An architecture optimized for strategic computing was built. The architecture employs a comprehensive VLSI approach, with new hardware and a new operating system. By starting from scratch it was possible to make tradeoffs at all levels (VLSI, hardware systems, and software systems) to provide optimal solutions to meet the challenges of strategic computing. In addition to a high-performance microprocessor based on reduced-instruction-set-computer (RISC) principles, a VLSI component was built for each functional block of a computer system to construct a balanced computer architecture. Instead of implementing fault tolerance with additional hardware, the requisite fault-tolerant features were built directly into these same VLSI components.<<ETX>>


Container-grown black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) B.S.P.) seedlings were planted in trays containing a sand and peat mixture, and placed in a climate-controlled greenhouse. One group of seedlings was kept well-watered, and another group was subjected to three cycles of drought. Gas exchange analysis showed that mesophyll photosynthetic function was largely unimpaired by drought. In contrast, stomatal conductance was sensitive to drought, although it became less sensitive with each drought cycle. Both stomatal and mesophyll conductances increased with time in control and drought-stressed seedlings, but mesophyll conductance increased with time more rapidly than did stomatal conductance. Limitation of photosynthetic rate was dominated by the mesophyll. In control seedlings, relative stomatal limitation increased from 6 to 16% by the end of the experiment. In drought-stressed seedlings, relative stomatal limitation of photosynthesis reached 40% during the first drought, but decreased to near control values immediately after rewatering. Because the third, most severe drought had only a minor effect on stomatal conductance, relative stomatal limitation of photosynthesis was similar to that in control seedlings by the end of the experiment. Inhibition of ontogenetic change during drought stress may be responsible for the apparent acclimation of mesophyll photosynthetic processes. We conclude that it would be more effective to select for high photosynthetic capacity than for reduced stomatal sensitivity when breeding for increased drought resistance in black spruce seedlings.


Mouse model of leukemia hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the key platform to study leukemia experimental treatment, which has been widely used in anticancer drug screening and in the studies of leukemia pathogenesis and experimental treatment. Transplantation mouse model has several advantages such as short cycle of model establishment, good repetitiveness, and the more stable biological characteristics of the tumor cell lines. The source of leukemia and tumor cell lines, choice of mouse species, the establishment of transplantation model, the recent advances of GVHD model and other aspects of transplantation mouse model are summarized in this review.


Small single-electron devices (SEDs) consisting of many Si nanodots are fabricated on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer by means of pattern-dependent oxidation (PADOX) method. We investigated SEDs from two kinds of viewpoint. One is how to fabricate the nanodots, especially coupled nanodots, which are important to achieve quantum computers and single-electron transfer devices. The other is demonstration of new applications that tolerate the size fluctuation. In order to achieve multi-coupled nanodots, we developed an easy method by applying PADOX to a specially designed Si nanowire which has small constrictions at the ends of the wire. We confirmed the double-dot formation and position of the Si nanodots in the wire by analyzing the measured electrical characteristics. To achieve high functionality together with low-power consumption and tolerance to size fluctuation, we developed nanodot array device which has many input gates and outputs terminals. The fabricated three-input and two-output nanodot device actually provide high functionality such as a half adder and a full adder.


Research has consistently shown differences in affect and cognition after exposure to different physical environments. The time course of these differences emerging or fading during short-term exploration of environments is less explored, as most studies measure dependent variables only before and after environmental exposure. In this within-subject study, we used repeated surveys to measure differences in thought content and affect throughout a one-hour environmental exploration of a nature conservatory and a large indoor mall. At each survey, participants reported on aspects of their most recent thoughts (e.g., thinking of the present moment vs. the future; thinking positively vs. negatively) and state affect. Using Bayesian multi-level models, we found that while visiting the conservatory, participants were more likely to report thoughts about the past, more positive and exciting thoughts, and higher feelings of positive affect and creativity. In the mall, participants were more likely to report thoughts about the future and higher feelings of impulsivity. Many of these differences in environments were present throughout the one-hour walk, however some differences were only evident at intermediary time points, indicating the importance of collecting data during exploration, as opposed to only before and after environmental exposures. We also measured cognitive performance with a dual n-back task. Results on 2-back trials replicated results from prior work that interacting with nature leads to improvements in working-memory performance. This study furthers our understanding of how thoughts and feelings are influenced by the surrounding physical environment and has implications for the design and use of public spaces.


Background and Objectives Glucocorticoids are well-known adjuvant analgesics in certain chronic pain states. There is, however, a paucity of data on their analgesic efficacy in acute pain. Therefore, the aim of the study was to examine the analgesic effects of dexamethasone in a validated burn model of acute inflammatory pain in humans. Methods Twenty-two volunteers were investigated in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled cross-over study. Intravenous dexamethasone 8 mg or placebo was administered on 2 separate study days. Two hours after drug administration, a first-degree burn injury was produced on the medial aspect of the nondominant calf (12.5 cm2, 47°C for 7 minutes). Quantitative sensory testing included pain ratings to thermal and mechanical stimuli (visual analog scale [VAS]), assessments of thermal and mechanical detection thresholds, and areas of allodynia and secondary hyperalgesia. Results The burn injury induced significant increases in erythema (P < .0001) and hyperalgesia (P < .001) in both groups. Pain ratings and development of tactile allodynia during the burn did not differ between dexamethasone and placebo treatments (P > .6). There were no significant differences between treatments in regard to skin erythema (P > .8), thermal or mechanical thresholds (P > .2), thermal or mechanical pain response (P > .2), or mechanical secondary hyperalgesia (P > .2). Dexamethasone had no analgesic effects in normal skin. Conclusions The study indicates that systemic administration of dexamethasone 2 hours before a burn injury does not reduce the inflammatory-mediated changes in quantitative sensory thresholds, pain perception, or skin erythema in humans.


The most important property of concrete is its compressive strength, which is carried out after 28-days proper curing of concrete. This test is affected by other factors like the condition of curing, water to cement ratio, method of transportation, handling of the concrete, extent of vibrations and quality of the ingredients of mix proportion. This research study is an attempt to develop a simple Mathematical equation also known as mathematical model, by using linear regression analysis to estimate the 28-day fc' (Compressive Strength) of concrete from the test results carried out atearly age. This simple linear equation develops a relationship of 28.5 hours accelerated cured compressive strength with normal cured compressive strength after 28-days. These results show that most of the predicted values of compressive strength, calculated via equations, lies within permissible range difference for compressive strength achieved by experimental method, which is clear indication of credibility of the equations obtained for compressive strength at different age of concrete. The results showed that compressive strength of concrete increases with the increase in content of FA (Fly Ash) upto 30% replacement, and the compressive strength of the concrete starts decreasing beyond 30% FA substitution. This argument is totally in line with all the literature carried out for this research.


