Management Division for the past 3 summers, I have seen the many changes that have occurred within the NASA organization. As I return each summer, I find that new programs and systems have been adapted to better serve the needs of the Center and of the Agency. The NASA Agency has transformed itself the past couple years with the implementation of the Integrated Financial Management Program (IFMP). IFMP is designed to allow the Agency to improve its management of its Financial, Physical, and Human Resources through the use of multiple enterprise module applications. With my mentor, Joseph Kan, being the branch chief of the Employees and Commercial Payments Branch, I have been exposed to several modules, such as Travel Manager, WebTads, and Core Financial/SAP, which were implemented in the last couple of years under the IFMP. The implementation of these agency-wide systems has sometimes proven to be troublesome. Prior to IFMP, each NASA Center utilizes their own systems for Payroll, Travel, Accounts Payable, etc. But with the implementation of the Integrated Financial Management Program, all the "legacy" systems had to be eliminated. As a result, a great deal of enhancement and preparation work is necessary to ease the transformation from the old systems to the new. All this work occurs simultaneously; for example, e-Payroll will "go live" in several months, but a system like Travel Manager will need to have information upgraded within the system to meet the requirements set by Headquarters. My assignments this summer have given me the opportunity to become involved with such work. So far, I have been given the opportunity to participate in projects resulting from a congressional request, several bankcard reconciliations, updating routing lists for Travel Manager, updating the majordomo list for Travel Manager approvers and point of contacts, and a NASA Headquarters project involving improper payments on firm fixed price contracts. Each of the projects that I have worked on this summer presents a different aspect of the work performed on a regular basis by members of this branch. Not only do I get to see the "big picture" of what occurs within the organization, but I also get to experience the "little stuff" that goes on here and throughout the NASA Agency.


In this paper, the impact of cochannel interference on the secrecy performance of dual‐hop decode‐and‐forward relaying is investigated. In particular, the outage and intercept probabilities are obtained for the opportunistic relay selection (ORS) model in the presence of nonidentical interfering signals under a single/multiple passive eavesdropper(s) attack. Moreover, the proposed work enhances physical layer security performance of ORS model using cooperative jamming (CJ) techniques. Therefore, new closed‐form expressions are derived for the intercept and outage probabilities of the CJ‐ORS model in the presence of interference over Rayleigh fading channels. Moreover, the analyses are generalized to the case of multiple eavesdroppers where closed‐form expressions are derived for the intercept probability. To reveal more insights on the proposed work secrecy performance, asymptotic closed‐form expressions for the intercept and outage probabilities are obtained. Using these asymptotic expressions, a power allocation optimization problem is formulated and solved for enhancing the system security. The derived analytical formulas herein are supported by numerical and simulation results to clarify the main contributions of the paper. The results show that, although the cochannel interference increases the system outage probability, it might improve the system secrecy performance. Moreover, the proposed CJ‐ORS model is shown to enhance the system secrecy performance compared to ORS model.


In-line inspection (ILI) of the main 48" × 21 mm wall thickness API 5L grade X70 export gas pipeline of an offshore oil and gas production field was performed. The ILI using a high resolution Magnetic Flux Leak (MFL) pig revealed an anomaly in a girth weld in the onshore portion of the pipeline. A dig campaign was organized to carry out detailed inspection and sizing of the detected anomaly by external Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing (PAUT) and Time of Flight Diffraction (TOFD). The inspection confirmed the presence of a deep external, surface breaking, girth weld crack. The presence of the defect raised concern for the integrity of the pipeline and it was a question if it was necessary to shut the line down for immediate repair or if repair could be performed at a later date.CTOD fracture toughness testing was performed on a reproduced girth weld. The joint tested was welded using pipe remaining from installation with virtually identical chemistry and mechanical properties as the pipes joined at the cracked girth weld location according to the mill certificates. For the welding, the same welding consumables, original WPS, and the welding system (CRC-Evans system using internal line up clamp and root pass) were used.Based on the fracture mechanics test results and the analyses performed, it was recommended to repair the pipeline as soon as practical. It was decided to repair the cracked girth weld using a full encirclement snug fitting (Type -B), welded split sleeve according to the PRCI Repair Manual. To assess the risk of welding the split sleeve onto the "live" pipe, which could increase the crack driving force due to the thermal stresses from welding and preheating, a combined 3D non-linear thermal and fracture mechanics FEA modelling of the girth weld crack and thermal distributions were performed in Abaqus. As for all welding onto "live" pipelines, the overall risk associated with burn-through and hydrogen induced heat-affected zone cracking (HAZ) was also assessed.This paper describes the methodology applied for the assessment and qualification of the repair and the analysis of the thermal, operating and residual stresses on the crack driving force to establish if the repair operation was safe to undertake.Copyright © 2015 by ASME


Plants used in traditional medicines contain a vast array of substances that can be used to treat chronic and infectious diseases and the present study was carried out with the same intent to appraise the possible medicinal value of Polypodium decumanum a medicinal plant found mainly in Sikkim, Kamau region and in Western Ghats found. The antimicrobial assay was carried out by Disc diffusion method. The crude plant extracts of leaves part exhibited antimicrobial activity on majority of test organisms. The antimicrobial results revealed that the Ethyl acetate, Ethanol & Aqueous leaves extract of Polypodium decumanum among the selected reference bacterial strains tested, the zone of inhibition was seen in concentration dependent manner on the two different Gram positive and two gram negative strains.


Background: In the early phases of multiple sclerosis (MS), patients exhibit slight neuropsychiatric deficits that can only be detected using reliable tools. Aim: The present investigation aimed to examine neuropsychological performance in 35 patients with incipient MS. Patients and methods: For the MS group, the inclusion criteria included time of disease , 3 years and low disability. The neuropsychological battery consisted of Rey Auditory Learning Test, Controlled Oral Word Association Test, Hooper Visual Organization Test, and Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT). Results: After correction for the educational level, no significant effect of MS on performance was found for all the tests except for the number of errors of the SDMT (NE-SDMT). Higher levels of education were associated with better performances in all tests, except for the NE-SDMT. MS patients made more errors than the controls. Conclusion: The effect on the NE-SDMT may reflect difficulties in the ability to inhibit inad-equate responses. Patients may exhibit impulsive control disorders in incipient MS, independent of their educational level.


Pre-processing, thresholding and post-processing stages are very important especially for very small target detection from infrared images. The effects of these stages to the final detection performance are measured in this study. Various methods for each stage are compared based on the final detection performance, which is defined by precision and recall values. Among various methods, the best method for each stage is selected and proved. For the pre-processing stage, local block based methods perform the best, nearly for all thresholding methods. The best thresholding method is chosen as the one, which does not need any user defined parameter. Finally, the post processing method, which is suitable for the best performing pre-processing and thesholding methods is selected.


This study addresses a general concern, a specific concern, and a synthesis between them. The general concern is how to foster human collective intelligence, in this work approached from a human-technological angle. The specific concern is how to foster human fluency in formal languages for automated deduction. Human collective intelligence occurs, loosely speaking, when the intelligence of a group of people is greater than the sum of the intelligence of the individuals of that group. Important motivations to foster human collective intelligence are to help people (1) deal better with problems and (2) become better, more fluent and more refined at what they are already good at. This study covers a large class of facets related to fostering collective intelligence with an abstract overarching approach, and then works out a limited, yet carefully selected set of facets in detail. The overarching approach (the Orcoba-Approach) facilitates human individuals or collectives to acquire or improve a given capability. The core of the approach consists of expressing the capability in a permanent record that enables the targeted capability to be, at least partially reproduced and examined. Such a record contains both a description of relevant human capabilities and activities, and specifications of complementary artefacts used. The approach facilitates people, or other actors, to share, add and adapt records, and does so guided by the differences in performance teams achieve with them. It does so in a way inspired by biological evolution, accelerating the improvement of the best records. The concern for fostering human fluency in formal languages for automated deduction (briefly: formal fluency) is inspired by the following. Since the second half of the 20th century much work has been done on developing and improving the application of computers to boost our capability to reason over our collective knowledge. One major branch of development involves automated deduction: knowledge that is represented in a formal language for automated deduction enable special computer programs to automatically produce knowledge-representations that are deducible from the given knowledge. This technique enables people to extend works of others to an unprecedented degree, contributing to the general concern of this work to increase human collective intelligence. Although automated deduction is nowadays widely applied for the purpose just given, we are only scratching the surface of its full potential. A way to contribute to the relation of this full potential is to foster more people reaching formal fluency. The latter is the specific concern of this study. This work's contribution to fostering formal fluency consists of subjecting it to the specialised approaches to foster human collective intelligence developed in the first part of the work. This work presents both how to tailor these approaches to formal fluency and the lessons learnt about favourable elements for a record for formal fluency. The most sophisticated fruit of this work consists of the design and partial implementation of the serious game developed for this purpose, SWiFT.


