In the UK, belief, and faith are protected under the legal frame of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) and the Equality Act 2010 (Perfect 2016, 11), in which a person is given the right to hold a religion or belief and the right to change their religion or belief. It also gives them a right to show that belief as long as the display or expression does not interfere with public safety, public order, health or morals, or the rights and freedoms of others (Equality Act 2010). The Equality Act 2010 protects employees from discrimination, harassment and victimisation because of religion or belief. Religion or belief are mainly divided into religion and religious belief, and philosophical belief (Equality Act 2010, chap. 1). The Dialogue Society supports the Equality Act 2010 (Perfect 2016, 11). Consequently, The Dialogue Society believes we have a duty to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations within our organisation and society. The Dialogue Society aims to promote equality and human rights by empowering people and bringing social issues to light. To this end, we have organised many projects, research, courses, scriptural reasoning readings/gatherings, and panel discussions specifically on interfaith dialogue, having open conversations around belief and religion. To encourage dialogue, interaction and cooperation between people working on interreligious dialogue and to demonstrate good interfaith relations and dialogue are integral and essential for peace and social cohesion in our society, the Dialogue Society has been a medium, facilitating a platform to all from faith and non-faith backgrounds. The Dialogue Society thrives on being more inclusive to those who might be overlooked in society as a group. Although women seem to be in the core of society as an essential element, the women who contravene the monotype identity tend to remain in the shadows. The media is not just used to get information but also used as a way of having a sense of belonging by the audience. The media creates collective imaginary identities for public opinion. It gathers the audience under one consensus and creates an identity for the people who share this consensus. Hence, a form of media functions as a medium for identity creation and representation. Therefore, the production and reproduction of stereotypes and a monotype representation of women and women of faith in media content are the primary sources of the public's general attitudes towards women of faith. In the context of this report, the media limits not only women's gender but also their religious identity. The monotype identity of women opposes the plurality of the concept of women. Notably, media outlets are criticised for not recognising the differences in women's identities. Women of faith are susceptible to the lack of representation or misrepresentation and get stuck between the roles constructed for their gender and religion. Women who do not fit in these policies' stereotypes get misrepresented or disregarded by the media. Moreover, policymakers also limit their scope to a single monotype of women's identity when policies are made, creating a public consensus around women of faith. As both these mediums lack representation or have very symbolic and distorted representations of women of faith, we strive to provide a platform for all women from faith and non-faith backgrounds. The Dialogue Society has organised women-only community events for women of faith to have a bottom-up approach, including interfaith knitting, reading, and cooking clubs. Several women-only courses have informed women of the importance of interfaith dialogue, promoting current best practices, and identifying and promoting promising future possibilities. We have hosted panel discussions and held women-only interfaith circles where women from different faith backgrounds came together to discuss boundaries within religion and what they believed to transgress their boundaries. Consequently, we organised a panel series to focus on the roles of women of faith within different areas of society, aiming to highlight their unique individual and shared experiences and bring to light issues of inequality that impact women of faith. Although women of faith exist within all areas of society, we chose to explore women's experiences within three different settings to give a breadth of understanding about women of faith's interactions within society. Therefore, we held a panel series titled 'Women of Faith', including three panels, each focusing on a particular area: Women of Faith in Community, Women of Faith in Public Service, and Women of Faith in Media. In this report, following the content analysis method to systematically sort the information gathered by the panel series, we have written a series of recommendations to address these issues in media and policymaking. This paper has a section on specific policy recommendations for those in decision-making positions in the community, public service, and media, according to the content and findings gathered. This report aims to initiate and provide interactive and transferable advice and guidance to those in a position. The policy paper gives insight to social workers, teachers, council members, liaison officers, academics and relevant stakeholders, policymakers, and people who wish to understand more about empowering women of faith and hearing their experiences. It also aims to inspire ongoing efforts and further action to accelerate the achievement of complete freedom of faith, gender equality in promoting, recommending, and implementing direct top-level policies for faith and gender equality, and ensuring that existing policies are gender-sensitive and practices are safe from gender-based and faith-based discrimination for women of faith. Finally, this report is to engage and illustrate the importance of allyship, the outstanding achievement through dialogue based on real-life experience, and facilitate resilient relationships among people of different religious positions. We call upon every reader of this report to join the efforts of the Dialogue Society in promoting an equal society for women of faith.


Introduction Sleep has different patterns followed worldwide and can be influenced by social, cultural, and environmental factors. Daytime napping is commonly practiced in different parts of the world with controversial results of its effect on glucose metabolism. The current study aims to examine the association of afternoon napping and night sleep duration with metabolic derangements. Methods This is a cross-sectional study involving young adults and middle-aged subjects. Anthropometric measurements were taken for height and weight and hip and waist ratio. Consented subjects were asked to wear actigraphy for 1 week and run their usual daily activities. Home sleep apnea testing was performed to exclude obstructive sleep apnea. Subjects had been asked to come fasting on day seven for blood collection to test for fasting glucose, glycated hemoglobin, lipid profile, and insulin. Results A total of 405 subjects were involved to complete the study (52% male, 48% female). The mean age of participants was 32.8 ± 11.5 years. The study indicated that the duration of afternoon napping was significantly associated with abnormal glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c > 5.7%) (p = 0.01) and body mass index (p = 0.046) independent of age, gender, and nocturnal sleep duration. Nocturnal sleep duration was associated with increased insulin level (p = 0.04). Conclusion Afternoon napping is associated with an increased level of glycated hemoglobin and obesity and that may predispose to the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus.


Wavelet-domain hidden Markov models have proven to be useful tools for statistical signal and image processing. The hidden Markov tree (HMT) model captures the key features of the joint statistics of the wavelet coefficients of real-world data. One potential drawback to the HMT framework is the need for computationally expensive iterative training (using the EM algorithm, for example). We use an image structure not yet recognized by the HMT to show that the HMT parameters of real-world, grayscale images have a certain form. This leads to a description of the HMT model with just nine meta-parameters (independent of the size of the image and the number of wavelet scales). We also observe that these nine meta-parameters are similar for many images. This leads to a universal HMT (uHMT) model for grayscale images. Algorithms using the uHMT require no training of any kind. While simple, a series of image estimation/denoising experiments show that the uHMT retains nearly all of the key structures modeled by the full HMT. Based on the uHMT model, we develop a shift-invariant wavelet denoising scheme that outperforms all algorithms in the current literature.


This paper examines the role of prayer, in the relationship between individuals and God, as expressive of human dignity. Humanity's role within creation as 'imago dei' is most perfectly expressed and put into action through the prayer of the believer. The Incarnation is central to this claim, as through it Christ becomes the central model of life in the image and likeness of God for all humanity. In him one sees the life given over to continuous relationship with God, serving through his prayer at all times. Living out this relationship, which is most fully achieved through prayer, becomes a universal vocation, the goal of our lives, fulfilling our humanity and role within creation.In support of this view, this paper analyzes Hans Urs Von Balthasar's Prayer. He roots his argument for pursuing prayer in the experience of the Son and presents it as the model through which we can be saved. Christ, through the Incarnation, becomes the recapitulator, the paradigmatic human who we are called to emulate and mirror. In our changing religious and political climate, there is a renewed need in the Church for Christians to pursue and live this vocation to prayer. Two scripture sources, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 and Luke 11:8-10, offer instruction on the way we can fulfill our human dignity with prayer. Read together, they reveal two paths: prayer as service and prayer as a persistent act. The goal of our lives on earth and our fulfillment as imago dei is found in prayer as contemplation, service, and an unceasing relationship with God.


Abstract Three new isochromenes, (5-methoxy-7-prenyl-1H-isochromen-3-yl)methanol (1), 3-(3-(hydroxymethyl)-5-methoxy-1H-isochromen-7-yl)propan-1-ol (2), and (5-methoxy-7-methyl-1H-isochromen-3-yl)methanol (3), along with three known analogues (4–6) were isolated from the fermentation products of a Nicotiana tabacum-derived endophytic fungus Aspergillus versicolor. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods, including extensive 1 D and 2 D NMR techniques. Compounds 1–3 and 6 were evaluated for their anti-tobacco mosaic virus (anti-TMV) activities. The results showed that compound 2 exhibited high anti-TMV activity with inhibition rate of 46.4%, and this rate is higher than that of positive control. Compounds 1, 3, and 6 also showed potential anti-TMV activity with inhibition rates of 28.6, 30.5, and 26.2%, respectively. The IC50 of compounds 1–3 and 6 were also tested, and showed IC50 values of 49.3, 22.4, 42.2, and 54.1 µM, respectively. Graphical Abstract


Showing the contradictions in the physics calculations using the equations of the classical theory of gravitation. Alternatively, investigate the physical properties of space objects on the basis of the theory of vortex gravitation, cosmology and cosmogony. The obtained results allow us to evaluate and compare the above objective, physical theories.


This report presents the conclusions reached and recommendations made by the members of the WHO Study Group on Tobacco Product Regulation (TobReg) at its seventh meeting, in December 2013, during which it reviewed background papers specially commissioned for the meeting, which dealt, respectively, with the following four themes: Novel tobacco products, including potential reduced exposure products Smokeless tobacco products: research needs and regulatory recommendations Reduced ignition propensity cigarettes: research needs and regulatory recommendations Non-exhaustive priority list of toxic contents and emissions of tobacco products. The Study Group's recommendations in relation to each theme are set out at the end of the section dealing with that theme; its overall recommendations are summarized in Chapter 6.