The purpose of this study was to examine the role of heads of schools in setting school goals, mission and vision, clarifying the paths to subordinates by removing obstacles that are stopping them to achieve desired performance and reward strategies used to motivate teachers and students, the case of Kilosa district secondary schools. The study was conducted under three research tasks which guided the study. Firstly, to find out whether heads of schools clarify schools' goals, mission and vision to teachers and students and know which way to go. Secondly, to find out if heads schools constantly monitor performance to remove impediments hindering students improved performance. Thirdly, to find out if school heads reward teachers and students as well as facilitate teacher's professional development in secondary schools. The study employed qualitative approach. Thus, it is qualitative enquiry. Data were collected from Kilosa District in Morogoro Region. Random and purposive sampling procedures were adopted to sample 39 respondents including heads of schools, teachers and students. Data were collected through interviews, documentary review and observation, and analyzed using content analysis technique.
The findings revealed that most schools had neither strategic nor whole plans. Some schools had no clear goals, visions or missions. Rewards were provided to teachers and students basing on performances in academic and extra-curricular activities with a tendency of both teachers and students appearing to perform better in aspects which are rewarded and poor where they are not rewarded. The study suggests that heads of schools must clarify goals, missions and visions, monitor performance and reward.


The microstructure characteristics and tensile properties in a 0.2C-1.5Mn-1.0Al-0.50Si, high strength hot rolled TRIP steel obtained by a new processing based on dynamic transformation of undercooled austenite(DTUA) were investigated. The results show that the main feature of the new technology is that the ferrite was produced by the applied strain during DTUA. Characterization by means of optical and scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction has shown that the microstructure of the investigated steel contained a ferrite matrix with fine grain size, bainite with small bainitic packets, and high volume fraction of retained austenite with a large number of granular retained austenite. Tensile testing indicates the steels produced by this processing have higher strength (790MPa) and total elongation (35%) as well as low yield ratio..


Summary Beekeepers may feed colonies with pollen supplement patties during times of pollen shortage. We tested whether the surface area of pollen patties fed to honey bee colonies affects their consumption, brood production and honey yields. We compared three pollen-patty sizes, of equal weight, and found that consumption increased with surface area. Consequently, brood production tended to increase with pollen-patty size, and colonies fed the patty with the largest surface area produced significantly more brood than those fed a carbohydrate-only control patty. The colonies in the large surface area treatment also tended to produce more honey, though the differences were not statistically significant, probably due to the time gap between the pollen deficiency period and the time honey was harvested. We conclude that pollen patties with greater surface area are more readily consumed by honey bee colonies and may contribute more to colony development and subsequent honey yields.


With a changing climate, London is expected to experience more frequent periods of intense rainfall and tidal surges, leading to an increase in the risk of flooding. This paper describes the simulation of the drying of flooded building archetypes representative of the London building stock using the EnergyPlus-based hygrothermal tool 'University College London-Heat and Moisture Transfer (UCL-HAMT)' in order to determine the relative drying rates of different built forms and envelope designs. Three different internal drying scenarios, representative of conditions where no professional remediation equipment is used, are simulated. A mould model is used to predict the duration of mould growth risk following a flood on the internal surfaces of the different building types. Heating properties while keeping windows open dried dwellings fastest, while purpose built flats and buildings with insulated cavity walls were found to dry slowest.


Carbon stable isotope data from western Canada, in combination with biostratigraphic control and astrochronologic constraints from magnetic susceptibility data, provide insight into the pace and timing of the Frasnian–Famennian (F–F; Late Devonian) biotic crisis. In much of the world, this event is characterized by two organic-rich shales, which display geochemical anomalies that indicate low-oxygen conditions and carbon burial. These events, commonly referred to as the Lower and Upper Kellwasser events (LKE and UKE), have been linked to the expansion of deeply rooted terrestrial forests and associated changes in soil development, chemical weathering, and Late Devonian climate. The dC data generated from organic matter record a 3 to 4% positive excursion during each event. These data and other geochemical proxy data reported elsewhere corroborate hypotheses about enhanced biological productivity, driven by terrigenous input under exceptionally warm climatic conditions. In this hypothesis, a boom in primary production leads to successive development of anoxic bottom water conditions, decreased biotic diversity, and net transfer of carbon from the atmosphere to the ocean floor. Despite the importance of the F–F events, a precise chronology for the events is lacking due to limited biostratigraphic resolution. Each of the F–F events falls within one conodont zone, with durations estimated on the order of 0.5 to 1.0 Myr. The LKE occurs very high in Frasnian Zone (FZ) 12, while the UKE begins within FZ 13B, just below the F–F boundary. A previous analysis of high-resolution magnetic susceptibility data from the studied sections in western Canada identified 16.5 eccentricity cycles, each lasting 405 kyr, within the Frasnian strata and one in the earliest Famennian. The present study reports dC anomalies associated with the LKE and UKE in the same sections. The LKE and UKE intervals comprise 7 to 8 and 13 to 13.5 m of stratigraphic section, respectively. Based on our analysis, this implies that they represent only one 405-kyr eccentricity cycle or less. We estimate that the duration of the LKE was a bit more than half of a long eccentricity cycle (~200–250 kyr), while the UKE was more protracted, lasting a full long eccentricity cycle (~405 kyr). The onset of both events is separated by one-and-a-half 405-kyr eccentricity cycles, indicating that they occurred about 500 to 600 kyr apart. This work demonstrates the utility of magnetic susceptibility, or other long time-series proxy data, used in conjunction with astronomical calibration to provide insight into the pacing of significant events in geologic time.


Purpose - Based on unique data the authors analyze the Rwandan non-farm employment expansion in rural areas and its relation to agricultural productivity. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors that determine off-farm work hours in Rwanda, and how farmers' off-farm employment affects agricultural output. Since production efficiency may depend on off-farm work and off-farm work depend on production efficiency (Lien Design/methodology/approach - In this paper the authors use a unique panel data set spanning over 26 years originating from household surveys conducted in the northwest and densely populated districts of Rwanda. Econometric estimations are based on a random effects two-stage Tobit model to control for endogeneity. Findings - The study confirms theoretical and empirical findings from other developing countries that off-farm employment is one of the essential conditions for having an economically viable agricultural business and vice versa. Research limitations/implications - The study is carried out in only one district of Rwanda. Even though most rural areas in Rwanda have similar features the findings cannot necessarily be generalized for the entire country of Rwanda. As in any study, the raw data set suffer from a number of shortcomings which cannot be fully eliminated by the econometric estimation, but this is a new data set which has the best data available for this research question in Rwanda. Practical implications - The authors can conclude that there are synergy effects of investing government resources into both on-farm and off-farm employment expansions. Thus, in Rwanda on-farm investments can actually partly contribute to a future natural smooth transformation to more off-farm total output and productivity and vice versa. Though there are still limited off-farm employment opportunities in the studied area, there are considerable potentials to generate income and increase agricultural production through the purchase of additional inputs. Social implications - The findings imply that a favorable business climate for off-farm businesses creates spill-over effects which enhance the smallholder farmers' opportunities to survive, generate wealth, create employment and in effect reduce poverty. Originality/value - From the best of the authors' knowledge, similar studies have not been conducted in Rwanda, nor elsewhere with this type of data set. The findings provide original insights regarding off-farm and agricultural relationships in rural areas under dense population pressure. The results provide some indications that off-farm employment in developing countries (such as Rwanda) is one of the essential conditions for having an economically viable agricultural business and vice versa. The second wave of data was collected by the authors and was used solely for the purpose of this paper.


