Author's note: In the wake of Yeltsin's unexpected resignation on 31 December 1999 and the apparent inevitability of Putin's electoral victory in the March 2000 presidential election, the 1999 December parliamentary elections already seem like ancient history. For the analyst of Russian politics, however, Russia's Duma vote offers a new wealth of data that will help reveal important trends in electoral behavior, party development, and institutional consolidation. In this article, written just days after the vote, I cannot pretend to offer definitive conclusions about the election's consequences for any of these important issues. My aim is rather to suggest some tentative hypotheses that may help to guide future discussion and research. The 1999 Duma in Comparative Context: Elections as Normal Events When evaluating Russia's progress in institutionalizing elections, the comparative set always drives the result of the analysis: When compared to the United States, France, or Poland, Russia's recent parliamentary vote does not look like a major achievement. In contrast to the 1993 and 1995 parliamentary elections, the Kremlin played an active and aggressive role in influencing the outcome of the 1999 vote. Through the control of television channels 1 (ORT) and 2 (RTR), the Kremlin and its allies viciously attacked their main opponent in the election, Fatherland-All Russia (OVR), and tirelessly promoted the government's electoral bloc, Unity. To be sure, media outlets supportive of Fatherland-All Russia, including TV Tsentr, the television network controlled by Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, and NTV, the independent television network owned by Vladimir Gusinsky, responded to these attacks. Media coverage was biased but not monolithic. Add to this equation the hundreds of independent newspapers and other publications, many owned by the Communist Party, and you get a fairly diverse range of outlets for campaign coverage. Nonetheless, that the government-owned media adopted a partisan position is not a good sign for democracy. Without question, pockets of falsification and/or coercion of voters also occurred. How else can one explain the 89 percent support for Fatherland-All Russia in Ingushetiya! Even with falsification, however, pluralism was present, with some important republics backing Fatherland-All Russia and others demonstrating extraordinary support for Unity. Finally, the state proved ineffective in controlling campaign spending. When this election is compared to other "elections" in Russian history, however, these violations do not seem as great. In a country burdened by hundreds of years of dictatorship, it is remarkable that Russia held its third consecutive election for the State Duma in the last decade. No other democratically elected legislative body in Russian history has lasted this long. All major political actors now believe that elections are the only legitimate means for assuming power in Russia. Political leaders ranging from Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov to liberal Boris Nemtsov have affirmed their belief in the electoral process. These political actors are demonstrating their commitment to democracy with more than words: they are paying campaign consultants rather than forming militias. Despite real dissatisfaction with the performance of democracy in their country, the vast majority of Russian citizens still believe that elections are the only legitimate means for assuming political power. In a ROMIR poll conducted in June and July 1999, 66 percent of all respondents believed that it is impermissible to ban meetings and demonstrations and 62 percent believed that it is impermissible to cancel elections. The December vote was also held on time and under law--a law ratified in a democratic process by elected officials. The law governing the 1999 election was basically the same as the law that shaped the first post-Communist Duma election in 1993 and the second vote in 1995. …


Personal development planning (PDP) is delivered differently across institutions and has been labelled a 'chaotic conception'. The key concepts are around supporting, planning and reviewing learning whilst developing self-awareness. This paper uses a qualitative approach to capture the voices of a sample of students studying at a UK north-west university at two points of time, the end of their first and final year. Two main ways of scaffolding PDP are explored, the use of workbooks for goal-setting and reflection and studying in peer learning groups. The workbooks become less useful over time whilst meeting in peer learning groups become more important. The students felt goal-setting was valuable as a tool they would use in the future and also that reflection against their goals was crucial to success. This approach however wasn't for everyone but even the dismissal of the philosophy by some came with an awareness of why it didn't work and how it might have helped. Overall the sample were positive about PDP and this strengthened over the three years of study, thereby showing the ideas behind this concept do have a valuable place within the undergraduate curriculum.


Video super-resolution (VSR), with the aim to restore a high-resolution video from its corresponding low-resolution version, is a spatial-temporal sequence prediction problem. Recently, Transformer has been gaining popularity due to its parallel computing ability for sequence-to-sequence modeling. Thus, it seems to be straightforward to apply the vision Transformer to solve VSR. However, the typical block design of Transformer with a fully connected self-attention layer and a token-wise feed-forward layer does not fit well for VSR due to the following two reasons. First, the fully connected self-attention layer neglects to exploit the data locality because this layer relies on linear layers to compute attention maps. Second, the token-wise feed-forward layer lacks the feature alignment which is important for VSR since this layer independently processes each of the input token embeddings without any interaction among them. In this paper, we make the first attempt to adapt Transformer for VSR. Specifically, to tackle the first issue, we present a spatial-temporal convolutional self-attention layer with a theoretical understanding to exploit the locality information. For the second issue, we design a bidirectional optical flow-based feed-forward layer to discover the correlations across different video frames and also align features. Extensive experiments on several benchmark datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed method. The code will be available at https://github.com/caojiezhang/VSR-Transformer.


Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) and COVID-19 are highly transmissible diseases and pose a serious risk to public health. Unfortunately, information on cross-risk between the two diseases was still sparse. Our main objective was to estimate the excess risk among TB patients in getting COVID-19 infection and vice versa. Methods: The study design was a series of analyses of existing data from TB and COVID-19 registries in East Java Province, Indonesia. The study period was from January 2020 to June 2022. Case-by-case data for this study were obtained from the registration systems for TB and COVID-19 in separate databases. In comparing risk across different groups, adjusting for differences in risk factors that influence the outcome was essential. We overcame this problem by employing a standardized morbidity ratio. Results: Among 92,424 newly diagnosed TB patients, 1,326 were subsequently infected with COVID-19 during the study period, compared with 1,679 expected. The standardized morbidity ratio (95% confidence interval) was 72.61% (60.19%, 85.03%). Among 635,946 newly diagnosed COVID-19-infected patients, 987 subsequently got active TB during the study period against 1,679 expected. The standardized morbidity ratio (95% confidence interval) was 55.33% (49.24%, 61.42%). Conclusion: There was no evidence of excess risk in either direction, the excess risk among TB patients in getting COVID-19 infection and vice versa.


Background and aims: The Quality of Life Inventory (QOLI, Frisch, 1994) manual states that in most cases QOLI total scores are invalid when two or more of the 16-domain scores are missing. The current study aimed to investigate this guideline. Methods: Two samples were utilised consisting of 259 community-dwelling adults and 144 adults surveyed 12 months following traumatic brain injury (TBI). First, the domains of the QOLI were regressed against Quality of Life Index (QLI) total scores. Second, a series of Receiver Operator Curve analyses systematically investigated the sensitivity of QOLI scores in detecting depression, as identified by the HADS and DASS. Results: The final model predicting QLI scores comprised seven of the 16-QOLI domains, R2 = .57, and accounted for equivalent variance to the full 16-domain model, R2 = .59. With as few as seven domains, the sensitivity of QOLI scores in identifying participants with depression was very good and equivalent to the complete 16-QOLI domain total score (>76%). Similar results were observed when these analyses were replicated within the sample with TBI. Conclusions: These findings showed the QOLI was more robust to missing domain scores than the current validity guidelines stated in the scale's manual suggest. Future research could determine the core domains of the QOLI in a range of samples including adolescents and specific clinical groups.


Wireless ad hoc sensor networks have recently emerged as a premier research topic. They have great long-term economic potential, ability to transform our lives, and pose many new system-building challenges. Sensor networks also pose a number of new conceptual and optimization problems. Here, we address one of the fundamental problems, namely, coverage. Sensor coverage, in general, answers the questions about the quality of service (surveillance) that can be provided by a particular sensor network. We briefly discuss the definition of the coverage problem from several points of view and formally define the worst and best-case coverage in a sensor network. By combining computational geometry and graph theoretic techniques, specifically the Voronoi diagram and graph search algorithms, we establish the main highlight of the paper - an optimal polynomial time worst and average case algorithm for coverage calculation for homogeneous isotropic sensors. We also present several experimental results and analyze potential applications, such as using best and worst-case coverage information as heuristics to deploy sensors to improve coverage.


Incisional hernia is a common complication of hernia repair despite the development of various synthetic and bio‐synthetic repair materials. Poor long‐term mechanical strength, leading to high recurrence rates, has limited the use of acellular dermal matrices (ADMs) in ventral hernia repair (VHR). Biologically derived meshes have been an area of increasing interest. Still these materials bring the risk of more aggressive immune response and fibrosis in addition to the mechanical failures suffered by the synthetic materials. Platelet‐rich plasma (PRP), a growth‐factor‐rich autologous blood product, has been shown to improve early neovascularization, tissue deposition, and to decrease the rates of recurrence. Here, we demonstrate that PRP promotes the release of growth factors stromal derived factor (SDF)‐1, transforming growth factor‐beta, and platelet‐derived growth factor in a dose‐dependent manner. Additionally, we utilize an aortic ring angiogenesis assay to show that PRP promotes angiogenesis in vitro. A rat model of VHR using StratticeTM ADM demonstrates similar findings in vivo, corresponding with the increased expression of vascular endothelial growth factor and collagen type 1 alpha 1. Finally, we show that the molecular and cellular activity initiated by PRP results in an increased mechanical stiffness of the hernia repair mesh over time. Collectively, these data represent an essential step in demonstrating the utility and the mechanism of platelet‐derived plasma in biomaterial‐aided wound healing and provide promising preclinical data that suggest such materials may improve surgical outcomes.