The replication of pathogenic influenza virus A/PR/8/34 in the lungs and the synthesis of virus-neutralizing (VN) and haemagglutination-inhibition (HI) antibodies has been studied in mice with endogenous hypocorticism induced by a bilateral adrenalectomy. The adrenalectomized mice appeared to be more susceptible to influenza infection as compared to the mock-operated ones. This was evident from earlier deaths and higher death rate in mice inoculated with 50 EID50, 1000 EID50, and 6000 EID50 of the virus, respectively. A tendency towards decrease of specific antibody titres and the resistance to reinfection with influenza virus A/PR/8/34 was also observed.


It is difficult to remove for burr, especially for micro-hole burr, so the vibration grinding process is put forward and adopted to remove burrs. The mechanism of vibration grinding deburring is analyzed, and the experiments of micro-hole deburring are done with the technology of vibration grinding. From the results of the experiments, the conclusion can be draw that this technology can remove the burrs effectively. The vibration grinding process has the features of simple process system, low cost, easy operating. The Vibration grinding process technology method can also be used to remove burrs of other machining process. It has more application value in practice.


Through analysis of abrasive flow machining principle, this paper explores the design of equipment which is suitable for nozzle micro-hole abrasive flow machining. Based on catia,a cad software, three-dimensional models of the parts are drawn and assembled together. Based on the Finite Element Simulation software ansys, the finite element analysis of the key components of the equipment can be achieved. Through the result of simulation, the design of the equipment is reliable, and is able to satisfy the requirements of strength and rigidity. It offers the theoretical basis for optimizing abrasive flow machining equipment. Through the result of tests, the system of the equipment runs steadily and the ideal abrasive flow machining effects can be achieved.


Marine rocks characterized by high clay content provide excellent conditions for fossil preservation, particularly for organic-walled microfossils such as retiolitid graptolites and chitinozoans. Nevertheless, the phyllosilicate minerals, which constitute the clay component, make microfossil extractions difficult. The problem results from the tendency of phyllosilicates to form aggregates in low pH values, as standard methods of microfossil extraction employ acids for rock digestion. Consequently, the use of acids for clay-rich rocks is often inefficient and time-consuming. We propose a method of rock disintegration using the surfactant Rewoquat and compare it with two commonly applied approaches: digestion in buffered acetic acid and in HCl-HF. Using examples from the Mulde Brick-clay Member from the Silurian of Gotland and the Daleje Shale from the Devonian of the Prague Basin we observed that disintegration in Rewoquat was faster (days) than digestion in acid (months), and allowed to recover calcareous in addition to organic-walled fossils. The yield and preservation was comparably good, except for conodonts, which were strongly etched after using HCl-HF. Retiolitid graptolites recovered using Rewoquat were preserved in 3D and showed a lower degree of fragmentation. The fossil content of the residue obtained using Rewoquat was higher due to dispersion of clay aggregates. For observation of delicate fossils we recommend to coat the sample with the surfactant. Application of Rewoquat can reveal the most delicate forms and growth stages, and thus provide a better insight into the ontogeny, autecology, and body size distributions of a number of fossil groups.


Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the soft-tissue parameter that is depth and angle of mentolabial sulcus and to correlate this parameter with type of malocclusion present in an ethnic Tamilian population. Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate the depth and angle of the mentolabial sulcus, to determine the type of malocclusion, and to correlate the soft-tissue parameter and malocclusion. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in 260 university students (65 males and 95 females) between April and September 2018. Photographs of all the students were taken using a digital camera. Mentolabial sulcus depth and angles were measured from the lateral photographs using an angle instrument along with the molar and canine relation. The type of mentolabial sulcus was also taken into account. The data were analyzed using the SPSS software version 22. The comparison of sulcus between males and females was performed using two-sample t-test at 95% confidence interval. Results: The mean mentolabial sulcus angle in the Tamilian population was 117.18° ± 9.24° (males: 118.19° ± 12.28° and females: 116.19° ± 12.28°). There was no statistically significant difference of sulcus angle between males and females (P = 0.078). The sulcus was classified as deep, average, and shallow in males and females. In total students, the average was more predominant followed by deep and shallow. Conclusion: The mean mentolabial sulcus angle in the Tamilian population was 117.18° ± 9.24°, in males was 118.19° ± 12.28°, and in females was 116.19° ± 12.28°. The sulcus was classified as deep, average, and shallow. There was no statistically significant difference of sulcus angle between males and females. The average type of sulcus was more predominant in the Tamilian population.


This study examines the effect of fintech on retail banks stock return listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange for the period of 2016-2018 as today's new technology lead to the emergence of fintech companies playing the same role as retail banks in the financial industry. This study is conducted quantitatively using monthly data from January 2016 to October 2018 and uses fintech as independent variable, proxied by fintech funding frequency and fintech funding value. Data transformation is conducted due to data volatility. The data of fintech funding, both frequency and value, is transformed into standardized fintech funding and growth of fintech funding. The data is obtained from Crunchbase, while the data of stock returns is obtained from Investing. This study further analyzes the data using Fama French Three-Factor Model and panel data regression. We found that fintech has no significant effect on retail banks' stock returns listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange for the period of 2016-2018. The findings of the study provide some useful insights in understanding fintech companies' current position to retail banks in Indonesia. This study also suggests banking institutions, fintech companies, policy-makers, and others to take advantageous steps in building inclusive financial sectors.


In the Krakow-Lubliniec section of the major Hamburg-Krakow-Dobrogea Fault Zone (HKDFZ), the Stephanian-Early Permian magmatic activity was simultaneous with subsidence/uplift of formed blocks. In the proximity of the uplifted areas the sedimentation started with fanglomerates, distally passing into playa siltstone and was accompanied by volcanism. In the Nieporaz-Brodla graben, basaltic trachyandesite a-a lava flows with autoclastic breccias reach ca. 150 m in thickness. The weathering recorded as adhesive rims around breccia clasts reflects palaeosoil formation during quiescence periods between the eruptions. The eruptions were effusive although scoriaceous lava indicates high volatile content of the magma. The water content before eruption had to be over 2 wt. percent. Only then the crystallisation model predicts accurately the type, composition and order of the crystallising phases. Thus, the basaltic trachyandesite magma originated from a source containing hydrous phase (i.e., amphibole or phlogopite). All the studied basaltic trachyandesites had fayalitic olivine on their liquidus reflecting the crystallisation stage in a magma chamber at crustal depths. During final decompression on the magma ascent due to water exsolution, the olivine was followed by plagioclase, spinel, augite, ilmenite, apatite, K-feldspar and residual high-K rhyolitic glass. The high potassium content of these volcanics was thus a primary feature reflecting the source geochemistry and differentiation trend, and its consequence was potassium metaso- matism. Due to water exsolution the glass was altered, however, homogenous interstitial glass survived in some rocks. The glass is strongly enriched in incompatible trace elements, showing that it is a highly fractionated residual melt fraction of the basaltic trachyandesite magma. Thus, the glass geochemistry reflects the trend of fractional crystallisation indicating that co-occurring K-rich felsic rocks were not derived from the same magma. All the basaltic trachyandesites studied have calc-alkaline to alkaline affinity. They contain fayalitic olivine and are low in MgO 0.5-0.80 and small Eu/Eu* > 0.9-1.0 anomalies suggesting fractionation of plagioclase. The Eu/Eu* anomaly is probably compensated by amphibole retaining in the source. Negative Nb, Ti anomalies suggest Fe-Ti oxide fractionation characteristic for calc-alkaline evolution trend. A significant enrichment in LREE relatively to HREE (La/Yb > 10) indicates subduction-related metasomatism. However, the described tectonic context is inconsistent with subduction related characteristics. Concluding, the observed geochemical characteristics indicate remarkable role of water in magma evolution. The volcanism was related to strike-slip dextral movement along the Krakow-Lubliniec section of HKDFZ, transformed into crustal extension and subsidence, the features typical for the formation of pull-apart basins, in the late stages of the Variscan orogen evolution.