This paper shows that the way diversity is considered will have different effects in an organizational setting. A pilot study has been performed in order to investigate the relationship between diversity perceptions and organizational performance perceptions by making use of the diversity typology set out by Harrison and Klein (2007) based on variety, separation, and disparity. However, this pilot study has several limitations and more advanced research needs to be conducted in order to show how diversity types can have different effects. The data were gathered by means of a questionnaire filled out by managers from various Dutch organizations (N = 291). The pilot study showed that employee diversity can have different effects in an organization depending on how this diversity is considered; for example, employee diversity considered as levels of status may have a negative effect, while employee diversity considered as different levels of expertise can have a positive effect. The way diversity is perceived by managers in an organizational setting can have important relations with how organizational performance is perceived by those managers. The paper implies to show that employee diversity can have a variety of effects in the workplace depending on how employee diversity is considered. This knowledge may help to increase positive effects of diversity in the workplace when managers need to deal with diversity and improve organizational outcomes.


: Doxorubicin is one of the most commonly used antineoplastic agents today. Dosing schedules are inexact and there remains a need to develop predictive models for its administration. Data from prior work in humans is difficult to interpret because of poor patient selection, poor drug assays, lack of knowledge of metabolite toxicity, concurrent treatment with other hepatically metabolized drugs, and individual pharmacogenetics which are poorly described. We have developed a rabbit model of in vivo drug pharmacokinetics in the setting of enzyme inhibition and sublethal hepatocellular necrosis. Our data suggest that the rabbit may be used as a model of hepatic drug metabolism and that changes in drug pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in isolated hepatic disease may be simulated in the rabbit. The results obtained may be applied in more directed and controlled studies in humans.


Extra charges in semiconductor nanocrystals are of paramount importance for their electrically driven optoelectronic and photovoltaic applications. Optical excitations of such charged nanocrystals lead to rapid recombination via an Auger process, which can deteriorate the performance of the corresponding devices. While numerous articles report trion Auger processes in negatively charged nanocrystals, optical studies of well-controlled positive charging of nanocrystals and detailed studies of positive trions remain rare. In this work, we used electrochemistry to achieve positive charging of CdSe nanocrystals, so-called quantum dots (QDs), in a controlled way. Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy was applied for in situ investigation of the charge carrier dynamics after optical excitation of the electrochemically charged QD assembly on TiO2. We observe that without bias (i.e., neutral QDs), subpicosecond hot carrier cooling is followed by multiple phases of the dynamics corresponding to electron injection and transfer to the TiO2. Positive charging first leads to activation of the hole traps close to the valence band maximum, which opens a rapid recombination channel of the optical excitation. A further increase in the positive bias interrupts the electron injection to TiO2, and if nanocrystals are positively charged, it leads to Auger relaxation in a few hundred picosecond timescale. This study represents a step toward the understanding of the effect of positive charging on the performance of semiconductor nanocrystals under conditions which closely mimic their potential applications.


This study discussed about Intan Special Library organization communication climate in terms of information flow and five dimensions of the communication climate namely support, decision making participation, openness, trust, and high performance goals. The purpose of this research was to understand and provide an overview of the communication climate of Intan Special Library and what factors influenced the climate formation. This research used qualitative approach with case study method. The results of this study indicated that the communication climate formed in the Intan library was a climate of communication that was not supportive / negative because it was dominated by the flow of "down information" (communication of superiors to subordinates). "Top-down" decision making caused employees to feel neglected. This situation was caused by communication in library management was a hierarchical relationship between superiors and subordinates. In addition, the existence of interests at echelon I level made policies that were not in accordance with the library staff's duties, that were car wash pickets and additional duties as a driver. This leads to feel of underappreciation and did not feel considered to be important person to the organization.


This paper summarizes the results of traditional image processing algorithms for detection of defects in concrete using images taken by Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs). Such algorithms are useful for improving the accuracy of crack detection during autonomous inspection of bridges and other structures, and they have yet to be compared and evaluated on a dataset of concrete images taken by UAS. The authors created a generic image processing algorithm for crack detection, which included the major steps of filter design, edge detection, image enhancement, and segmentation, designed to uniformly compare different edge detectors. Edge detection was carried out by six filters in the spatial (Roberts, Prewitt, Sobel, and Laplacian of Gaussian) and frequency (Butterworth and Gaussian) domains. These algorithms were applied to fifty images each of defected and sound concrete. Performances of the six filters were compared in terms of accuracy, precision, minimum detectable crack width, computational time, and noise-to-signal ratio. In general, frequency domain techniques were slower than spatial domain methods because of the computational intensity of the Fourier and inverse Fourier transformations used to move between spatial and frequency domains. Frequency domain methods also produced noisier images than spatial domain methods. Crack detection in the spatial domain using the Laplacian of Gaussian filter proved to be the fastest, most accurate, and most precise method, and it resulted in the finest detectable crack width. The Laplacian of Gaussian filter in spatial domain is recommended for future applications of real-time crack detection using UAS.


This thesis discusses the archaeological remains in the Etruscan bridge complex, found during the excavations at San Giovenale in 1959–1963, and 1999. The aim has been to reach a holistic perspective of the bridge complex with the bridge seen as a link between topography, economy, social relationships, politics, symbols and ritual, reflecting its importance for the whole community at San Giovenale and its surroundings. Situated at the border between the two largest city-states Tarquinia and Caere, the site seems to have been an important middle range transit town for foreign ideas, goods and people. The character of the remains and the various levels of contextual analyses made it possible to distinguish five distinctive functions for the structures at the bridge over the Pietrisco. From a more generalised point of view these suggested that specialized functions may be divided into practical, social and symbolic functions and these aspects have been of help in identifying an object or a structure. Besides practical functions of everyday use, economic and strategic functions have also been considered. These functions were more or less in use contemporaneously, at least during several hundred years, from about the middle of the 6th down to the first century B.C. Pottery and small finds show that some activity has taken place at the site from the 9th century. Features of continuity, such as in the choice of crossing, the direction of the bridge construction after its destruction, the architectural ground-plans, the use of basins and a well, pottery fabrics of local and Greek imports and shapes, as well as changes in ground-plans, slight changes in the environment due to water erosion, earth-quakes and slides, have been observed. The physical as well as the liminal boundary between land and water as well as between man and spirits was accentuated by the tufa building, the water installations, and the road at the northern abutment. The thesis raises the hypothesis that the Etruscans believed that a crossing of a river via a bridge could violate the spirits of nature on land and in the water and therefore special rites were needed to restore the balance between nature and man before entering the bridge in order to reach safely at the other side of the ravine. The bridge itself can be seen as sacred, a liminal area where time and space do not exist and a place where it is easy to gain contact with the supernatural world.


Motivation: One of the major bottlenecks with ab initio protein folding is an effective conformation sampling algorithm that can generate native-like conformations quickly. The popular fragment assembly method generates conformations by restricting the local conformations of a protein to short structural fragments in the PDB. This method may limit conformations to a subspace to which the native fold does not belong because (i) a protein with really new fold may contain some structural fragments not in the PDB and (ii) the discrete nature of fragments may prevent them from building a native-like fold. Previously we have developed a conditional random fields (CRF) method for fragment-free protein folding that can sample conformations in a continuous space and demonstrated that this CRF method compares favorably to the popular fragment assembly method. However, the CRF method is still limited by its capability of generating conformations compatible with a sequence. Results: We present a new fragment-free approach to protein folding using a recently invented probabilistic graphical model conditional neural fields (CNF). This new CNF method is much more powerful than CRF in modeling the sophisticated protein sequence-structure relationship and thus, enables us to generate native-like conformations more easily. We show that when coupled with a simple energy function and replica exchange Monte Carlo simulation, our CNF method can generate decoys much better than CRF on a variety of test proteins including the CASP8 free-modeling targets. In particular, our CNF method can predict a correct fold for T0496_D1, one of the two CASP8 targets with truly new fold. Our predicted model for T0496 is significantly better than all the CASP8 models. Contact: email@example.com


In offline environment, unlike traditional advertising model through TV, newspaper, and radio, online advertising model draws instantaneous responses from potential consumers and it is convenient to assess. This kind of characteristics of Internet advertising model has driven the growth of advertising model among various Internet business models. There are, conventionally classified, CPM (Cost Per Mile), CPC (Cost Per Click), and CPS (Cost Per Sales) models as Internet advertising expenditure model. These can be examined in manners regarding risks that stakeholders should stand and degree of responsibility. CPM model that is based on number of advertisement exposure is mechanically exposed to users but not actually recognized by users resulting in risk of wasted expenditure by advertisers without any advertising effect. While on aspect of media, CPS model that is based on conversion action is the most risky model because of the conversion action such as product purchase is determined by capability of advertisers not that of media. In this regard, while there are issue of CPM and CPS models disadvantageously affecting only one side of Internet advertising business model value network, CPC model has been evaluated as reasonable both to advertisers and media, and occupied the largest segment of Internet advertising market. However, CPC model also can cause fraudulent behavior such as click fraud because of the competition or dishonest amount of advertising expenditure. On the user aspect, unintentionally accessed advertisements can lead to more inappropriate expenditure from advertisers. In this paper, we suggest "CPCD" (Cost Per Coupon Download) model. This goes beyond simple clicking of advertisements and advertising expenditure is exerted when users download a coupon from advertisers, which is a concept in between CPC and CPS models. To achieve the purpose, we describe the scenario of advertiser perspective, processes, participants and their benefitsof CPCD model. Especially, we suggest the new value in online coupon; "possibility of storage" and "complement for delivery to the target group". We also analyze the working condition for advertiser by a comparison of CPC and CPCD models through advertising expenditure simulation. The result of simulation implies that the CPCD model suits more properly to advertisers with medium-low price products rather than that of high priced goods. This denotes that since most of advertisers in CPC model are dealing with medium-low priced products, the result is very interesting. At last, we contemplate applicability of CPCD model in ubiquitous environment.