To accompany the Hayward Touring Exhibition of John Cage's visual art in Huddersfield, 2010, Philip Thomas curated a series of concerts featuring Cage's music.
These included:
Friday 19 November - Alvin Curran and edges ensemble (dir. Philip Thomas) performance: Alvin Curran 'Ear Training'
Friday 19 November - edges ensemble (dir. Philip Thomas): John Cage 'Variations II'
Saturday 20 November - Philip Thomas performs 12-hour solo version of John Cage 'Electronic Music for piano'
Sunday 21 November - Apartment House perform John Cage 'Score (40 Drawings by Thoreau) and 23 parts...' at dawn in Yorkshire Sculpture Park, James Turrell deer shelter
Wednesday 24 November - Philip Thomas and Apartment House: John Cage 'Winter Music + Atlas Eclipticalis'
Wednesday 24 November - Alvin Curran, edges ensemble (dir. Philip Thomas) and Apartment House: Alvin Curran 'Take the Cage Train'


Background: Low back pain (LBP) is a prevalent condition affecting a large portion of the population world-wide and it is one of the leading causes of morbidity and work absenteeism. Objective: To investigate the effectiveness of a four-week, home-based exercise program in treating subacute LBP in adults.
Methods: A quantitative, experimental research design was employed. Twenty male and female adults aged between 18 and 65 years with subacute LBP were recruited by means of advertisements and word of mouth and allocated into either a control group (CG) or a home-based exercise group (HG). Both groups underwent a pre-test that consisted of answering two questionnaires, the Visual Analogue Scale for Pain (VASP) and the Oswestry LBP and Disability Questionnaire. The (CG) received no intervention over the four-week intervention period, while the intervention group (HG) was given an exercise program and instructed to perform the exercises at home, three times a week for four weeks. After four weeks (post-test), the two questionnaires were repeated. After eight weeks (follow-up test) both groups again completed the two questionnaires. Descriptive statistics, non-parametric inferential statistics and Cohen's effect size (d) were used to analyse the data and statistical significance was set at a confidence level of 95% (p?0.05).
Results: Following the home-based exercise intervention there were significant improvements observed in lower back pain and function for the HG. The HG's Oswestry scores improved significantly (p=0.005) and their VASP also showed a significant improvement (p=0.011). Significant improvements also occurred between the pre-test and four-week follow-up for the HG's Oswestry score (p=0.021) and for the HG's VASP (p=0.005). No significant improvement was found for the CG between pre-test and post-test or between pre-test and the four-week follow-up. Large effect sizes (d>0.8) were also observed for the HG between the pre- and the post-test (d=1.59) as well as between the HG and the CG at post-test (d=1.52) and at the four-week follow-up (d=1.6).
Conclusion: The exercise intervention resulted in statistically significant and clinically significant improvements in both function and pain in adults with subacute LBP.


In June 1938 China's Nationalist government breached a major Yellow River dike in a drastic attempt to use flooding to slow the Japanese invasion. The strategic breach caused the Yellow River to abandon the northern course it had followed since 1855, and its new southeastern course led to eight years of catastrophic flooding. After World War II, the Nationalists, with extensive aid from the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), aimed to close the breach and divert the river back to its pre-1938 course. However, the Chinese Communists had taken control of much of that course, and local interests there opposed the plan to bring back the river. The Yellow River diversion project thus became intensely politicized. This article examines how the diversion plan became embroiled in the Chinese Civil War of 1946–49, how the river's return to its northern course in 1947 impacted communities in its path, and how the Communists and Nationalists imagined the river and made different tactical and rhetorical uses of it during the war. I find that the campaign to reroute the river was complicated not only by the civil war but also by tension between local and national interests within the Communist Party, and that UNRRA's attempts to mediate between the Nationalists and Communists at times put the organization at odds with both parties. Moreover, in 1946 and 1947 the intense struggle to tame, make strategic use of, or cross the Yellow River became an important metaphor for the battle to control China.


Interfacial tension (IFT) between "native reservoir fluid" and "injected CO2" and the contact angle (CA) among the reservoir rock, native reservoir fluid, and injected CO2 are major factors that dictate the relative permeability and capillary pressure characteristics which in turn control the fluid flow and distribution characteristics in the reservoir and cap rocks. This chapter is a comprehensive review on the state-of-the-art of the experimentally measured and theoretically predicted IFT and CA data of water/brineCO2-quartz/calcite/mica systems that are relevant to CO2 sequestration. Experimental techniques used to generate the IFT and CA data and details of molecular simulations used to predict the data are discussed. Respective comparisons of the IFT and CA data reported by various research groups are also made. Possible reasons for disagreements in the published literature are discussed, and suggestions are made for future research in this area to address the potential technical issues in order to obtain reproducible data.


As the demand for wireless service increases, the number of channels assigned to a cell eventually becomes insufficient to support the required number of users. This has been a major concern for both the users and network operators. Every Communication network is required to offer a very high capacity within limited spectrum allocation. The allocated spectrum gradually becomes congested and eventually becomes used up. Congestion in the spectrum leads to increase in call blocking probability which is not desired in the system. There are many techniques available that can be used to enhance the capacity of code division Multiple Access Systems. Some of the techniques include cell splitting, acquiring additional spectrum, using directional antennas. These directional antennas seem not to be as smart as required, since they do not carry dedicated digital signal processors like adaptive antennas do. Omni-directional antenna which is believed to radiate signal in all directions consumes more energy because it radiates signal even where it is not required unlike adaptive antenna that radiate signal to where it is desired and as such consumes less energy. Adaptive antenna will be more efficient, since it is actually a combination of an array of individual antenna elements and dedicated signal processing algorithm. Such system can distinguish signal combinations arriving from different directions and subsequently increase the received power from the desired users. This work tends to improve the signal quality of Code Division Multiple Access by the use of Multiple Element Antenna consisting of sixteen (16) elements on 0.5λ wavelength separation distance. Based on this antenna variable and Least Mean Square (LMS) algorithm simulation of the performance of the system is carried out. Result shows that as offered traffic increases, the Cumulative Density Function (CDF) is constant initially from 5-6 users and drops to 0-2 users. When the number of arrays is kept constant and the distance of separation varied for the following 0.1, 0.5, 2 and 5 times the wavelength, it was found that antenna elements of half the wavelength (i.e. 0.5λ) was, however, the best performed of all the distance of separation. Element spacing of less or more than 0.5λ wavelength increases sidelobe which can interfere with mainlobe, its evident that it is possible to direct the Radiations maximum pattern for user position into desired direction, also direct a null for undesired interferences and sources. This work shows that adaptive antenna has powerful capabilities to reduce interference and sending data towards the wanted direction only, and it can be recommended in Base Station to ameliorate power problem, also in radio and astronomy. Indexed Terms: CDMA, Antenna, Beamforming, Communication


Serotonin is a neuromodulator that has a critical role on the regulation of essential events in neuronal and glial development, such as cell proliferation, differentiation, migration, apoptosis, and synaptogenesis, and acts as a developmental signal. It has been known that a serotonergic system is associated with many psychiatric disorders. The seroto‐ nergic system also predominates on the etiopathogenesis of two important endopheno‐ types: impulsivity and aggression. Impulsiveness is defined as personality trait and an implusive temperament is associated with clinical conditions such as pathological gam‐ bling, eating disorders, and borderline personality disorder as well as being a risk factor for self‐harm, suicide, and emotional liability. Aggression is not a personality trait like impulsivity, but it is the behavior of harm or injury to others. Besides being a natural human behavior toward survival, aggression can be harmful to the individual and the community when it is constant and excessive. In this chapter, we aimed to review the role of the serotonergic system on impulsivity and aggression, which are two important endophenotypes that identified in many psychiatric disorders.


The hydrogen-sensing property of new type field-effect gas sensor device was studied. The device had an FET structure based on porous silicon. Adsorption of molecules into the porous silicon strongly changes the electrical properties of the transistor structure. Interestingly, the current variation induced by Hydrogen gas vapour that is the sensitivity of the sensor can be electrically tuned by changing polarization voltage. It has been shown that the device exhibited excellent hydrogen-sensing characteristic at room temperature. The results show that current-voltage characteristics are modified by the gas reactivity on the PS surface. In conclusion, the FET gas sensor based on porous silicon shows a rapid response to low concentration of the hydrogen gas at room temperature.


This investigation was undertaken to develop a low-drag fixed slot for an airplane wing which would avoid the complications and maintenance difficulties of the present movable-type Handley Page slot. Tests were conducted on a series of fixed slots in an attempt to reduce the minimum drag coefficient without decreasing the maximum lift coefficient or the stalling angle of the slotted wing. The tests were made in the NACA 5-foot vertical wind tunnel on a Clark Y basic section having a 10-inch chord.


In the paper the microstructure and properties of surface coating for Cr12MoV steel treated by TD (Thermal Diffusion) salt-bath vanadizing process are investigated. The research results indicate that after treated by the TD salt-bath vanadizing at 1223K for 5h and followed by oil quenching, and aged at 453K for 2h, the Cr12MoV steel could obtain a surface coating whose thickness is about 11.4um. The coating is mainly composed of vanadium carbide, and its thickness and microstructure are uniform and compact, respectively. At the same time, the coating obtained exhibits super-high surface microhardness, 2586HV. Then the wear resistance property of Cr12MoV steel is improved drastically. In addition, the research results reveal that the effect of TD salt-bath vanadizing treatment on the surface roughness of Cr12MoV steel is not obvious.


