1. This study included two designs of furnished cages for 16 hens; H-cages divided into two apartments by a partition with pop holes in the middle of the cage, and fully open O-cages, without a partition. The hypothesis was that in this rather large group of birds the pop hole partition would benefit the birds by allowing them to avoid or escape from potential cannibals, feather-peckers or aggressive hens. All cages had two nests, two perches and one litter box. 2. A total of 10 cages (5 H and 5 O) were stocked with Lohmann Selected Leghorn (LSL) and 8 cages (4 H and 4 O) with Hy-Line W36. No birds were beak-trimmed. 3. Heterophil/lymphocyte (H/L) ratios, duration of tonic immobility (TI) and exterior appearance (scoring of plumage condition and wounds at comb or around cloaca) were used as indicators of well-being. Total mortality and deaths due to cannibalism were also recorded. 4. Visits to nests and passages through partition pop holes were studied in samples of 35 and 21 birds, respectively, using a technique based on passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags. 5. Cage design (H- vs O-cage) had no effect on the welfare traits chosen. 6. Hy-Line birds showed higher H/L ratios, longer duration of TI and better plumage condition than LSL birds. These differences are discussed in terms of stress thresholds and copying strategies. 7. On days when a hen made visits to nests, the visiting frequency was 1·4 and the total time in the nest was 41 min on average. Hens made use of the pop hole passages between 1 and 8 times per hen and day. 8. Overall low levels of aggression, lack of injuries or deaths due to cannibalism, and plumage condition indicating moderate feather pecking, together imply a low need to escape. The pop holes were used frequently and birds distributed well between compartments showing that the system worked well. However, at this group size there was no evidence in the measured traits that H-cages provided a better housing environment.


That human ancestry predicts average IQ and socioeconomic outcomes is amongst the most thoroughly replicated findings of the social sciences. Since human ethnic and cultural descent is usually represented on national flags, it was hypothesized herein that national flag symbolism and colors would be predictive of a nation's average IQ and socioeconomic development. In order to test this hypothesis, national flag symbols and colors were coded, quantified, and correlated with country IQ and Human Development Index (HDI). Both country-level IQ and HDI are positively associated with Christian symbolism, and negatively associated with symbols representing celestial bodies. The color green predicts lower IQ and HDI, while the color white predicts higher IQ and HDI. The color red predicts higher IQ, but not higher HDI, and the color yellow predicts lower HDI, but not lower IQ. The correlations are generally higher for HDI than IQ. With the exception of the color yellow, the correlations with HDI are significant even when controlling for the correlation between HDI and IQ. The present study suggests national flag symbolism and colors as yet another correlate of average group intelligence.


The integration of soft skills in training pre-service teachers ensures higher academic performance and provides them with better career opportunities. However, many university teachers pay insufficient attention to developing soft skills in higher education. The article aims to investigate the correlation between the soft skills included in professional teacher training and undergraduates' viewpoint on soft skills development at university. The authors formulated three research questions: (a) How do English trainee teachers assess their soft skills? (b) How much attention, in students' opinion, do teachers pay to developing soft skills? (c) Is there a gap between teachers' work on developing students' soft skills and trainee teachers' expectations? To answer these questions, the researchers analized the empirical data received through a questionnaire. The questionnaire was completed by 153 English trainee teachers studying at H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University, Ukraine. The respondents answered two close-ended questions regarding the level of soft skills they believe to possess and the amount of time devoted to soft skills development. The findings suggest that most students consider the level of their soft skills intermediate or high. Nevertheless, a significant number of the respondents still feel that teachers pay insufficient or hardly any attention to improving these skills. It is necessary to conduct further research to analyze university teachers' viewpoint on improving students' soft skills and organize the development of soft skills which would meet trainee teachers' expectations.


This paper, based on two case studies from Polish localities, makes a case for a scalar interpretation of conflicts related to environmental protection and economic development. Poland, one of the poorest and least environmentally friendly member countries of the European Union, has to reconcile conflicting objectives and contradictory interests that—due to the imperatives of both fast economic growth and ecological sustainability—manifest themselves at different scales. Thus, drawing on dynamic and interactive conceptualizations of scale, the study argues that the two cases can be seen as an illustration of interscalar conflicts. In doing so, the paper demonstrates why a scalar interpretation is preferable to other explanations. It also sheds light on the question of the privileged status of the local scale, suggesting that it is problematic to uncritically regard any scale as superior to other scales. By exploring sociospatial processes in the east European context, the study aims to expand the existing body of knowledge.


Topological electron states were theoretically predicted by B A Volkov and O A Pankratov in 1985 as interface states in an inverted contact between IV–VI semiconductors with their bands mutually inverted. As became clear later, the 'inverted' SnTe semiconductor is a topological insulator, and the inverted contact is an example of a topologically nontrivial interface. This paper discusses the key results of Volkov and Pankratov's 1985 work and examines the usefulness of the inverted contact model for explaining the close link between the topologically nontrivial bulk band structure and topological surface states. An advantage of the model for getting a deeper insight into this link is that it allows an analytical solution. An inhomogeneous semiconductor structure is described by an effective Dirac Hamiltonian, which was obtained analytically from a tight binding model for the band structure of IV–VI materials. This allows one to trace the relation between topological surface states and bands in the bulk. As a result, the spin texture of a topological state can be expressed explicitly in terms of the bulk characteristics. It turns out that the spin texture can be controlled by varying the surface band bending. Given the nontrivial spin polarization on the surface, it is interesting to take a look at the Ruderman–Kittel–Kasuya–Yosida. (RKKY) interaction between magnetic adatoms, which can serve to probe the spin distribution locally. This interaction shows a much more complex structure than the common RKKY coupling in a nonpolarized Fermi gas. The analytical theory provides an explicit relation between the RKKY interaction on the surface of a topological insulator and the parameters of the bulk spectrum.


Hong Kong has been described as a city that prioritises socio-economic stability at the expense of political engagement. Despite recent protests —such as the 2003 demonstration with half a million people taking to the streets—that seemingly dispel such statements, Hong Kong youth activists claim that the city remains apolitical. How can we make sense of this paradox of seeing the protests on the streets of the city, with what is being said by these youths? In attempting to unravel this puzzle, this paper highlights the importance for anthropologists of understanding how politics is conceptualised amongst their informants, which in turn determines the peculiar manifestations of political actions in that societal context. This paper argues that in Hong Kong, there are discrepancies between youth activists and the general population in how politics is framed and situated in relation to everyday life. It is then revealed that contemporary mainstream attitudes towards politics are actually a product of the city's colonial history. Finally, this paper will explore the sentiments (of indifference, discomfort, or frustration) youth activists and non-political individuals respectively harbour towards politics and political actors, and the obstacles dominant attitudes towards politics pose for youth activists and for anthropologists alike.


Developmentally the articular joints are derived from lateral plate (LP) mesoderm. However, no study has produced LP derived prechondrocytes or preosteoblasts from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) in a chemically defined manner. Differentiation of hPSCs through the authentic route, via an LP-osteochondral progenitor (OCP), may aid understanding of human cartilage development and the generation of effective cell therapies for osteoarthritis. We refined our existing chondrogenic protocol, incorporating knowledge from development and other studies to produce a LP-OCP from which prechondrocytes- and preosteoblast-like cells can be produced. Results show the formation of an OCP, which can be further driven to prechondrocytes and preosteoblasts. Prechondrocytes cultured in pellets produced cartilage like matrix with lacunae and superficial flattened cells expressing lubricin. Additionally, preosteoblasts were able to generate a mineralised structure. This protocol can therefore be used to further investigate cartilage development and in the development of joint cartilage for potential treatments.


Abstract. Low-level clouds (LLCs) cover a wide area of southern West Africa (SWA) during the summer monsoon months and have an important cooling effect on the regional climate. Previous studies of these clouds have focused on modelling and remote sensing via satellite. We present the first comprehensive set of in situ measurements of cloud microphysics from the region, taken during June–July 2016, as part of the DACCIWA (Dynamics–aerosol–chemistry–cloud interactions in West Africa) campaign. This novel dataset allows us to assess spatial, diurnal, and day-to-day variation in the properties of these clouds over the region. LLCs developed overnight and mean cloud cover peaked a few hundred kilometres inland around 10:00 local solar time (LST), before clouds began to dissipate and convection intensified in the afternoon. Regional variation in LLC cover was largely orographic, and no lasting impacts in cloud cover related to pollution plumes were observed downwind of major population centres. The boundary layer cloud drop number concentration (CDNC) was locally variable inland, ranging from 200 to 840 cm−3 (10th and 90th percentiles at standard temperature and pressure), but showed no systematic regional variations. Enhancements were seen in pollution plumes from the coastal cities but were not statistically significant across the region. A significant fraction of accumulation mode aerosols, and therefore cloud condensation nuclei, were from ubiquitous biomass burning smoke transported from the Southern Hemisphere. To assess the relative importance of local and transported aerosol on the cloud field, we isolated the local contribution to the aerosol population by comparing inland and offshore size and composition measurements. A parcel model sensitivity analysis showed that doubling or halving local emissions only changed the calculated cloud drop number concentration by 13 %–22 %, as the high background meant local emissions were a small fraction of total aerosol. As the population of SWA grows, local emissions are expected to rise. Biomass burning smoke transported from the Southern Hemisphere is likely to dampen any effect of these increased local emissions on cloud–aerosol interactions. An integrative analysis between local pollution and Central African biomass burning emissions must be considered when predicting anthropogenic impacts on the regional cloud field during the West African summer monsoon.