Medieval outlaw tales often foreground the functions of food and feasting, especially the role these play in the creation of social bonds or in the establishment of social status. Think, for instance, of the lavish multi-course meal Robin sets before Sir Richard in A Gest of Robyn Hode. The Tale of Gamelyn, however, starkly contrasts such scenes. No swans, pheasants, or sweet-meats fill the lines of this ballad. Instead, a lack of detail characterizes its descriptions of food and feasts, as the ballad refers only occasionally to "mete and drink," "wyne," or, in the moment closest to the feasts of Gest, to the "two or thre" courses served during the banquet Gamelyn's brother hosts. Yet this is not to say that food and feasting are less important in Gamelyn than they are in other outlaw tales. Indeed, as this paper argues, here they are a motif that inextricably links the development of the ballad's protagonist to major thematic concerns such as justice and fellowship. Food and feasting act as social contracts—as tools of alliance (good and bad)—and as indicators of lawful and appropriate behaviour, especially behaviours connected to social norms concerning hospitality and generosity. In doing so, they also simultaneously highlight the importance of space within the social and legal systems and the problems that arise when the boundaries between domestic space (the feast hall) and civic space (the mote hall) blur. Through its protagonist and his engagement with food and feasts, the ballad restores the boundaries between the domestic and civic spaces, and stresses the superiority of the former over the latter. More importantly, although the ballad suggests that leadership skills and responsible behaviour are crucial to Gamelyn's various social roles, it ultimately demonstrates that social order rests upon traditional structures and the practice of primogeniture.


In the last decade there has been a trend towards family-centered intervention for children with disabilities in Sweden. However, most professionals are trained in child-focused intervention. The shift in the focus of intervention has made it necessary to train professionals in services for children with disabilities in a family context. This article discusses inservice training of professionals in habilitation services in family centered practices. The training has been implemented on an interdiciplinary team basis in the context of ordinary services. Inservice training is described as one of several options for improvement activities within an organization. Implications for educational needs assessment, preparatory work before training, implementation and evaluation of training, when the moderators of change are integrated into ordinary services is discussed.


The main objective of this paper is to study the effect of performance appraisal on workplace diversity in public universities in Kenya from the perspective of the senior administrators or managers of the administrative departments and the schools/faculties in order to provide empirical insights on the disparity in the workforce, which has been a challenge for the public universities' as they need to benefit from talented people with diverse backgrounds. The study adopted a research design being a descriptive cross sectional survey design. The sampling frame was the 22 chartered public universities out of which a sample size of 245 managers surveyed. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling. Correlation and regression analysis was used to determine relationships between the independent and the dependent variable. The study established that performance appraisal significantly affects workplace diversity.


This paper develops the identification and estimation of nonlinear semi-parametric panel data models with mismeasured variables and their corresponding average partial effects using only three periods of data. The past observables are used as instruments to control the measurement error problem, and the time averages of perfectly observed variables are used to restrict the unobserved individual-specific effect by a correlated random effects specification. The proposed approach relies on the Fourier transforms of several conditional expectations of observable variables. We then estimate the model via the semi-parametric sieve Generalized Method of Moments estimator. The finite-sample properties of the estimator are investigated through Monte Carlo simulations. We use our method to estimate the effect of the wage rate on labor supply using PSID.


For any finite collection $f_i$ of fully irreducible automorphisms of the free group $F_n$ we construct a connected $\delta$-hyperbolic $Out(F_n)$-complex in which each $f_i$ has positive translation length.


Plasma DNA is a valuable source of a wide range of molecular indicators that relate to the general condition and stage of cancer patients. However, continual patient monitoring and/or long-term studies require the use of archived plasma samples, frequently yielding a poor quality DNA upon storage. A restoration treatment was developed for plasma DNA that includes a pre-PCR incubation with Taq polymerase, dNTPs and 1× PCR buffer that improves the efficiency of subsequent PCRs. Pre-PCR treatment of isolated DNA resulted in superior PCR efficiency and sensitivity of detection both on a fresh plasma DNA isolate and on the plasma DNA isolates from 12 long-term archived plasma samples from lung cancer patients. This procedure allowed the recovery of a group of plasma samples considered otherwise useless. It is concluded that the quality of archived plasma DNA can be remarkably improved by subjecting the samples to a pre-PCR restoration treatment.

Human blood plasma from both healthy and sick individuals contains variable quantities of nucleic acids. The majority of the mechanisms proposed for its release from cells are related to cell death by necrosis or apoptosis, though active release has also been suggested.1,2 Patients suffering from different diseases where there is a clear increase in cell death have comparatively higher plasma DNA levels than healthy individuals.3,4 This phenomenon has been consistently observed in patients diagnosed with different cancers, whose plasma DNAs exhibit many genetic and epigenetic tumour DNA alterations, such as Ras and p53 mutations5–8 or microsatellite instability.9,10 This trait make plasma DNA a valuable diagnostic source for the assessment of different genetic alterations in tumours and is probably correlated with the general condition of the patient and the treatment response.4,7,11

Large clinical studies must often be performed on archived plasma samples …


Most available remote eye gaze trackers based on pupil center corneal reflection (PCCR) technique have two characteristics that prevent them from being widely used as an important computer input device for human computer interaction. First, they must often be calibrated repeatedly for each individual; second, they have low tolerance for head movements and require the user to hold the head uncomfortably still. In this paper, we propose a solution for the classical PCCR technique that simplify the calibration procedure and allow free head movements. The core of our method is to analytically obtain a head mapping function to compensate head movement. Specifically, the head mapping function allows to automatically map the eye movement measurement under an arbitrary head position to a reference head position so that the gaze can be estimated from the mapped eye measurement with respect to the reference head position. Furthermore, our method minimizes the calibration procedure to only one time for each individual. Our proposed method significantly improves the usability of the eye gaze tracking technology, which is a major step for eye tracker to be accepted as a natural computer input device.


Malfunctions of systems in domains such as medicine, avionics, traffic control, defense and nuclear applications can cause human injuries. Test and validation of such systems is a difficult task, because many situations cannot be safely reproduced. Simulation makes possible to assess the correctness of a safety-critical system, even in dangerous situations. This paper presents CLAIRE, a purely software simulation tool with graphic facilities for system modelling, designed for test, validation and non-intrusive dynamic analysis of real time applications.


Field experiments were conducted in 2008 and 2010 to determine crop tolerance and weed control efficacy of the POST herbicides bentazon, flumioxazin, and oxyfluorfen applied to direct-seeded dry bulb onions on organic soil. Postemergence application of oxyfluorfen at 0.071 kg ai ha-1 resulted in less than 20% onion injury when applied at the 2 and 4 onion leaf stages and provided good control of ladysthumb and common lambsquarters. Oxyfluorfen EC caused slightly higher visual injury than oxyfluorfen SC, but there was no difference in onion yield among the treatments. Application of flumioxazin at 0.036 of 0.072 kg ai ha-1 alone or in combination with pendimethalin ACS resulted in minimal onion injury and no yield reduction. Combining flumioxazin in a tank mix with pendimethalin EC, dimethenamid-P EC, or S-metolachlor EC resulted in significant onion injury and yield reduction. Flumioxazin plus S-metolachlor, dimethenamid-P, or pendimethalin improved ladysthumb control in one of two years. Bentazon applied at 0.56 kg ai ha-1 produced moderate onion injury and did not control yellow nutsedge adequately. Bentazon applied at 1.12 kg ai ha-1 provided good control of yellow nutsedge but caused serious onion injury and yield loss. Nomenclature: Bentazon, dimethenamid, flumioxazin, oxyfluorfen, pendimethalin, S-metolachlor, common lambsquarters, Chenopodium album L., hairy nightshade, Solanum physalifolium Rusby, ladysthumb, Polygonum persicaria L., redroot pigweed, Amaranthus retroflexus L., yellow nutsedge, Cyperus esculentus L., onion, Allium cepa L.


Synchrotron radiation excited photoelectron spectra of the 4f emission region for all lanthanide metals Ce58 to Lu71 (except Pm61) have been recorded. Photon energies ranging from 30 eV to 200 eV have been used to excite the 4f electrons with maximum surface sensitivity. The 4f emission spectra of all metals studied, with the exception of Ce, show 4f emission from the surface layer atoms and the bulk atoms as clearly separated structures with different binding energies. For Ce no unambiguous separation of the 4f structure into bulk and surface emission could be made. We fitted the experimental spectra with calculated 4f emission spectra obtained by adding a bulk and a shifted surface multiplet for each metal. The intensity ratios within the multiplets were obtained from an atomic calculation utilizing the intermediate coupling scheme. The intensity ratio between bulk and surface emission (IB/IS) and the magnitude of the surface core level shift (SCS) were used as fit parameters. The deduced SCSs are all positive (towards higher binding energy), 0.40 eV-0.77 eV, and in fair agreement with calculated SCSs using the Johansson-Mårtensson-Rosengren model. For the trivalent lanthanides we found a systematic variation of the SCSs through the series, which can be attributed to differences in the actual electron distribution between s, p and d-like valence states. For the trivalent Sm we found the surface to be completely divalent and deduced a surface shift of > 0.46 eV, being the energy necessary to change the surface valency.