The declining role of the armed forces in civil society within Latin America has been paralleled by the emergence of structural adjustment programmes oriented to resolving problems of internal and external balance through the application of a cocktail of trade reforms, deregulation and expenditure cuts. Defence expenditures have not been exempted from this budget-driven downsizing (Franko 1994), despite military attempts to stress the importance of basing defence expenditures on demand, whether to combat an external threat or to curb the prospect of rising domestic delinquency. Dix (1994:448) has nevertheless highlighted the fact that Latin American generals are begrudgingly accepting the arguments for military restructuring on condition that investigation into past human rights violations are either toned down or halted. These self-same tensions have emerged in Honduras as the transition towards civilian control has gathered pace (Ruhl 1996:37ff). In the not so distant past (1996), almost three-quarters of the Honduran armed forces' manpower were composed of conscripted recruits (ISS 1996). However, although military manpower requirements can be fulfilled through voluntary induction or conscription, research on contemporary conscription procedures relates exclusively to recruitment processes in either the US or Europe (Friedman 1982; Angrist 1989, 1990; Dewey 1984; Mellors and McKean 1984). Yet in Honduras and many other Third World economies enforced military recruitment has been a key occupational hazard for males within the requisite age-bracket. This paper helps to redress the anomaly, deploying survey data from Honduras so as to examine the historic likelihood of being forcibly inducted into the country's armed forces. In particular it postulates that certain societal groupings – defined by economic orientation, political allegiance and department of residence – were more likely to be drafted than others.


The right to mental health waits to gain universal recognition. States have ignored it, following the general trend of relegating economic, social and cultural rights secondary to civil and political rights. The article examines how in the last decade several movements have brought this right to the foreground, in particular efforts to protect the rights of the mentally disabled, refugees and displaced persons. It discusses how, as a result, institutions of the United Nations (UN), including the General Assembly, Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, the UN Commission of Human Rights and the World Health Organization have become more active in addressing the right to physical and mental health, for example appointing Paul Hunt as Special Rapporteur on Health. The authors argue that these inroads on the right to mental health limit the definition and vision of mental health. In particular, in countries undergoing post-conflict recovery there is the need to attend to the mental health of victims of serious human rights violations. However, until now there has been no clear international policy or plan of action on how to address this problem. Calling for more international discussion on this topic, the authors hope to contribute to the movement by exploring different dimensions of mental health and by identifying three possible origins of a violation of the right to mental health. The authors present scenarios where a State fails to prevent the violation of the right to mental health and its related issues, as well as the state's corresponding obligation to provide mental health reparations. They call for an expansion of the concept of the right to mental health on the international agenda, and offer suggestions on how this effort may begin. Having conducted a study on the right to mental health for victims of Peru's internal armed conflict, the authors will use examples from Peru to illustrate different observations and conclusions.


An aerobic, Gram-staining-negative, rod or ovoid-shaped bacterial isolate, strain NH52J(T), was isolated from a sandy sediment sample from the South China Sea. Strain NH52J(T) exhibited tumbling motility, formed beige or faint pink colonies, gave a positive reaction in tests for catalase and oxidase and required NaCl for growth. Optimal growth was observed at pH 7.8-9.3, at 30 degrees C and in the presence of 2.0-4.0 % (w/v) NaCl. The novel strain did not synthesize bacteriochlorophyll a, and the DNA G+C content was 62 %. The major fatty acids were C(18 : 1)omega7c, C(16 : 0) and C(18 : 1)omega7c 11-methyl. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain NH52J(T) was affiliated to the genus Roseovarius of the class Alphaproteobacteria. Roseovarius pacificus and Roseovarius aestuarii were the most closely related recognized species to strain NH52J(T) with 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values of 95.0 and 95.7 %, respectively. Sequence similarity values between strain NH52J(T) and other phylogenetically related species were all below 95.0 %. Based on the phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic data presented, strain NH52J(T) is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Roseovarius, for which the name Roseovarius nanhaiticus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is NH52J(T) (=LMG 24840(T)=CCTCC AB 208317(T)=MCCC 1A03543(T)).


A model for the solution structure of horse heart ferrocytochrome c has been determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy combined with hybrid distance geometry-simulated annealing calculations. Forty-four highly refined structures were obtained using a total of 1940 distance constraints based on the observed magnitude of nuclear Overhauser effects and 85 torsional angle restraints based on the magnitude of determined J-coupling constants. The all-residue root mean square deviation about the average structure is 0.47 +/- 0.09 A for the backbone N, C alpha, and C' atoms and 0.91 +/- 0.07 A for all heavy atoms. The overall topology of the model for solution structure is very similar to that seen in previously reported models for crystal structures of homologous c-type cytochromes. However, a detailed comparison between the model for the solution structure and the available model for the crystal structure of tuna ferrocytochrome c indicates significant differences in a number of secondary and tertiary structural features. For example, two of the three main helices display 3(10) to alpha-helical transitions resulting in bifurcation of main-chain hydrogen bond acceptor carbonyls. The N- and C-terminal helices are tightly packed and display several interhelical interactions not seen in previously reported models. The geometry of heme ligation is well-defined and completely consistent with the crystal structures of homologous cytochromes c as are the locations of four of six structural water molecules. Though the total solvent-accessible surface area of the protoporphyrin ring is similar to that seen in crystal studies of tuna ferrocytochrome c, the distribution is somewhat different. This is mainly due to a difference in packing of residues Phe-82 and Ile-81 such that Ile-81 crosses the edge of the heme in the solution structure. These and other observations help to explain a range of physical and biological data spanning the redox properties, folding, molecular recognition, and stability of the protein.


The major sources of water pollution can be classified as municipal, industrial, and agricultural. Different types of polluted aqueous effluents and sediments may be produced, which contain relatively high levels of heavy metals. During the 1990s, the large-scale development of constructed wetlands around the world drew much attention from public and environmental groups.The present study looks at the use of an integrated remediation system using zeolites for the treatment of wastewater and sediments.Zeolites have been widely studied in the past 10 years due to their attractive properties such as molecular-sieving, high cation exchange capacities, and their affinity for heavy metals. Coal industry by- products-based zeolites (faujasite type) have been tested as an effective and low-cost novel alternative for wastewater treatment, particularly their removing of heavy metals. On the other hand, a preliminary laboratory-scale experiment was conducted on the use of natural zeolites (clinoptilolite type) for the retention of heavy metals from canal sediments. Experimental work revealed promising results, which could be replicated on a bigger scale.Although this has been developed for canal sediments, the remediation strategy can be adapted to different waterways such asrivers. The development of the proposed remediation system in a specific experimental site as the major part of an innovation parkcan provide great benefits to a population living near contaminated effluents. It provides not only opportunities for the mitigation of environmental impact, improving water quality and landscape amenity, but also allows for several recreational opportunities.