For the better part of the last century the University of the Free State (UFS) – as the "most prestigious" higher education institution in the province – has been a key site for institutional language politics in the province. This brand of institutional language politics has been characterised by several contestations and permutations which can symbolically be described as a struggle for the soul of the UFS because of its far-reaching implications on UFS's "curriculum as institution" and linguistic culture. Four critical junctures have defined UFS's language politics over the last century. After a detailed characterisation of these critical junctures, the article argues and demonstrates that the contestations and permutations that have characterised institutional language politics at the UFS are a  microcosm of the socio-political and economic struggles in the Free State Province through time, because of the centrality of the UFS in socio-political and economic discourses and dynamics of the province.


In this study, molecular dynamics simulation was applied to the construction of small intestinal epithelial cell membrane and prediction of drug absorption. First, we constructed a system of a small intestinal epithelial cell membrane that was close to the real proportion and investigated the effects of temperature, water layer thickness, and ionic strength on membrane properties to optimize environmental parameters. Next, three drugs with different absorptivity, including Ephedrine (EPH), Quercetin (QUE), and Baicalin (BAI), were selected as model drugs to study the ability of drugs through the membrane by the free diffusion and umbrella sampling simulation, and the drug permeation ability was characterized by the free diffusion coefficient D and free energy barrier (△G) in the processes. The results showed that the free diffusion coefficient D' and △G' orders of the three drugs were consistent with the classical experimental absorption order, indicating that these two parameters could be used to jointly characterize the membrane permeability of the drugs.


Currently, Statkraft knows that they have oil spills from their hydraulic system, but the problem is that the amount of the oil spilled is not clear. Furthermore, Statkraft is missing a tool that can be used when decisions need to be made on what power plants that should be prioritized to be renovated next or which oil system that they should be switched to. In order to answer these points a look has been taken onto the environmental effects and the amount of oil spilled from hydropower plants, the general oil system inside a power plant, and in Kaplan turbines. Furthermore, two maps were developed: one presenting areas of interest for humans and environment around the hydropower plants and a second map about the river shorelines sensitivity to oil spills represented in form of an ESI ranked river shoreline. The maps give a general overview and can be used as a starting point to include environmental aspects into the planning and decision making process. The outcomes of the study are that more detailed information about the amount of oil spills released in small amounts from the turbines is needed. The catchment areas, where Statkraft Sverige AB has hydropower plants, which are most sensitive to oil spills, are Moalven and Natraan. The hydropower plant with the most sensitive river shoreline is the Stennas power plant due to a large wetland close by. Those areas should therefore be prioritized in projects about reducing the amount of oil inside Statkraft`s hydropower plants.


Animals often exhibit changes in their behaviour during migration. Telemetry data provide a way to observe geographic position of animals over time, but not necessarily changes in the dynamics of the movement process. Continuous‐time models allow for statistical predictions of the trajectory in the presence of measurement error and during periods when the telemetry device did not record the animal's position. However, continuous‐time models capable of mimicking realistic trajectories with sufficient detail are computationally challenging to fit to large datasets. Furthermore, basic continuous‐time model specifications (e.g. Brownian motion) lack realism in their ability to capture nonstationary dynamics. We present a unified class of animal movement models that are computationally efficient and provide a suite of approaches for accommodating nonstationarity in continuous trajectories due to migration and interactions among individuals. Our approach uses process convolutions to allow for flexibility in the movement process while facilitating implementation and incorporating location uncertainty. We show how to nest convolution models to incorporate interactions among migrating individuals to account for nonstationarity and provide inference about dynamic migratory networks. We demonstrate these approaches in two case studies involving migratory birds. Specifically, we used process convolution models with temporal deformation to account for heterogeneity in individual greater white‐fronted goose migrations in Europe and Iceland, and we used nested process convolutions to model dynamic migratory networks in sandhill cranes in North America. The approach we present accounts for various forms of temporal heterogeneity in animal movement and is not limited to migratory applications. Furthermore, our models rely on well‐established principles for modelling‐dependent data and leverage modern approaches for modelling dynamic networks to help explain animal movement and social interaction.


In recent years, scenario-based modeling has been proposed to help mitigate some of the underlying difficulties in modeling complex reactive systems, by allowing modelers to specify system behavior in a way that is intuitive and directly executable. This modeling approach simplifies the specification of systems that include events occurring in distinct system components. However, when these system components are physically distributed, executing the scenario-based model requires inter-component coordination that may negatively affect system performance or robustness. We describe a technique that aims to reduce the amount of joint eventselection decisions that require coordination and synchronization among distributed system components. The technique calls for replicating the entire scenario-based executable specification in each of the components, and then transforming it in a component-specific manner that induces the required differences in execution while reducing synchronization requirements. In addition to advantages in streamlining design and improving performance, our approach captures the fact that in certain "smart" distributed systems it is often required that components know what rules govern the behavior of other components. Our evaluation of the technique shows promising results.


Abstract Underthrusting of Laurentia by the continental margin of Baltica during Caledonian orogeny resulted in the lateral emplacement of Iapetus Ocean-related terranes of the Upper Allochthon at least 500 km onto Baltica. The underlying Lower and Middle allochthons of the Baltoscandian margin mostly comprise Cryogenian, Ediacaran and Cambro-Silurian sedimentary successions; basement to these formations are present only as minor, isolated fragments, except at the base of the Middle Allochthon and within the underlying windows. The upper parts of the Middle Allochthon are notable for the presence of early Ediacaran dyke-swarms and other components of the Baltoscandian continent–ocean transition zone (COT). New data are presented here on the c. 610 Ma age of the COT-related dolerites in the Kalak Nappe Complex in Northern Norway and also on detrital zircons in the underlying Laksefjord and Gaissa nappes. The former confirms that the Baltoscandian COT has a similar age along the length of the orogen; the latter shows that the detrital zircon signatures in the Lower and Middle allochthons are comparable throughout the orogen. These sedimentary rocks have dominating populations of Mesoproterozoic to latest Palaeoproterozoic zircons similar to those from southern parts of the orogen, where Sveconorwegian complexes comprise the basement to the Caledonides. Thus, they help define the probable character and age of the crystalline basement that existed along this outer margin of Baltica during the Neoproterozoic, continental lower crust that was partly subducted during Ordovician continent-arc collision and subsequently lost beneath Laurentia during the 50 million years of Scandian collisional orogeny.


: Cells and chromosomes of the embryo can be labeled by integrating foreign DNA into its genome. Genes coding for some cytotoxic products can selectively destroy embryonic rudiments in which these genes are expressed. Insertional mutations arise in transgenic animals and this facilitates identification and cloning of the genes that affect the development. Embryos carrying mutations in certain genes were produced using transformed stem cells. Some kinds of mutations can be corrected by introducing the cloned genes into mutant oocytes. Use of transgenic animals substantially increases the properties of methods employed in developmental genetics and experimental embryology of mammals.


This paper develops a unified model of growth, population, and technological progress that is consistent with long-term historical evidence. The economy endogenously evolves through three phases. In the Malthusian regime, population growth is positively related to the level of income per capita. Technological progress is slow and is matched by proportional increases in population, so that output per capita is stable around a constant level. In the post-Malthusian regime, the growth rates of technology and total output increase. Population growth absorbs much of the growth of output, but income per capita does rise slowly. The economy endogenously undergoes a demographic transition in which the traditionally positive relationship between income per capita and population growth is reversed. In the Modern Growth regime, population growth is moderate and income per capita rises rapidly.


English Taught Programs (ETPs) first appeared in European countries. Research showed a growing trend of ETPs, not only in Europe but also in other continents. However, despite the increasing number of such programs, there is a lack of consistent language policy and language planning in these programs. Without a clear language policy, the problems caused by language diversity cannot be solved properly. EMI researchers have indicated the urgency of a language plan in English-taught degree programs to maintain a collaborative relationship with the university's policy. This study aims to present how language policies will work from a macro view to a micro one, from country as a whole to educational institutions. The author will first examine the language policy in all levels and then focus on the ETP programs in Taiwan. From the investigation, the author finds that it takes time for language policy to be effective. If ETP programs are the future trend as a result of globalization, language policies should be specifically drawn up for these programs.

 Key words: English as medium of instruction, language policy, Taiwan, Language planning, English taught programs.


Over recent decades, organizations have moved into highly competitive markets that force companies to implement Performance Management Systems (PMSs) to keep monitoring strategy alignment and activities. In this context, this paper provides a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) on the use of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in PMSs. Relevant and useful papers have been selected for the analysis and the final 60-paper sample has been studied by means of con-tent analysis and descriptive statistics. The relevant findings have been reported across categories (i.e. value drivers, practices and measures, contextual drivers, and critical issues), such as increasing the use of KPIs supporting sustainable de-velopments and a dichotomy between qualitative and quantitative indicators. In particular, authors revealed the need for a KPI strategical formulation and for a cultural factor aimed at ensuring the effective integration of quantitative, qualita-tive and sustainable development indicators. Therefore, a conceptual model was developed in order to guide managers through the criticalities and the recently reported requirements. This review addresses the KPIs' implementation from both a systemic and critical point of view; these aspects made our study really useful for practitioners of all application sectors.