This thesis deals with the molecular mechanisms of hyperthermia induced brain damage in rats. The results clearly establish that hyperthermia caused by 4 h heat stress at 38° C is associated with a breakdown of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability which seems to be instrumental in causing brain edema and cell injury. Using immunohistochemistry, the results presented in this thesis demonstrate for the first time that hyperthermia induces profound alteration in the molecular machinery of the CNS resulting in altered expression ofseveral proteins namely glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), vimentin, myelin basic protein (MBP), heat shock protein (HSP) 72 kD and enzymes e.g., nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and heme oxygenase (HO). Immunoelectron microscopic observations confirm the findings at light microscopy and further show that altered expression of these proteins and enzymes are mainly located within the damaged regions of the CNS. Ultrastructural studies demonstrate breakdown of the BBB permeability using lanthanum in brain regions exhibiting ischemia,edema and damage to the nerve cells, glial cells and myelin. The salient new findings of this thesis is that the brain damage caused by heat stress is mediated by several neurochemicals such as serotonin, prostaglandins, opioids, histamine and catecholamines. Pharmacological receptor blockade of serotonin, prostaglandins, opioids and histamine attenuated BBB permeability and was also able to reduce brain edema, cell injury and expression of the above proteins and enzymes in the CNS following heat exposure. These observations strongly indicate that cellular stress and disturbances in the fluidmicroenvironment of the brain play a detrimental role in expression of these molecules. In conclusion, this thesis has advanced our knowledge on the pathophysiology of cell injury using heat stress as a new model. The works presented in this thesis strongly advocate that (i) the breakdown of the BBB plays a major role in cell injury, (ii) the basic mechanisms of cell injury occurring in various neuronal diseases appears to be similar in nature, and (ii) no single chemical compound or factor is solely responsible for brain injury in heat stress. Finally, heat stress seems to be useful as a new model to study brain injury and to evaluate theneuroprotective effects of the compounds which may have therapeutic potentials to attenuate cell injury in traumatic, ischemic, hypoxic conditions as well as in other neurodegenerative diseases.


: The pathomorphology of intoxication of alcohol surrogates is described. A high frequency rate of DIC-syndrome is shown for the condition. A majority of thrombi accumulates at places with the highest concentrations of toxic substances as well as at those places, through which poisoning substances are brought out of the body, i.e. in the liver (since toxic substances are introduced perorally) and kidneys. Thrombi were detected in all internals, including the brain, in lethal intoxication. The immediate toxic effect from methanol and from higher spirits can matter in the genesis of changes, including acute swelling and chromatolysis with subsequent cell death. Exclusively cerebral or coagulopathic-cerebral types of thanatogenesis were registered in studied case of intoxication.


In this work, we investigate a delayed stage-structured Holling II predator–prey model with impulsive stocking on prey. Sufficient conditions of the global attractivity of predator -extinction periodic solution of the system are obtained. These results show that the behavior of impulsive stocking on prey plays an important role for the global attractivity of the system. Our results provide reliable tactical basis for the biological resource management.


GB virus C (GBV-C), or hepatitis G virus (HGV), is a recently discovered enveloped RNA virus belonging to the Flaviviridae family. GBV-C/HGV is transmitted by contaminated blood and/or blood products, intravenous drug use, from mother to child, sexually, and possibly through close social contacts. Several reports indicate a high prevalence of GBV-C/HGV viremia (1?4%) within healthy populations in Europe and North America, and an even higher prevalence (10?33%) among residents in South America and Africa. GBV-C/HGV has been suggested to be a causative agent for non-A-non-E hepatitis. However, several contradictory observations suggest that its ability to cause hepatitis is questionable. Taken together most data suggest that GBV-C/HGV is not a major cause of liver disease despite recent data indicating that it may infect and replicate in hepatocytes.


The more variables a logic expression contain, the more complicated is the interpretation of this expression. Since in a statistical sense prime implicants can be interpreted as interactions of binary variables, it is thus advantageous to convert such a logic expression into a disjunctive normal form consisting of prime implicants. In this paper, we present two algorithms based on matrix algebra for the identification of all prime implicants comprised in a logic expression and for the minimization of this set of prime implicants.


Publishers must invest, and manage risk There is an increasing push by journals to ensure that data and products related to published papers are shared as part of a cultural move to promote transparency, reproducibility, and trust in the scientific literature. Yet few journals commit to evaluating their effectiveness in implementing reporting standards aimed at meeting those goals (1, 2). Similarly, though the vast majority of journals endorse peer review as an approach to ensure trust in the literature, few make their peer review data available to evaluate effectiveness toward achieving concrete measures of quality, including consistency and completeness in meeting reporting standards. Remedying these apparent disconnects is critical for closing the gap between guidance recommendations and actual reporting behavior. We see this as a collective action problem requiring leadership and investment by publishers, who can be incentivized through mechanisms that allow them to manage reputational risk and through continued innovation in journal assessment.


Motivation: Circular dichroism (CD) is widely used in studies of protein folding. The CD spectrum of a protein can be estimated from its structure alone, using the well-established matrix method. In the last decade, a related spectroscopy, linear dichroism (LD), has been increasingly applied to study the orientation of proteins in solution. However, matrix method calculations of LD spectra have not been presented before. DichroCalc makes both CD and LD calculations available in an easy-to-use fashion. Results: DichroCalc can be used without registration and calculates CD and LD spectra using a variety of matrix method parameters. PDB files can be uploaded as input or retrieved via their PDB code and a Perl-based parser is offered for easy handling of PDB files. Availability: http://comp.chem.nottingham.ac.uk/dichrocalc and


Abstract The precision of presurgical orthodontic diagnostic protocol plays a key role for the success of orthognathic surgery. Recently, the introduction of cone beam computed tomography and the development of digital technologies led to the possibility to create new virtual protocols of diagnostic protocol. The purposes of this study were to describe the virtual presurgical orthodontic diagnostic protocol experimented by the Orthodontics Department of the University of Milan and to assess its reliability by comparing it with the nonvirtual protocol. The study sample was a group of 18 adult patients who required surgical correction of skeletal asymmetric class II or III malocclusion: 9 of them were subjected to the virtual diagnostic protocol, whereas the other 9 were subjected to the traditional one. A comparison between the 2 methods was carried out by evaluating the degree of the discrepancy between setup and presurgical models in both groups. The values of maximum positive deviation, maximum negative deviation, mean deviation, and standard deviation that characterize the points of the superimpositions were considered. An optimal superimposition (>75%) between the scanning of the setup and presurgical models was obtained for all subjects except for 2 patients with asymmetry. The analysis of the punctual deviation variables did not show statistically significant differences between the techniques. The study suggested a high precision for both diagnostic protocols, and the reliability of the 2 methods is comparable. However, the virtual protocol has several advantages such as quantity of information obtainable, repeatability, and speed of execution.


Many people within the movement of movements, while outraged at the global state of affairs, and determined to bring about large-scale systemic change, are nevertheless reluctant to use the language of winning - that is, to consider what it means to bring about that change against determined and powerful opposition. In part this reflects a fear that to think strategically is to act like "the system", and is bound to lead to cynical instrumentalism and the attempt to replace one elite-led system with another.
We start by outlining what is at stake and asking what "winning" means: what actually happens when a social movement project from below achieves its goal of constructing "another world"? We explore the step- by-step processes through which the movement of movements is currently developing the "insurgent architecture" involved in this construction, and noting how this presents a challenge for the powers that be.
We then turn to the massive opposition that the movement has been meeting from above - from multinational institutions, states and corporations. We explore the nature of these responses and argue that while they have failed to defeat the movement, they have brought about something of a temporary stalemate. We ask how the movement can get beyond this stalemate, not by adopting the logic and methods of its opponents, but by taking qualitative steps forward in its own development, according to its own logic.
The paper finishes with some brief discussion of the most important practical steps in constructing another world, and the nature of the moments of confrontation that lie ahead.


The Law No. 1 year 1970 about occupational safety declared that each worker had to obtain a protection of occupational safety and health through reporting of any occupational accident by either management or employer using a standard format. Analysis of an occupational accident happened. The analyzed data was needed by manager as information for determining policy and program of accident prevention. Information system of occupational accident at Pupuk Sriwidjaja Company, which is being done, has weaknesses. The weaknesses outlined here are comprised of completeness, quickness, easiness, accrateness, and clearness of the resulted information quality.
Aim of this research was to develop information system of occupational accident for supporting activity of occupational accident prevention at Pupuk Sriwidjaja Company. Research was conducted using two steps namely a qualitative research and pre-experimental research. The qualitative research applied a method of a system development cycle and pre-experimental research used one group pre and posttest design. Subjects were Head of the Occupational Safety and Health Office, Head of department of Fire Intervention and Occupational Accident, Technical Group of Occupational Safety, Data Manager, and Head of Shift and a Worker. Data were analyzed through content analysis and descriptive analysis.
Result of Mc Nemar test shows there is any difference between the old and the new system in terms of the resulted information quality, with probability value = 0.031 (less than or equal to 0.05). Those divegences are in terms of quickness (1x16 hours for internal reporting and 2x24 hours for external reporting), and easies (capability of system to update data/information and easieness to obtain data/information in accordance with necessity of a user). Beside that, the divergences are in terms of accurateness (statistical calculation of occupational accident and analysis without mistakes), and clearness (description of an accident trend and easiness to understand data/information). Completeness has no any difference in terms of fulfilling internal necessity (p = 0.250) and fulfilling of external necessity (p = 0.125).