Abstract Objectives Episodic memory is age-sensitive but can be strengthened by targeted training interventions. The method of loci (MoL) is a classic mnemonic which if successfully implemented greatly improves memory performance. We developed and investigated the effects of a MoL training program implemented in a smart phone application (app) with the aim of studying usage of the application, training effect and its modifiability by age, predictors for MoL proficiency, transfer effects to a face-name memory task, and perceived benefit in everyday memory. Method A total of 359 adults participated. Instruction and training of the MoL, transfer test (face-name paired associates cued recall task), and surveys were performed in an in-house developed app. Results The app interested people across the adult life span. Older adults practiced the most, whereas younger and young-old participants showed the highest level of MoL proficiency. Level of proficiency was modulated by amount of practice, but in the oldest participants this effect was less pronounced. Greater self-rated health was associated with higher level of proficiency. No transfer effect was observed. Among those who answered the survey, about half expressed that MoL training had benefitted memory in their everyday life. Discussion App-based memory training in the MoL can be delivered successfully via an app across the adult life span. Level of performance reached in training is variable but generally high, and mainly influenced by amount of training and age of the participants. Our data suggest plasticity across the life span, but to a lesser degree for adults between 70 and 90 years.


Context is the interrelated condition in which
something exists or occurs. It can also be seen as the parts of a
discourse that surrounds a word or passage and can help shed
light on its meaning. So, in carefully understanding context in
engineering education, it will be prudent to examine all the
dimensions that surrounds it and these spans environmental,
political, cultural, disciplinary, social and economic dimension.
This study provided considerable insight on what contextual
responsiveness is and understand the impetus for it, while
making the case for corporate social responsibility as a tool for
contextual responsiveness in engineering education in Africa.
Findings from the study revealed that that contextual
responsiveness in engineering education seeks to consider how
overall changes influences the discipline and how the discipline
responds to it. Corporate social responsibility was seen as a
management strategy that seeks to consider social and
environmental perspectives in business processes and it has
immense benefits for stakeholders, society and the organization
itself. The study conceptualized corporate social responsibility as
contextual responsiveness for engineering education in Africa
and the elements within it were considered. The study
recommended that there should be an overhaul to the practice of
corporate social responsibility so as to have guidelines and
standards to follow when engaged in it.


Reactive synthesis is an automated procedure to obtain a correct-by-construction reactive system from its temporal logic specification. GR(1) is an expressive fragment of LTL that enables efficient synthesis and has been recently used in different contexts and application domains. In this paper we investigate the dynamic-update problem for GR(1): updating the behavior of an already running synthesized controller such that it would safely and dynamically, without stopping, start conforming to a modified, up-to-date specification. We formally define the dynamic-update problem and present a sound and complete solution that is based on the computation of a bridge-controller. We implemented the work in the Spectra synthesis and execution environment and evaluated it over benchmark specifications. The evaluation shows the efficiency and effectiveness of using dynamic updates. The work advances the state-of-the-art in reactive synthesis and opens the way to its use in application domains where dynamic updates are a necessary requirement.


The disparity between public sensibilities and empirical data in the United States has become so extreme that certain topics can no longer be investigated without bringing down cries of "racism". The U.S. police have been accused of discrimination because they investigate a higher percentage of black and hispanic minority suspects than white or Asians. The facts are that black U.S. citizens commit violent crimes at four to eight times the white rate. Hispanics commit violent crimes at about three times the white rate, and Asians only one half to three quarters the white rate. Blacks are as much more criminally violent than whites, as men are more violent than women. Of the approximately 1,700,000 interracial crimes of violence involving blacks and whites, 90 percent are committed by blacks against whites. Blacks are 50 times more likely than whites to commit individual acts of interracial violence. They are up to 250 times more likely than whites to engage in multiple-offender or group interracial violence. Fifty-six percent of violent crimes committed by blacks have white victims. Only two to three percent of violent crimes committed by whites have black victims. Key Words: Racial profiling, police, law enforcement, crime, rape Crime and Racial Profiling by U.S. Police: Is There an Empirical Basis?1 Introduction One of the strangest phenomena in contemporary criminology in the United States is the treatment of race and ethnicity. On the one hand there is a long history of academic attention to differences among racial and ethnic groups in involvement in various sorts of criminality (Hooton, 1939; Wilson & Herrnstein, 1985). On the other hand there today appears to be media and political pressure to avoid acknowledgement of the differences and possible consequences of the differences. Recently the New Jersey State Police Superintendent Col. Carl Williams was fired by Gov. Christie Whitman after he said in an interview that some minority groups were more likely to be involved in certain crimes (AP, 1999). The Governor is quoted as having said that Williams' comments were "inconsistent with our efforts to enhance public confidence in the State Police." The same article reports that Williams said he did not condone racial profiling, and has never condoned racial profiling, but at the same time he said "it is naive to think race is not an issue" in some sorts of crime (AP, 1999). While Col. Williams claims not to condone racial profiling, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reported in June, 1999, that it was a widespread practice: "Citing police statistics, case studies from 23 states and media reports, the organization asserts that law-enforcement agencies have systematically targeted minority travelers for search... based on the belief that they are more likely than whites to commit crimes." (Drummond, 1999). Although reports such as that of the ACLU which criticize the practice of racial profiling and criticize the "belief" that there may be race differences in criminality get wide media coverage, even being featured in national news magazines such as Time, (Drummond, 1999), other reports that deal with the actual incidence of crimes as related to race get short shrift. The nationally syndicated columnist Samuel Francis recently wrote: Black Americans commit 90 percent of the 1.7 million interracial crimes that occur in the United States every year and are more than 50 times more likely to commit violent crimes against whites than whites are against blacks. These facts were the main findings of a study released earlier this month by the New Century Foundation, but they're not the really big news. The big news is that the report, despite having been made available to virtually all newspapers and news outlets in the United States as well as to most major columnists and opinion writers, has been almost totally ignored by the national news media. The study was released on June 2 of this year. …


Nowadays, street lighting accounts for 53% of outdoor lighting use, and the market is continuously increasing. In the context of rising energy prices and growing environmental awareness, energy efficiency is becoming one of the most important criteria for street lighting systems design. LED-based lights have become the primary option for replacing conventional light bulbs, being digitally controllable, small, highly efficient, and cheap to manufacture. Advanced control strategies adapted to ambient conditions are needed to combine low energy consumption and high-quality light ambience according to changing specifications. This paper describes an outdoor lighting solution aimed at energy-efficient performance in the context of multipurpose outdoor environments, where control is crucial in achieving efficiency improvements. This paper addresses efficiency at the component level, by optimizing the performance of LED drivers, and at the system level, by defining the control strategy and associated hardware infrastructure. The approach designed was tested in a real environment. The performance of the lighting installation was assessed using the Web-based monitoring application, providing real-time consumption information and aggregated historical data.