Current debate tends to suggest that the protection of civilians is something 'done to' the passive recipients of international largesse. Whether in terms of macro-level interventions of the UN Security Council or micro-level attempts to reduce the negative side-effects of relief action, those in need of protection are rarely seen as key players in their own futures. Although this type of external intervention can be valuable, it fails to take complete account of how people manage to survive the effects of conflicts. This concept of protection seriously underestimates the resourcefulness of people who have no choice, and using it to define protection results in missed opportunities to help communities as they are being forced to adapt to their new realities. Effective humanitarian action will thus not only focus on the actions of those with a responsibility to protect, but will also support and strengthen the rational decisions that people themselves take to try to ensure their own safety in conflict.


Paleoenvironmental studies using benthic foraminifers and total fauna can be used to identify displaced shallow-water sands. A productive sand in Eugene Island field, which has a high resistivity but suppressed spontaneous-potential, was conventionally cored to determine reservoir characteristics and environment of deposition. End_Page 274------------------------------ Grain-size analysis shows a composition of very fine sand with a large silt and clay component. Studies of sand-size distribution throughout the 53-ft core did not reveal graded bedding, thus excluding turbidity currents as a depositional mechanism. Analysis of the benthic fauna within the sand unit indicates that the sands and thin-bedded shales were originally deposited on the inner to middle shelf. The occurrence of bathyal shale above and below the productive unit suggests that the shallow-water sands were transported basinward into a slope environment. Regional paleobathymetric maps indicate that there was a progradation of the shelf edge during deposition of the sand unit. This evidence, along with the fine-grained character of the sands, suggests that a deltaic complex was developing updip of the field. The depositional environment is very similar to that described by J. M. Coleman and others near the modern Mississippi River Delta. The processes that are moving shallow-water sands across the shelf, stimulating mass movement and shelf-ridge slumping, were also active around ancient deltas. Based on the modern analog, it is interpreted that the field sand is part of a debris flow initiated by shelf-edge failure. The geometry of the sand unit also supports this hypothesis. End_of_Article - Last_Page 275------------


It is well known that with the growing of the humanity and all the development in technologies, there is an increasing in need for recognition systems. These systems can recognize people from distinct characteristics in which these are unique for each one individually. The researchers went to the finger print and eye recognition methods to be adopted as the dominated approaches, yet, these methods suffers from numerous health risks due to diseases transferring. Therefore, the walking step recognition method has been adopted recently. This is because each person has different walking style from others. This paper proposed a human walking step recognition system that adopts group of weight sensors distributed amongst carpet. The reading data from sensors has been transmitted to the information center for processing. The data is transmitted through out a wired sensor network that includes sensor nodes and sink node. The latest node is used to collect the reading data from the sensor nodes. At the information center, the received data is processed using the proposed recognition algorithm. This algorithm gives two decisions; either matching with full information about the intruder or no matching. On the other hand, the proposed system has been designed and implemented using MATLAB simulator. Throughout this simulator, a database matrix is generated randomly to cover all the probability of walking step patterns available for humans. This matrix consists of three dimensions; one for users, second for sensor readings (walking patterns), and third for tries. Each user records numerous walking patterns by passing over the designed carpet several times at different modes just to cover the slightly changes in walking style in terms of modes. It is important to note, that the carpet include the sensors in between of two layers. The simulation results show the successful performance of the proposed system with high efficiency and recognition accuracy. In addition, statistical analysis has been obtained using sampling theorem by adopting sample of 100 employees at University of Technology. This is done by distributing a questioner form over the employees to evaluate the acceptation of the proposed system by people in terms of health issues and ease of use. The outcome results show high ratio of accepted people in comparison with rejected.


The simultaneous influence of several random quantities can be studied by the Latin hy‐ percube sampling method (LHS). The values of distribution functions of each quantity are distributed uniformly in the interval (0; 1) and these values of all variables are ran‐ domly combined. This method yields statistical characteristics with less simulation ex‐ periments than the Monte Carlo method. In this chapter, the creation of the randomized input values is explained.


Accurate, fast, quantitative on-site analysis of wastewater is an environmental necessity. Therefore, we report a quantitative spectroscopic study in order to analyse organic contaminants in wastewater. For this purpose, two spectroscopy-based techniques were utilised and their results are compared. The first technique is ultraviolet/visible (UV/vis) spectrophotometry. This technique is a standard laboratory technique, however, it is inappropriate for working in the field. Besides, the analysis results of the standard laboratory technique display low accuracy in detecting small concentrations of wastewater contaminants such as methylene blue (< 20 ppm). Accordingly, there is a need for another technique to overcome the shortcomings of UV/vis spectrophotometry. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) combines imaging and spectrometry. HSI works on-site since it is portable and easy to operate. The analysis of the data acquired by HSI showed a higher efficacy in accurately detecting both low (< 20 ppm) and high concentrations (> 50 ppm) of water contaminants such as methylene blue and methyl orange. For verification, Pearson correlation coefficients were computed between the concentration of contaminants and their absorbance for all the operating spectral bands. The results of the two techniques were statistically compared using Bland and Altman's limit of agreement. This study showed that HSI is potentially a promising technique for the analysis of wastewater contaminants on-site.


Background: The aims of this study were to analyze the trend of cesarean section (CS), determining possible risk factors and also comparing the rate of CS in mothers with gestational diabetes (GDM) and normal pregnant population. Materials and methods: A hospital-based midwives data collection including 37,997 pregnancies in Tehran was used for this study. The study population included all women giving birth between 1 January 1980 and 31 December 2009. Results: The global rate for CS was 37.8 and 85.9% in normal pregnant population and GDM subjects, respectively. An increase in the rate of CS was observed in normal population from 16.97% during 1980–1989 to 71.08% during 2000–2009. There was a similar upward trend for GDM subjects from 79.17 to 93.55%. The most frequent indications for CS in GDM subjects were unsuccessful induction (31%) and repeat CS (22.76%). Conclusion: The rate of CS is surprisingly very high in normal pregnant population as well as subjects with GDM. This should be an alarming issue for healthcare policy-makers and a trigger for monitoring situation in the country.


Entomological surveys were conducted in five rural communities (138 domiciliary units [DUs]) in the southern Andes of Ecuador. Adobe walls and ceramic tile roofs were predominant construction materials. A 35% house infestation rate with Panstrongylus chinai (Del Ponte, 1929) (0.7%), Panstrongylus rufotuberculatus (Champion, 1899) (0.7%), Rhodnius ecuadoriensis (Lent & Leon, 1958) (27%), and/or Triatoma carrioni (Larrousse, 1926) (7%) was found. Adults and nymphs of R. ecuadoriensis and T. carrioni were found in intradomiciliary and peridomiciliary areas. Breeding triatomine colonies were present in 85% of infested DUs, and the average insect crowding was 52 ± 113 triatomine bugs per infested house. T. cruzi-like organisms were found by microscopic examination in the feces or hindgut but not the salivary glands of 4% of examined R. ecuadoriensis and 12% T. carrioni. Serological tests detected a general anti-T. cruzi antibody seroprevalence of 3.9% (n = 1136). Only 2% of individuals had heard of Chagas disease, and although triatomines were reported as a major nuisance by the population they were not considered vectors of disease. Additional baseline field research is needed for the design and implementation of a Chagas disease control program in the region.


Wi-Fi networks, based on the IEEE 802.11 b/g standards, have become very popular in recent years. Many users have installed Wi-Fi networks at home, and numerous corporations have added Wi-Fi access points to their wired networks, giving employees easier access to corporate data and services. Hackers can decrypt and read data on a wireless link protected by built-in WEP encryption, and may even be able to access the data on a wired network through a Wi-Fi access point. We assess Wi-Fi network security in one city, analyze alternative security techniques, and suggest ways to secure such networks.


An automation system which depends solely on production improvements has been developed recently focusing on the optimization system, maximization of the efficiency, stability of the system, convenience of operation, and compatibility. Various studies on enhancement of the automation system efficiency are being considered by many researchers and software developers in order to achieve maximum production improvement and optimization of operations in the effort to maximize the effectiveness of the automation system. The production measurement UPH (unit per hour) has been used to determine the automation system efficiency but the efficiency of each operation is calculated manually on the basis of the accumulated UPH in the conventional system. Therefore, more accurate efficiency measurements are required. The operational efficiency of the automation system has been measured using UPH to provide users with a more quantified and objective evaluation of the system. The user should provide the initiating time to operate the process so that the operation efficiency is obtained as results sorted by date of the operations.