In the fall of 2002, MIT's Earth System Initiative introduced Terrascope, a year-long program in which freshmen work to find solutions for complex, interdisciplinary environmental and Earth system problems; simultaneously, the students explore ways to communicate on related issues with a variety of audiences, ranging from technical experts to schoolchildren. The program involves both theoretical problem solving and engineering design/construction. A major objective of the program is to develop and nurture the students' team-building skills, and nearly all of the work is done in teams. Beyond the coursework involved, Terrascope is also structured as a learning community, fostering a communal spirit and sense of shared mission among current students and upperclassmen who are alumni of the program. Every year, Terrascope is centered around a particular environmental or Earth system problem; the problem always includes scientific, technical, social, economic and political aspects. Students are given the problem at the beginning of the year, and at the end of the fall semester the class, as a whole, presents its solution in the form of an integrated website. The class then presents and defends the solution in front of a panel of internationally recognized experts from outside the MIT community, in an event that is webcast and also archived for later viewing. In the spring, as an exercise in design and construction, teams of students develop, design and build interactive museum exhibits to teach general audiences about the area they have been studying. The exhibits are grouped to form a comprehensive exhibit, which is then opened to the MIT community and the public at large. The exhibits are evaluated by experts from the Greater Boston museum community and by members of the general public (including classes from local schools). Terrascope also includes two optional classes: a January-term class in which students explore how people learn in museums, and a spring class in which students develop, write, record and produce a radio program about the year's theme subject. There is also an optional spring break field trip, in which nearly all of the students participate. In addition, students gather at weekly lunches and other social events, and they have exclusive access to a Terrascope classroom, lounge, computer cluster and kitchen. Many upperclassmen who have gone through the program stay actively involved in the Terrascope community, either as Undergraduate Teaching Fellows or through Terrascope-administered research projects. In this paper, we describe the structure and evolution of the program over the past four years, outcomes for students, and lessons we have learned in designing and implementing the program.


The estimation properties of morphological filters are considered in terms of edge localization and grey level contrast preservation in two-dimensional spaces. It is shown that, at least in practice, a compromise between these two characteristics has to be made. In a first step, morphological filters are compared with linear and median filters. It is concluded that an efficient edge localization can be achieved with morphological filters with reconstruction but not with median filters or with morphological openings or closings with structuring elements. In the case of strong noise, the good edge preservation provided by the reconstruction filters is obtained at the expense of contrast estimation. In order to be able to tune this tradeoff, a new type of morphological filter, called filters with partial reconstruction is proposed and studied.<<ETX>>


Polyphenolic compounds found in some plants are very important for human health because of their antioxidant and some disease healing properties. However polyphenolic compounds have a disadvantage that their bioavailability is low due to their low solubility in water. In this study, a new PEG derivative, lactic acid ester of butylether PEG 200 (PEG-ester) has been synthesized and then it has been interacted with curcumin and morin to improve poor water solubility of these polyphenolic compounds. PEG ester, was found to be miscible with water and significantly improved the water solubility of curcumin and morin. The characterization of emulsion systems formed with PEG-ester in the presence of curcumin and morin were investigated. The amount of curcumin and morin in emulsion systems was carried out by UV/VIS spectrophotometric measurements. Interactions were characterized by FTIR measurements. Solubility and stability studies were performed.


The main objectives of this work are the study of the obtained surface roughness on steels, using face cutting edge inserts milling tools in finishing face milling operations with microlubrication (MQL), and comparison of the results obtained with the widely-used radius inserts. This experimental study analyzes the roughness and surface appearance obtained with both sort of inserts. The interest about this study is to determine the steel types and the optimal cutting conditions for milling with this face cutting edge inserts. Another result analysed is the utility of the MQL implementation compared to the dry system.


THIS brief and straightforward account of the book trade and publishing in antiquity can be recommended as a well-documented introduction to its subject. A short chapter deals with Greece and the Hellenistic period, a second longer one with Rome and the Graeco-Roman world, and the third is by way of an appendix on book production and format. The author's object is to state facts rather than discuss problems and in consequence the first chapter, where in the early period so much is problematic, is less satisfactory. The main section, however, gives an admirably lucid account and the very full references to sources are particularly welcome ; the evidence of papyri as well as of ancient writers is exploited. The illustration to the Iliad from a fourth century A.D. papyrus in Munich will be new to most readers; the other illustrations are, perhaps inevitably, hackneyed and it is unfortunate that currency should still be given to two quite unconvincing reconstructions, one of the wall painting in Herculaneum, and the other of a now lost relief from Trier.


In this paper, an approximate dynamic programming (ADP) based strategy for real-time energy control of parallel hybrid electric vehicles(HEV) is presented. The aim is to develop a fuel-optimal control which is not relying on the priori knowledge of the future driving conditions (global optimal control), but only upon the current system operation. Approximate dynamic programming is an on-line learning method, which controls the system while simultaneously learning its characteristics in real time. A suboptimal energy control is then obtained with a proper definition of a cost function to be minimized at each time instant. The cost function includes the fuel consumption, emissions and the deviation of battery soc. Our approach guarantees an optimization of vehicle performance and an adaptation to driving conditions. Simulation results over standard driving cycles are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed stochastic approach. It was found that the obtained ADP control algorithm outperforms a traditional rule-based control strategy.


Author(s): Anderson, Aaron C. | Abstract: This dissertation examines the slasher film through close analyses of John Carpenter's 'Halloween' (1978), Sean S. Cunningham's 'Friday the 13th' (1980), and Wes Craven's 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' (1984). This dissertation argues that while one may find sadistic elements in these films, one also finds pronounced masochistic elements that continually thwart attempts to define the slasher film as exclusively sadistic. Recognizing this, this dissertation argues that these films are defined above all by the doubled, multiplied, and seemingly contradictory sadistic- masochistic subjectivities they offer. These subjectivities threaten to abjectly destroy established binaries (between male and female, self and other, inside and outside, and human and monster) while simultaneously interrogating the entire institution of the cinema. Conceptually, this dissertation roots itself in Didier Anzieu's Freudian take on the connections between the body and psyche (through the notion of the "skin ego"), Gilles Deleuze's work on sadism and masochism, Gaylyn Studlar's work on masochism and "bisexual" identification in cinema, Julia Kristeva's understanding of the "abject," and Mary Douglas' work on purity, anomaly, and contagion (Anzieu 39, 88; Deleuze 125, 131; Studlar 32; Kristeva 1; Douglas 2, 5). Examining these three films through a psychoanalytic- semiotic lens, this dissertation isolates the key representative features of the slasher film and argues that despite popular mischaracterizations of these films as misogynistic "blood baths," they actually aim to shatter the narrative cinema's structuring of vision and pleasure (pleasure rooted in both sadism and masochism) as well as notions of security associated with the spaces of the small town and suburban middle-class American family. The slasher film achieves this by tapping into repressed aggressions and constructing a sadistic masochistic viewer that is at once human and monster, simultaneously desiring to protect and to punish. This "abject" blurring of the lines between human and monster is the slasher film's most salient feature. Ultimately, in the slasher film, the most horrifying, uncanny monster comes from within the psyche of the viewer


Increasingly global problems, concerning various effects of the global economy and the absence of global democracy, require global solutions. Particular nation-states and international spaces (UN, ICC, WTO, etc.) are ill-equipped to remedy these issues. Consequently, in recent years global social justice movements have emerged to address these challenges. Social movement scholars have long held that collective identities are crucial to recruiting adherents, sustaining solidarity and social movement cohesion. Therefore, the study of the formation of transnational activist (TNA) collective identities is of enormous importance to understanding the dynamics of emerging global social justice movements. Nonetheless, social movement scholars have generally ignored the specific dynamics of the emotion-laden processes that impel this formation. This dissertation traces the emergence of TNA identities in two distinct spaces. First, through interviews and participant observation, I trace the emergence of TNA identities amongst activists gathered at the World Social Forum. Secondly, I track how international actors collaborating in emotional HIV/AIDS healthwork in Zambia make sense of their identities and follow the factors that impel actors towards more or less activism and/or more or less transnationalism. Comparing and contrasting potential activists and potential transnationalists, I find two emotion-laden processes drive further activism and transnationalism. First, transformative, often painfully emotional, catalytic experiences often drive potential activists in search of activist organizations and communities. Over time, they begin to immerse themselves in activist circles and increasingly adopt activist identities. Second, early exposure to the international often drives potential transnationalists to acquire an interest in diverse peoples and cultures. Over time, they seek out this diversity, continually adding to a repertoire of cultural competencies that allow them to act as cultural bridges or translators . At the far end of these emotion-laden journeys, transnationalists conceive of themselves as inseparable and indivisible from the Other . Furthermore, they often acquire transnational, relational ties and friendships that push them towards greater activism. Consequently, at the far end of these two continua, activist and transnational identities tend to reinforce each other. Lastly, my research suggests that transnational, transcultural binding practices will be essential in sustaining global social justice movements over time


Communicative methodology seeks to achieve social transformation while developing research. It starts from the premise that everyone has knowledge regardless of their academic level. Its main aim is to break with the methodological relevance gap and provide social justice while researching with and for the end users. In this case, this paper presents the contributions to feminism knowledge creation with the collaboration of nonacademic women and academic women. These nonacademic women participate in dialogic literary gatherings reading and discussing universal classic literature, gaining knowledge and sharing through egalitarian dialogue. At the same time, this paper highlights the figure and contributions of Jesus Gómez, "Pato," as the founder of the communicative methodology.