Abstract This article considers the influence of teachings of publicists on the development of international law. The category of 'teachings of publicists' is not a homogeneous one. The article argues that it can be divided into: entities that have been empowered by States to conclude teachings, such as the International Law Commission; expert groups, such as the Institut de Droit International; and 'ordinary' publicists. The teachings of ordinary publicists are also of different types and include digests, treatises, textbooks, monographs, journal articles, and blog posts. Only by breaking down the category into its various types can the influence of the teaching of publicists on the development of international law be properly gauged. Even then, it can prove rather difficult to pin down the notion of 'influence'. Standard assessments of influence focus on the extent to which teachings are cited by courts and tribunals, in particular by the International Court of Justice. However, that approach privileges the role of courts and tribunals in the development of international law and overlooks the role of other actors. As such, the present article offers a different assessment of influence. It identifies the actors that comprise the community of international lawyers and analyses the various interactions that take place between these actors and the teachings of publicists. It is through this interaction, of which citation is but part, that the influence of the teachings of publicists can properly be determined.


Author(s): Kendall, Bruce E.; MacIntyre, Sally | Abstract: Humans play a critical role in the dispersal of exotic invasive species. Estimating pathways for non‐native species by human vectors is a major challenge to invasion biologists, as well as federal, state and regional resource managers. Focusing on dispersal pathways that are available to not just one, but a number of species, allows for the efficient inspection and possible reduction of many exotic species introductions. Transient recreational boating has been used as an estimate of invasion pressure to inland freshwater bodies, and used to predict prior and future species invasions. Specifically, recreational boating traffic is used to predict human-mediated aquatic invasion in the Midwestern United States through the use of spatial interaction models called gravity models. California and Nevada contain some of the largest and most recreationally utilized lakes, rivers and reservoirs in the Western United States. These waterways attract millions of visitor days by boaters not only from within the region, but all over the United States and are currently experiencing increasing numbers of non‐native species introductions from the Midwestern U.S.This report describes aspects of dispersal of an aquatic invasive plant, Eurasian watermilfoil, both within and between fresh water bodies by recreational boating. This study addresses the question of habitat and/or dispersal limitation for watermilfoil by assessing the movement of recreational boaters within Lake Tahoe, and between Lake Tahoe and other locations, as well as characterizing nearshore habitat locations in highly visited boating destinations. Additionally, this report examines the nature of recreational boater movement data, and the impacts of boater preference as well as the impact of the spatial aspect of data gathering from one versus many locations. Specifically, this report presents the following: 1) an examination of the use of transportation models known as gravity models to describe recreational boater traffic to inland waterways in California and Nevada, 2) an analysis of waterway access point habitat quality as it relates to Eurasian watermilfoil, and 3) the invasion of Eurasian watermilfoil within Lake Tahoe, and how that relates to within-lake boater movement and habitat variables associated with invaded and uninvaded sites within Lake Tahoe.


Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is the major source of economic loss for the cattle industry. The major respiratory pathogens, such as bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), bovine herpesvirus type1 (IBR), Parainfluenza 3 (PI3) virus impaired the animal's respiratory defenses in which Pasteurella multocida, Histophilus somni, Mannheimia haemolytica and Mycoplasma bovis caused the complex of respiratory disturbances. The investigation of clinical cases of BRD in dairy farms supports the information for control and treatment strategies. We aim to investigate pathogens that associated with clinical cases of bovine respiratory disease in Thai dairy herds.


Sub-Themes are:
1. Beyond the qualification – future-proofing engineering education for a diverse workforce. (National Strategy)
a. Strategies for increasing diversity of student intake often exist within institutions. However what happens to students once they graduate? Have students been prepared for the diverse workforce that will emerge as a result of an increasingly diverse student intake?
2. Beyond tolerance – educational practices that embrace diversity. (Teaching Strategy)
a. Diverse perspectives add value to the classroom, as well as to the workplace. How can we move beyond merely tolerating different viewpoints to creating educational spaces that encourage, develop and allow the ideas of an increasingly diverse student group to flourish?
3. Beyond the classroom – tailoring engineering and STEM education to meet the needs of all stakeholders. (External Industry requirement)
a. Educational institutions must consider an increasingly diverse group of stakeholders, including students, staff, industry, and the wider community. How can educational activities expand our horizons beyond classroom and industry experience?


This paper studies the role of bilateral political relationship in the decision-making of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs). Based on the detailed data of SWFs' outbound investments in 2007-2017, this paper finds that SWFs tend to invest in countries with distant bilateral political relations. Furthermore, bilateral political relationship plays an important role in the choice of investment area and the determination of investment amount. The results of this study show that, unlike rational private investors who seek to maximize benefits and minimize risks, SWF's outbound investments have strong political motives. JEL classification numbers: F21 G15 G18Keywords: Sovereign Wealth Fund; Bilateral Political Relationship; Outbound Investments.


The purpose of this study was to find the factors affecting employee turnover in organizations. Employee turnover is one of the problems faced by organizations and make them worried. Turnover causes the performance of an organization to decrease, loss of momentum, distrupt the production and allocation of duties, and also incurs additional costs that impact the organization. The research objectives are to measure the level of salary, benefits, work life balance and recognition with employee turnover, to examine the relationship between salary, benefits, work life balance and recognition with employee turnover, and lastly is to determine the significant predictor variable of employee turnover in organization. 108 questionnaires were distributed conveniently and the data were analyzed by using Statistical Package of Social Science (SPSS) for descriptive analysis, reliability analysis, correlation and multiple regression analysis. All of the questions hang well together as a set, and all of the independent variables which are salary, benefits, work life balance and recognition are significant and have positive relationship with employee turnover. These findings answered all of the research questions. This research would benefit the organization as well as future researches.