Author(s): Zhang, Shun | Advisor(s): del Alamo, Juan Carlos | Abstract: Soft organisms including unicellular amoebae, slime molds and invertebrates without exoskeleton use similar physical mechanisms to adhere to and crawl over surfaces. Despite the wide range of length scales covered by these organisms (10 −5 m – 10 −1 m), and the variety of biological processes involved in the regulation of force generation, all these organisms apply waves of traction (i.e. shear) stresses on their substrate. Given this remarkable evolutionary conservation of the mechanics of soft adhesive locomotion, its study is relevant to a broad number of areas in medicine, ecology and engineering.Soft adhesive locomotion has been studied theoretically and experimentally for over a century. However, given that most organisms control their size very tightly, the impossibility of decoupling lengthscale dependence from organism dependence has made it difficult to experimentally test theoretical hypotheses. In this work, we focused on the multinucleated slime mold Physarum polycephalum because it is possible to prepare motile amoeboid specimens of this organism with sizes spanning two orders of magnitude (10 −5 m – 10 −2 m). Given its relatively large size and simple structure, Physarum relies on periodic back-and-forth intracellular flows (a.k.a. shuttle streaming) to transport chemical signals such as Ca 2+ . In turn, these signals regulate the generation of contractile forces that drive intracellular flow and facilitate locomotion.The main goal of this thesis was to study the dynamics and interplays of these biophysical processes, and their roles in the onset of locomotion and persistent directional migration. To this end, we combined measurements of traction force, fragment morphology, endoplasmic and ectoplasmic velocity, ectoplasmic microrheology properties and endoplasmic Ca 2+ concentration with experimental manipulations of cell-substrate adhesion, cortical strength and cell size. In parallel, we worked closely with mathematicians to develop a model of a motile fragment which includes forces from the viscous cytosol, a poro-elastic, contractile cytoskeleton and adhesive interactions with the substrate.Our results suggest that the onset of locomotion is governed by an interfacial instability which is strongly affected by fragment size, cell-substrate adhesion and cortical strength. We also found that most migrating Physarum fragments exhibit two types of wave patterns in endoplasmic flow, contractility and chemical signaling. Slow-moving fragments display standing wave patterns similar to amoeboid cells such as leukocytes or Dictyostelium. Fastmoving fragments exhibit traveling wave patterns of traction stress, which are conserved in larger organisms such as annelids or gastropods, and are reminiscent of leg density waves in myriapod locomotion. We show that traveling waves of traction stress provide robust propulsive forces in the presence of heterogeneous friction from the environment, and require tight coordination between contractility and substrate adhesion.We studied this hypothesis in more detail by investigating the mechanics of locomotion of the flatworm Schistosoma mansoni (the most prevalent human endoparasite) under varying levels of confinement, representative of the environments this flatworm encounters in its migratory route from the liver to the intestine. Our results reveal that S. mansoni migrates by exerting standing waves of traction stresses with its suckers under no or gentle confinement, but transitions to exerting traveling waves of traction stress along its body when crawling through in highly restrictive conditions.


In this coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) era, when pneumonitis occurs in patients with lung cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), a major challenge is to make a rapid and correct differential diagnosis among drug-induced pulmonary toxicity, tumour progression, and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)–induced pneumonitis. While waiting for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing results, an accurate evaluation of the symptoms and serologic features can help us make a first diagnostic hypothesis and quickly start correct treatment. Physicians need a collaborative effort to develop and share a common database reporting clinical (anosmia, dysgeusia), serologic, and radiologic data in ICI-treated patients with lung cancer developing interstitial disease to create an evidence-based clinical diagnostic algorithm. This tool will continue to be helpful when we emerge from the pandemic crisis into a world in which COVID-19 may not have been eradicated to better select the target population requiring the most resource-consuming PCR tests.


Background: Silicone gel–filled breast implants were developed in 1962 but did not fall under the auspices of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration until 1976 and were not classified as class III devices until 1988. This set the stage for a series of Food and Drug Administration advisory panel meetings and a moratorium on the sale of these implants from 1992 until 2006, when sufficient clinical data were presented to demonstrate their safety. Methods: This study was conducted under the rigorous framework of a Food and Drug Administration–approved investigational device exemption to document the safety and effectiveness of Inamed silicone-filled breast implants through 10 years. Of 940 female subjects, approximately half were augmentation subjects, one-quarter were reconstruction subjects, and one-quarter were revision subjects. Follow-up visits were conducted at 0 to 4 weeks, 6 months, 1 year, and annually thereafter. Approximately one-third of subjects also underwent biennial magnetic resonance imaging evaluation to detect silent rupture. Primary statistical analyses used the Kaplan-Meier product limit method. Results: Data through 6 years are currently available from the 10-year study, with patient follow-up rates for that visit ranging from 78 to 92 percent per cohort. As expected, the most common local complication in all cohorts was capsular contracture, occurring in 15 to 20 percent of subjects. The by-implant rupture rate was 3.5 percent overall at 6 years. Satisfaction with implants was uniformly high throughout the study period, with 6-year rates of 95 percent for augmentation subjects and 94 percent for reconstruction subjects. Conclusion: Study results demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of Inamed silicone-filled breast implants through 6 years, including a low rupture rate and high satisfaction rate.


Abstract In the present chapter, we shall, with a few backward glances, begin to look at the large amount of work done in the Lakes from the 1960s, concentrating on the structure of the Skiddaw Slates, and ideas concerning the stratigraphic relationship of the slates to the overlying Borrowdale Volcanics. Working out the stratigraphy of the SS through consideration of lithologies and fossil zonation was one thing; examining them from the perspective of structural geology was something different again. To my knowledge, the first person to undertake such work chiefly from the perspective of modern structural techniques was Kenneth Glennie, in a Master's thesis entitled 'The structure of the Skiddaw Slates in the north-west Lake District', at Edinburgh University (1955),l the work being undertaken under the supervision of Donald Mclntyre and the American Lionel Weiss.2 Dennis Jackson and Glennie were at work in the Skiddaws at the same time, but their work did not intersect. Glennie's work, which was focused on the area round Loweswater, Crummock, Buttermere and Ennerdale, was a continuation to the NE of his earlier undergraduate mapping in the area of the hills of Dent and Latterbarrow, SW of Ennerdale, across the Calder Valley and Uldale (see Fig. 20.1).3 Glennie's empirical investigation was straightforward. He determined the dips and orientations of bedding, cleavage and folds of the slates in his study area, and plotted the data on six-inch maps. His analysis of the data was, however, novel for the Skiddaws, though Oliver and Firman were doing somewhat similar


It clear from in the following that Abed Al- Mohsen Shalash was have many and large of relation with  people AL- Najaf Al-asharaf, He was  good reputation In Iraq on general and AL-Najaf particular. Al-though his busy in politics but he not to leave Al-najaf ,and he   always  comes and attending in Al-najaf , He was remained constants with his family and his friends. Abed Al- Mohsen Shalash was intense believes with his sacred , So he works to build and construct many from tombs and Al-Husainiat , Also he works on cultured the people AL-Najaf through helping on build many from schools as Al-karay capacity school. Also he was wrote many of articles in magazines and Al-najafia newspapers , also he was wrote in many field that represented the position in the Iraqi social.


In this thesis the power cycling capability of individual press-pack IGBT chips is investigated. Press-pack is a packaging technology used for power semiconductors. For press-packs, both thermal and electrical contact to the semiconductor chip is obtained by the application of force on the package. Press-pack IGBTs is claimed by the manufacturers to be especially suitable for high-power applications with large variations in power output. Power cycle testing is an accelerated lifetime stress test, ideal for assessing the lifetime of components in such applications. In power cycle testing, a component is thermally cycled by on-state-losses from a current repeatedly turned on and off. SINTEF Energy Research have in cooperation with Technical University of Chemnitz developed a 2000 A power cycle tester. Power cycling of press-pack IGBT discs in this tester revealed an unexpectedly short power cycling lifetime. To obtain a sufficiently high current rating, press-pack IGBT discs consist of many paralleled IGBT chips. SINTEFs hypothesis is that changes in the internal pressure distribution, caused by deformation of the press-pack housing during power cycling, have caused a destructive stress level for IGBT chips in certain positions inside the press-pack. To investigate this hypothesis, test equipment for power cycling individual IGBT chips removed from press-pack discs have been developed in this master thesis. Two IGBT chips have been continuously power cycled for a considerable number of cycles under tough conditions. The results supports the hypothesis that the early failure of press-pack discs is caused by excessive stress on chips in certain locations. Since the lifetime of the individual chips was found to be 10 - 50 times longer than that of press-pack discs tested under similar stress, this conclusion is justified.


Abstract. To date, few studies have examined in detail the role of spatial variabilities of erosion on Soil Organic Matter (SOM). More specifically, the role of deposition is still poorly understood. The nature of the research is novel because it combines dynamic model simulations using the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) and CENTURY SOM dynamics model to evaluate soil and SOM loss in an agricultural test field of the Clear Creek, IA watershed. In addition, numerical simulations were coupled with limited field investigations calibrating and verifying WEPP and CENTURY. The main task of this study was to evaluate changes in SOM dynamics in a field using CENTURY and accounting for the interdependence of historical and current management practices, erosion (i.e., soil loss and deposition), and decomposition. Simulations were conducted under three different erosion scenarios determined using WEPP to demonstrate the importance of including deposition in studies of SOM dynamics: (1) assuming no erosion, (2) using an average erosion rate for the whole field, and (3) dividing the field into an erosional upland and depositional floodplain. The total SOM concentrations produced by the segmented field simulation agreed best with the measured field values. Simulated SOM concentrations values for the upland were 13% lower and values for the floodplain were 16% higher than measured field values. The results of this investigation compare well with the simulation results of other studies in terms of the effects of deposition on SOM distributions and that more detailed erosion values lead to better performance of the model. Deposition decreased SOM loss from the field by accounting for sequestration of carbon.