Sumber Utama : www.mikm.undip.ac.id


Abstract: The forest industry plays a key role in global economic development and environmental conservation. The Swedish forest industry has a leading position in world forest clusters. The strategy of the Swedish forest industry is giving the environmental and the production objective the same high priority. On the other hand, China, as the second largest economy in the world, operates the forest sector in a different way. The aim of this paper is first to look at how sustainable the Swedish forest industry is and learn what aspects of it can be possibly applied by China, by making a limited comparison between these two countries. Literature review is the main method, combining with SWOT-analysis and comparative study. After analyzing the environmental economic and social aspects of sustainable development within the forestry sector in both countries, a brief summary is made using SWOT-analysis, which highlights strength, weakness, future potential and threat. The study and analysis shows that a delicate balance between the production and the environmental objective is kept in Sweden. Even though the forest industry is one of the most energy intensive industries, Sweden has accumulated some experience in streamlining production line and enhancing the resilience of forests aiming for climate change mitigation. As the biggest developing country in the world, China's forestry has developed extensively. China shows limitation in extraction and handling with forest resources, but also potential in the forestry industry. Though limited, this comparison gives some clues on how and what policies and measures could be applied in China. China could draw some experiences from Sweden in forestry development, technology innovation and operation patterns.


While many distributed consensus protocols provide robust liveness and consistency guarantees under the presence of malicious actors, quantitative estimates of how economic incentives affect security are few and far between. In this paper, we describe a system for simulat- ing how adversarial agents, both economically rational and Byzantine, interact with a blockchain protocol. This system provides statistical estimates for the economic difficulty of an attack and how the presence of certain actors influences protocol-level statistics, such as the expected time to regain liveness. This simulation system is influenced by the design of algorithmic trading and reinforcement learning systems that use explicit modeling of an agent's reward mechanism to evaluate and optimize a fully autonomous agent. We implement and apply this simulation framework to Kadena's Chainweb, a parallelized Proof-of-Work system, that contains com- plexity in how miner incentive compliance affects security and censorship resistance. We provide the first formal description of Chainweb that is in the literature and use this formal description to motivate our simulation design. Our simulation results include a phase transition in block height growth rate as a function of shard connectivity and empirical evidence that censorship in Chainweb is too costly for rational miners to engage in. We conclude with an outlook on how simulation can guide and optimize protocol development in a variety of contexts, including Proof-of-Stake parameter optimization and peer-to-peer networking design.


Academics, humanitarian organizations, and the media have used the word "invisible" in many ways to describe refugees. However, few studies have explored the connection between refugee invisibility and how visual images can conceal or reveal their subjects. In this research, I explore the concept of refugee "invisibility" as an analytical framework for discussing how the production and use of visual images might alter the political, social, or legal "visibility" of refugees. In order to do so, I use academic literature, semi-structured interviews with humanitarian workers, and analysis of images of refugees. I find that the political, social, and legal factors that make Colombian refugees "invisible" also motivate humanitarian organizations to challenge and contest how they make and use images of Colombian refugees. This study contributes to discussions about refugee "invisibility" among academics and humanitarian practitioners, broadening the use of the term by explicitly connecting it to visual studies.


Abstract: Imaging blood flow or oxygenation changes using optical techniques is useful for monitoring cortical activity in healthy subjects as well as in diseased states such as stroke or epilepsy. However, in order to gain a better understanding of hemodynamics in conscious, freely moving animals, these techniques must be implemented in a small scale, portable design that is adaptable to a wearable format. We demonstrate a novel system which combines the two techniques of laser speckle contrast imaging and intrinsic optical signal imaging simultaneously, using compact laser sources, to monitor induced cortical ischemia in a full field format with high temporal acquisition rates. We further demonstrate the advantages of using combined measurements of speckle contrast and oxygenation to establish absolute flow velocities, as well as to statistically distinguish between veins and arteries. We accomplish this system using coherence reduction techniques applied to Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs) operating at 680, 795 and 850 nm. This system uses minimal optical components and can easily be adapted into a portable format for continuous monitoring of cortical hemodynamics.


Applying climate data in resource management requires matching the spatial scale of the climate and resource databases. Interpolating climate data in mountainous regions is difficult. In this study, we present methodology to generate scale‐free climate data through the combination of interpolation techniques and elevation adjustments. We apply it to monthly temperature and precipitation normals for 1961–90 produced by the Parameter‐elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM) for British Columbia, Yukon Territories, the Alaska Panhandle, and parts of Alberta and the United States. Equations were developed to calculate biologically relevant climate variables including various degree‐days, number of frost‐free days, frost‐free period, and snowfall from monthly temperature and precipitation data. Estimates of climate variables were validated using an independent dataset from weather stations that were not included in the development of the model. Weather station records generally agreed well with estimated climate variables and showed significant improvements over original PRISM climate data. A stand‐alone MS Windows application was developed to perform all calculations and to integrate future climate predictions from various global circulation models. We demonstrate the use of this application by showing how climate change may affect lodgepole pine seed planning zones for reforestation in British Columbia. Copyright © 2006 Royal Meteorological Society.


Calcineurin phosphatase plays a crucial role in T cell activation. Dephosphorylation of the nuclear factors of activated T cells (NFATs) by calcineurin is essential for activating cytokine gene expression and, consequently, the immune response. Current immunosuppressive protocols are based mainly on calcineurin inhibitors, cyclosporine A and FK506. Unfortunately, these drugs are associated with severe side effects. Therefore, immunosuppressive agents with higher selectivity and lower toxicity must be identified. The immunosuppressive role of the family of proteins regulators of calcineurin (RCAN, formerly known as DSCR1) which regulate the calcineurin-NFAT signaling pathway, has been described recently. Here, we identify and characterize the minimal RCAN sequence responsible for the inhibition of calcineurin-NFAT signaling in vivo. The RCAN-derived peptide spanning this sequence binds to calcineurin with high affinity. This interaction is competed by a peptide spanning the NFAT PXIXIT sequence, which binds to calcineurin and facilitates NFAT dephosphorylation and activation. Interestingly, the RCAN-derived peptide does not inhibit general calcineurin phosphatase activity, which suggests that it may have a specific immunosuppressive effect on the calcineurin-NFAT signaling pathway. As such, the RCAN-derived peptide could either be considered a highly selective immunosuppressive compound by itself or be used as a new tool for identifying innovative immunosuppressive agents. We developed a low throughput assay, based on the RCAN1-calcineurin interaction, which identifies dipyridamole as an efficient in vivo inhibitor of the calcineurin-NFAT pathway that does not affect calcineurin phosphatase activity.


In this study, we investigated mask errors, photo errors with attenuated phase shift mask and off-axis illumination, and etch errors in dry etch conditions. We propose that total process proximity correction (TPPC), a concept merging every process step error correction, is essential in a lithography process when minimum critical dimension (CD) is smaller than the wavelength of radiation. A correction rule table was experimentally obtained applying TPPC concept. Process capability of controlling gate CD in DRAM fabrication should be improved by this method.


This Symposium essay identifies two dramatic expansions of child pornography law: prosecutions for possessing images of children who are clothed and not engaged in any sexual activity, and prosecutions for possessing smaller portions of artistic and non-pornographic images. These prosecutions have expanded the definition of the term "child pornography" well beyond its initial meaning. What is more, they signal that child pornography laws are being used to punish people not necessarily because of the nature of the picture they possess, but rather because of the conclusion that those individuals are sexually attracted to children. If law enforcement concludes that a person finds an image of a child to be sexually arousing, then these laws can subject that individual to punishment, even though the image would have been perfectly innocuous had it been possessed by someone else.


This article examines the accessibility of healthcare in Ireland between 2003 and 2011 in the context of strong economic growth (2003–2007) and the subsequent financial crisis, which began in 2008. It investigates, in particular, changes in self-reported difficulties in accessing healthcare with regard to distance to health services, waiting times for appointments and the costs of seeing a doctor, and identifies particular risk factors that increase the likelihood of facing barriers in accessing health services. We conduct logistic regression analyses of cross-sectional data from the three rounds (2003, 2007, 2011) of the European Quality of Life Survey of 2682 individuals living in private households in Ireland. The study finds that the number of individuals reporting difficulties in accessing healthcare increased over time. Of particular concern are difficulties with the financial costs of covering doctor's appointments, which started to increase dramatically prior to the economic crisis and continued to rise during the crisis, in particular for higher income groups. Difficulties with distance and waiting time declined gradually over time and appear unaffected by the financial crisis, at least until 2011. Subgroups that face significantly more difficulties are women, younger individuals, the full-/part-time employed and individuals with poor health status. Our findings contribute to the recent discussion on the effects of institutional barriers on accessing health services in the context of significant economic change.