The energy consumption of DRAM is a critical concern in modern computing systems. Improvements in manufacturing process technology have allowed DRAM vendors to lower the DRAM supply voltage conservatively, which reduces some of the DRAM energy consumption. We would like to reduce the DRAM supply voltage more aggressively, to further reduce energy. Aggressive supply voltage reduction requires a thorough understanding of the effect voltage scaling has on DRAM access latency and DRAM reliability. In this paper, we take a comprehensive approach to understanding and exploiting the latency and reliability characteristics of modern DRAM when the supply voltage is lowered below the nominal voltage level specified by DRAM standards. Using an FPGA-based testing platform, we perform an experimental study of 124 real DDR3L (low-voltage) DRAM chips manufactured recently by three major DRAM vendors. We find that reducing the supply voltage below a certain point introduces bit errors in the data, and we comprehensively characterize the behavior of these errors. We discover that these errors can be avoided by increasing the latency of three major DRAM operations (activation, restoration, and precharge). We perform detailed DRAM circuit simulations to validate and explain our experimental findings. We also characterize the various relationships between reduced supply voltage and error locations, stored data patterns, DRAM temperature, and data retention. Based on our observations, we propose a new DRAM energy reduction mechanism, called Voltron. The key idea of Voltron is to use a performance model to determine by how much we can reduce the supply voltage without introducing errors and without exceeding a user-specified threshold for performance loss. Our evaluations show that Voltron reduces the average DRAM and system energy consumption by 10.5% and 7.3%, respectively, while limiting the average system performance loss to only 1.8%, for a variety of memory-intensive quad-core workloads. We also show that Voltron significantly outperforms prior dynamic voltage and frequency scaling mechanisms for DRAM.


In the southern Gulf of Mexico, the spotted eagle ray (Aetobatus narinari) is the second most frequently caught batoid in small-scale fisheries off Campeche. Ecological aspects of this ray are unknown in this region, hampering the understanding of the relationship between its distribution and prey availability in the fishing area. In order to study the feeding habits of this batoid and characterize its potential prey in the study area, stomachs and intestines of 154 specimens (68 females and 86 males) were analysed. The results indicated that A. narinari near Campeche is a specialist and selective predator that feeds mainly on gastropods (92.7% IRI), with no significant differences in the diet found between sexes, size groups, or between stomach and intestine contents. In addition, the results indicated that the most important prey species in the diet were among the most common benthic species in three of the four sampling transects positioned in or adjacent to fishing areas for rays. These most important prey species were Strombus pugilis (53.33% IRI) and Americoliva reticularis (25.6% IRI). Other prey species included Lobatus costatus (5.6% IRI) and Petrochirus diogenes (3.6% IRI). This study suggests that this widely distributed ray species feeds in Campeche's coastal waters and that the study of its potential prey increases the understanding of ecological aspects of the species, which emphasizes the added importance of monitoring fishery impacts on prey species (e.g. the conch fishery off Campeche) to help support integrated assessment and management of fisheries.


The purpose of this paper was to explore coach–athlete 'talk in action' during performance analysis feedback sessions. Our goal was to examine how interactional tasks are accomplished through the use of talk. Coach–athlete interactions were recorded within six home match video-based feedback sessions, over the course of a 10-month English Premier League Academy season. Interactions within the sessions were recorded and transcribed using a conversation analysis approach. Analysis of the interactions revealed that the coach attempted to exercise control over the sequential organisation of the sessions, via asymmetrical turn-taking allocations, an unequal opportunity to talk, control over the topic of discussion within the interactions and the use of questioning to select speakers to take turns to talk. The findings are principally theorised through the work of Bertram H. Raven in an attempt to explain the social organisation of power within the institutional context. The conclusion emphasises the importance of coaches becoming more aware of the likely impact of such interactional practices upon athlete learning.


The purpose of the thesis is to find patterns of gender and (im)politeness within the Javanese language. To attain its goals, the research discussion focused on the patterns of gender and (im)politeness in its formal aspects, power relations, and criticism. To accomplish the goals, the research applied a participation order and quantified data related to recurring actions (frame-based analysis). The research participants were Javanese families living in Surakarta and its surrounding areas, which are in Central Java, Indonesia. The data recorded natural conversations, involving voluntarily recorded daily conversations within familial settings.

The formal aspects analysis indicated (1) husbands use a low style (ngoko) to address their wives; (2) Javanese women of the middle social class use different linguistic styles. Additionally, to express their respect, a higher number of women spoke in ngoko, while others addressed their husbands in higher level (basa). Those who used ngoko speech level displayed a minimal sign of deference by using honorific pronouns (e.g. panjenengan) and titles. The analysis on power relations reflected higher agreement in relation to the Javanese norm of indirection. However, the discussion on criticism demonstrated overtness and mock impoliteness, which disagrees with the norm of indirection.

The last two analyses indicated that the evaluation of (im)politeness is different across social actions (e.g. asking, criticising, etc.). Among the three areas of analysis (formal aspects, power relations and criticism), there were persistent aspects involved in the evaluation of (im)politeness) such as intention, identity, moral orders, and utterances or actions.


ABSTRACT This study aims to analyze sodium azide removal from medical laboratory wastewater by using Electro-Fenton (EF) and ozonation methods and to determine the optimum process conditions. Under optimum conditions; 98.9% and 99.6% sodium azide removal efficiency was obtained through EF and ozonation processes, respectively. This is the first and the only optimization study in literature in which response surface methodology and central composite design were used for sodium azide removal from wastewater. Results of the study indicated that EF and ozonation processes are effective methods for sodium azide removal, and central composite design is a suitable tool for process optimization.


With human exploration of the moon and Mars on the horizon, research considerations for space suit redesign have surfaced. The portable life support system (PLSS) used in conjunction with the space suit during the Apollo missions may have influenced the dynamic balance of the gait pattern. This investigation explored potential issues with the PLSS design that may arise during the Mars exploration. A better understanding of how the location of the PLSS load influences the dynamic stability of the gait pattern may provide insight, such that space missions may have more productive missions with a smaller risk of injury and damaging equipment while falling. We explored the influence the PLSS load position had on the dynamic stability of the walking pattern. While walking, participants wore a device built to simulate possible PLSS load configurations. Floquet and Lyapunov analysis techniques were used to quantify the dynamic stability of the gait pattern. The dynamic stability of the gait pattern was influenced by the position of load. PLSS loads that are placed high and forward on the torso resulted in less dynamically stable walking patterns than loads placed evenly and low on the torso. Furthermore, the kinematic results demonstrated that all joints of the lower extremity may be important for adjusting to different load placements and maintaining dynamic stability. Space scientists and engineers may want to consider PLSS designs that distribute loads evenly and low, and space suit designs that will not limit the sagittal plane range of motion at the lower extremity joints.


Pantoprazole is extensively metabolized in the liver and has a total serum clearance of 0.1 l/h/kg, a serum elimination half-life of about 1.1 h, and an apparent volume of distribution of 0.15 L/kg. 98% of pantoprazole is bound to serum proteins. Elimination half-life, clearance, and volume of distribution are independent of the dose. Almost 80% of an oral or intravenous dose is excreted as metabolites in urine; the remainder is found in feces and originates from biliary secretion. The clearance of pantoprazole is only slightly affected by age, with its half-life being approximately 1.25 h in the elderly. Pantoprazole is an acid labile drug that requires protection from degradation in acidic media. Hence, co-crystallization of pantoprazole sodium with appropriate co-formers will inhibit its degradation in acidic medium ensuring fast release in the stomach. The acid-labile drugs for oral administration may also be protected from gastric acidity by inhibiting its degradation upon entering into acidic environment. So, the current approach includes co-crystallization of the provided drug with appropriate co-former which prevents degradation of drug by quick absorption and protects the drug from low pH. Apart from that, the formulations also modulate or control the drug release for an immediate action.