Two industrial examples are described which demonstrate how environmental stress cracking (ESC) can give rise to unexplained, apparently random and catastrophic in-service part failures. In the two case studies, the companies could not identify the cause of failure through normal quality control procedures. Mild environmental stress cracking (ESC) was suspected and this project aimed to investigate and replicate the failures in a laboratory setting. The first case study involved ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) consumer parts which were exposed to an ester-based lubricant/glue during assembly. Samples were exposed to this product and aged at a range of temperatures (18-80°C and at elevated humidity) for 6 months. The second case study involved medical grade LDPE (Low-density polyethylene) tubing for use in medical ventilators which was exposed to isopropanol as an assembly aid. The aim was to investigate whether adding an elastomer poly(ethylene-vinyl acetate), or if using an alternative solvent (methyl ethyl ketone) would reduce the likelihood of failure. In both case studies it was found that the failures were due to mild ESC. In the ABS parts it was due to the combination of the polymer, lubricant and residual stress from injection moulding. In the medical tubing, the failures were also determined to be as a result of ESC. It was found that blending the LDPE with an elastomer and


We sought to determine if online aligned education for clinicians and patients could improve understanding and use of GLP-1 RAs for T2D. For clinicians, a live-streamed virtual symposium was held as part of the 2021 Metabolic and Endocrine Disease Summit (MEDS) summer (July) and fall (October) meetings, followed by an enduring available in August, 2021. Pre/post questions were used to assess changes in knowledge, confidence and practice. For patients, the online text, integrated visuals and patient video activity, which launched in June 2021, used a pre/post knowledge question and post-activity intent to change and confidence questions to assess impact. Absolute improvements were calculated for all questions, data collected through November 1, 2021. Clinician Activity Learners: 581 (Summer) and 364 (Fall) . Demographics: 47%-56% were nurse practitioners, 22% physician assistants, and 9%-12% physicians. Knowledge changes: 13%-16% increase in recognizing GLP-1 RAs with CV benefits/indications, 6%-7% increase in identifying weight loss as a benefit of GLP-1 RAs, 12%-23% increase in selecting patient education to help mitigate side effects. After the education, 80%-86% reported confidence in starting a patient with CVD/obesity on a GLP-1 RA. Enduring Learners: 1,662 clinicians (as of November 1, 2021) . Patient Activity: 11,029 learners have participated in the patient/caregiver activity, "Understanding the Use of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists for Type 2 Diabetes." Knowledge changes: 22% increase in recognizing how GLP-1 RAs work (39% pre to 61% post) . Intent-to-act: 70% plan to talk to their HCP about if taking a GLP-1 RA can help manage their T2D better. Confidence changes: 78% reported increased confidence in talking to my HCP about GLP-1 RAs for T2D. These outcomes are a strong indicator that aligned clinician and patient activities are successful at improving both clinicians' and patients' understanding and use of GLP-1 RAs for T2D.

 A.Larkin: None. A.Le: None.

 Independent Educational Grant from Novo Nordisk.


BACKGROUND
Intergroup comparisons of clinical productivity are important for strategic planning and evaluation of clinical and business operations. However, in a preliminary study, comparisons of two anesthesiology groups using "per full-time equivalent" measurements were confounded by different concurrencies or staffing ratios, whereas measurements based on "per operating room (OR) site," "per case," and "billed American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) units per hour of care" permitted meaningful comparisons despite differing concurrencies. The purpose of this study was to determine whether these measurements would allow for meaningful comparisons when applied to multiple groups.

METHODS
Annual totals of total ASA units (tASA), 15-min time units, and the number of cases billed, as well as the average number of daily anesthetizing sites (OR sites) staffed and the average number of anesthesiologists required to the staff sites, were collected from each group that participated. All anesthesia care billed with ASA units was included, except for obstetric care. Any clinical service not billed using ASA units was excluded. Productivity measurements (concurrency, tASA/OR site, hours billed per OR site per day, hours billed per case, tASA billed per hour of anesthesia care, and base units per case) were calculated. Median and range for all groups and for private-practice and academic groups were determined.

RESULTS
Eleven private-practice and nine academic groups from 12 states participated in the study. Productivity measurements that are influenced by duration of surgery (hours billed per case, tASA billed per hour of anesthesia care) differed significantly between groups, with private-practice groups having shorter duration than academic groups (median hours billed per case, 1.5 2.6, respectively). Although tASA/OR site measurements were similar in private-practice and academic groups, academic groups worked significantly longer hours billed per OR site per day (median, 6.0 h 7.8, respectively) to achieve the same level of tASA/OR site. Hourly billing productivity (tASA billed per hour of anesthesia care) correlated highly with surgical duration (hours billed per case).

CONCLUSION
This study demonstrates a method of comparing departmental clinical productivity between anesthesiology groups. Private-practice groups provided care for cases of shorter duration than academic groups. This difference was evident in several productivity measurements.


This thesis explores the location determinants for high value-added activities (HVAAs)
carried out by foreign-owned subsidiaries in Brazil.
It adopts an extended version of Dunning's (2000) envelope paradigm to integrate different
location factors, extracted from a wide range of location theories and frameworks that have
been identified in the field of international business. The thesis is original in its conceptualisation
of the degree of value added in separate activity sets in terms of complexity, which
is widely recognised as a barrier to imitation of unique and valuable activities in strategic
management literature. This thesis studies four activity sets (R&D, manufacturing, supply,
and marketing) and analyses different facets of the host-country environment. By adopting
such a disaggregate stance it accounts for the fact that different activity sets are attracted to
different location factors.
Based on a large-scale telephone survey, a bespoke database of foreign-owned subsidiaries
in Brazil was created. This unique database holds the most complete and up-to-date data of
foreign subsidiaries in this emerging market. Such an approach minimises some limitations
of prior research, such as home country bias. Likewise, in using Brazil as analytical setting,
this study also extends the geographical reach of the subsidiary roles research to an emerging
economy context.
The results indicate that the local environment of the foreign subsidiary has a rather limited
effect on the degree of value added within its activity sets, pointing towards less advanced
location advantages in emerging markets for HVAAs of foreign subsidiaries if compared to
developed countries. Yet, location factors seem to be relevant for the extent of activity sets.
In general, this thesis confirms the view that different activities are drawn towards different
aspects of the host environment.
As regards policy implications, only very limited means are available to a host location to
influence the likelihood of HVAAs at foreign subsidiaries through adjusting the profile of
the local environment. Overall, policy makers need to be clear on which activity sets they
intend to target, as the impact of location factors varies by activity set. Headquarters managers
may be well advised to locate HVAAs in developed countries, which are more likely
to offer those location factors that matter the most. Subsidiary managers may want to focus
on internal sources of knowledge to unfold the potential of their unit.


Introduction: Despite recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) the prognosis of this tumor remains dismal. It is estimated that 5-10% of all PDAC patients harbor a germline BRCA-1 or BRCA-2 mutation. There is some evidence that BRCA-mutated PDAC cases respond to chemotherapy regimens based on platinum derivate and cross linking agents. Case report: Here we present a case of metastatic PDAC in a 41-year-old BRCA2 germline mutation carrier. The patient had a favorable response to systemic treatment, including a partial response even to the third line cisplatin monotherapy administered with palliative intent. Discussion: PDAC associated with BRCA mutation represents a special disease entity. Platinum derivates and cross linking agents should be considered even in the advanced palliative setting in these patients.


Abstract Mobile radiation detection systems are used widely in remediation and nuclear security. However, their detection efficiency and thus their minimum detectable activity is not completely understood. It is recognized that the detector's velocity will affect its detection efficiency. At lower speeds, detection efficiency will be higher than a detector moving at higher speeds. The relationship describing how speed and efficiency are related was only recently quantified using a modified four-parameter logistic function (M4PL). The current research verifies the M4PL function in a controlled laboratory setting using a 5.08 cm × 5.08 cm sodium iodide detector at speeds between 20-120 cm s−1. As expected, the M4PL function indicates a detection system's highest efficiency at low speeds and its lowest efficiency at higher speed. In between is a transition region of decreasing detector efficiency. This decrease is gradual within initial speeds but quickly steepens and then approaches a minimum at higher detector speeds. This general shape was observed in the experimental data and validated the M4PL function as a predictive tool. To conclude this research and to demonstrate the function's usefulness, a relationship between speed and minimum detectable activity (MDA) was developed. Using this function and the methods described in this research, planners can now optimize surveys by controlling velocity to maintain MDA. It is also possible to use this technique to accelerate surveys while having the ability to predict the reduction in MDA. This foundational relationship between detector speed and detection efficiency has the potential to improve detector performance in various applications for both the academic and operational fields.


The objective of the present study was to improve the effectiveness of the treatment of intractable dysfunctionof the Eustachian tube responsible for the relapses of catarrhal and exudative otitis media. The authors developed the diaphragmatic slot valve integrated into the silicone tympanic shunt tube. The proposed diaphragmatic slot valve was shown to counterbalance extra- and intratympanic pressure at the experimentally found compression threshold equaling 123.06 daPa. This original functional shunt ensured the continuous functioning of tensor tympani muscle and maintained tympano-tubal innervation. The comprehensive examination and treatment encompassed 104 patients (104 ears) presenting with long-standing dysfunction of the Eustachian tube. In 52 patients (52 ears), otitis media was treated with the use of the functional shunt tube and in the remaining 52 (52 ears) with the standard silicone shunt tube. The comparative analysis has demonstrated that the effectiveness of the treatment of intractable dysfunctionof the Eustachian tube can be increased by 13.3% using the functional tympanic shunt. Simultaneously, this method made it possible to totally normalize the ventilation function of the Eustachian tube in 51 (98.1%) patients. The duration of the treatment with the use of the functional shunt tube averaged 42.11±8.46 days (in the patients with catarrhal inflammation of the middle ear) and 59.03±7.17 days (in the case of exudative otitis media) which was 42.9% and 37.3% shorter respectively than the duration of the traditional treatment (p<0.5).