Aim: To evaluate the relation between central corneal thickness (CCT), intraocular pressure (IOP) and vertical cup-disc ratio in Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) compared to normal and to find out correlation between Central corneal thickness and disease severity in POAG. Materials and Methods: Cross sectional study. Hundred patients on treatment for POAG and hundred age matched subjects were studied. Central corneal thickness was measured using ultrasound pachymeter. Intraocular pressure was measured by applanation tonometry. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 18. Results: The mean CCT in glaucoma patients was 528.03±33.37 μm in right eye and 529.69±34. 14 μm in the left eye. The mean value obtained for the control group was 541.46±31.20μm in right eye and 541.25±30.32 in left eye. There was no statistical significance in mean CCT values in males and females. CCT was found to decrease with age in both groups. In glaucoma patients there was a positive correlation of CCT with IOP, and a negative correlation with vertical cup-disc ratio (VCDR). Patients with severe glaucoma had thinner cornea. Conclusion: The average CCT obtained for normal as well as glaucoma patients in our study was lower than the suggested value of 555μm as a risk factor for development of glaucoma by Ocular hypertension study group. Patients with severe glaucoma had thinner cornea. Hence our population maybe at a greater risk of developing glaucoma. In patients with POAG, CCT helps to identify patients with thinner cornea who may be at a higher risk of progression, and require more aggressive control.


A Ni-based catalyst modified with copper and vanadium (5Cu–20V/30Ni/SiO2) was synthesized and employed in the hydrogenation of 3-hydroxypropanal (3-HPA) to 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PDO). Catalysts were systematically characterized via XRD, TEM, HRTEM, SAED, H2-TPD, N2 physisorption, H2-TPR, and XPS. It was indicated that the addition of Cu and V not only promoted the reduction of Ni2+ species and the generation of active hydrogen species, but also increased the dispersion of Ni species and the interaction between Ni particles and SiO2. The catalytic performance evaluation showed that the (5Cu–20V/30Ni/SiO2) could provide the largest yield of 1,3-PDO (above 76.8%) and highest TOF (4.32 × 103 s−1). The structure–activity relationship was clarified according to the characterization results. The optimized reaction conditions over the 5Cu–20V/30Ni/SiO2 catalyst were obtained as the reaction temperature of 80 °C, a H2 pressure of 2.0 MPa (H2), and an LHSV of 0.4 h−1. The employment of non-noble metals, the relatively low pressure of H2, and the relatively high yield of 1,3-PDO make 5Cu–20V/30Ni/SiO2 an efficient and economic catalyst that may have potential applications in industry.


The complex intrinsic and extrinsic forces from the body and environment push the brain into non-equilibrium. The arrow of time, central to thermodynamics in physics, is a hallmark of non-equilibrium and serves to distinguish between reversible and non-reversible dynamics in any system. Here, we use a deep learning Temporal Evolution NETwork (TENET) framework to discover the asymmetry in the flow of events, 'arrow of time', in human brain signals, which provides a quantification of how the brain is driven by the interplay of the environment and internal processes. Specifically, we show in large-scale HCP neuroimaging data from a thousand participants that the levels of non-reversibility/non-equilibrium change across time and cognitive state with higher levels during tasks than when resting. The level of non-equilibrium also differentiates brain activity during the seven different cognitive tasks. Furthermore, using the large-scale UCLA neuroimaging dataset of 265 participants, we show that the TENET framework can distinguish with high specificity and sensitivity resting state in control and different neuropsychiatric diseases (schizophrenia, bipolar disorders and ADHD) with higher levels of non-equilibrium found in health. Overall, the present thermodynamics-based machine learning framework provides vital new insights into the fundamental tenets of brain dynamics for orchestrating the interactions between behaviour and brain in complex environments.


Time for 'pedagogiek': On the importance of 'pedagogiek' for teaching and education

 In this slightly edited version of my inaugural lecture, I try to show in three steps what the unique and distinctive contribution of 'pedagogiek' to the theory and practice of education consists of. I do this, firstly, by characterising 'pedagogiek' as an interested science of action, and by emphasising that the central interest of 'pedagogiek' has to do with emancipation, that is, with grown-up ways of leading one's life. I use this, secondly, to debunk a rather common misunderstanding about the role of education in the formation of the person, by showing that this is not about the formation of individuals according to certain images or ideals, but rather is orientated towards the question of what it means to exist as (a) person. This reveals that 'pedagogiek' is concerned with existential questions: question about what it means to live one's life, individually and together with others. In the third and final step, I show what this means for schooling, making a case for subjectifying education and a flipped curriculum, and outlining the connection with the question of democracy. I conclude by highlighting two areas for further research. Firstly, in order to counter a strong emphasis in education on observable behaviour, I make a case for the importance of interiority. Secondly, I suggest that we should not see education as a field in which we can apply humanistic values, but that we should rather raise the question what the fact that we are beings who teach and can be taught reveals about our humanity and human-ness.


PROPERTY AS A TOOL FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION AND DIPLOMACY by REBECCA RUTH HAGER (Under the Direction of JAMES K. REAP) ABSTRACT In 2000 the United States Department of State created a tool to aid in the recognition and protection of its historically, culturally, and architecturally significant buildings overseas. This inventory, the Secretary of State's Register of Culturally Significant Property, numbers embassies, residences, offices, and a museum among its twenty sites. The Register does not prevent the sale or destruction of its designated properties, but rather emphasizes government and public awareness of the cultural fabric. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the effects of designation on sites on the Register in order to determine how the nomination and designation process can be improved to effect greater diplomacy, awareness, and preservation of the properties on a local, national, and international scale. The ideas developed in this thesis are based primarily on discussions with Department of State professional staff and firsthand travel to some of the sites described.


Objectives: The objectives of the study were to determine factors affecting the interval between a woman's last childbirth and the initiation of contraception. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study. Family planning clinic records of the Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital Kaduna from January 2000 to March 2014 were retrieved. Information was collected on demographics, reproductive, and contraceptive history. Data were analyzed using the SPSS version 15 software, and missing responses were excluded. Chi-square was used as a test of association with significance level established at P = 0.05. Results: A total of 5992 client's cards were retrieved. All were female and married. Majority were aged 25–34 years (53.1%), had completed secondary education (56%) and were Muslims (52.3%). Only 4979 cards (83.1%) had correct data on intervals and 22.1% of these clients initiated contraception within 6 months of their last childbirth. Education, religion, source of information, number of living children, desire to have more children, previous use of contraception, and type of contraception chosen were significantly associated with intervals for initiating contraception after last childbirth (P < 0.05) while the presence of complications in the last delivery was not (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Majority of women initiate contraception late after childbirth in this setting. Increased awareness on immediate/early postpartum contraception is required. Further qualitative studies will help to explore findings of this study.


ABSTRACT IN HO, K and JUNG LYUL, L., 2011. Beach Monitoring and Beach Management of Gangwon coast. In: Micallef, A. (ed.), MCRR3-2010 Conference Proceedings, Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 61, pp. 8–13. Grosseto, Tuscany, Italy, ISSN 0749-0208. A periodic and long-term beach monitoring and diagnostic system is developed for the design and assessment of coastal development plans at coastal zones of Gangwon Province. Nearly 300km shoreline appears along the east coast of Gangwon Province. A few beaches are under the control of military forces to keep citizens away. The coastal zone named Donghaean is composed of three major watershed zones. The beaches in this area are heavily influenced by the presence of coastal prevention projects including groins, detached breakwaters and seawall. Dataset of shorelines and beach profiles is consequently stored by the developed monitoring system and used to interpret the consequences of past events, while the beach diagnostic system is developed to predict the impact of future ones. This system covers a large coastal stretch divided into 20 watershed sectors for littoral analysis. One-dimensional inverse method and new sediment transport model (diffraction effects included) are used as a main tool to analyze and predict shoreline changes, respectively. In addition, two types of morphological models are also employed to investigate the more detailed seabed changes in the vicinity of fishery ports or river inlets.