A flyback zero-current switched (ZCS) quasiresonant AC/DC converter, functioning as a power factor correction regulator, is presented and analysed in detail. Only one active switch with simple control logic is required to achieve both input current waveshaping and output voltage regulation. The investigation of voltage and current waveforms of the proposed converter is followed by simulation and leads to a design example to verify the theoretical results. An experimental unit of 120 W was built which confirmed the analysis and simulated results.


In the last six decades, plastic and its vast variety of forms have become the most common man-made material of everyday usage. Plastic is in everything we touch and see drastically affecting our day-to-day lives. Furthermore, this material form has extended its influence beyond our direct experience into areas such as infrastructure, global commerce, and communication becoming a central player in our complex contemporary material culture. This thesis examines the impact that the everyday use of materials such as plastic has had in the configuration of the physical environment to explore the relationships and synergies between urbanization processes and architectural design. The research looks at Fernand Braudel's concept of 'material civilization' (Braudel, 1981), which reveals daily discrete material manipulations as key for the development of civilization and addresses it as a theoretical platform from which architecture can rethink through the material its relationship to processes of urbanization.

Both secondary and primary data were used in developing the concepts in this investigation. The secondary data revealed the importance of everyday use of plastic in the contemporary environmental and cultural landscape, but also that architectural practices and design studies have historically concerned themselves with investigations of the formal and the conceptual, leaving the material on a secondary plane. Under principles of social awareness, communal participation, and spatial reconfiguration, the primary data was collected from three design interventions NUBE-PET, BAG-NET, and PSM. These design interventions indicated how, through architectural design processes, everyday material could be used as a tool, with which complex social phenomena – such as urbanization – can be explored and exposed. While the conventional understanding of urbanization refers to the processes in which the shift from rural to an urban condition happens, as well as the processes of; agglomeration of people, intensification of the built environment, and concentration of economic systems, the three interventions shown in this research expose urbanization in terms of intensities highly influenced by the complexity generated around consumption, disposal, material logistics and every day material manipulation processes.

By providing users with touch and feel experiences, the complexities of our contemporary material culture were highlighted. The design interventions indicated that the life cycle of plastic is, in fact, a complex multi-stage process and involves the collaboration of many stakeholders. It was concluded that the combination of everyday material manipulation processes and design strategies could have the potential to become a tool to leverage public participation and promote reflection on various contemporary urban issues. The three public interventions featured a new path for methodological inquiry in building information and knowledge. All three constructed environments successfully re-negotiated the role of public space in contemporary urban contexts by indicating how the public realm can be a place where people gather to participate in group activities, interact and forge relationships as well as a space to be used for didactic and promotional purpose. If this dissertation succeeds in alerting on the importance and potential of everyday material as a tool with which complex social phenomena such as urbanization can be explored and re-framed in different terms, it would have served its purpose.


Tony Giffard, as he was first known before inheriting the titles of Viscount Tiverton and then 3rd Earl of Halsbury, was born on 4 June 1908. He had a difficult early life because his mother was constantly ill. His childhood's prayers always ended with '…and please make Mummy well again'. His father, a struggling lawyer, was a stern disciplinarian and had an intimidating presence. Each Sunday young Giffard lunched with his much loved grandparents–the 1st Earl and Countess of Halsbury.


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The adverse effects of general anesthesia in stroke thrombectomy have been attributed to intraprocedural hypotension, yet optimal hemodynamic targets remain elusive. Identifying hemodynamic thresholds from patients without exposure to general anesthesia may help separate the effect of hypotension from the effect of anesthesia in thrombectomy outcomes. Therefore, we investigated which hemodynamic parameters and targets best correlate with outcome in patients treated under sedation with monitored anesthesia care. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of a prospectively collected data base of patients with anterior circulation stroke who were successfully reperfused (modified TICI ≥ 2b) under monitored anesthesia care sedation from 2010 to 2015. Receiver operating characteristic curves were generated for the lowest mean arterial pressure before reperfusion, both as absolute values and relative changes from baseline. Cutoffs were tested in binary logistic regression models of poor outcome (90-day mRS > 2). RESULTS: Two-hundred fifty-six of 714 patients met the inclusion criteria. In a multivariable model, a ≥10% mean arterial pressure decrease from baseline had an OR for poor outcome of 4.38 (95% CI, 1.53–12.56; P < .01). Other models revealed that any mean pressure of <85 mm Hg before reperfusion had an OR for poor outcome of 2.22 (95% CI, 1.09–4.55; P = .03) and that every 10-mm Hg drop in mean arterial pressure below 100 mm Hg had an OR of 1.28 (95% CI, 1.01–1.62; P = .04). CONCLUSIONS: A ≥10% mean arterial pressure drop from baseline is a strong risk factor for poor outcome in a homogeneous population of patients with stroke undergoing thrombectomy under sedation. This threshold could guide hemodynamic management of patients during sedation and general anesthesia.


Cross acceptance is an aspect of the technical and legal process principally aimed at establishing the fastest route to the deployment of products, systems or processes (PSP) in a target (new) context or environment. The PSP considered for cross acceptance is generally assumed to satisfy the qualifications for reliability, tolerable safety and environmental performance in their native (original) context or environment. The target application is also assumed to possess significant synergies with the native environment, thus making the deployment technically feasible and commercially viable/advantageous without significant alterations. However, the essence of cross acceptance currently relates to the assurance of safety and potentially environmental performance of PSPs, which are subject to a regulatory regime. In the absence systematic guidance and specific standards, a structured and risk based framework for cross acceptance of products, systems and processes is developed in this paper comprising seven core principles. This guidance draws upon a significant experience of the author on development and application of systemic frameworks for risk and safety assurance within the safety critical industries and more recently the railways. The principles are universal and particularly pertinent to safety critical systems where no systematic and efficient framework for their adoption and application in new applications or environments exists.


Background and Hypothesis: Incomplete tetraplegia creates immense barriers to autonomy for individuals with spinal cord injuries. These patients may retain control of some forearm extensors, but use of flexors is largely eliminated, affecting many movements necessary for daily activities. Although tendon transfers using brachioradialis and other muscles to restore hand function are standard practice, pronator teres has not been extensively studied as a donor for flexors. The purpose of this study is to quantify forearm pronation capability pre- and post-tendon transfer of pronator teres to flexor pollicis longus in a cadaver model. We hypothesize that tendon transfer will make thumb flexion possible, while preserving forearm pronation against gravity at a minimum.
Experimental Design: Five cadaver arms were evaluated for pronation capability against gravity before and after tendon transfer. In both stages, the arms were also assessed for the pronation forces produced at the wrist when pulling pronator teres with 25, 50, and 75 N of force. With each force, the arms were tested in full supination and neutral position.
Results: All five arms were capable of pronating against gravity before and after the tendon transfer. Following the transfer, pronation force decreased, but the difference was not statistically significant.
Conclusion and Potential Impact: Pronator teres to flexor pollicis longus tendon transfer produces thumb flexion while retaining the forearm's ability to pronate. Used in conjunction with well-established donors, such as brachioradialis, pronator teres' expendability could offer an additional motor unit for restoring hand function in tetraplegic patients.