BACKGROUND
There is a lack of knowledge about oral care among older people living in short-term care (STC) units and how the quality of oral care provided by nursing staff is perceived by the older people.

AIM
To (i) describe person-related conditions among older people in STC, (ii) describe and compare perceptions of the quality of oral care (including perceptions of care received and the subjective importance of such care), within and between older people who have the ability to perform oral self-care and those who are dependent on help with oral care and (iii) examine the relationship between person-related conditions and the quality of oral care.

METHODS
A cross-sectional study was conducted with 391 older people in STC units in Sweden based on self-reported questionnaire and clinical assessments.

RESULTS
The older people were assessed as having normal oral health (2%), moderate oral health problems (78%) or severe oral health problems (20%). When comparing older people's perceptions of quality of oral care in terms of perceived reality and subjective importance, significant differences appeared within and between groups. Psychological well-being had a significant relationship with perception of the quality of oral care (both perceived reality and subjective importance), and gender and oral health status had a significant relationship with subjective importance.

CONCLUSIONS
Older people's perceptions of areas for improvement regarding quality of oral care is a new and important knowledge for nursing staff in STC units. Older people want personalised information regarding oral health and oral care. Registered Nurses who take the responsibility in nursing care for older people's oral health may avoid unnecessary suffering by older people caused by oral health problems.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE
Older people's perspective is an important component for quality work and might lead to improvements in the quality of oral care in STC.


An important aspect of tumor progression is the ability of cancer cells to escape detection and clearance by the immune system. Recent studies suggest that several tumors express soluble factors interfering with the immune response. Here, we show that semaphorin-3A (Sema-3A), a secreted member of the semaphorin family involved in axonal guidance, organogenesis, and angiogenesis, is highly expressed in several tumor cells. Conditioned media of Sema-3A-transfected COS-7 cells or human recombinant Sema-3A inhibited primary human T-cell proliferation and cytokines production under anti-CD3 plus anti-CD28 stimulating conditions. Sema-3A also inhibited the activation of nonspecific cytotoxic activity in mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC), as measured against K-562 cells. In contrast, suppression of Sema-3A in tumor cells with a small interfering RNA (siRNA) augmented T-cell activation. The inhibitory effect of Sema-3A in T cells is mediated by blockade of Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway. The presence of Sema-3A increased the activation of the Ras family small GTPase Rap1 and introduction of the dominant-negative mutant of Rap1 (Rap1N17) blunted the immunoinhibitory effects of Sema-3A. These results suggest that Sema-3A inhibits primary T-cell activation and imply that it can contribute to the T-cell dysfunction in the tumor microenvironment.


Circulation Research is available at http://circres.ahajournals.org DOI: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.306923 Abstract: The clinical correlations linking diabetes mellitus with accelerated atherosclerosis, cardiomyopathy, and increased post-myocardial infarction fatality rates are increasingly understood in mechanistic terms. The multiple mechanisms discussed in this review seem to share a common element: prolonged increases in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in diabetic cardiovascular cells. Intracellular hyperglycemia causes excessive ROS production. This activates nuclear poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, which inhibits GAPDH, shunting early glycolytic intermediates into pathogenic signaling pathways. ROS and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase also reduce sirtuin, PGC-1α, and AMPactivated protein kinase activity. These changes cause decreased mitochondrial biogenesis, increased ROS production, and disturbed circadian clock synchronization of glucose and lipid metabolism. Excessive ROS production also facilitates nuclear transport of proatherogenic transcription factors, increases transcription of the neutrophil enzyme initiating NETosis, peptidylarginine deiminase 4, and activates the NOD-like receptor family, pyrin domain-containing 3 inflammasome. Insulin resistance causes excessive cardiomyocyte ROS production by increasing fatty acid flux and oxidation. This stimulates overexpression of the nuclear receptor PPARα and nuclear translocation of forkhead box O 1, which cause cardiomyopathy. ROS also shift the balance between mitochondrial fusion and fission in favor of increased fission, reducing the metabolic capacity and efficiency of the mitochondrial electron transport chain and ATP synthesis. Mitochondrial oxidative stress also plays a central role in angiotensin II–induced gap junction remodeling and arrhythmogenesis. ROS contribute to sudden death in diabetics after myocardial infarction by increasing posttranslational protein modifications, which cause increased ryanodine receptor phosphorylation and downregulation of sarco-endoplasmic reticulum Ca++-ATPase transcription. Increased ROS also depress autonomic ganglion synaptic transmission by oxidizing the nAch receptor α3 subunit, potentially contributing to the increased risk of fatal cardiac arrhythmias associated with diabetic cardiac autonomic neuropathy. (Circ Res. 2016;118:1808-1829. DOI: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.306923.)


Early visual areas encode visual information in retinotopic coordinates, signaling retinotopic size and orientation properties. One of the most fundamental properties of human primary visual cortex (V1) is its retinotopic organization, whichmakes it an ideal candidate for encoding spatial properties, such as size, of objects. However, Ebbinghaus contextual information can lead to size illusions that are reflected in the spatial pattern of activity in V1. Here we used fMRI to measure BOLD response to a variant of the Ebbinghaus illusion to test where visual information processing starts to encode relative, opposed to retinotopic, sizes. The stimulus consisted of a white test disk on a black background display whose fixation attention, central attention or illusion than the test disk. We chose this same kind of the Ebbinghaus illusion to measure BOLD response differences due to changes in the attention. Psychophysical comparison with the traditional Ebbinghaus illusion showed that the strength of the illusion in our variant was comparable. Comparison of BOLD response across conditions (lager inducers vs. small inducers) revealed illusion related activity in the intraoccipital sulcus (IOS), the middle temporal gyrus and the temporal pole. The IOS and the posterior middle temporal activation may relate to attention position that the Ebbinghaus illusion is related to textural attention. The temporal pole activation may relate to categorical object processing. Our result is consistent with the notion that the Ebbinghaus illusion results from attention influence. This effect was significantly reduced when the focus of spatial attention was narrowed with a demanding fixation and central attention task. We reason that focusing attention on the fixation task resulted in reduced activity in. and therefore reduced feedback from higher visual areas that process the Ebbinghaus illusion.


Fisheries bycatch is the greatest current source of human-caused deaths of marine mammals worldwide, with severe impacts on the health and viability of many populations. Recent regulations enacted in the United States under the Fish and Fish Product Import Provisions of its Marine Mammal Protection Act require nations with fisheries exporting fish and fish products to the United States (hereafter, "export fisheries") to have or establish marine mammal protection standards that are comparable in effectiveness to the standards for United States commercial fisheries. In many cases, this will require estimating marine mammal bycatch in those fisheries. Bycatch estimation is conceptually straightforward but can be difficult in practice, especially if resources (funding) are limiting or for fisheries consisting of many, small vessels with geographically-dispersed landing sites. This paper describes best practices for estimating bycatch mortality, which is an important ingredient of bycatch assessment and mitigation. We discuss a general bycatch estimator and how to obtain its requisite bycatch-rate and fisheries-effort data. Scientific observer programs provide the most robust bycatch estimates and consequently are discussed at length, including characteristics such as study design, data collection, statistical analysis, and common sources of estimation bias. We also discuss alternative approaches and data types, such as those based on self-reporting and electronic vessel-monitoring systems. This guide is intended to be useful to managers and scientists in countries having or establishing programs aimed at managing marine mammal bycatch, especially those conducting first-time assessments of fisheries impacts on marine mammal populations.


There are five families of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase isozymes, which have a common structure, but have different biochemical characteristics, physiologic functions and regulatory mechanisms. Various selective phosphodiesterase inhibitors may have potential uses for antiasthmatic, inotropic, vasodilative, antithrombotic and antidepressant drugs.


Helpful research materials that can be used to complete the 5 page analysis assignment for Dr. Nicoletti's PSC 321 course sections.


Author(s): Kinon, Marc Donald | Advisor(s): Murray, Carolyn B | Abstract: The present dissertation empirically examines the impact of death thoughts on intergroup relations; the findings are explained using Terror Management Theory (TMT). TMT proposes that when mortality is made salient (Mortality Salience Hypothesis, MSH) people are more likely to exhibit greater positive evaluations of their in-group; greater adherence to the values of their in-group. People have a tendency to do this because culture tends to confer self-esteem (i.e., immortality), which allegedly mitigates death anxiety. Therefore, while there is a general tendency for people to exhibit greater positive evaluations of their in-group in the face of death, people who are high in tolerance are hypothesized to show out-group favoritism or, at least, no bias; while people who are intolerant should show in-group favoritism. Three studies investigated these hypotheses. In Study 1, participants were asked to evaluate presidential candidates Obama and McCain after answering questions regarding their own death (i.e., mortality condition) or answering question about a university exam (i.e., control condition). Although the expected main effect of mortality salience on in-group favoritism was not significant, participants high in openness exhibited out-group favoritism. Study 2 examined these processes by having participants evaluate a pro and an anti-gay marriage author following a reminder of their own mortality or an exam. Beyond a significant main effect for in-group favoritism, participants low in openness exhibited the Terror Management effect. The third study examined the MSH after participants watched a movie entitled The Final Destination (i.e., "mortality condition") or another movie (i.e., "control condition"). They then evaluated a pro and an anti-gay marriage author. Beyond an expected significant relationship between the type of movie watched and positive evaluations, participants high in similarity to the author who supported their view exhibited what the MSH would predict - greater positive in-group evaluations. Those low in similarity exhibited the reverse of this effect. Assuming that one's similarity rating for a culture is based on the extent the culture either upholds or challenges one's identity, it would make sense - according to the MSH - for these effects to manifest. Limitations of these studies and their relevance to Terror Management Theory are discussed.