The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ultrasound power at 40 to 80 percent (equal to 232-464 W), extraction temperature (50 to 80 °C) and extraction time (10 to 30 min) on the soluble polysaccharide extraction from the Pleurotus ostreatus . The response surface methodology using Box-Behnken design (with three variables, three levels and 5 replications at central point) was applied to optimize extraction conditions and evaluation of the effects of main factors and their interactions. Antioxidant activity (scavenging ability of OH and DPPH) of extracted polysaccharide were also evaluated. Optimization of polysaccharide extraction yield using response surface methodology indicated that combination of the ultrasonic power of 58.06 percent (~337 W), extraction temperature of 65.15 °C and extraction time of 21.72 min resulted in maximum extraction yield (17.71%). Among three independent variables, ultrasonic power had the highest and temperature had the lowest impact on the rate of extraction. The results from antioxidant activity evaluation showed that even though extracted polysaccharide had lower absorbance capacity of the free radicals in comparison with control samples (ascorbic acid and BHT), but it revealed an acceptable antioxidant property.


The experimental modal analysis (EMA) applied in vibrating solidification and vibrating ageing of the cast iron elements has been discussed in this paper. The stimulating frequency、excitation area(wave crest)、supporting area and the way of excitation of this cast iron element can be chosen accurately according to the eigenvalue of vibration parameters and the dynamic display of the measurement. If multiple excitation is needed,the principle natural frequency can be adjusted according to the dynamic display as the partial differences and the characteristics change of the elements. The experiment shown that using EMA excitation parameters can get a better technical effect than those of static solidification、heat ageing or other experience excitation ageing. Vibrating solidification can make a fine crystalline and the hardness of the full section is relative high; Vibrating ageing can get a better stress distribution and raise the ability of anti-deformation.


I have demonstrated the advantage of the phase locked oscillator (PLO) over the conventional direct resonance oscillator (DRO) in noncontact mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) under ultrahigh vacuum. Direct comparison between PLO and DRO has been made in terms of background noise level, temporal response, and stability. Compared to the DRO method without phase coherence, the experimental results show that the PLO method is more effective in reducing the noise level and enhancing the stability over all force regimes in UHV noncontact AFM. The noise reduction and stability enhancement in PLO indicate the important role of the phase coherent effect in improving the capability of noncontact imaging in UHV.


Summary Next-generation sequencing triggered the production of a massive volume of publicly available data and the development of new specialised tools. These tools are dispersed over different frameworks, making the management and analyses of the data a challenging task. Additionally, new targeted tools are needed, given the dynamics and specificities of the field. We present GTO, a comprehensive toolkit designed to unify pipelines in genomic and proteomic research, which combines specialised tools for analysis, simulation, compression, development, visualisation, and transformation of the data. This toolkit combines novel tools with a modular architecture, being an excellent platform for experimental scientists, as well as a useful resource for teaching bioinformatics inquiry to students in life sciences. Availability and implementation GTO is implemented in C language and it is available, under the MIT license, at http://bioinformatics.ua.pt/gto. Contact email@example.com Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at publisher's Web site.


Phenotypic variation in organisms is typically attributed to genotypic variation, environmental variation, and their interaction. Developmental noise, which arises from stochasticity in cellular and molecular processes occurring during development when genotype and environment are fixed, also contributes to phenotypic variation. The potential influence of developmental noise is likely underestimated in studies of phenotypic variation due to intrinsic mechanisms within organisms that stabilize phenotypes and decrease variation. Since we are just beginning to appreciate the extent to which phenotypic variation due to stochasticity is potentially adaptive, the contribution of developmental noise to phenotypic variation must be separated and measured to fully understand its role in evolution. Here, we show that phenotypic variation due to genotype and environment, versus the contribution of developmental noise, can be distinguished for leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius) head color patterns using mathematical simulations that model the role of random variation (corresponding to developmental noise) in patterning. Specifically, we modified the parameters of simulations corresponding to genetic and environmental variation to generate the full range of phenotypic variation in color pattern seen on the heads of eight leopard geckos. We observed that over the range of these parameters, the component of variation due to genotype and environment exceeds that due to developmental noise in the studied gecko cohort. However, the effect of developmental noise on patterning is also substantial. This approach can be applied to any regular morphological trait that results from self-organized processes such as reaction-diffusion mechanisms, including the frequently found striped and spotted patterns of animal pigmentation patterning, patterning of bones in vertebrate limbs, body segmentation in segmented animals. Our approach addresses one of the major goals of evolutionary biology: to define the role of stochasticity in shaping phenotypic variation.


The ingot of Ti47Al alloy was prepared by a newly developed rapid directional solidification, the microstructure and compressive properties of the ingot was observed and tested. The results show that the macrostructure consisted mainly of coarse columnar grains parallel to the axial direction, with the size of 0.5mm wide and 10mm in length. The direction of lamellar is almost perpendicular to the growth direction in the longitudinal section and no dendritic core is found. The average ultimate compressive strength of the specimens with grain growth parallel/perpendicular to the compressive direction is 1233.3 and 861.7 MPa respectively. The fracture mode for specimens with grain growth parallel to the compressive direction exhibits predominantly translamellar fracture, however, that for specimens with grain growth perpendicular to the compressive direction exhibits predominantly delamenation or interlamellar fracture.


With the recent flood of information, trust in that information is gaining a lot of attention in determining how information is used. Social bookmarking is a new information sharing service that allows individuals to bookmark and annotate web pages of interest or those that impress them. It is attracting attention and growing in popularity. In social bookmark services, users' bookmarks and annotations given by tags are informative indicators of user interest in web pages. This paper proposes a method to evaluate the trust and significance of web pages based on social bookmarks. Extending the HITS approach, we regard web pages as Authority and users as Hubs and evaluate trust and significance values of web pages. We show usefulness of the proposed approach through experiments.


A mobile social network (MSN) is a special kind of delay tolerant network (DTN) composed of mobile nodes that move around and share information with each other through their carried short-distance wireless communication devices. A main characteristic of MSNs is that mobile nodes in the networks generally visit some locations (namely, community homes) frequently, while visiting other locations less frequently. In this paper, we propose a novel zero-knowledge multi-copy routing algorithm, homing spread (HS), for homogeneous MSNs, in which all mobile nodes share all community homes. HS is a distributed and localized algorithm. It mainly lets community homes spread messages with a higher priority. Theoretical analysis shows that HS can spread a given number of message copies in an optimal way when the inter-meeting time between any two nodes and between a node and a community home follows independent and identical exponential distributions, respectively. We also extend HS to the heterogeneous MSNs, where mobile nodes have different community homes. In addition, we calculate the expected delivery delay of HS, and conduct extensive simulations. Results show that community homes are important factors in message spreading. By using homes to spread messages faster, HS achieves a better performance than existing zero-knowledge MSN routing algorithms, including Epidemic (with a given number of copies), and Spray&Wait.


Medieval Hebrew and Syriac scribes both indicated vowels by placing dots above or below their consonantal writing. These vowel points were created in the Late Antique and early Islamic periods to disambiguate the vocalization of important texts, especially the Bible. The earliest step in this process was the implementation of the Syriac 'diacritic dot' system, which used a single dot to distinguish pairs of homographs: a dot 'above' marked a word with relatively-backed vowels, and a dot 'below' marked its homograph with relatively-fronted vowels. This graphic depiction conveyed a phonological association of 'height' with 'backness', and that association then entered the Masoretic Hebrew tradition in the form of milleʿel ('above') and milleraʿ ('below') homograph comparisons. In turn, this principle of backness as 'height' informed the later placement of both the Syriac and the Tiberian Hebrew vowel points.1


ABSTRACT This paper investigates heterogeneity of preferences for disability services within the theoretical framework of consumption values. We conducted interviews with people with a disability and disability service providers to develop survey items, then conducted a survey with 2000 adult Australian residents who either had a disability or were carers of a person with a disability. After conducting descriptive analyses and data-driven market segmentation, findings revealed that, at the aggregate level, basic or functional benefits of disability services are most important. However, when accounting for heterogeneity, very distinct benefit patterns emerge, pointing to the substantial potential for improving disability services by catering to distinct market segment needs. These insights have the potential to improve disability service provision, thus maximally harvesting the opportunities from disability service models that now often include commercial providers, and enabling people with disabilities to make optimal choices in relation to both services and providers.


Instantaneous fair sharing (IFS) is a traditional network ideal prescribing to share the network capacity among competing applications fairly during any infinitesimal time interval. In this paper, we argue that IFS is an inappropriate ideal for the application of massive data transfers where the primary goal is to minimize message transfer times. We propose an alternative paradigm of virtual finish time first (ViFi) scheduling that dedicates the entire capacity to one message at a time in the order of message finish times under IFS. Unlike shortest remaining time first and other earlier algorithms for dedicated scheduling, ViFi provides a remarkable guarantee of delivering each message no later than under IFS. Our analysis and simulations show the dedicated ViFi scheduling offers significant reductions in the average transfer time. The above properties make ViFi a promising approach for resource allocation in emerging dedicated-channel networks that enable advance reservation of end-to-end channels between hosts.


Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a permanent birth defect syndrome caused by maternal consumption of alcohol during pregnancy. Almost four decades have passed since the term FAS was first coined. The condition is now recognized as a spectrum of disorders: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). Substantial progress has been made in developing specific criteria for delineating diagnoses under the umbrella of FASD. In the 14 years since the publication of the seminal report on FAS by the Institute of Medicine in 1996, clear consensus has been reached on two fundamental issues: 1) an FASD diagnostic evaluation is best conducted by a team of professionals from multiple disciplines (medicine, psychology, speech-language, occupational therapy) and 2) the team should use rigorously case- defined and validated FASD diagnostic guidelines. This chapter will provide a brief overview of the discovery of FASD, diagnostic challenges, how diagnostic guidelines and clinical models have evolved over time to address these challenges, and how new technology may influence the future of FASD diagnosis.