Three specimens were taken from mammary glands of rats killed on the 18th and 21st days of pregnancy and on the 1st day of lactation. Ultrastructural features of the tissue were compared among rats within and between the two stages of development. The similarity among specimens from the same rats made feasible a comparison of serial biopsies obtained every 4 hr, starting on the afternoon of the 21st day of pregnancy. From the 18th to the 21st days of pregnancy, a marked increase in the amount of rough endoplasmic reticulum occurred. The alveolar cells of rats killed on both days and in biopsies obtained at 17 and 13 hr before partuirtion contained abundant small lipid droplets and vacuoles containing many protein granules with little clear fluid (stasis vacuoles). Alveolar lumina were distended with secretion by 17 hr before parturition. Between 8 and 12 hr. before parturition, the accumulated protein and lipid were rapidly extruded from the alveolar cells despite evidence of continued biosynthesis. It is suggested that active transport processes are initiated independently of milk synthesis before parturition.


We develop a method to jointly measure the response of worker search effort (micro effect) and vacancy creation (macro effect) to changes in the duration of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. To implement this approach, we exploit an unexpected cut in UI durations in Missouri and provide quasi-experimental evidence on the effect of UI on the labor market. The data indicate that the cut in Missouri significantly increased job finding rates by both raising the search effort of unemployed workers and the availability of jobs. The latter accounts for at least one half of the total effect.


The effects of double hard interactions are no longer negligible at energy scales reached at the LHC. Double parton scattering (DPS) processes are often described by taking the product of two single parton scattering processes assuming that interference effects are very small. We calculate four point functions (4pt-functions), which appear in the the DPS cross section, employing lattice techniques. We consider a pion at rest and test the validity of the afore-mentioned factorization assumption by convoluting two pion form factors and comparing the result to the 4pt data. For our calculations we use a $N_f = 2$ gauge ensemble on a $40^3 \times 64$ lattice, with lattice spacing $a = 0.071$ fm and pion mass $m_{\pi} = 288.8$ MeV.


The use of dispersants in pressurized water reactors (PWRs) has been extensively qualified by EPRI over the past 14 years. Building on the demonstrated success for reducing the rate of corrosion product accumulation within recirculating steam generators (SGs), dispersant injection has more recently been qualified for application during the post-outage startup long-path recirculation cleanup period [1] and for application during SG wet layup [2]. These latter two applications are also of value for plants with once-through SGs.Dispersant application during the long-path recirculation (LPR) cleanup process can reduce the amount of corrosion products available for transport to the SGs by more effectively flushing the condensate and feedwater systems prior to initiating flow to the SGs. The first application occurred at Byron 1 in Spring 2011 under EPRI sponsorship. Extensive qualification and preparation led to a successful outcome. Dispersant was added in two batches while the unit was transitioning from short-path to full LPR cleanup. The target maximum concentration was 800 ppb, while the largest measured dispersant concentration during the application was approximately 650 ppb. There were no difficulties in decreasing the dispersant concentration below the target threshold value prior to reaching Mode 1 entry at the conclusion of the cleaning application. The application was very successful, resulting in the following conclusions:• Approximately 10-20 lb (5-9 kg) of additional iron mass was removed during the LPR cleanup as a result of dispersant addition.• It appears that the added cleanup resulting from dispersant addition during the outage caused a significant decrease in the amount of iron transported to the SGs during the early part of the subsequent cycle. Specifically, on the order of 10-15 lb (5-7 kg) less iron was transported than would otherwise have been expected based on prior plant experience.The qualification work, application details, and an assessment of the results are the first focus of this paper.Since 2009, Exelon and then STP Nuclear Operating Company have implemented online dispersant technology at six PWR units to reduce corrosion product fouling of recirculating SGs. In most cases, dispersant addition has led to a rapid, appreciable increase in SG steam pressure and a consequent improvement in the operating thermal margin (i.e., margin above the turbine valves wide open (VWO) condition). In addition, all treated units have observed substantial increases in the SG iron removal efficiency, leading to a reduction in the SG deposit fouling rate. The second part of this paper summarizes the online experience to date at the Exelon and STP plants on the effects of dispersant on:• blowdown iron removal efficiency,• SG heat-transfer efficiency and• ion exchange resin performance.


This paper is an adaptation of one section in the theoretical part of a MA thesis on 'The conversational role of silence in Moroccan Arabic' obtained in 1990, and aims to account for attributable silence (Schegloff & Sacks, 1973) within the conversation analysis approach based on the turn-taking model advanced by Sacks, Schegloff, and Gefferson (1974). Attributable silence occurs when a speaker is selected to speak upon the completion of an utterance that solicits a particular response but chooses, for one reason or another, to remain silent. Systematic and comprehensive as the model has often been claimed to be, it does not deal with this category of silence, which is highly significant to conversation partners in daily interaction. Hence, we attempt to provide an account for it using some of the turn-taking mechanisms developed within the model itself. This silence is characterized as a violation of the turn-taking rule involving the current speaker selects next technique, and the repair of the violation is provided through the suggestion of a rule stipulating that if a selected speaker fails to start a next turn, then the current speaker has the right to pursue a response until he obtains one; otherwise, the conversation may discontinue. Features that reveal the significance of this silence are also discussed–namely noticeability, attributability, accountability, and reportability. The examples used to discuss and illustrate these points are taken from the observational and experimental data collected for the thesis.


BACKGROUND AND AIMS The development of cholangiocarcinoma (CCC) is a complication of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). To date, no reliable factors have been described which can define those PSC patients at high risk for the development of CCC and the clinical diagnosis of CCC in PSC patients is difficult. Therefore, molecular markers of cholangiocarcinogenesis, such as K-ras mutations, may improve the early diagnosis of CCC or the timing of liver transplantation. METHODS K-ras mutations were analysed by enriched polymerase chain reaction/restriction fragment length polymorphism in the bile fluid of 56 PSC patients and 20 patients with other cholestatic diseases. To assess the value of K-ras mutations as a risk factor for cholangiocarcinogenesis, patients were prospectively investigated over a mean period of 31.5 months. RESULTS In contrast with the control group, 17 (30%) patients with PSC revealed K-ras mutations in bile fluid. The mean Mayo score was not significantly different between PSC patients with (mean score 0.70) and without (mean score 0.13; p=0.2) K-ras mutations. In contrast with the group of PSC patients without K-ras mutations, four CCCs and two dysplasia were diagnosed in the group of patients with K-ras mutations during the follow up investigation (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate that K-ras mutations in bile fluid of PSC patients represent frequent early events during cholangiocarcinogenesis. However, most of the PSC patients with K-ras mutations remained tumour free after a long follow up investigation which is in agreement with the fact that these mutations are not specific for malignancy but may also occur in normal bile duct mucosa or in dysplasias. Therefore, analysis of K-ras mutations in bile should not be used for diagnosis of CCC in PSC patients. However, the results of our prospective follow up investigation indicate that K-ras mutations in bile fluid of PSC patients have to be considered as risk factors for the development of CCC which may have implications for the timing of liver transplantation.


Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) have attracted much research attention recently, leading to impressive results for natural image generation. However, to date little success was observed in using GAN generated images for improving classification tasks. Here we attempt to explore, in the context of car license plate recognition, whether it is possible to generate synthetic training data using GAN to improve recognition accuracy. With a carefully-designed pipeline, we show that the answer is affirmative. First, a large-scale image set is generated using the generator of GAN, without manual annotation. Then, these images are fed to a deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) followed by a bidirectional recurrent neural network (BRNN) with long short-term memory (LSTM), which performs the feature learning and sequence labelling. Finally, the pre-trained model is fine-tuned on real images. Our experimental results on a few data sets demonstrate the effectiveness of using GAN images: an improvement of 7.5% over a strong baseline with moderate-sized real data being available. We show that the proposed framework achieves competitive recognition accuracy on challenging test datasets. We also leverage the depthwise separate convolution to construct a lightweight convolutional RNN, which is about half size and 2x faster on CPU. Combining this framework and the proposed pipeline, we make progress in performing accurate recognition on mobile and embedded devices.


It is a well recognized fact that the excretion of albumin in the urine occurs in circulatory disturbances of the kidneys. As the kidney is very sensitive to circulatory disorders, albuminuria may occur (except in nephritis) either because of local congestion of the veins and capillaries, or because of anemic infarct of the kidney. It may also occur in the course of general anasarca due to obstruction. As stated by Jehle, 1 lordosis is the chief cause of orthostatic albuminuria. Venous hyperemia of the kidney is brought on by faulty position of the lumbar spine. This observation was confirmed by animal experiments, which have since been repeated by many investigators. Menge 2 employed massage of the kidney in twenty-one instances; in fifteen the presence of albuminuria was confirmed. Zebrowski and Glewitsch 3 attempted to electrify the kidney with the faradic current in thirty-three cases. They found albuminuria in only one


This study explores how shared micromobility services can integrate with public transit through equitable payment structures to address first and last mile issues for light rail transit riders in Seattle, WA, and increase accessibility for low-income households. Seattle has recently permitted shared micromobility services such as e-scooter companies to begin operating alongside existing bikesharing services in the city. However, equity concerns have arisen as the users of bikeshare have been disproportionately white, affluent, and well-educated. To address these concerns, efforts have been made to reduce barriers to access and make these services more equitable to encourage their use among marginalized populations. Previous research has demonstrated evidence that these services can improve accessibility for disadvantaged populations such as low-income people of color. This research consists primarily of a literature review of relevant academic and gray literature, and a jurisdictional scan of cities in the U.S., Canada, Finland, and China. The objective of this research is to identify barriers to accessing shared micromobility services and synthesize existing best practices to propose solutions to make these services more equitable. Findings from this research then inform a set of recommendations for equitable payment integration in King County, which can also be generalized to other municipalities that are striving for equitable public transit and shared micromobility integration.