Production of biofuel such as ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass is a beneficial way to
meet sustainability, energy security, and environmental goals. Lignocellulosic biomass such as
source-separated organic (SSO) waste is particularly attractive since it is widely available, often
at a negative cost, reduce the land depletion from using food-based biomass for ethanol
production and reduce the amount of generated waste. Therefore, in order to meet the future fuel
demands and cope with increasing volume of municipal waste this study was a first attempt to
use SSO as a feedstock for ethanol production.

The main objectives of the study were: a) to compare standard and modified celluloseorganic-
solvent-based lignocellulosic fractionation (COSLIF) pretreatment of SSO waste for
ethanol production in terms of enzyme savings, sugar formation and ethanol yields; b) to produce
ethanol from SSO by using modified COSLIF pretreatment and fermentation with two different
recombinant strains: Z. mobilis 8b and S. cerevisiae DA2416; and c) to develop experimental
kinetic model capable of predicting behavior of batch SSCF on SSO waste with different SSO
substrate concentrations using Berkeley Madonna program.

Based on the obtained results, it was found that SSO is an excellent feedstock material for
ethanol conversion. The efficiency of modified COSLIF pretreatment was improved by 20%
compared to standard method using ethanol washing of pretreated SSO samples during the
experimental procedures instead of acetone. On average, glucose yield from SSO samples
pretreated by modified COSLIF was about 90% compared to 10% for untreated samples. S.
cerevisiae DA2416 outperformed Z. mobilis 8b on ethanol yields during the fermentation
process, with 0.50 g ethanol/g potential sugar fed on SSO in less than 5 days, with a 96%
cellulose conversion, totalling in 150 g/L ethanol produced. A kinetic model with newly
integrated values of experimentally defined SSO feedstock constants was proven to predict the
ethanol yield accurately with substrate concentration ranges of 20 g/L - 50 g/L. Model prediction
at higher substrate concentration (e.g. 100 g/L) deviated from the experimental values,
suggesting that ethanol inhibition is a major factor in bioethanol conversion.


The advances in Cloud computing and in modern Web applications have raised the need for highly available and scalable distributed databases to accommodate the big data being created and consumed. Along with the explosion in data growth comes the necessity to rapidly evolve databases and schemas to meet user demands for new functionality. A special attention is being paid to the vast amounts of semi-structured and un-structured data, and the data management tools should reflect the support for these needs. This has lead to the development of new Cloud serving systems such as "Not Only" SQL (NoSQL) databases. NoSQL databases were driven by the scalability needs of the big companies, such as Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Yahoo. While the demands of these key players are different from those of small and medium enterprises in terms of scalability, the core problem is the same - storage arrays are not scalable and force you into expensive, forklift upgrades. These facts combined with changes in how IT resources are delivered and consumed through the Cloud computing paradigm, projects adopting NoSQL solutions are not a hype anymore. NoSQL databases are being offered as a service by the big Cloud providers, such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft, but by smaller vendors as well. In this master thesis we investigate the possibilities and limitations of mapping relational database schemas to NoSQL schemas when migrating the database layer to the Cloud. Based on literature research we provide recommendations and guidelines with regard to schema transformation and discuss the implications at other application architecture layers, such as business logic and data access layer. We extend an existing data migration tool and methodology for incorporating the migration guidelines and hints. Moreover, we validate our work based on a chosen sub-set of relational and NoSQL databases by using example data from the established TPC-H benchmark.


mention is made of the timing of analgesic administration peroperatively. Patients who receive analgesia in the recovery room immediately after surgery, for example, will require a different pattern of postoperative analgesia from those who do not. Indeed, "time to first analgesia" is often used to assess the effectiveness of a peroperative regimen and would be useful and important information to include here. The validity of combining these two operative groups for the sake of analgesic assessments is questionable. Ofthe 101 patients studied, 20 of the 50 patients presenting for cholecystectomy were taking analgesics on admission compared with only six of the 51 presenting for hysterectomy. This discrepancy could influence the overall results of the study. In addition, the nature of the incision may also be relevant. Cholecystectomy, being an upper abdominal operation, is performed through either a subcostal or a paramedian incision, and hysterectomy through either a transverse or a vertical lower abdominal incision. That the groups differed in their requirement for opioids underlines this. Linear analogue scores were completed "immediately after each dose of analgesia." Assuming (because this is not stated) that postoperative analgesia was given intramuscularly, this is an unfair assessment as the time to onset of analgesia after intramuscular injection is finite. Comparisons of average doses ofdrugs (anaesthetic or otherwise) by t tests may not be appropriate as the data are non-parametric. More importantly, linear analogue scores are neither normally distributed nor interval data, and t tests are inappropriate for their analysis.2 The results of this study unfortunately do not help us overcome the problem of inadequate pain relief. More specific questions need to be answered on specific operations in order to define its extent. Though 79% of medical staff thought pain relief was inadequate, 11 of the 19 questioned were anaesthetists-a group who prescribe but do not administer postoperative analgesia. Until those who are aware of the inadequacy of the present regimen have responsibility for administering postoperative analgesia in the form of analgesia teams or those who administer (nursing staff) are made more aware, the problem of inadequate analgesia will persist.


In this paper, the Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equation is solved using Hermite collocation method on an adaptive mesh. The method uses seventh order Hermite basis functions on a mesh that is adaptive in space. Numerical experiments are carried out to validate effectiveness of the method.


Natural disasters always threaten human life, but sometimes it may prosper
people in the disaster area. For example, the earthquake in Aceh, it brought
material aids and employment opportunities to Acehnese. However, the aid
caused a social conflict due to the aids distribution deemed unfair. In this
case, a village leader, as a central figure, demanded his expertise to prevent
violence or damage. This research aims to analyze the village leader's roles
as a safety valve in handling conflict of shelter aids for earthquake victims.
This study was conducted with a qualitative approach that involved fifteen
informants as the primary data source. They were the village's apparatus
and earthquake victims. The results showed that the village leader as a
safety valve, he formed a community group as a new safety valve and
offered his people new hope beyond the demands. Thus, this study suggests
that the safety valve model may be used to pause the conflict escalates into
violent behavior, but not to settle the root causes of conflict. Nevertheless,
it may create harmony if the solutions proposed are beyond the promise of
voice. For the next researchers, the study suggests examining the
effectiveness of hope or promise in conflict resolution for disaster aids
management


PURPOSE
To offer minimized risk-adapted adjuvant treatment on a nationwide basis for patients with clinical stage 1 (CS1) nonseminomatous germ-cell testicular cancer (NSGCT). The aim was to reduce the risk of relapse and thereby reducing the need of later salvage chemotherapy while maintaining a high cure rate.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
From 1998 to 2005, 745 Norwegian and Swedish patients were included into a prospective, community-based multicenter Swedish and Norwegian Testicular Cancer Project (SWENOTECA) management program. Treatment strategy depended on the presence or absence of vascular tumor invasion (VASC). VASC-positive patients were recommended brief adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) with bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin (BEP), whereas VASC-negative patients could choose between ACT and surveillance.

RESULTS
At a median follow-up of 4.7 years, there have been 51 relapses. On surveillance, 41.7% of VASC+ patients relapsed, compared with 13.2% of VASC- patients. After one course of BEP, 3.2% of VASC+ and 1.3% of VASC- patients relapsed. The toxicity of adjuvant BEP was low. Eight patients have died, none died from progressive disease.

CONCLUSION
One course of adjuvant BEP reduces the risk of relapse by approximately 90% in both VASC+ and VASC- CS1 NSGCT, and may be a new option as initial treatment for all CS1 NSGCT. One course of adjuvant BEP for VASC+ CS1 reduces the total burden of chemotherapy compared with surveillance or two courses of BEP. SWENOTECA currently recommends one course of BEP as standard treatment of VASC+ CS1 NSGCT, whereas both surveillance and one course of BEP are options for VASC- CS1 NSGCT.


A rapid multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mass spectrometric method for the detection and relative quantitation of the adulteration of meat with that of an undeclared species is presented. Our approach uses corresponding proteins from the different species under investigation and corresponding peptides from those proteins, or CPCP. Selected peptide markers can be used for species detection. The use of ratios of MRM transition peak areas for corresponding peptides is proposed for relative quantitation. The approach is introduced by use of myoglobin from four meats: beef, pork, horse and lamb. Focusing in the present work on species identification, by use of predictive tools, we determine peptide markers that allow the identification of all four meats and detection of one meat added to another at levels of 1% (w/w). Candidate corresponding peptide pairs to be used for the relative quantification of one meat added to another have been observed. Preliminary quantitation data presented here are encouraging.


Abstract The diffusion of red blood cells (RBCs) in blood is important to the physiology and pathology of the cardiovascular system. In this study, we investigate flow-induced diffusion of RBCs in a semi-dilute system by calculating the pairwise interactions between RBCs in simple shear flow. A capsule with a hyperelastic membrane was used to model an RBC. Its deformation was resolved using the finite element method, whereas fluid motion inside and outside the RBC was solved using the boundary element method. The results show that shear-induced RBC diffusion is significantly anisotropic, i.e. the velocity gradient direction component is larger than the vorticity direction. We also found that the motion of RBCs during the interaction is strongly dependent on the viscosity ratio of the internal to external fluid, and the diffusivity decreases monotonically as the viscosity ratio increases. The scaling argument also suggests that the diffusivity is proportional to the shear rate and haematocrit, if the suspension is in a semi-dilute environment and the capillary number is invariant. These fundamental findings are useful to understand transport phenomena in blood flow.