Objective
Topical therapies remain the mainstay in treating patients with acne and rosacea. However, emerging real-world evidence demonstrates that desired treatment outcomes might not be achieved if patient satisfaction and adherence are low. Poor tolerability of active drug(s) and vehicle components and/or the drug delivery system could negatively influence adherence. Additionally, adherence might be lower with complex treatment regimens involving the application of multiple topical formulations. Optimizing vehicle tolerability and simplifying regimens that use fixed-dose combinations may improve treatment outcomes, better patient satisfaction, and reduce overall treatment costs. This qualitative review discusses several innovative drug delivery technologies and formulations aimed at improving patient satisfaction and adherence.

Methods
The authors conducted a search of current and emerging topical drug delivery technologies used in clinical studies, reviewed primary literature on the chemical characteristics of topical dosage forms, and compared the impacts on treatment outcomes for acne and rosacea.

Results
This article provides insight into innovative vehicles and drug delivery systems that have emerged allowing for fixed-dose combinations of incompatible active drugs and improving the tolerability of historically irritative active ingredients.

Limitations
Further research is needed to fully highlight the impact of patient satisfaction and modern topical formulations on adherence and treatment outcomes.

Conclusion
Drug microencapsulation is a delivery technology that has enabled development of a topical fixed-dose combination of benzoyl peroxide and tretinoin preventing the oxidation of tretinoin by benzoyl peroxide and improving the tolerability of the active ingredients.


The editors of the Federal Sentencing Reporter asked a number of experts on sentencing in 2008 to write short pieces on what they expected after a "change" election. In 2010 the editors asked: what changed? Judge Wolff's response, which concentrates on the states, is that the states' dire financial conditions and the effect of the California marijuana legalization proposition, which gathered serious support but failed, have affected the public's perceptions of sentencing policy. The public and their representatives are trying more to be smart on crime rather than tough on crime, and the public is becoming increasingly skeptical of the war on drugs.


Smart nano-texture materials and their applications to engineering problems (e.g. flows in microchannels, drug delivery, cooling of hot surfaces in microelectronics) attract growing attention of the research community and are in the focus of the present work. In particular, in this work by using radical copolymerization, stimuli-responsive copolymers with an enhanced longevity in aqueous surroundings were successfully prepared. Non-woven, nanotextured smart materials of these novel copoloymers are of interest for such applications as micro- and nanofluidics, disposable wipers, drug carriers, and tissue engineering. In addition, the stimuli-responsive copolymer was grafted at the inner walls of glass microcapillaries, and thermo-responsive, on-demand regulation of water flow rate in such microcapillaries was studied. The second part of the work is devoted to drop impact onto electrospun nanofiber mats as a way for enhanced heat removal in spray cooling. In the context of spray cooling, macroscopically long copper, nickel, silver and gold nanofiber mats and nanotubes were produced as the additional means of heat transfer enhancement. The third part of the work is devoted to development of electrospun and solution blown three-dimensional carbon fiber nonwovens and their application as electrodes in microbial fuel cells and Li-ions batteries. The electrospun three-dimensional carbon fiber nonwovens could also be decorated with poly(furfuryl alcohol)-derived carbon nanoparticles and tetraethylorthosilicate-derived silica nanoparticles. Also, this work extended to the development of solution blown soy protein nanofibers and their application as an antibacterial material.


Background and Objectives : Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a subtype of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) that accounts for more than 90% of HNSCC. Smoking, chewing betel quid and alcohol consumption has been reported as major risk factors for OSCC. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), an oncogenic DNA virus is responsible for causing different types of cancer such as Burkitt's lymphoma, gastric carcinoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. To explore the association of EBV with OSCC, this study investigated the prevalence of EBV infection in oral exfoliated cells of case-control study of OSCC. Methods : Oral exfoliated cells collected from OSCC cases and controls with normal healthy mucosa were extracted for DNA and qualified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using housekeeping gene primers. The qualified DNA was detected for EBV-DNA using PCR. The PCR product from EBV positive cases were confirmed by dot blot hybridization using EBV specific probe and nested PCR using specific primers. Results : Tongue was the most common site of these OSCC cases. The prevalence of EBV in OSCC cases (44%) was statistically significant different from control (19%). According to anatomical site of lesion among OSCC cases, prevalence of EBV was highest in gum cancer cases (85.7%). Conclusions : This result demonstrates the association of EBV with OSCC and suggests that EBV may be an etiological risk factor for OSCC. The mechanism behind the etiologic role of EBV in OSCC must be further studied . Key words : Epstein-Barr virus, Oral squamous cell carcinoma


Virtually anything can be used to make original typography: flora, fauna, foodstuffs even mens underwear. Whats more, once you start looking, it is impossible not to see letters everywhere, in natural, artificial and urban environments. A celebration of the world of letters, The Typographic Universe features more than 300 examples of unusual letterforms, either created from non-traditional materials or found in unexpected places. From deliberate inventions aromatic alphabets made of spaghetti, soup or spices, or contorted typefaces styled out of human handprints to serendipitous and often short-lived discoveries letters formed by chemtrails in the sky, by negative spaces between trees branches and city buildings, or by cracks in plaster to fading ghost types painted on buildings in a pre-digital age, this typographic scavenger hunt will excite and inspire graphic designers, typographers and anyone who shares the current popular fascination with the wonderful world of typography.


Introduction: Spontaneous abortion (SA) is a common complication of pregnancy. Presence of lupus anticoagulant (LA), one of the antiphospholipid antibodies, has been associated with SA in many studies, especially in Caucasians. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of LA in women with SA in ABUTH, Zaria. Materials and Methods: A cohort of 100 consecutive women presenting with SA with no history of thrombotic episodes were enrolled into the study. Prothrombin time (PT), kaolin clotting time (KCT), and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) were conducted on samples of all the participants. Eight patients had prolonged APTT, and after a 50:50 mixture of their plasma with pooled control plasma, four (50%) had uncorrected APTT. Staclot® (a hexagonal-phase phospholipid) test and calculated Rosner index for prolonged KCT were used for the confirmation of LA in samples with uncorrected APTT after mixing studies. Results: We analyzed 100 women with one or more SA with a mean age of 31.0 ± 3.8 years. Nearly 4% and 3% of the participants were LA positive with Staclot® and KCT tests, respectively. Patients with LA were more likely to have had a past history of preeclampsia/eclampsia, small for gestational age deliveries, and previous SA (prevalence odds ratio [95% confidence interval]) of 1.9 (0.2, 20.1), 3.2 (0.3, 34.3), and 1.4 (0.1–13.6), respectively. The PT, APTT, and KCT were significantly prolonged in patients with LA (P ≤ 0.001 for each, respectively). Conclusion: LA may be one of the causes of SA and other adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preeclampsia/eclampsia and small for date deliveries. It is recommended that patients with prolonged APTT, uncorrected with 50:50 mixing study with pooled control plasma, should be evaluated further for LA.


In recent years, hybrid organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells (PVSCs) have emerged as leading candidates for next-generation photovoltaic technologies. The architecture of PVSCs rely on charge transport layers to enable optimal efficiency and stability. In particular, tin oxide (SnO2) has been shown to be an effective electron transport layer (ETL) due to favorable energy level alignment, relatively wide band gap, and high environmental and thermal stability. However, traditional processing of SnO2 necessitates a high-temperature and/or long-duration sintering step that limits substrate choice and introduces manufacturing challenges. To overcome this limitation, we present here a rapid, low-temperature, solution-based method for SnO2 film fabrication based on intense pulsed photonic annealing. Following a comprehensive survey of the precursor solution and photonic annealing conditions, light exposure as short as 20 milliseconds is shown to provide a high-quality nanocrystalline SnO2 film at room temperature, enabling PVSCs with low hysteresis and high power conversion efficiencies exceeding 15%. Overall, this work establishes a processing pathway for SnO2-based PVSCs that is compatible with flexible substrates and high-throughput, roll-to-roll manufacturing.