Marine biologists commonly use underwater videos for their research. Their video analysis, however, is typically based on visual inspection. This incurs prohibitively large user costs, and severely limits the scope of biological studies. There is a need for developing vision algorithms that can address specific needs of marine biologists, such as fine-grained categorization of fish motion patterns. This is a difficult problem, because of very small inter-class and large intra-class differences between fish motion patterns. Our approach consists of three steps. First, we apply our new fish detector to identify and localize fish occurrences in each frame, under partial occlusion, and amidst dynamic texture patterns formed by whirls of sand on the sea bed. Then, we conduct tracking-by-detection. Given the similarity between fish detections, defined in terms of fish appearance and motion properties, we formulate fish tracking as transitively linking similar detections between every two consecutive frames, so as to maintain their unique track IDs. Finally, we extract histograms of fish displacements along the estimated tracks. The histograms are classified by the Random Forest technique to recognize distinct classes of fish motion patterns. Evaluation on challenging underwater videos demonstrates that our approach outperforms the state-of-the-art techniques.


We show how to construct arbitrage-free models of the term structure of interest rates in which various expectations hypotheses can hold. McCulloch (1993) provided a Gaussian non-Markovian example of the unbiased expectations hypothesis (U--EH), thereby contradicting the assertion by Cox, Ingersoll, and Ross (CIR, 1981) that only the so-called local expectations hypothesis could hold. We generalize that example in three ways: (i) We characterize the U--EH in terms of forward rates; (ii) we extend this characterization to a class of expectations hypotheses that includes all of those considered by CIR; and (iii) we construct stationary Markovian and non-Gaussian economies. The building block is a maturity-dependent vector that travels around a circle at a constant speed as maturity increases.


Background and Issues:
 Emergency Departments (ED) are challenged to meet Brain Attack Coalition Guidelines (BACG) for treatment of patients with acute stroke symptoms. BACG recommends that patients with acute stroke symptoms be assessed by a physician within 10 minutes of arrival to the ED, have a Computed Tomography (CT) scan within 25 minutes, receive results of the CT scan within 45 minutes, and receive intravenous TPA within 6o minutes if appropriate.

 Purpose:
 The purpose of our study was to radically change our delivery system for stroke patients and exceed BACG guidelines to improve patient outcomes for an emergency department servicing greater than 100,000 visits annually.

 Methods:
 The innovation that was vital in streamlining our process was a "Quick Look" neuro assessment by a physician for patients presenting with acute stroke symptoms. At-risk patients progress immediately to radiology, bypassing the traditional serial process of going straight to an ED room and waiting for the stroke team. Implementation of this "Quick Look" process included activation of the Neurologist and Rapid Response Team member.

 Results:
 A retrospective review of 479 charts between December 2009 and December 2010 was conducted to determine process outcomes. Implementation of a "Quick Look" assessment decreased "Door to Doctor" time from 10 minutes to 2.75 minutes (73% decrease); "Door to CT" time from 41 minutes to 18 minutes (56% decrease); door-to-administration-of-IV-TPA time from 82 minutes to 62 minutes (24% decrease); "Door to CT Results" time from 53 minutes to 27 minutes (49% decrease); and "Door to IV-TPA" time from 82 minutes to 62 minutes (24% decrease). Current 2011 year to date results through June 2011 meet the BACG door-to-needle time of less than 60 minutes.

 Conclusions:
 The implementation of the "Quick Look" process has sustained these positive outcomes throughout 2011, meeting BACG the first two quarters of 2011, and meeting the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association's Target: Stroke Honor Roll. Although the success of this process improvement was driven by the stroke council; the amazing results are due to the efforts and collaboration of a highly functioning interdisciplinary Emergency, Rapid Response and Neurosciences team.


Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree
DOCTOR TECHNOLOGIAE: ENGINEERING: CHEMICAL
In the
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
At the
CAPE PENINSULA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
2009


Recently, there has been a shift from teacher- to student-centered teaching paradigms, which have proven to lead to better learning outcomes. However, teaching in the Islamic Studies Department at Ad-Dilam College of Education, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia, is currently mainly lecture-oriented. This is attributable to the nature of Islamic courses, which conventionally focus on lecturing on the part of teachers and memorization on the part of students. This study has explored the effectiveness of a student-centered teaching strategy, the problem-solving strategy, in enhancing the academic achievement of Islamic Studies students at Ad-Dilam College of Education. One group of students (N = 22) was taught a unit in the Special Teaching Methods Course using the problem-solving strategy. Another group (N = 20) was taught the same unit using conventional lecture-oriented teaching. An author-developed achievement test was used to compare the performance of the two groups after the intervention. Means, standard deviations, and independent samples t-tests revealed that the problem-solving classroom significantly outperformed the lecture-oriented classroom in skills, values, and total achievement. Both groups achieved comparable gains in the knowledge dimension of achievement, thus the difference between the groups in knowledge was not significant. Classroom observation during the intervention revealed that students in the problem-solving classroom were more enthusiastic and interacted more actively during classes. Based on the findings, implications are drawn and recommendations offered.


Electronically excited molecules frequently exhibit two distinctive decay mechanisms that rapidly generate optical emission: one is direct fluorescence and the other is energy transfer to a neighboring component. In the latter, the process leading to the ensuing "indirect" fluorescence is known as FRET, or fluorescence resonance energy transfer. For chiral molecules, both fluorescence and FRET exhibit discriminatory behavior with respect to optical and material handedness. While chiral effects such as circular dichroism are well known, as too is chiral discrimination for FRET in isolation, this article presents a study on a stepwise mechanism that involves both. Chirally sensitive processes follow excitation through the absorption of circularly polarized light and are manifest in either direct or indirect fluorescence. Following recent studies setting down the symmetry principles, this analysis provides a rigorous, quantum outlook that complements and expands on these works. Circumventing expressions that contain complicated tensorial components, our results are amenable for determining representative numerical values for the relative importance of the various coupling processes. We discover that circular dichroism exerts a major influence on both fluorescence and FRET, and resolving the engagement of chirality in each component reveals the distinct roles of absorption and emission by, and between, donor and acceptor pairs. It emerges that chiral discrimination in the FRET stage is not, as might have been expected, the main arbiter in the stepwise mechanism. In the concluding discussion on various concepts, attention is focused on the validity of helicity transfer in FRET.


Optimizing expensive to evaluate black-box functions over an input space consisting of all permutations of d objects is an important problem with many real-world applications. For example, placement of functional blocks in hardware design to optimize performance via simulations. The overall goal is to minimize the number of function evaluations to find high-performing permutations. The key challenge in solving this problem using the Bayesian optimization (BO) framework is to trade-off the complexity of statistical model and tractability of acquisition function optimization. In this paper, we propose and evaluate two algorithms for BO over Permutation Spaces (BOPS). First, BOPS-T employs Gaussian process (GP) surrogate model with Kendall kernels and a Tractable acquisition function optimization approach to select the sequence of permutations for evaluation. Second, BOPS-H employs GP surrogate model with Mallow kernels and a Heuristic search approach to optimize the acquisition function. We theoretically analyze the performance of BOPS-T to show that their regret grows sub-linearly. Our experiments on multiple synthetic and real-world benchmarks show that both BOPS-T and BOPS-H perform better than the state-of-the-art BO algorithm for combinatorial spaces. To drive future research on this important problem, we make new resources and real-world benchmarks available to the community.


Background Rhinoplasty is the most common operation performed by our facial plastic surgery unit. Recognition of patients with psychological problems which may result in an unfavourable post-operative outcome is essential. The objective of this study was to evaluate the psychological status of patients seeking rhinoplasty, compared with the general population. Methods We prospectively collected the data from patients who requested rhinoplasty in Srinagarind hospital, Thailand and controls. We used the general health questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) for psychological problems detection. Results We included a total of 196 participants, 98 in study group and 98 in control group. The study group has a 5.5 times (95% CI 1.25 to 24.17, P = 0.01) higher risk for poor mental status more than control group. Conclusions The patients seeking rhinoplasty group were more likely to have psychological problems when compared with the control group. Surgeons should be aware of the patient's psychological status before performing the operation.


Several sets of proteins exist in eukaryotic cells wherein accurately localized in appropriate cellular locations containing plasma membrane, cytoplasm, nucleus and different membrane-enclosed organelles. Each protein is involved in distinct biochemical processes within the normal cell; therefore, the correct subcellular localization of protein is vital; as it provides the physiological context for protein function. However, protein mislocalization described as changing the appropriate subcellular localization of protein, was reported as a key feature of many proteins in a variety of human cancers 1. Mislocalization has important implications in alteration of activation condition, biological function and interaction network of a protein. Particularly, the aberrant localization of tumor-suppressor proteins and proto-oncoproteins can alter their functions, respectively in either suppressing or supporting the cancer initiation in normal cells whereby cancer development, metastasis and drug resistance are increased 2. The mechanisms by which subcellular mislocalization is arising in cancer are various and deeply reviewed by Wang and Li 2. They can be described as modification of signals directing proteins into a particular location, dysregulation of sorter and transporter machinery, Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) retention of misfolded proteins, aberrant endocytosis and vesicular trafficking, dysregulation of signal transduction and protein post-translational modification and so on 2. The aberrant subcellular position of proteins in cancer tissues has been investigated broadly by antibody-based strategies including Immunohistochemistry (IHC). The major localization of sortilin on cell surface of ovarian carcinoma tissues rather than the main resident in ER-Golgi compartment of normal tissues was detected using IHC technique 3. The new method of Dissociable Antibody Microarray (DAMA) combining the power of IHC staining with protein microarray, provides the facility of high-throughput detection of protein subcellular localization 4. The property of malignant cells in differently subcellular localization of proteins might be recruited as an intelligent strategy for detection of malignant but not normal cells in clinical diagnostic and prognostic applications 5. For instance, fibromodulin, a type of proteoglycan resides in extracellular matrix, has been irregularly located on cell surface of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) cells but not in normal samples by which a new CLL diagnostic biomarker appropriate for cell surface flow cytometric detection might be suggested 6. Moreover, directly targeting of locations in where proteins are accumulated in cancer cells plus selecting the structural dissimilarities of proteins by biologic weapons help us to specifically eradicate malignant but not normal cells. In conclusion, the subscellular mislocalization of proteins is a frequent event in cancers defined as an accessory approach for proliferation, survival and invasion of tumors. However, targeting and trapping proteins in specific cellular compartments has been conceptualized as a promising approach for diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic clinical use.