Adult white rats were divided into 3 groups; 6 rats each, (two males and four females). Group I was exposed to 1.5% halothane for 20 minutes every other day for 6 exposures. The rats were mated and exposed another 10 exposures. Group II was given 0.1% phenobarbitone in milk one week before, and during the period of exposure to halothane which was similar to the first group. Group III was kept as a control. At the suspected date of delivery, the rats were sacrificed, and specimens were taken from the liver for hematoxylin and eosin stain, PAS reaction and Sudan black stain. Repeated exposure to halothane did not affect the pregnancy rate, but it resulted in hepatic focal and centrilobular necrosis with glycogen poverty and moderate lipid content. The portal spaces showed thick connective tissue and lymphocytic infiltration. Phenobarbitone reduced the pregnancy rate and resulted in 16.5% fetal mortality with more hepatic necrosis and increase in glycogen and lipid content.


Abstract The restructuring of higher education in South Africa is being dually steered by an equity and a merit imperative. In the move towards creating a single dedicated distance-education institution, the outcome of the merged incorporation of Vista University Distance Education Campus (Vudec) into the University of South Africa (UNISA) implied the obliteration of the Vudec culture. This has warranted the recording of the Vudec culture based on the valid need to document the existence of an institution of higher education over a period of 21 years. It has also warranted an assessment of gains and losses as a result of the merger. Based on literature and a qualitative study undertaken in Vudec, the Vudec institutional culture has been documented and gains and losses for Vudec students and staff determined. It is argued that although significant gains were made, such as better opportunities for students and staff due to improved resources, a serious loss has been incurred in the disappearance of the under-developed student corps of practising teachers. Apart from not fully accomplishing the equity goal, this loss also jeopardises merit achievements.


This paper presents a multi-objective optimal design of cascade controllers applied to an aircraft wing with a leading and trailing control surface driven by electromagnetic actuators (EMAs). The design of the control system is decoupled into an inner (slave or secondary) and outer (master or primary) control algorithm. The master control algorithm is applied to the dynamics of the wing and its ailerons while two salve control loops are designed for the two EMAs. Then, a multi-objective and optimal design of the control algorithms is carried out. Three objectives are considered : 1) the speed of response of the slave controlled system must be faster than that of the master one, 2) the controlled system must be robust against external upsets, and 3) optimal energy consumption. The multi-objective optimization problem (MOP) is solved by the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II), which is one of the widely algorithms in solving MOPs. The setup parameters of the primary and secondary control algorithms are tuned during the optimization and the design objectives are evaluated. The solution of the MOP is a set of optimal cascade controllers that represent the trade-offs among the design objectives. Computer simulations show that the design objectives are achieved. However, some of the optimal solutions are practically in-feasible because they respond poorly to external disturbances. Presented study may become the basis for multi-objective optimal design of active aeroelastic control systems.


Internet Telerobotics presents many interesting aspects within the context of master/slave teleoperation like variable bandwidth and time-delays. Some of these aspects have been treated in the literature from the control point of view. However, only a few works are related to the way internet protocols can help to minimize the effect of delay and bandwidth fluctuation on teleoperation. In this paper we present the capabilities of TCP, UDP, TCP Las Vegas, TEAR, and Trinomial protocols when performing an Internet teleoperation. The comparative analysis is presented through simulations within the NS2 platform. Conclusions present a set of requirements that are necessary in order to define the SNRTP protocol (Simple Network Robot Transport Protocol), which is specifically being designed for Internet teleoperation. The SNRTP protocol tries to minimize the end-to-end timedelay by using as much bandwidth and possible (e.g asymmetric networks), and maintaining the TCP-Friendly criteria. Moreover, the SNRTP is being designed to be fully integrated with the HTTP-based robotics application protocol SNRP (Simple Network Robot Protocol), which have been described in detail in previous works.


Abstract. The choice of measures used to estimate the richness of species, genera, or higher taxa is a crucial matter in paleobiology and ecology. This paper evaluates four methods called shareholder quorum subsampling, true richness estimated using a Poisson sampling model (TRiPS), squares, and the corrected first-order jackknife (cJ1). Quorum subsampling interpolates to produce a relative richness estimate, while the other three extrapolate to the size of the overall species pool. Here I use routine ecological data to show that squares and cJ1 pass several basic validation tests, but TRiPS does not. First, TRiPS estimates are insensitive to the shape of abundance distributions, being entirely predicted by total counts of species and of individuals regardless of the details. Furthermore, TRiPS tends not to extrapolate at all when sampling is moderate or intense. Second, all three extrapolators yield lower values when they work with small uniform subsamples of large raw inventories. The third test is a split-analyze-and-sum analysis: each inventory is divided between the most common and least common halves of the abundance distribution, the methods are applied to the half-inventories, and the estimates are summed. Squares and cJ1 perform well here, but TRiPS does not extrapolate as long as the full inventories are reasonably well-sampled. It is otherwise not particularly accurate. The extrapolators are largely insensitive to the influence of abundance distribution evenness, as quantified using Pielou's J and a new index called the ratio of means. Quorum subsampling generally performs well, but it stumbles on the split-analyze-and-sum test and is confounded somewhat by evenness.


In this thesis different types of frequency reconfigurable dielectric resonator antennas are designed for various wireless communication applications. Wireless communications now a days are becoming a piece of everyday existence of individuals. Thus to attain efficient and reasonable communication, conservative and proficient radiators are needed. Surely, one of the productive radiators is Dielectric resonator antenna (DRA). The reconfiguration capacity maximizes the antenna performance in a changing scenario. Frequency reconfiguration can be achieved by switching parts of the antenna "ON" or "OFF". Different switches such as pin diodes, varactor diodes, MEMS switches etc. are used for this purpose. In this thesis, first a simple dielectric resonator antenna with microstrip strips on two edges of the dielectric resonator is designed. The dielectric constant of the DR is taken as 𝜀𝜀𝑟𝑟 = 10 with dimensions 13mm×13mm×10mm. The DR is placed on a ground plane of dimensions 100 mm × 150 mm and substrate of 𝜀𝜀𝑟𝑟= 3.38. By usingshorting tabs on one edge of the DRA, six different operating conditions are obtained. Second, a H shaped frequency reconfigurable DRA using coplanar waveguide (CPW) feed is presented. This antenna consists of two dielectric resonators of dielectric constant 15 each. The DRs are placed on a substrate of dielectric constant 3.2. CPW feeding technique is used to excite the DRA. Two PIN diodes are used on the line connecting the dielectric resonators. Using these PIN diodes 3 operating modes, such as OFF ON, ON OFF and ON ON are obtained. In OFF ON state 2 bands with center frequencies 2.7 GHz for WLAN application and 4.8 GHz for INSAT (Indian national satellite system) application are obtained. In ON OFF state a single narrow band with center frequency 3.7 GHz is obtained for WLAN and international mobile telecommunications (IMT) applications. Similarly in ON ON state a dual band with frequencies 2.6917 and 5.2589 is obtained for WLAN applications. Finally, an aperture coupled dielectric resonator antenna with power divider is designed. First of all the antenna is analyzed without any PIN diodes and later the frequency reconfigurability is obtained by using PIN diodes in the feed network. In the first case a single band with center frequency 2.9 GHz is obtained for WLAN applications. Later by using switching elements 3 different operating frequencies are obtained


Agriculture is the main stay of Nepal's economy. This provides about one-third of national GDP and two-third of national employment. Agriculture is highly vulnerable to climate change due to more marginal farmers with small landholding, limited irrigation, low income level, limited institutional capacity, and greater dependency on climate-sensitive natural resources. The adverse effect of climate change on agriculture impacts on farm revenue, employment, income and GDP. Policy formulation in agriculture and food security sector concerning to climate change has become an imperative for poverty reduction, livelihood improvement and economic development. Compliance with global and national agreement, review of existing policy will provide an essential foundation to policy makers, planners and development workers to reform process. This paper intended to find the strength and weaknesses of existing plans, policies, strategies, acts which will support stakeholders in agricultural development.


The density of states (DOS) is essentially the number of different states at a particular energy level that electrons are allowed to occupy, i.e. the number of electron states per unit volume per unit energy. Bulk properties such as specific heat, paramagnetic susceptibility, and other transport phenomena of conductive solids depend on this function. DOS calculations allow one to determine the general distribution of states as a function of energy and can also determine the spacing between energy bands in semi-conductors\(^{[1]}\).