The proximity effects of microstrip lines near a substrate's edge present a problem for effectively designing high-packing-density MMICs (monolithic microwave integrated circuits). Proximity effects of this type are analyzed using the rectangular boundary division method. It is assumed that the cross-sectional dimensions of transmission lines in the MMICs are small compared with the wavelengths to allow the use of the quasi-TEM-wave approximation. Then, the concept of edge-compensated microstrip lines to keep the characteristic impedance constant near a substrate edge is introduced to circumvent the proximity effects and to expand the interconnection flexibility of microstrip lines on MMIC substrates. The practical design parameters of edge-compensated 50- Omega microstrip lines are given in the form of numerical data and simple polynomials for CASD (computer-aided design) work with a curve-fitting procedure. Results of capacitance measurements are compared with this theory with errors of about 1% resulting. >


Most people claim that health is an important prerequisite for a happy life. Our society puts much effort into promoting a healthy lifestyle, prevention and timely risk detection. After all, prevention is better than cure. The increased attention to health and the strong focus on prevention, risk reduction and risk avoidance have their downsides, as Ivan Illich already pointed out in the nineteen-seventies. Overdiagnosis, overtreatment and the transformation of many everyday complaints and phenomena into abnormalities lead to medicalisation. In 2013, this trend was reason for the BMJ to start their 'Too much medicine' campaign. Steering between too much medicine and too little medicine requires helmsmanship from doctors; correcting unrealistic expectations, alleviating unnecessary health worries and promoting resilience are all important in the promotion of normalisation.


Spot blotch caused by Bipolaris sorokiniana is an important disease of wheat in warmer and humid weather conditions, whose control relies mainly on chemical antifungal agents. The purpose of this work were to isolate bacteria strains with antifungal activity against B. sorokiniana; to select the best inhibitor and to evaluate the best growth conditions for the antifungal production; and to test its action in vivo. The bacterial strains were pre-screened against four B. sorokiniana isolates on plates containing Sabouraud maltose agar. The isolate that showed the best result was grown on different culture media, cells were filtrated and the filtrates were tested against B.sorokiniana on plates with PDA medium. The in vivo test was done on wheat seeds, infected with B. sorokiniana isolate on a chamber with controlled temperature. Bacillus E164 was chosen among the 86 bacterial isolates tested against the phytopathogen. The filtrate from Bacillus E164 grown on tryptic casein soy broth (TSB) and straw culture media showed a similar degree of inhibition against the phytopathogen, the same result was not observed with malt extract broth media. The filtrate culture showed activity similar to control being submitted to temperatures from 50- 90oC. The in vivo test with isolate E164 caused morphological effects on wheat plants with a significant root length reduction. Control exerted by Bacillus E164 over B. sorokiniana isolates was relevant in vitro, nevertheless the influence and importance of the metabolites produced must be elucidated for the application in vivo.


We numerically study the dynamics after a parameter quench in the one-dimensional transverse -field Ising model with long-range interactions (alpha 1/r(alpha) with distance r), for finite chains and also directly in the thermodynamic limit. In nonequilibrium, i.e., before the system settles into a thermal state, we find a long-lived regime that is characterized by a prethermal value of the magnetization, which in general differs from its thermal value. We find that the ferromagnetic phase is stabilized dynamically: as a function of the quench parameter, the prethermal magnetization shows a transition between a symmetry -broken and a symmetric phase, even for those values of alpha for which no finite -temperature transition occurs in equilibrium. The dynamical critical point is shifted with respect to the equilibrium one, and the shift is found to depend on alpha as well as on the quench parameters.


A child often learns to ride a bicycle in the driveway, free of unforeseen obstacles. Yet when she first rides in the street, we hope that if a car suddenly pulls out in front of her, she will combine her innate goal of avoiding an accident with her learned knowledge of the bicycle, and steer away or brake. In general, when we train to perform a new motor task, our learning is most robust if it updates the rules of online error correction to reflect the rules and goals of the new task. Here we provide direct evidence that, after a new feedforward motor adaptation, motor feedback responses to unanticipated errors become precisely task appropriate, even when such errors were never experienced during training. To study this ability, we asked how, if at all, do online responses to occasional, unanticipated force pulses during reaching arm movements change after adapting to altered arm dynamics? Specifically, do they change in a task-appropriate manner? In our task, subjects learned novel velocity-dependent dynamics. However, occasional force-pulse perturbations produced unanticipated changes in velocity. Therefore, after adaptation, task-appropriate responses to unanticipated pulses should compensate corresponding changes in velocity-dependent dynamics. We found that after adaptation, pulse responses precisely compensated these changes, although they were never trained to do so. These results provide evidence for a smart feedback controller which automatically produces responses specific to the learned dynamics of the current task. To accomplish this, the neural processes underlying feedback control must (1) be capable of accurate real-time state prediction for velocity via a forward model and (2) have access to recently learned changes in internal models of limb dynamics.


It shall be the purpose of the writer to prepare program material appropriate for school use which will interest, instruct and contribute toward mutual understanding of both the Latin-American and Anglo-American child. This program material has been incorporated into ten musical plays, the themes, dances and songs of which have been gleaned from a great amount of reading material, stories related by Mexican people, legends told by pioneer Anglo residents of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, and ideas that have been presented by students. It is the purpose of the writer to organize this material into plays which may be of service to any teacher who intends to present a program, in the intermediate grades, dealing with some phase of Latin and Anglo-American relations.


This study takes the ventilation into consideration, making the active building envelope (ABE) system more close to the realistic application conditions. The ABE system is comprised of a photovoltaic unit (PV unit) and a thermoelectric heat pump unit (TE unit). The PV unit consists of photovoltaic cells, which convert solar radiation energy into electrical energy. The TE unit consists of thermoelectric heaters/coolers (referred to here onwards as TE coolers), which convert electrical energy into thermal energy, or the reverse. The PV and the TE units are integrated within the overall ABE enclosure. The new mechanism of a hybrid system was proposed. A ducted wind turine will be integrated with the ABE system becoming dual core. Then the analytic model of original ABE system has to be revised and analytic solution will be resulted and verified by the numerical solution of CFD. The ducted wind mill will provide air conditioning and power the ABE system, to higher the thermal efficiency of the heat sinks of TE system. Numerical and experimental works will be investigated. a building installed the ABE system wind, solar driven, bypass the windmill flow as a air flow, ambient temperature, To is equal to 35 oC and indoor temperature, Ti is 28 oC. Numerical results show the Ti will decrease 2 oC when the ABE operating with heat sinks, without fan. As fan is opened, strong convective heat transfer, Ti will decrease approximately 4 to 5 oC. We hope findings of this study can make the dream of healthy living comfortable room come true.


The aim of this paper is to contribute to the discussion on the anticipated long-term impact of the post-crisis regulatory environment on bank stability and efficiency, with a focus on Central and Eastern European (CEE) banks. The main research question is whether relatively stable CEE banks, operating in an unstable global environment, will be negatively affected by post-crisis European regulatory architecture. To answer this question, this paper analyses how CEE banks performed in two different periods: the pre-crisis period of dynamic credit market expansion and the period of global economic slowdown after 2008 crisis. Bank efficiency and performance is measured using DEA methodology, competitive conditions? measures (H-statistics) and Z-score index.


In this paper, step-by-step three-dimensional dynamic model of one-wheel robot is presented. The robot consists of one wheel and double inverted pendulum, under the assumption: the wheel rolling on a flat surface without slipping and the double inverted pendulum have negligible moments. As a first step in controlling this highly coupled, dynamically unstable, nonlinear system, linearizing the nonlinear system around equilibrium point, a linearized version of the one wheel robot has been obtained. Then, state feedback LQR controller is designed and implemented. In order to verify the validity of the proposed model, numerical simulations are presented.


Single-crystalline anatase TiO2 nanofibers with highly reactive {001} facets were synthesized from layered potassium titanate K2Ti2O5via topotactic transformation in ion-exchange and dehydration. The cuboid fibers showed one-dimensional (1-D) orientation in the [010] direction and {001} as well as {100} facets enclosing along the longitudinal dimension. The structural evolution was deduced from XRD, SEM and TEM characterizations, which revealed that the highly reactive {001} facets were derived from the interlayer splitting and exfoliation of the layered precursors in a surfactant-free way. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements witnessed the efficient separation and transfer of photoinduced charge carriers in the single-crystalline and reactive facets enclosed TiO2 nanofibers. Sequently, highly efficient photocatalytic property of the nanofibers was demonstrated by phenol degradation and H2 evolution. Phenol degradation rate of nanofibers is 2.7 times of the irregular-shaped nanoparticle counterparts with the same crystal phase and similar specific surface area. In photocatalytic evolution of H2, nanofibers presented much higher and more stable activity than both nanoparticle counterparts and P25 benchmark. Charge carrier highways provided by single-crystalline 1-D structures and efficient surface reactivity offered by exposed facets are the two key factors for the enhanced properties.