This study examined race and ethnic identity in relation to nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). Participants included freshmen at 2 universities, who were predominantly female. Final inferential statistics examined differences across Caucasian, African American, Hispanic, Asian American, and Multiracial students, finding African Americans and Asian Americans having significantly lower NSSI engagement than all other racial groups, and no other significant differences across groups. After controlling for depression and anxiety, a sense of ethnic belonging was significantly related to NSSI engagement. Cultural implications exist for working with college students who self-injure.


In the period 2006-2011 six public catering establishments (3 canteens and 3 cafeterias) were monitored, trough audit and sampling, in order to verify the application of good manufacturing and hygiene practices during food production, handling and serving. The compliance to microbiological food safety criteria (Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella spp.) and process hygiene criteria were investigated using ISO standards for microbiological analyses. A total of 612 samples were collected: 192 food samples and 288 environmental swab samples from canteens; 33 food samples and 99 swab samples from cafeterias. Regarding food safety, two samples were in disagreement with criteria fixed in EU Regulation as Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from a turkey breast in a canteen and from a sandwich in a cafeteria. Regarding process hygiene criteria, as no microbiological limits are legally defined for catering services, for this study limits were fixed according to the quality standards of tender, scientific literature and laboratory experience. 23.4% foodstuffs and 8.7% swabs resulted non-compliant in canteens; 48.5% foodstuffs and 6.1% swabs resulted non-compliant in cafeterias. The count of coagulase-positive staphylococci (CPS) was higher of the fixed limits in raw turkey meat and in cooked spinach: the presence among CPS of S. aureus was confirmed, strains were not able to produce enterotoxins. The most common non-compliance in hygiene criteria was represented by aerobic colony count (60.7% of total non-compliance in canteens and 75.0% in cafeterias) and coliform bacteria (20.3% in canteens and 25.0% in cafeterias). Nine raw foods or raw readyto- eat food samples were non-compliant for both coliform bacteria and aerobic count; one sample (raw turkey meat) was non-compliant for CPS and aerobic count but resulted to be compliant after cooking. Auditing and sampling are the most effective tools to improve food quality standard and to enhance food business operators' awareness of hygiene procedures.


We have previously reported that the fracture behavior of nanocrystalline (NC) Ni is via the nucleation and coalescence of nano-voids at grain boundaries and triple junctions, resulting in intergranular failure mode. Here we show in large-scale molecular dynamics simulations that partial-dislocation-mediated plasticity is dominant in NC Cu with grain size as small as ~ 10 nanometers. The simulated results show that NC Cu can accommodate large plastic strains without cracking or creating damage in the grain interior or grain boundaries, revealing their intrinsic ductile properties compared with NC Ni. These results point out different failure mechanisms of the two face-centered-cubic (FCC) metals subject to uniaxial tensile loading. The insight gained in the computational experiments could explain the good plasticity found in NC Cu not seen in Ni so far.


We describe the hemodynamic effects and metabolic fate of inhaled NO gas in 12 anesthetized piglets. Pulmonary and systemic hemodynamic responses to incremental [NO] (5-80 ppm) were tested during ventilation with high- [0.30 inspired O2 fraction (FIO2)] and low-O2 (0.10 FIO2) mixtures. In six animals, inhalation of 40 ppm NO was maintained over 6 h to test effects of prolonged exposure (0.30 FIO2). In the other six animals, pulmonary hypertension was induced by hypoxic ventilation (0.10 FIO2) and responses to NO were tested. Inhaled low [NO] partially reversed pulmonary hypertension induced by alveolar hypoxia; mean pulmonary arterial pressure decreased from 31.4 +/- 2.3 mmHg during hypoxia to 18.2 +/- 1.2 mmHg during 5 ppm NO. Mean pulmonary arterial pressure at 0.10 FIO2 did not fall further at higher [NO] (10-40 ppm) and never reached control levels. Pulmonary vascular resistance increased with institution of hypoxic ventilation and fell with subsequent administration of NO, ultimately reaching control levels. Inhaled NO did not affect systemic vascular resistance. Plasma levels of NO2- + NO3- and methemoglobin (MetHb) levels increased with increasing [NO]. Over 6 h of NO administration during high-O2 ventilation, MetHb equilibrated at subtoxic levels while NO2- + NO3- increased. Nitrosylhemoglobin, analyzed by electron paramagnetic resonance spectrophotometry was not detected in blood at any time. At the relatively low concentrations (5-80 ppm) that are effective in relieving experimental pulmonary hypertension induced by alveolar hypoxia, inhaled NO gas causes accumulation of NO2- + NO3- in plasma and a small increase in MetHb but no detectable nitrosylhemoglobin.


These guidelines address the administration of systemic antibiotics in periodontics, especially in the treatment of periodontitis, necrotizing gingivitis/periodontitis, periodontal abscess and periimplantitis. Microorganisms associated with these conditions aggregate as structured biofilms on tooth surfaces, and biofilms effectively protect microorganisms from antibiotics. It is therefore a central principle to use antibiotics only as adjunct to mechanical debridement. In fact, many cases can be resolved by mechanical therapy even without the prescription of antibiotics. Good oral hygiene is crucial for longterm success.


A radiographic study was conducted on impregnated sand samples taken from beach cusps on Marina Beach, Monterey Bay, California, over a 7-month period from September 1970 to April 1971. The radiographs revealed much more structure than is discernable with the unaided eye in trenching or peeling. The microstructure found consisted of crosslamination, rhythmic stratification, and distinct mineral layering. Migration of these cusps was studied by means of visual observations and time-lapse photography. Cyclic changes in the cusp profile were found to correspond with wave action and tidal influences. No simple relation between ocean action and cusp structure or development was evident.


Percentage increments in global crop and livestock yields are slowing. Percentage increments in global food demand may outstrip growth in food supply, causing food prices to rise to year 2040. Fortunately, the world seems headed for zero population growth by year 2100 and developed nations face no great economic, technological, or environmental hurdles in feeding themselves well. Sub-Saharan Africa and selected other developing countries face severe food security problems, however, but none severe enough to justify cutbacks in food production to bring world population in line with global carrying capacity. Food security is within reach of any country willing to address its socioinstitutional constraints and adopt the proven standard economic model.


The re is a need to look at the Revolution from multiple discourses and textualities, especially by doing more studies on class distinctions and regional, provincial, and local variations. This is because New Historicism further enlarges the scope of possibilities offered to the historian. The Revolution is the product of many circumstances, conditions, peoples and personalities involving their actions and motivations, discourses and, finally, the unintended consequences of intended actions. Even though every perspective can have something to contribute, it is not beyond them to recreate a rich landscape and kaleidoscope of the historical fact. This study is a modest attempt to deviate from the traditional and common practice of Cognitive History towards the call of modern historians to view history from the perspective of New Historicism. That is, to avoid simplistic explanations of historical facts but try to take new ways in seeing things. In this sense, the writer w ill try to think of things that have not been thought of in trying to look at familiar facts from the unfamiliar point-of-view. With this in mind, the paper will delve into the so-called 'insignificant rebellion' prior to the Revolution in 1896 that culminated in 1898. Moreover, most histories written about Negros focus only on the Occidental side which, to a point, is one sided in the whole context of the Revolution. This paper briefly presents the rebellion in southern Negros Oriental, spearheaded by Dios Buhawi, which was a precursor to the struggle of Leon Kilat in Cebu; Papa Isio in Negros Accidental; and the eventual march of Felipe Tayko to Dumaguete to join Gen. de la Vina in the ultimate liberation of Negros Oriental. Relevant sources of information will be taken from the unpublished Cebuano manuscript of Juan Gadiane, the anthropological study made by Donn Hart from 1950 to 1972 and other sources. In consonance with the theme of the seminar, the paper will try to elucidate the assumption contrary to the popular notion that these so-called remontados, bandidos, and tulisanes were plain bandits and robbers, hence their activities were unimportant to the revolutionary struggle. The impact of Buhawi's movement to the whole gamut of the revolutionary activities in the island as well as in Cebu did, in fact, offer consequential contributions. Further, the paper will explore the involvement of Felipe Tayko in the final phase of the liberation of the southern towns. Eventually, the paper will corroborate the published works of Cullamar, Ochosa, and the study of Modesto Sa-onoy about the exploits of Papa Isio in Negros Occidental.