The principal aim of the study of ultrarelativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions is the search for evidence of a transient state of deconfined quarks and gluons in the early, dense and hot stage of the reaction. Non-statistical event-by-event fluctuations of mean transverse momentum,p_T, have been proposed as a possible signature for the QCD phase transition, in particular for the critical point. However, the magnitude of the measured fluctuations is not as large as anticipated. Since fluctuations were characterized so far by one single (integral) number, it was difficult to estimate the many possible contributions to them. Taking into account the high available statistics offered by the CERES experiment combined with the full azimuthal acceptance, a differential study of mean p_T fluctuations is performed, which provides the sensitivity to discriminate among various correlation sources. For the first time at SPS energy, the charge-dependent mean p_T fluctuations have been analyzed as a function of the angular pair separation, Delta(phi), and of the separation in pseudorapidity, Delta(eta). Thus, we are able to show that the overall fluctuations are dominated by the short range correlation peak at small opening angles (`near-side'), most probably originating from Bose-Einstein and Coulomb effects between pairs of particles emitted with similar velocities. Another important contribution is a broad maximum at Delta(phi) = 180 degrees (`away-side') originating from back-to-back (jet-like) correlations. Since the fluctuations related to the critical point should be present for all opening angles the best strategy is to focus on the fluctuations in the region of 30 < Delta(phi) <60 degrees, free of the influence of the two mentioned components, and where the elliptic flow cancels out. Concerning the observed away-side peak, we demonstrate that it comes from high-p_T correlations that cannot be attributed to the elliptic flow. The second part of the thesis is dedicated to studies of gas properties for the ALICE experiment at the CERN LHC. Drift velocity and gain measurements have been performed for a number of gas mixtures in order to assess the effect of nitrogen which is expected to accumulate in the gas volume over long periods of running. The ALICE Transition Radiation Detector (TRD) is designed to work with a gas of 85 % Xe and 15 % CO2. Some of the nine isotopes of Xe have very high neutron capture cross-section leading to multi-gamma deexcitation cascades which produce background for the physical signals. An exhaustive study of this issue based on Monte Carlo simulations is presented, demonstrating that the level of this background is low enough not to cause deterioration in the performance of the detector. In addition, the resulting radioactivity and dose rate of the active gas system of ALICE TRD activated by slow neutrons is investigated and appear to be low and safe.


Background: Calcaneonavicular coalitions are the most common form of tarsal coalitions. The prefered treatment for symptomatic coalitions is surgical resection; however, there are no published studies that directly compare different interposition techniques. The purpose of the present study was to retrospectively compare pain relief, functional outcomes, and complications of children and adolescents who had a resection of a symptomatic calcaneonavicular coalition with interposition of fat graft, bone wax, or extensor digitorum brevis (EDB). Methods: In total, 48 patients (56 ft) underwent calcaneonavicular coalition resection-interposition at 3 institutions from July 2008 to July 2015. There were 23 feet in group 1 (fat graft), 18 feet in group 2 (bone wax), and 15 feet in group 3 (EDB). Patient demographic characteristics were similar between all groups for age, sex, coalition type, and symptoms onset. Data concerning clinical and radiographic features, surgical technique, and postoperative complications were obtained from all available medical records. Radiographs were evaluated at last follow-up to determine coalition regrowth. Preoperative and postoperative pain was assessed with the visual analog scale, and function was assessed with use of the American-Orthopaedic-Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) score. Results: Pain improved to an average of 0.5 in the first group (range, 0 to 6), 0 in group 2, and 1.7 in group 3 (range, 0 to 5) (P=0.033). The average AOFAS score improved from 59 (range, 33 to 71 points) to 98 points (range, 62 to 100 points) in the fat graft group, from 50 (range, 34 to 62 points) to 98 points (range, 88 to 100 points) in the bone wax group, and from 48 (range, 30 to 60 points) to 75 points (range, 70 to 95 points) in the EDB group (P<0.001). Eight feet had regrowth of the coalition on the postoperative radiographs: 1 in group 1 (4%), 1 in group 2 (6%), and 6 in group 3 (40%) (P=0.004). Five feet from the third group developed progressive symptoms. Conclusions: In our study, autogenous fat graft and bone wax interposition techniques provided better pain relief, gave better functional scores, and avoided more effectively coalition reossification than EDB technique. Further studies are required to evaluate safety of bone wax as an interposition material. Level of Evidence: Level III—therapeutic.


Right © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Japan Radiation Research Society and Japanese Society for Radiation Oncology.; This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


We propose supervised graph attention network (super-GAT), a novel neural network architecture for semi-supervised node classification in graphs. While learning (unsupervised) graph attention from the original graph attention network (GAT), we jointly train the attention values by supervised learning with information whether an edge exists between a pair of nodes. By giving supervision, we can assign not only implicit weights to nodes in the neighborhood but also explicit weights to nodes in any relation. Our model is based on GAT, and it only needs a few additional parameters and computation. We show how super-GAT performs on three transductive benchmark citation datasets: Cora, CiteSeer, and PubMed, and compared to baseline models including GAT, super-GAT achieves higher prediction accuracy for the first two datasets.


Lyrics alignment in long music recordings can be memory exhaustive when performed in a single pass. In this study, we present a novel method that performs audio-to-lyrics alignment with a low memory consumption footprint regardless of the duration of the music recording. The proposed system first spots the anchoring words within the audio signal. With respect to these anchors, the recording is then segmented and a second-pass alignment is performed to obtain the word timings. We show that our audio-to-lyrics alignment system performs competitively with the state-of-the-art, while requiring much less computational resources. In addition, we utilize our lyrics alignment system to segment the music recordings into sentence-level chunks. Notably on the segmented recordings, we report the lyrics transcription scores on a number of benchmark test sets. Finally, our experiments highlight the importance of the source separation step for good performance on the transcription and alignment tasks. For reproducibility, we publicly share our code with the research community.


Calluna-vulgaris-heathlands located at the southern-most distribution area (Cantabrian Mountains, NW Spain) are currently threatened by global change drivers such as atmospheric nitrogen (N) depositions that affect their functioning, structure and plant species composition. The main aim of the present Doctoral Thesis was to evaluate the effects of different atmospheric N loads in Cantabrian Mountains heathlands at two different life-cycle stages (young- and mature-phase).
Field measured bulk inorganic N deposition rates in the Cantabrian Mountains ranged between 2.8 kg N ha-1 yr-1 and 4.6 kg N ha-1 yr-1, with higher N deposition rates during the wet period. The prevailing N chemical form in atmospheric depositions is from oxidized compounds (NOY). The distribution and fate of these airborne N inputs in the Calluna-heathland were traced with 15N isotope. These heathlands were able to retain ∼72% of total N inputs in the short-term (< 1 year). The soil organic horizon immobilized ∼47% of the N inputs. During the second year, ∼95% of N inputs was likely lost by denitrification fluxes during the winter-spring period. Leaching losses were negligible over two years, suggesting that these heathlands were not N saturated.
Furthermore, we aimed to evaluate the effects of different levels of experimentally simulated N deposition on the functioning, structure and composition of Cantabrian Calluna-heathlands. The increase in atmospheric N loads resulted in a subsequent increase in soil ammonium (NH4+) with long-term N inputs (10 years); although soil nitrate (NO3-), total N, organic carbon (C), and available phosphorus (P) pools remained unchanged. Besides, Calluna shoot N and P contents and litter N content also increased, which was accordingly reflected in higher N:P ratios. The greatest P demand by Calluna biomass from P-poor soils was supplied by the increase in acid phosphatase enzymatic activity to mineralize organic P, and by the extent of Calluna roots colonized by mycorrhizal fungi to support the higher P uptake. There were no changes in soil microbial biomass C and N contents in response to higher N availability, as well as in urease (N cycle) and β-glucosidase (C cycle) enzymatic activities associated to microbial nutrient demand. The lack of response of several soil properties and microbial nutrient contents could be due to extreme climatic conditions and short period of physiological activity in these montane areas, indicating that montane heathlands are highly resistant to increased N loads. Furthermore, plant community composition and plant species richness remained unchanged in response to enhanced N inputs, likely due to the resistant and resilient mechanisms of heathland dominant vegetation. However, at life-form level, percentage of cover of N-tolerant graminoids and forbs species increased with higher N availability, while the cover of bryophytes and lichens declined. There was a stimulation of Calluna vulgaris vital rates (shoot growth and flowering) in response to short-term N inputs, but the first symptoms of N saturation were observed under long-term N inputs (10 years) through a declined trend in these vital rates. The heathland life-cycle stage conditioned the response to enhanced N loads through stronger N-related effects in young stands compared to mature ones. In Cantabrian heathlands, the N critical load was set in the range of 10-20 kg N ha-1 yr-1 for both young and mature stands, based mainly on changes in Calluna flowering and shoot N content at 14.6 kg N ha-1 yr-1.


This report has been put together by the Health and Care Infrastructure Research and Innovation Centre (HaCIRIC) at the University of Salford for the Department of Health.
The need for the report grew out of two main simple questions,
o Is Lean applicable in sectors other than manufacturing?
o Can the service delivery sector learn from the success of lean in manufacturing and realise the benefits of its implementation?The aim of the report is to list together examples of lean thinking as it is evidenced in the
public and private service sector. Following a review of various sources a catalogue of evidence is put together in an organised manner which demonstrates that Lean principles
and techniques, when applied rigorously and throughout an entire organization/unit, they can have a positive impact on productivity, cost, quality, and timely delivery of services.


Mechanical ventilation maintains adequate gas exchange in patients during general anaesthesia, as well as in critically ill patients without and with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Optimization of mechanical ventilation is important to minimize ventilator induced lung injury and improve outcome. Tidal volume (VT), positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP), respiratory rate (RR), plateau pressures as well as inspiratory oxygen are the main parameters to set mechanical ventilation. Recently, the driving pressure (∆P), i.e., the difference of the plateau pressure and end-expiratory pressure of the respiratory system or of the lung, has been proposed as a key role parameter to optimize mechanical ventilation parameters. The ∆P depends on the VT as well as on the relative balance between the amount of aerated and/or overinflated lung at end-expiration and end-inspiration at different levels of PEEP. During surgery, higher ∆P, mainly due to VT, was progressively associated with an increased risk to develop post-operative pulmonary complications; in two large randomized controlled trials the reduction in ∆P by PEEP did not result in better outcome. In non-ARDS patients, ∆P was not found even associated with morbidity and mortality. In ARDS patients, an association between ∆P (higher than 13-15 cmH2O) and mortality has been reported. In several randomized controlled trials, when ∆P was minimized by the use of higher PEEP with or without recruitment manoeuvres, this strategy resulted in equal or even higher mortality. No clear data are currently available about the interpretation and clinical use of ∆P during assisted ventilation. In conclusion, ∆P is an indicator of severity of the lung disease, is related to VT size and associated with complications and mortality. We advocate the use of ∆P to optimize individually VT but not PEEP in mechanically ventilated patients with and without ARDS.