This research examined the effects of two rearing systems (conventional versus free-range) on carcass characteristics, and cholesterol content, chemical and fatty acid properties of the backfat from Mangalitsa pigs. Depending on the rearing system utilized and live weight observed, we found important differences in the heaviness of the cold and warm Mangalitsa carcasses. The maximum total cholesterol in the backfat of pigs reared outdoors was 46.96 mg kg-1, while the maximum total cholesterol in backfat of conventionally-raised Mangalitsa pigs was 55.80 mg kg-1. The backfat from free-ranging Mangalitsa pigs contained lower levels of PUFA n-6 and greater amounts of PUFA n-3. The ratio of PUFA/SFA was remarkably different in pigs raised in the two systems, whereas the ratio of MUFA/SFA was lower in the pigs reared outdoors. Based on these results, the selection of rearing system could affect the chemical properties and carcass characteristics of Mangalitsa backfat.


Suburbanization is one of the most prominent processes of post-socialist urban development, leading to the deconcentration of people, capital, as well as productive and non-productive activities within the functional urban area. This phenomenon also has a significant impact on the traditional rural landscape and leads to environmental and social sustainability challenges. Outmigration from the city center to the rural municipalities of the agglomeration ring is already a thoroughly studied topic. However, less attention is given to migration processes not crossing municipal borders. In Hungary, a significant fraction of them is driven by similar motivations as "traditional" suburbanization. Such movements include flows to built-up residential areas that are physically separated from the urban core. Due to their peculiar development path, the inhabited outskirts can also become destinations for within-city migration. This kind of mobility can be considered suburbanization within the city limits. Because of the general lack of data, this phenomenon is seldom researched. However, this study attempts to address this gap. The prevalence of this process in Hungary is explored by analyzing national statistical data sources. Four case studies are selected for detailed examination—Győr, Zalaegerszeg, Kecskemét, and Szeged. GIS methods, field examinations, surveys, and expert interviews are used to get a detailed picture of the demographic and land cover change processes, as well as the distinctions between the destination areas of the case studies. A comparison of the results drawn from the different methods reveals that land use change in the study area is more widespread than what the land cover datasets indicate. The findings indicate that the Corine Land Cover categories describing mixed land use—especially complex cultivation patterns—are not able to capture the drastic function shift caused by intense suburbanization. Different environmental and social sustainability issues are identified depending on the economic status of the outmigrants. This paper also sheds some light on the urban planning considerations of this emerging challenge.


Two-picosecond, 10-microm pulses, generated by optical semiconductor switching, have been regeneratively amplified in a multiatmosphere TE CO(2) gain module. Pulses have been produced with a peal circulating energy of ~15 mJ and a power density in the gain medium in excess of 10(12) W/cm(2). A plasma-breakdown wave, traveling with the regeneratively amplified pulse, combined with anomalous dispersion in the NaCl windows, has permitted compression of these pulses to less than 1 psec in duration.


Climate resilience is the ability to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to hazardous events, trends, or disturbances related to climate (C2ES, 2022). Mitigation focuses on reducing the human impacts contributing to climate change (Burton, 2007, cited in Rousell & Cutter-Mackenzie-Knowles, 2020). Adaptation is about increasing people's adaptive capacity, reducing the vulnerability of communities and managing risks (Anderson, 2012). Anderson further defines adaptation as not just being able to adapt from one stable climate to another but having the skills to adapt to uncertainty and make informed decisions in a changing environment. While 'climate change' is the term used throughout these briefs, it should be read as a shorthand for a more inclusive approach, which also captures associated environmental degradation. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned, in their latest report, that global surface temperatures will continue to increase until 2050 (IPCC, 2021, p. 17). This will take place regardless of human intervention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The report also warns that the traditional technocratic approaches are insufficient to tackle the challenge of climate change, and that greater focus on the structural causes is needed. High- and upper-middle-income countries have been persistently shown to be the biggest contributors to the global carbon dioxide emissions, with lower income countries facing the most disruptive climate hazards, with Africa countries particularly vulnerable (CDP, 2020; IPCC, 2021). The vulnerability of low-income contexts exacerbates this risk, as there is often insufficient infrastructure and resources to ensure resilience to climate hazards (IPCC, 2021). For decades, advocates of climate change education have been highlighting the potential of education to help mitigate against climate change, and support adaptation efforts. However, implementation has been patchy, with inconsistent approaches and a lack of evidence to help determine the most effective way forward.This paper is divided into three sections, drawing together evidence on the key aspects of system reform,green and resilient infrastructure and Curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and teacher development.


Jeremy Carrette argues that the psychology of religion is no longer sustainable without a social critique, and that as William James predicted, the project of the modernist psychology of religion has failed. Controversially, he champions greater social and philosophical analysis within the field to challenge the political naivety and disciplinary illusions of the traditional approaches to psychology of religion. Carrette discusses the relevance of the social and economic factors surrounding the debates of psychology and religion, through three critical examples: psychoanalysis; humanistic psychology; and, cognitive neuroscience. "A Critical Psychology of Religion" provides a new dimension to the debates surrounding religious experience. It will be of interest to students and researchers in the fields of critical psychology, religious experience and the psychology of religion and extends an interdisciplinary challenge to the separation of psychology, sociology, politics, economics and religion.


Multi-Processor Systems on a Chip (MPSoCs) are suitable platforms for the implementation of complex embedded applications. An MPSoC is composable if the functional and temporal behaviour of each application is independent of the absence or presence of other applications. Composability is required for application design and analysis in isolation, and integration with linear effort. In this paper we propose a composable organisation for the top level of a memory hierarchy. This organisation preserves the short (one cycle) access time desirable for a processor's frequent local accesses and enables the predictability demanded by real-time applications. We partition the local memory in two blocks, one private, for local tile data, and another shared for inter-tile data communication. To avoid application interference, we instantiate one such shared local memory block and an Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) for each application running on the processor. We implement this organisation on an MPSoC with two processors on an FPGA. On this platform we execute a composition of applications consisting of a JPEG decoder, and a synthetic application. Our experiments indicate that an application's timing is not affected by the behaviour of another application, thus composability is achieved. Moreover, the utilisation of the RDMA component leads to 45% performance increase on average for a number of workloads covering a large range of communication/computation ratios.


Background and aims To analyse the predictive value of megakaryocyte counts in bone marrow (BM-MK) for determining the therapeutic response of severe thrombocytopenia (TP) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methods Thirty-five patients with SLE with severe TP (platelet count ≤50 ×109/l) from the Peking Union Medical College Hospital admitted between 2007 and 2014 with appreciable bone marrow aspiration results were analysed retrospectively. The associations between therapeutic response and clinical manifestations, laboratory findings including BM-MK counts, were evaluated. Results Seventeen (49%) and 8 (23%) patients achieved a complete response (CR) and a partial response (PR), respectively, and 10 had no response (NR). The BM-MK counts in each group were 102±25 (0–322), 136±48 (2–419), and 28±12 (0–105) per slide, respectively. Significant differences were observed in the counts of BM-MK between patients who achieved a clinical response (CR + PR) and those who did not (NR; p=0.007). Patients in the NR group exhibited fewer BM-MK compared with those in the CR and PR groups (p=0.017 and p=0.006, respectively). A receiver-operation characteristic analysis identified that a cutoff value of BM-MK counts at 20 performed pretty well in discriminating patients with differential responses to immunotherapy, with sensitivity and specificity and area under the curve of 88%, 70%, and 0.798, respectively. Conclusions BM-MK count may serve as a good predicting factor for immunotherapeutic response in patients with SLE with severe TP. Patients with BM-MK counts <20 per slide tend to exhibit poor clinical response.


The term Focus Dependency describes an important phenomenon at the syntax-semantics interface: Elided material can exhibit bound-variable-like behavior when its antecedent is a focussed phrase in the same sentence. In the past, focus dependency has been analyzed as actual binding or by means of copying. This paper presents a new account of focus dependency that relies on the syntactic idea of structure-sharing. Structure-sharing allows sub-phrases to be syntactically linked to more than one position of a phrase marker. The proposal better explains focus dependency than existing accounts considering data from sentence-boundedness, insensitivity to c-command, extraction from the focus-dependent material, and the formal link to the antecedent. It also achieves a theoretical unification with other phenomena where structure sharing has been made use of, specifically movement.