We investigate investor reactions to merger and acquisition rumors. Employing a large and comprehensive sample of acquisition rumors, we find that the rumor target firms experience average cumulative abnormal returns of 4.78% over the three days around the rumor, and abnormal returns of -4.48% over the following three months. The negative post-rumor abnormal returns are robust to different benchmark return models, firm size, level of illiquid, and level of idiosyncratic risk. Additional tests indicate that they are not driven by omitted risks or changing risks over time. The acquisition rumors attract tremendous investor attention; the more attention they attract the more negative are the post-rumor returns. Our findings are consistent with that investors overreact to acquisition rumors.


Since the formulation by Black, Scholes, and Merton in 1973 of the first rational option pricing formula which depended only on observable values, the volume of options traded daily on the Chicago Board of Exchange has grown rapidly. In fact, over the past three decades, options have undergone a transformation from specialized and obscure securities to ubiquitous components of the portfolios of not only large fund managers, but of ordinary individual investors. Essential ingredients of any successful modern investment strategy include the ability to generate income streams and reduce risk, as well as some level of speculation, all of which can be accomplished by effective use of options.Naturally practitioners require an accurate method of pricing options. Furthermore, because today's market conditions evolve very rapidly, they also need to be able to obtain the price estimates quickly. This dissertation is devoted primarily to improving the efficiency of popular valuation procedures for stock options. In particular, we develop a method of simulating values of European stock options under the Heston stochastic volatility model in a fraction of the time required by the existing method. We also develop an efficient method of simulating the values of American stock option values under the same dynamic in conjunction with the Least-Squares Monte Carlo (LSM) algorithm. We attempt to improve the efficiency of the LSM algorithm by utilizing quasi-Monte Carlo techniques and spline methodology. We also consider optimal investor behavior and consider the notion of option trading as opposed to the much more commonly studied valuation problems.


Within 1-2 h of illumination of etiolated barley plants the mRNAs of seven nuclear-coded proteins are transiently induced. It is proposed that at least some of these proteins are precursors to chloroplast membrane proteins since after posttranslational transport 2-h-specific bands of 18.5 kDa, 18 kDa and 13.5 kDa have been found bound to thylakoid membranes. cDNA clones for these early light-inducible proteins (ELIPs) have been isolated. Hybrid-release translation shows that part of their information must be homologous since the complete set of early light-inducible translation products is obtained with all investigated clones although the proportions of the translated bands vary for individual clones. From hybridization data it is concluded that two ELIP families of high (24-27 kDa) and of low (16-18 kDa) molecular mass exist which are induced in parallel. Induction of ELIPs occurs even at very low light intensities and is saturated at about 1000 lx. Therefore, ELIPs are not considered to represent light stress proteins but to play a regulatory role during development.


This article examines international interventions in the aftermath of civil wars to see whether peace lasts longer when peacekeepers are present than when they are absent. Because peacekeeping is not applied to cases at random, I first address the question of where international personnel tend to be deployed. I then attempt to control for factors that might affect both the likelihood of peacekeepers being sent and the ease or difficulty of maintaining peace so as to avoid spurious findings. I find, in a nutshell, that peacekeeping after civil wars does indeed make an important contribution to the stability of peace.


This work examines the historical roots of religious radicalism and violent extremism and analyses new trends in Kenya. Radicalism and extremism are aspects that are found in all religions. For example, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have exhibited notorious extreme tendencies through application of Torah, Crusades and Islamic jihadists groups such as alQaeda, Al-Shabaab, Boko haram respectively. The 1980-2000 secular bent ideologies of Liberation Tigers of Tamil (Eelam) and Hindus in Sri Lanka, to name but a few, used both religion and politics to forge their grievances. Kenya above all East African Countries seem to have been singled out as the battle field of terrorism activities attributed to Al-Shabaab based in Somalia. This study uses qualitative methodology to describe issues and events through historical analysis. Hypothetically, when adherents of any religion become radicalized and take their beliefs and practices to the very extreme, stretching them beyond the norm or agreeable standards according to scripture and orthodox means, they become dangerous to humanity. This study has suggested measures that can be engaged to tame violent extremism.


We present a novel dual-channel identification approach for mobile wireless communication systems. Unlike traditional channel-estimation methods that rely on training symbols, we propose a bent-pipe feedback mechanism which requires the mobile station (MS) to send portions of its received signal back to the base station (BS) for wireless channel identification. Using a filter-bank decomposition concept, we introduce an effective algorithm that can identify both the forward and the reverse channels based only on this feedback information. This new method permits transfer of computational burden from the MS to the resource-rich BS, and leads to significant savings in bandwidth-consuming training signals.


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Long strictures of the proximal ureter are difficult to manage, and circumferential replacement with various natural and synthetic materials has been unsuccessful. We sought to use cultured autologous cells seeded onto graft material for proximal-ureteral replacement. Additionally, we wished to determine if urothelial cell-seeded de-epithelialized small bowel would generate adequate ureteral replacement.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Three sets of experiments were performed. First, autologous pig-bladder smooth-muscle and urothelial cells were expanded in culture on large sheets of multilayer small-intestinal submucosa (SIS). These sheets were then tubularized and used to replace a 5-cm segment of proximal ureter in pigs. Second, autologous cells harvested from the bladders of Beagle dogs were cultured and seeded on porcine ureteral acellular matrix, which was used to replace a 3-cm segment of ureter in dogs. Segments were wrapped in omentum to enhance vascularity. Third, a de-epithelialized small-bowel segment seeded with autologous bladder-epithelial cells was transversally retubularized (Monti) into a 4-cm ureteral replacement. Follow-up studies consisted of retrograde pyelography, serum chemistry assays, hematoxylin/eosin studies, and immunohistopathologic examination using antibodies against alpha-smooth-muscle actin and pancytokeratin AE1-AE3.

RESULTS
Coculture of urinary-tract cells on large segments of SIS failed to create adequate ureteral replacement. All grafts were contracted and stenotic, with complete obstruction of the ipsilateral renal unit. Similar results were seen in the Beagles. Despite clinical obstruction and gross contraction of the graft, a circumferential muscular ureteral wall lined with multilayer transitional epithelium was present. Urotheliumseeded de-epithelialized Monti bowel segments resulted in patent ureteral replacement without hydroureteronephrosis and with normal renal function, serum electrolytes, and acid-base balance. However, bowel mucosa fully regenerated, with multilayer transitional epithelium growing adluminally in continuity with the proximal and distal anastomotic sites.

CONCLUSIONS
Seeding of ureteral grafts with autologous bladder cells does not promote success in two largeanimal models using different xenogenic acellular matrices. However, muscle and urothelium regeneration occurs with ureteral acellular matrix in the dog. Urothelium-seeded de-epithelialized Monti bowel segments may be an acceptable substitute for long proximal ureteral segments. Further technical refinements are required to replace the bowel mucosa completely with normal urothelium.


SRAM-based FPGA, as the hardware basis of reconfigurable computing will be a significant part of reconfigurable SoC, the next generation IC product. An effective routing algorithm for FPGA is necessary for developing a design tool for R-SoC. This paper suggests a taxonomy for presenting FPGA routing algorithms, introduces and analyzes the typical algorithms of each kind, and for the most importance, concludes a generalized model for FPGA routing, including a generalized routing flow, parameters, and cost function. Particular routing algorithms can be derived from this model.


A successful live related renal transplant in a 29-year-old male patient with Type 1 primary hyperoxaluria, who remains well 32 months postoperatively, is described. The plasma oxalate and exchangeable oxalate pool before transplantation were 160 mumol/1 and 4429 mumol respectively. Since the transplant these have been greatly reduced although they remain elevated above the normal by a factor of 2. Pyridoxine therapy and the avoidance of oxalate-rich foods have been effective in maintaining these reduced levels and the 24-hr urinary oxalate excretion has also been maintained close to normal levels on this regime. After review of the previously reported transplants in patients with well documented primary hyperoxaluria and from the experience with this patient, the following guidelines for successful renal transplantation in primary hyperoxaluria are suggested: transplants should only be carried out in those who have shown a response to adequate pyrodoxine therapy; frequent haemodialysis pre-operatively and during periods of oliguria postoperatively is necessary; oxalate-rich foods should be avoided and a high fluid intake should be maintained after transplantation. If these guidelines are followed there is no contra-indicatin to live related renal transplants in primary hyperoxaluric patients.


Objective: To explore the molecular mechanism by which 'traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) decoction for restoration' ('TCM decoction') affects swelling and pain elimination, by assessing its effects on hepatic swelling and regeneration after partial hepatectomy.
Methods: A total of 160 mice were randomized into control and TCM decoction treatment groups. The control animals underwent partial liver resection of left lateral lobe, while the TCM decoction treatment group received oral administration of the decoction by gavage (10 g/kg), twice a day, after the same surgery administered to the control group. Ten mice in each group were sacrificed every other day from postoperative day 1 to 8. VEGF-A and PROX1 protein expression levels were evaluated.
Results: Swelling and degeneration of residual liver tissue were significantly alleviated by TCM decoction at the early stage of surgical injury, and subsequent hepatic regeneration was significantly inhibited as well. Interestingly, VEGF-A and PROX1 expression levels in residual liver tissue were also significantly reduced by TCM decoction.
Conclusion: Swelling and degeneration of residual liver tissue are significantly alleviated, with hepatic regeneration inhibited by TCM decoction after partial hepatectomy, through VEGF-A and PROX1 downregulation.