Biodegradable in situ forming drug delivery systems that solidify or gel in the body from injectable fluids represent effective parenteral depot systems for controlled delivery of proteins. Various pharmaceutical additives were tested on their effectiveness as protein release modifiers and stabilizers. Mono-, di-, poly-saccharides, PEG2K and salting-out salts except cyclodextrins significantly decreased Tg of thermogelling polymers and their decreasing abilities were proportional to the polymer concentration and additive/polymer weight ratio up to solubility limits in aqueous media. For methyl cellulose (MC) gel, sodium carbonate, a strong salting-out salt, decreased Tg by 23 °C so that in situ gel can be formed at the body temperature. The incorporation of additives into thermogelling polymers significantly decreased the burst and retarded release kinetics. Although the pH inside gel gradually dropped down due to the polymer degradation, released model protein was confirmed to retain the original conformation.


As products and distribution channels become more homogenised, and competing on the basis of price more difficult, integrated marketing communications (IMC) has been identified as the 'new frontier' for effective differentiation. Research identifying roles and functions of IMC has primarily been focused on firms operating in the final consumer market. This research seeks to extend our understanding of the role and functions of IMC in business‐to‐business markets, with specific reference to an industry network. In order to achieve this, this paper explores the roles and functions (i.e. the associated organisation of IMC activities) adopted by the Tasmanian Light Shipbuilding Network (TLSN). In total, this research found evidence of three distinct roles (IMC Champion, Government Lobbyist, and Network Ambassador) that together served to implement the IMC functions of gathering, analysing and disseminating key marketing information throughout the network of firms. This research also presents an IMC framework that represents the manner in which the various network members coordinated the various IMC roles and functions.


Anthropometric differences between the two Koreas are of considerable public and scientific interest given the unique socio-political status of North Korea and the fact that the nations share the same genetic ancestry. This study provides new biosocial evidence on these differences by analysing mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) as a human welfare indicator. This is the first study to compare the nutritional status of adults surveyed inside North Korea with South Koreans. The MUAC measurements of 2793 North Korean women obtained through a household survey conducted in 2002 were compared with those of 1428 South Korean women surveyed around 2003. Comparative analysis was conducted by plotting centiles and calculating mean differences in MUAC by age. This paper finds that the MUAC of the South Koreans was on average 2.8 cm greater than that of their North Korean peers, with MUAC gaps ranging from 1.6 cm to 3.9 cm and becoming more pronounced with age. This research confirms previous studies on height and weight in the two Germanies and in the two Koreas that have shown that biosocial performance is worse in socialist economies as compared with free-market regimes.


This chapter traces the development of radio study groups in Tanzania from their initial unsophisticated beginnings in Moshi and Mbeya in 1967 to the massive organization involved in the latest health education campaign. The idea of radio listening groups was born in Tanzania in 2 different institutions and at opposite ends of the country at about the same time. The Cooperative Education Center in Moshi founded in 1964 began with simple correspondence study guides as the main education method and then decided to support and enliven these courses by radio programs which presented the essential ideas and information in an oral form. In 1967 a similar experiment was launched in the Mbeya region. The 1970 study campaign on Tanzanias elections was an attempt to utilize various educational techniques to arouse civic interest and spread information about an event of great national political importance. From the perspective of educational methodology it achieved several interesting results. It succeeded in a limited fashion in reaching people in nearly all areas of the country and it made available to rural adult education workers the tool with which they could carry out an important but unfamiliar job. Yet in the final analysis the success of the study campaign depends on its impact on the development of Tanzanians understanding of and participation in their democratic rights. This is not possible to assess. The pilot study campaigns in 1969 and 1970 had centered on important national events. The year 1971 was to culminate in the celebration of Tanzanias 10th anniversary of Independence. It thus was considered appropriate to link the 1971 radio study campaign to this national celebration. The feeling was that the campaign should attempt to do 2 things: to create a deeper sense of national awareness; and by tracing the development of Tanzania from the distant past up until the present to highlight the achievements since Independence. The study materials consisted of 3 elements: a series of radio programs a textbook and a study guide. The campaign achieved a large measure of success. The fact that groups were established all over the country indicate that interest was aroused on a national scale. The campaign reached its intended audience the rural section of the population. Another area which was thought to have been satisfactory is that of training. This was the 1st time that a 2-stage training program had been tried. The evaluation provides evidence that people can learn from this method as indicated by the statistically significant in socres from the pretest to the posttest.


This paper presents a planning framework for integrating energy storage (ES) systems into the distribution system. An ES system is deployed to simultaneously provide multiple benefits, also known as stacked-benefits, for the feeder. The primary and secondary application scenarios for the feeder are identified. The proposed ES deployment approach includes the following steps: (1) size the ES system for primary application; (2) identify optimal ES locations based on both primary and secondary application scenarios; (3) calculate the ES accommodation capacity for each potential location; and (4) develop control methods for ES units and conduct grid impact analysis to demonstrate ES applications. For the selected feeder, the primary application for ES deployment is to provide the N-1 contingency requirement. During normal operating conditions, ES is programmed for multiple secondary applications: voltage management and ancillary services by frequency regulation. A probabilistic approach is presented to obtain the optimal ES size for providing the N-1 contingency requirement. Optimal ES locations are obtained based on secondary application scenarios. Real and reactive power control methods are developed to demonstrate the viability of deploying an ES system for simultaneously providing multiple applications. The simulation results show that ES can successfully provide the stacked-benefits for the distribution circuit. The proposed framework is generic and can be employed for the ES integration analysis of any feeder, with different sets of primary and secondary applications.


This study has been carried out in order to determine the polymorphic traits of various biochemical parameters in goat breeds which are native to Turkey. For this purpose, Angora and Hair goat breeds were chosen as live materials. Two different herds for each breed were selected from Ankara and Antalya, respectively. Blood samples were taken from a total of 120 goats aged between 2 and 4 which was made up of 60 Angora goats and 60 Hair goats. All which derived equally from 4 lots of herds. Analyses were performed for the polymorphic determination of the haemoglobin (Hb), transferrin (Tf), ceruloplasmin (Cp) and glutathione (GSH). Hb types were determined by starch gel electrophoresis and Tf types were detected by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis. Furthermore, Cp and GSH analyses were performed by spectrophotometrically. Following the analysis, Hb types were found as 3 genotypes (AA, AB, BB) controlled by 2 allel genes (Hb, Hb). Tf types were found as 6 genotypes (AA, AB, AC, BB, BC, CC) controlled by 3 allele genes (Tf, Tf, Tf). Findings for Hb were in line with the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE) in Angora goats while the Hair goat was not found to be in line. Moreover, Tf was found in line with the HWE for 2 separate goat breeds. The levels of Cp and GSH of two breeds were significantly different from other (P<0.0001). The findings are recorded as a source of reference for prospective polymorphism studies.


ABSTRACT Kim, K.H. and Shim, K.T., 2014. A field investigation of waves and wave-induced currents at the Youngrang Coast of the Republic of Korea. An accurate identification of the root cause of beach erosion should be taken in the precedence over designing reliable countermeasures. This study reviews the characteristics of the wave-induced currents by using the observation results on wave and current. The observed patterns were taken from comprehensive observation results which studied characteristics of wave and wave induced current as well as suspended load and bed load. The observations were conducted at the Youngrang Coast in the east coast of Korea. Based on the field observation results, Youngrang Coast has intermittently shown the occurrence of high waves due to winter monsoons. Affected by the high waves, the wave-induced currents have shown to exist inside the wave-breaking zone with a current velocity of 0.5–1 m/s. Such strong wave-induced currents are considered to be acting the main source of winter longshore sediment transport and beach erosion.


I consider estimation of the average treatment effect (ATE), in a population composed of $G$ groups, when one has unbiased and uncorrelated estimators of each group's conditional average treatment effect (CATE). These conditions are met in stratified randomized experiments. I assume that the outcome is homoscedastic, and that each CATE is bounded in absolute value by $B$ standard deviations of the outcome, for some known $B$. I derive, across all linear combinations of the CATEs' estimators, the estimator of the ATE with the lowest worst-case mean-squared error. This minimax-linear estimator assigns a weight equal to group $g$'s share in the population to the most precisely estimated CATEs, and a weight proportional to one over the estimator's variance to the least precisely estimated CATEs. I also derive the minimax-linear estimator when the CATEs' estimators are positively correlated, a condition that may be met by differences-in-differences estimators in staggered adoption designs.


detected by chromoendoscopy from targeted biopsies of macroscopically visible abnormalities, as opposed to random biopsies of colonic mucosa. Methods: In this prospective study, consecutive patients with clinically inactive, longstanding UC (8 years) were recruited from 4 centers; colonoscopy with chromoendoscopy using 0.1% methylene blue was performed for each patient. Four mucosal biopsy specimens were taken every 10 cm between the coecum and the rectum, with additional biopsies or removal of any abnormality mucosal. All the endoscopies were performed by a single endoscopist, all the biopsies have been reviewed by a pathologist experienced in gastroenterology. Results: 224 chromoendoscopy were performed in 106 patients. We diagnosed 49 neoplastic lesions in 31 patients; there were 6 adenocarcinomas, 8 high grade dysplasia, 24 low grade dysplasia, and 11 lesions indefinite for dysplasia We did 8035 random biopsies witch found 7 dysplastic lesions in 6 patients: 1 high grade dysplasia, 2 low grade dysplasia and 4 lesions indefinite for dysplasia. Random biopsies alone diagnosed dysplasia in 2 patients (1.8%), and had clinical impact only in one patient (0.9%). Conclusions: The risk of colorectal cancer in Algerian ulcerative colitis patients is high. Colonoscopic surveillance is actually the only way to detect colorectal cancer at an early stage in ulcerative colitis. Random biopsies don't have clinical impact and should be abandoned.


The Conclusions of the European Council on 28-29 October 2010 suggest the need for further consultations among the member states to design a "permanent crisis mechanism" to safeguard the euro area as a whole. This paper finds that the weakness of the current EMU governance is that it neither provides sufficient incentives for curtailing excessive lending and indebtedness, nor secures the level of political integration necessary to attain a sufficient degree of accountability in fiscal affairs. Any solution must address these two major flaws.


Abstract Granitoid monazite is a potential candidate for restitic origin because of its very low dissolution rates. A biotite-garnet granite (Nízke Tatry Mountains, Slovakia) contains monazite characterized by older, BSE-bright domains irregularly replaced by BSE-dark domains. They are interpreted as the result of late-magmatic replacement by a dissolution-reprecipitation mechanism. Garnet is mostly magmatic, with peritectic cores, and the granite is thought to have formed by biotite fluid-absent melting. Xenotime-monazite and garnet-biotite thermometry yield 600-650 °C at 400 MPa, for Yrich monazite, suggesting that equilibration took place in the presence of fluid. Chemical and textural relations enable the distinction of four types of monazite, which have been dated. Type I monazite, forming grain interiors, is Th-rich and overgrown by a lower-Th type II variety. Type III monazite has the lowest U and also overgrows the type I, whereas type IV monazite has the highest U (and Y) contents. U/Pb-Th/Pb isochrons reveal that, whereas monazite types I and III are older (355 ± 7 Ma), the age corresponding to the Variscan metamorphic peak, types II and IV are ca. 10 million years younger (346 ± 3 Ma, type IV). Monazite types I-III are considered to be inherited from a metamorphic protolith, whereas type IV is interpreted to be the age of the latest magmatism. Application of LREE and Zr diffusion coefficients to monazite and zircon indicates that the accessory restite assemblage observed is consistent with a short magma residence time (<500 years) during which monazite remained mostly intact, whereas zircon was partly dissolved.


Data augmentation is an effective way to improve the generalization capability of modern deep learning models. However, the underlying augmentation methods mostly rely on handcrafted operations. Moreover, an augmentation policy useful to one dataset may not transfer well to other datasets. Therefore, Automated Data Augmentation (AutoDA) methods, like AutoAugment and Population-based Augmentation, have been proposed recently to automate the process of searching for optimal augmentation policies. However, the augmentation policies found are not adaptive to the dataset used, hindering the effectiveness of these AutoDA methods. In this paper, we propose a novel AutoDA method called AdaAug to efficiently learn adaptive augmentation policies in a class-dependent and potentially instance-dependent manner. Our experiments show that the adaptive augmentation policies learned by our method transfer well to unseen datasets such as the Oxford Flowers, Oxford-IIT Pets, FGVC Aircraft, and Stanford Cars datasets when compared with other AutoDA baselines. In addition, our method also achieves a state-of-the-art performance on the CIFAR-10, CIFAR-100, and SVHN datasets.1


The dispersal of musicology?s diverse array of primary and secondary sources across countless libraries and archives was once an enormous obstacle to conducting research, but this has largely been overcome by the digitisation and online publication of resources in recent years. Yet, while the research process has undoubtedly been revolutionised, the current situation is far from perfect, as the digitisation of resources has often been accompanied by their segregation?according to media type, date of publication, subject, language, copyright holder, etc.?into a myriad of discrete online repositories, often with little thought having been given to interoperability. Given that musicological research typically cuts across such artificial divisions, this segregation of data means that accessing basic factual information or running multi-part search queries remains endlessly complicated, needlessly time consuming, and sometimes impossible. This barrier to tractability is only exacerbated by the limited capabilities of currently deployed search interfaces. There is one seemingly obvious solution to this query dilemma: enable integrated real-time querying over all the available metadata from as many sources as possible, and allow users to use that metadata to guide their queries. This solution implies that all data that could feasibly be construed as useful, but which is buried in the records, is extracted in some way, and that there is an interaction approach that enables metadata to be explored effectively and allows for the formulation of rich compound queries. The musicSpace project has taken a dual approach towards realising this solution. At the back-end we are developing services to integrate and, where necessary, surface (meta)data from many of musicology?s most important online resources, including the British Library Music Collections catalogue, the British Library Sound Archive catalogue, Cecilia, Copac, Grove Music Online, ?axos Music Library, ??pertoire International de Litt?rature Musicale (RILM), and ??pertoire International des Sources Musicale (RISM) UK and Ireland. While at the front-end, in order to optimise the exploration of this integrated dataset, we are developing a modern web-based faceted browsing interface that utilises Semantic Web and Web2.0 technologies such as ?DF and AJAX, and which is based on the existing ?mSpace? codebase. Our poster outlines the approach we have taken to importing, enriching and integrating the metadata provided by our data partners, and gives examples of the real-world musicological research questions that musicSpace has enabled.


The inspiration of this work is a novel engine concept, in which the combustion process is performed homogeneously in a porous reactor. This engine concept has high potential to achieve an ultra-low emission level and increase the engine efficiency. Homogeneous combustion in porous reactors has already proven near-zero exhaust emissions under steady-state conditions. However, under engine-relevant conditions, this technology has rarely been investigated. For an internal combustion engine application, the time scale of mixture formation and combustion process is crucial. Thus, its investigation is the main objective of the present research. Fluid mechanical and thermodynamic conditions in porous reactors differ considerably from conventional, free volume systems. Therefore, these processes were investigated fundamentally as well as all associated thermodynamical and process models. This is the first reported attempt to investigate these processes in porous reactors under engine-relevant conditions. The investigation on mixture formation in porous reactors showed that the multijet-splitting effect leads to a quick three-dimensional distribution of the fuel in space. Furthermore, in case of a hot porous reactor, the liquid fuel is vaporised very quickly. The heat release process is investigated in different porous reactors and under free volume conditions (no reactor applied), as reference case. It is shown, that in case of porous reactors the pressure and temperature changes during the heat release process are clearly lowered as compared to free volume conditions. This is an effect of heat transfer and heat accumulation in the reactor's solid phase, which also affects the reaction rates. The results show that at low initial temperatures and/or low initial pressures the reaction rate is higher in porous reactors. However, at high initial temperatures and pressures the reaction rate is reduced in porous reactors as compared to the free volume case. This has the favourable effect of accelerating the combustion process at low loads and to prevent high mechanical stresses at high loads. The present investigation in addition shows that the time scales of mixture formation and combustion process in porous reactors can be in the order of a few milliseconds only. This is similar to the free volume case or even shorter. Additionally, it is shown that the heat release rates are high enough for engine application. However, in contrast to free volume conditions, the heat release rate in case of porous reactors does not further increase at high loads. The results indicate a possible extension of homogeneous combustion to a full range of engine load and rotational speed when performed in porous reactors.


Shallow coastal environments, particularly sandy tidal basins, are coming under increasing pressures due to human development and a changing climate. This has led to a demand for long-term predictions of sediment transport using deterministic, process-based coastal area models. Due to continually growing model complexity this has involved an increased computational cost, resulting in the development of a variety of methods to speed up computation time while having a minimal impact on model accuracy. The present body of work introduces one of the most popular speed-up methods, the Morphological Factor (MF) method, to the TELEMAC hydro-informatics modelling system. Using the depth-averaged, shallow water hydrodynamic and sediment transport models, TELEMAC 2D and SISYPHE respectively, a long-term simulation of a schematised tidal basin system is conducted. From infinitesimal perturbations to an initially flat bed a highly regular morphological pattern is seen to evolve spontaneously through the processes of self-organisation, subsequently forming the basis of a dynamic and intricate tidal channel network. Due to the time-stepping nature of the model, the initial pattern is responsible for all future simulated morphologies, yet this linkage has received little attention in the literature. Further simulations identify the first stages of the bed pattern as a dissipative structure, requiring more energy from the flow to create and maintain than the initial flat bed itself, which is contradictory to a linear, mechanistic treatment of the system. Dunes, sedimentary bed forms ubiquitous to the coastal zone, have a significant impact on flow speed (and therefore sediment transport and morphological change) through the roughness created by their geometry. Although the effects of dune-scale roughness on the flow and sediment transport are discussed in the literature the impact of a time-evolving roughness feedback between the bed and the flow in a coupled morphological model is poorly understood. In the present work a roughness feedback mechanism is implemented in TELEMAC 2D and SISYPHE and the predicted roughness is validated in a model of the Dyfi Estuary, Wales, using the results of a swathe sonar bathymetric survey. The model results show very promising agreement with the data given the simplifying assumptions made. The tidal residual sediment transport rate in a simplified model case is shown to not only change in magnitude, but also in sign, between cases with and without bed roughness feedback, showing that the method has significant implications for long-term morphological change. Deterministic models are frequently used to predict changes in the longterm, yet their mechanistic nature forces the outcome to be sensitive to initial conditions. Natural systems, however, contain both deterministic and probabilistic elements that create structures and patterns at a variety of different scales, many of which can be captured by process based models such as TELEMAC 2D and SISYPHE. In the present work a stochastic, infinitesimal perturbation is introduced to three otherwise identical long-term model simulations, resulting in system divergence through three independent morphological system parameters. The sensitivity to initial conditions and the important role of self-organisation are seen to produce dynamic morphological behaviour that is inherent to the theory of open, dissipative systems.