Purpose: To find trends in utilization and practice of the physical therapist assistant (PTA) in the clinical setting and to assess current clinician views on the expected future direction for the education of the PTA. Method/Subjects: An electronic survey was sent to all accredited PT and PTA programs in United States requesting the survey be forwarded to physical therapist and physical therapist assistant faculty, alumni and clinical instructors in their geographic region for completion. Results: PTAs are a vital part of physical therapy practice. Forty percent of respondents reported that greater than 50% of direct patient interventions are typically delegated to a PTA. Most common interventions not performed by the PTA but is considered a delegable activity include manual techniques and manual muscle testing. Survey results indicated current challenges faced in delivery of healthcare services related to the role of the PTA to be: lack of PTA career development opportunities (n=615), underutilization of the PTA skills/ services (n=585) and productivity standards (n=545). Physical therapist respondents (72.5%) reported they completed informal skill training or mentoring with the PTA in the clinic to allow for tasks to be delegated to the PTA. There was consensus among both PT (52.5%, n=399) and PTA's (53.8%, n=472) that a transition that included a baccalaureate degree was the appropriate career path for the PTA. Conclusions: When coupled with the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT) reports of entry level practice expectations, this report could prove valuable in future decision-making regarding PTA degree expectations as well as educational requirements and training to meet the needs of those seeking physical therapy services within our current and future healthcare system.


It is shown that if the dichromatic isocolour lines, plotted on any colour diagram of the usual type, are extended, they will either meet at a point which will represent a missing fundamental sensation, or they will be parallel to a line joining the points representing the two fundamental sensations which are fused. Using these properties it is further shown that protanopia is caused by the absence of the R' sensation, that tritanopia is caused by the absence of the B' sensation, and that deuteranopia is caused by the R' and G' sensations being identical. The B' and R' points determined by these measurements and the G' point as determined by Walters but slightly modified to suit the particular requirements set by the line R'G', have been used to calculate the fundamental sensation curves. Luminosity, colour-mixture, and hue-discrimination data for both dichromatic and trichromatic observers and to a lesser extent trichromatic hue-discrimination and saturation data are satisfactorily explained in terms of these response curves; such an explanation leads to the conclusion that the Young-Helmholtz theory of colour vision is fundamentally correct. The essential difference between the B' sensation and the G' and R' sensations is stressed.


This work purposes to investigate the microstructure, mechanical and corrosion behavior of dissimilar metals weld between 2205 duplex stainless steel (UNS 31803) and high strength low alloy steel API X52. The joining was produced by shielded metal arc welding process using two different filler metals, the duplex E2209 and austenitic E309 grade.The microstructures of the dissimilar welded joints have been investigated by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The EDS analysis performed at the API X52/weld metal interface showed an evident gradient of Cr and Ni between fusion and type II boundaries, where the highest hardness value was recorded.


Reported here are the bottom-up synthesis and structural analysis as well as the adsorption property investigation of a series of isostructural metal-organic frameworks based on carborane backbones and Cu(2)(CO(2))(4) units. All these compounds are 2D grid structures composed of four component rings. Using linear p-CDC (p-CDCH(2) = 1,12-dihydroxycarbonyl-1,12-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane) as a backbone, only one type of ring formed. However, five types of rings may exist when m-CDCH(2) (m-CDCH(2) = 1,7-dihydroxycarbonyl-1,7-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane) was used due to its varied orientation. Here, the solvent molecules play a key role in the formation of these compounds and the expected five types of rings were obtained. The gas sorption properties of compounds 5' and 8' were studied. These frameworks preferentially adsorb CO(2) over both CH(4) and N(2) due to the coordinatively unsaturated copper ions.


Error-feedback, normalized, and array-based recursions represent equivalent RLS lattice adaptive filters which are known to offer better numerical properties under finite-precision implementations. This is the case when the underlying data structure arises from a tapped-delay-line model for the input signal. On the other hand, in the context of a more general orthonormality-based input model, these variants have not yet been derived and their behavior under finite precision is unknown. This paper develops several lattice structures for the exponentially weighted RLS problem under orthonormality-based data structures, including errorfeedback, normalized, and array-based forms. As a result, besides nonminimality of the new recursions, they present unstable modes as well as hyperbolic rotations, so that the well-known good numerical properties observed in the case of FIR models no longer exist. We verify via simulations that, compared to the standard extended lattice equations, these variants do not improve the robustness to quantization, unlike what is normally expected for FIR models.


Many physicians have been the victims of embezzlement. Their war stories confirm the existence of clever thieves that steal from the medical practice for which they work. You don't want your practice financing someone else's vacation or another kid's college education. Here are a few ways to protect your practice from any embezzlement scheme.


The experimental studies are conducted in this paper to optimize the three parameters for development of nanocomposite, namely (i) clay loadings, (ii) magnetic stirring time, and (iii) sonication time. Firstly polymer nanocomposites of varying contents nanoclay were prepared by using a mechanical stirrer and an ultrasound sonicator. The weight percentage of nanoclay in the nanocomposite with fixed stirring and sonication time was optimized for maximum intercalation within the polymer. After optimization of clay percentage, glass fiber based epoxy nanocomposite laminates were prepared. Nanocomposite structure was characterized by using X-Ray Diffraction and Transmission Electron Microscopy, which revealed the intercalated morphology of clay layers. Nanocomposites with 2.0% nanoclay content showed better intercalation with an increased interlayer spacing. The mechanical properties (impact and flexural property) were studied using an impact tester and three point bending tester. The flexural and impact properties of laminates with nanoclay contents were found to be better.


Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is currently an investigational therapy for human cancer. PDT is performed in two steps: (a) the injection of a photosensitizer, followed by a period of time during which it is cleared from most normal tissues; and (b) activation of the photosensitizer by exposure to light. Singlet oxygen is thought to be the agent produced by photoactivation most responsible for tumor destruction. Over 3000 patients have been treated with PDT and reported in the literature. The published results of clinical PDT in the treatment of superficial bladder cancer, gynecological cancer, endobronchial malignancies, gastrointestinal cancer, intracranial cancer, ocular cancer, and cutaneous and subcutaneous cancers are critically reviewed in the present work. The current laser types used for clinical PDT are reviewed, as well as light delivery devices which have been recently developed. In situ light dosimetry devices and their use in the treatment of superficial bladder cancer and for intraoperative therapy are discussed. >


 As part of new products development in a medical device plant, an innovative coating technology known as Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) will be implemented for the electrode coating process. Current process is performed by dip coating parts manually and exposing to high temperatures for pre-defined time. This process has a high cycle time from 8 to 10 hours per batch. Additionally the process results in not uniform coating thickness and high variability between parts. The new process to be implemented will be automated where the operator will load and unload parts in the system and press one button to start the process. The PVD technique is performed by sputtering atoms that make up the coating via bombardment of a plate of the coating material by energetic ions. Testing results showed more uniform coating thickness and less variability between parts as well as reducing the cycle time per batch to 45 minutes. Key Terms  Automation , Electrode Coating, Physical Vapor Deposition, PVD


BACKGROUND
The availability of competitive foods in schools is a modifiable factor in efforts to prevent childhood obesity. The Alliance for a Healthier Generation launched the Healthy Schools Program in 2006 to encourage schools to create healthier food environments, including the adoption of nutritional guidelines for competitive beverages and foods. This study examines nationwide awareness and implementation of the guidelines in US public elementary schools.

METHODS
Data were collected from a nationally representative sample of elementary schools using mail-back surveys in 2006-2007, 2007-2008, 2008-2009, and 2009-2010.

RESULTS
From 2006-2007 to 2009-2010, awareness of the Alliance's beverage guidelines increased from 35.0% to 51.8% among school administrators (p < .01); awareness of the food guidelines increased from 29.4% to 40.2% (p < .01). By 2009-2010, almost one third of the schools that sold competitive beverages and foods reported having implemented or being in the process of implementing the guidelines. Implementation was higher among schools from Southern states. Schools with a majority of Black or Latino students were less likely to implement the guidelines.

CONCLUSIONS
Awareness and implementation of the Alliance's beverage and food guidelines has significantly increased since the 2006-2007 school year, indicating successful diffusion of the guidelines. However, many administrators at schools who sold competitive products were not aware of the guidelines, indicating a need for continued efforts. In addition, lower implementation among schools serving minority students suggests that the Alliance's targeted efforts to provide intensive technical assistance to such schools is warranted and necessary.


Managers' ability to effectively and efficiently obtain, manage and utilise organisational resources plays an important role in the quality of the product their organisations present audiences with. A literature review reveals that a lack of effective and efficient media management is a core variable that influences the quality of journalism worldwide. This paper proposes that traditional commercial community newspaper organisations can proactively manage quality by comprehensively following a systems- and process-based approach. For this purpose and using a case study design, a comprehensive quality management model was developed for community newspapers, particularly in developing and rural settings. This context-sensitive model could be a useful tool for owners, managers and editors at community newspapers in developing countries to manage and improve quality in and across all functions and production processes in their organisations.


This paper provides new empirical evidence on regional–national disparities in environmental efficiency, based on case studies of Italy and the Lazio region, which includes the city of Rome. Shift-share analyses provide evidence on the drivers of environmental efficiency and on sector specificity. This confirms the usefulness of this method for studying the environmental economics realm, in order to investigate structural and efficiency factors at the level of within country environmental efficiency performance, even in light of the different shares of services. Our evidence shows that although the Rome region has achieved higher environmental performance compared to Italy mainly thanks to its being less industry based, some critical points in the energy sector and in some services should be taken into account in shaping the future development of the region. Environmental, industrial and sector-oriented policy making may also derive valuable information from the evidence provided by our study.