It is a perennial question: how should Americans deal with racial and ethnic diversity? More than 400 communities across the country have attempted to answer it by organizing discussions among diverse volunteers in an attempt to improve race relations. In "Talking about Race", Katherine Cramer Walsh takes an eye-opening look at this strategy to reveal the reasons behind the method and the effects it has in the cities and towns that undertake it. With extensive observations of community dialogues, interviews with the discussants, and sophisticated analysis of national data, Walsh shows that while meeting organizers usually aim to establish common ground, participants tend to leave their discussions with a heightened awareness of differences in perspective and experience. Drawing readers into these intense conversations between ordinary Americans working to deal with diversity and figure out the meaning of citizenship in our society, she challenges many preconceptions about intergroup relations and organized public talk. Disputing the conventional wisdom that unity is the only way forward, Walsh prescribes a practical politics of difference that compels us to reassess the place of face-to-face discussion in civic life and the critical role of conflict in deliberative democracy.


This study investigated the effects of sprint training on muscle Na(+)-K(+)-adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) concentration, plasma [K+] regulation, muscle performance, and fatigue during severe intermittent exercise. Six untrained male subjects underwent intensive cycle-sprint training for 7 wk. Muscle biopsies were taken at rest from the vastus lateralis muscle before and after 7 wk of training and were assayed for Na(+)-K(+)-ATPase concentration using vanadate-facilitated [3H]ouabain binding to intact samples. Before and after the training period, subjects performed four maximal 30-s exercise bouts (EB) on a cycle ergometer, each separated by a 4-min recovery. Arterialized venous blood samples were drawn immediately before and after each sprint bout and were analyzed for plasma [K+]. The work output was significantly elevated (11%) across all four EBs after training. The muscle [3H]ouabain binding site concentration was significantly increased (16%) from 333 +/- 19 to 387 +/- 15 (SE) pmol/g wet wt after training but was unchanged in muscle obtained from three control subjects. Plasma [K+] rose by 1-2 mmol/l with each EB and declined rapidly by the end of each recovery period. The increases in plasma [K+] resulting from each EB were significantly lower (19%) after training. The ratios of rise in plasma [K+] relative to work output during each EB were also significantly lower (27%) after training. The increased muscle [3H]ouabain binding site concentration and the reduced ratio of rise in [K+] relative to work output with exercise are both consistent with improved plasma and skeletal muscle K+ regulation after sprint training.


This paper describes the experience of CIFOR research team in facilitating local communities to manage their natural resources in Malinau District, East Kalimantan, Indonesia during the Otonomi Daerah reform period (1998-present). The case examines how the CIFOR team used informal, shared learning to support more socially just decision among groups that shared and often contested claims to forest resources and responsibility for their management. This paper reports on the outcomes, challenges and lessons of this experience. The team experience leads them to question the desirability of creating formalised multistakeholder learning mechanisms and common strategies on single platforms, and instead, to stress the value of informal, embedded approach focused on incremental strengthening of communities is especially helpful during times of uncertainty where rapid adaptation to changing circumtances is necessary.


Two of the many mediators synthesized by vascular endothelial cells (EC), are involved in maintaining the surface of the normal, healthy endothelium in a non-thrombogenic state. The first is prostacyclin, a product of arachidonic acid metabolism, discovered in 1976. This labile prostanoid, with a half life of approximately 3 minutes, relaxes vascular smooth muscle and inhibits the aggregation of blood platelets. Prostacyclin and its analogues are currently being tested in the clinic for cardiovascular diseases such as primary pulmonary hypertension. A number of drugs including defibrotide, nafazatrom, ronicol and cicletanine may exert their therapeutic effects by releasing prostacyclin from the EC. The second mediator discussed is endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF), discovered in 1980, which also relaxes smooth muscle and inhibits the aggregation and adhesion of platelets. Substances which stimulate release of EDRF include acetylcholine, bradykinin and ADP. EDRF is even more labile than prostacyclin with a half life counted in seconds. It has recently been identified as nitric oxide formed from L-arginine by an unknown mechanism. Prostacyclin and EDRF are released together following stimulation of endothelial receptors and synergize to inhibit platelet aggregation. It is suggested that these mediators form the endothelial defence mechanism against blood-borne cells and chemicals and that breakdown of this barrier results in diseases such as hypertension and atherosclerosis. The peptide, endothelin is the third mediator under discussion. Characterised and synthesised in 1988, it is the most potent vasoconstrictor so far discovered. Three isomers of endothelin have been identified. Paradoxically, endothelin strongly releases both prostacyclin and EDRF thus modulating its own vasoconstrictor actions.


Abstract. Rapid changes of glacial lakes are among the most visible indicators of global warming in glacierized areas around the world. The general trend is that the area and number of glacial lakes increase significantly in high mountain areas and polar latitudes. However, there is a lack of knowledge about the current state of glacial lakes in the High Arctic. This study aims to address this issue by providing the first glacial lake inventory from Svalbard, with focus on the genesis and evolution of glacial lakes since the end of the Little Ice Age. We use aerial photographs and topographic data from 1936 to 2012 and satellite imagery from 2013 to 2020. The inventory includes the development of 566 glacial lakes (total area of 145.91 km2) that were in direct contact with glaciers in 2008–2012. From the 1990s to the end of the 2000s, the total glacial lake area increased by nearly a factor of six. A decrease in the number of lakes between 2012 and 2020 is related to two main processes: the drainage of 197 lakes and the merger of smaller reservoirs into larger ones. The changes of glacial lakes show how climate change in the High Arctic affect proglacial geomorphology by enhanced formation of glacial lakes, leading to higher risks associated with glacier lake outburst floods in Svalbard.


Accurate and reliable prediction of groundwater level is a critical component in coastal water management. It is important to find a suitable model with acceptable accuracy. This paper presents a comparative study with seasonal decomposition method of time series analysis and GM (1,1) method, which are applied to test the model accuracy by simulating groundwater levels of two representative wells located at a coastal aquifer in Fujian Province, South China. The average monthly groundwater level was monitored during 2006–2011, the data set from 2006–2010 was used for model establishment, and that of 2011 used for predicting the dynamic change of groundwater level. The results indicate that the multiplicative model fits better than the additive model for seasonal decomposition method. Finally, the effectiveness of the model and prediction accuracy was evaluated based on root mean square error (RMSE) and regression coefficient ( R2 ). From the obtained results, it is concluded that the GM (1,1) method can be a promising tool to simulate and forecast groundwater level and serve as an alternative physically based model.


Abstract Most fossil deep-sea foraminifera are multichambered and have relatively robust, calcareous or agglutinated shells. Modern assemblages, on the other hand, include many fragile monothalamous (single-chambered) forms and komokiaceans (a superfamily of protist currently placed within the foraminifera) with soft test walls. These groups are poorly known and most of the hundreds of morphospecies recognized in deep-sea samples are undescribed. The relative abundance of robust and fragile taxa varies with water depth and food supply. Calcareous and other hard-shelled species tend to predominate in relatively eutrophic areas, particularly on continental margins, but decrease as a proportion of the 'entire' live fauna (i.e. including soft-shelled species) with increasing water depth, even above the CCD (carbonate compensation depth). Most of the species on which the foraminiferal proxies used in palaeoceanography are based live in these bathyal regions. At abyssal depths, and particularly below the CCD, faunas are largely agglutinated and dominated by monothalamous forms. These assemblages have a much lower fossilization potential than those found on continental margins. In addition to carbonate dissolution, these patterns probably reflect adaptations to increasingly oligotrophic conditions on the ocean floor with increasing depth and distance from land. Bathyal species include herbivores and opportunistic deposit feeders (omnivores) that consume labile organic material, in addition to deep-infaunal deposit feeders, and must contribute significantly to carbon cycling. Many abyssal monothalamous foraminifera, in constrast, accumulate stercomata (waste pellets composed of fine sediment particles) and probably ingest sediment, associated bacteria and more refractory organic matter. Some monothalamous species without stercomata may be bacteriovores. Although they probably process organic carbon at a slower rate than calcareous species, the shear abundance of monothalamous taxa at abyssal depths suggests that they are important in carbon cycling on a global scale. The loss of a substantial proportion of foraminiferal biomass and biodiversity from the fossil record should be considered when using foraminifera to reconstruct palaeoproductivity, for example, by using the Benthic Foraminiferal Accummulation Rate (BFAR). Different dietary preferences among calcareous species have implications for the stable carbon isotope signal preserved in their shells.


How could something you consider personal and essential to your unique identity, such as your genetic make-up, become commodified? There are precedents for treating blood and tissue samples containing genetic information as commodities. When researchers, institutions and companies consider samples to be commodities, they do not seek to determine the wishes of the patients and their families with regard to sample use, because they may seek to profit from the genetic material in the samples by obtaining patents on the genes. Patient advocacy groups and some governments have challenged gene patents, and have even sought controlling interests in them. Patient advocacy groups and professional organizations supported an attempt to overturn gene patents in the case, Association of Molecular Pathology, et al. v. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, et al. (American Civil Liberties Union 2011). When the Supreme Court handed down its ruling on June 13, 20131 (Supreme Court of the United States 2013), it struck down patents on DNA isolated from nature, but not the patent for cDNA, DNA composed only of exons without introns.