The gold standard for discovering causal relations is by means of experimentation. Over the last decades, alternative methods have been proposed that can infer causal relations between variables from certain statistical patterns in purely observational data. We introduce Joint Causal Inference (JCI), a novel approach to causal discovery from multiple data sets from different contexts that elegantly unifies both approaches. JCI is a causal modeling framework rather than a specific algorithm, and it can be implemented using any causal discovery algorithm that can take into account certain background knowledge. JCI can deal with different types of interventions (e.g., perfect, imperfect, stochastic, etc.) in a unified fashion, and does not require knowledge of intervention targets or types in case of interventional data. We explain how several well-known causal discovery algorithms can be seen as addressing special cases of the JCI framework, and we also propose novel implementations that extend existing causal discovery methods for purely observational data to the JCI setting. We evaluate different JCI implementations on synthetic data and on flow cytometry protein expression data and conclude that JCI implementations can considerably outperform state-of-the-art causal discovery algorithms.


The present study focuses on the use of Motivational Synergy as means to ameliorate the comprehension of ESL Learners at various campuses of the University of Education. The study is correlational. The survey method was adopted to carry out the research.  A convenient purposive sampling technique was used to collect the sample which is comprised of 100 public sector university students including 33% males and 67% females studying in the M.A. English program. This study focused on reading comprehension and listening comprehension. The results show that bottom-up training had a negative impact on comprehension. In contrast, top-down training positively affected fluency but had no impact on comprehension. Further, the results do suggest that fast-paced reading may potentially lead to improved comprehension. These findings have implications for the type of language instruction used in classrooms and, therefore, for teachers of adult ESL learners.


Mount Kelud eruption in 2014 was recorded as the largest eruption in the history of Mount Kelud volcanic activity. The ecosystem restoration was implemented after eruption, and so far there are few studies regarding the value of the restored area, especially in the perspective of ecosystem services values. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the ecosystem services of restored area of Mt. Kelud after three year or eruption restoration program and develop appropriate restoration strategies based on the potentiality of its cultural services. Field survey was done at the restored area after mountain eruption in 2014. The location of Mt. Kelud is administratively located at Sugihwaras Village, Ngancar District, Kediri Regency, East Java. Ecosystem service was observed following Wunder and Thorsen ecosystem service classification. Interviews with informant was performed to generate data regarding the socio-ecological aspect of restoration program and determining the ecosystem services in the perspectives of local community. In order to describe the strategy for the development of nature-based tourism as one of the important cultural services in Mt. Kelud, a SWOT analysis was performed to evaluate the possibility strategy to developed nature-based tourism in restored area. Results of this study shows that after three years of restoration, two ecosystem services were observed in Mt. Kelud, the provisioning services and cultural services. These services were identified contribute to the local community through numerous forestry program and nature-based tourism activity. The potentiality of nature based tourism development in restored area depend on the ability to drawn restoration planning which is combined by sustainable recreation activity in restoration area. Keywords: Ecosystem services, Mountain Kelud, Mountain restoration, Mountain tourism


A descriptive retrospective study, was conducted on adolescent girls (10 to 19 years) at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan to determine the common gynaecological conditions among these group of girls that attended gynaecological clinic of UCH between January 2000 and December 2007. Demographic characteristics including age, sex, occupation, religion, marital status and level of education were extracted from patients' medical records and recorded on a pre-designed data sheet. Presenting complaints and the definitive diagnosis were also recorded. A total of 243 adolescents presented within the study period. The commonest gynaecological complaint was abnormal vaginal discharge (44.4%) while the least was breast lump (1.7%). The commonest gynaecological diagnosis was reproductive tract infection (62.6%), out of which sexually transmitted infections constituted 40%. Infertility (1%) was the least diagnosed condition. Other gynaecological conditions included pregnancy related complications (6.6%), sexual abuse (3.3%), menstrual abnormalities (4.5%) and dysfunctional uterine bleeding (1.7%). Gynaecological complaints were commoner among the older (15 to 19 years) than the younger (10 to 14 years) adolescents (p < 0.01). It was concluded from this study that adolescents experience various forms of gynaecological morbidities, especially reproductive tract infections. We recommend sexual education and counselling for adolescents to help withstand peer pressure in initiating sexual activity. Pregnancy prevention programmes to encourage contraceptive use are imperative.


The national community hospital input price index presented here isolates the effects of prices of goods and services required to produce hospital care and measures the average percent change in prices for a fixed market basket of hospital inputs. Using the methodology described in this article, weights for various expenditure categories were estimated and proxy price variables associated with each were selected. The index is calculated for the historical period 1970 through 1978 and forecast for 1979 through 1981. During the historical period, the input price index increased an average of 8.0 percent a year, compared with an average rate of increase of 6.6 percent for overall consumer prices. For the period 1979 through 1981, the average annual increase is forecast at between 8.5 and 9.0 percent. Using the index to deflate growth in expenses, the level of real growth in expenditures per inpatient day (net service intensity growth) averaged 4.5 percent per year with considerable annual variation related to government and hospital industry policies.


In this paper we explain the theoretical background of Dynamic Tonality using the Thummer, a new musical interface, and The Viking, a software synthesizer written especially for it. Dynamic Tonality is a musical audio routine that allows for novel tunings and enables the user to relate – to an arbitrary degree – these tunings with the partials of their notes. The Viking features Dynamic Tonality and works with any MIDI instrument, but when paired with the Thummer (or another two-dimensional interface) it creates a system of fingering invariance across chords and tunings. Thus, the Thummer and The Viking render non-standard tunings more physically, pedagogically, and aesthetically accessible.


Flow and Engagement at Work: Associations with Personal Resources and Work Environment The experience of flow and engagement has been related to personal and work attributes, generating superior results related to business success, employee performance and life satisfaction. This study aimed to investigate flow and engagement at work and their associations with personal and work characteristics. The sample consisted of 317 participants (66.9% female) with a mean age of 39.72 years (SD=10.8), who responded to a socio-demographic questionnaire and scales that allowed the target variables to be measured. A network analysis was performed to interpret the data. The data showed that some individual and work resources are strongly correlated with work flow and engagement. The results indicate the importance of promoting a work environment that stimulates skills alignment, communication and the reduction of negative affect to enhance the flow and engagement experiences in this context.


The balance between stabilizing selection and migration of maladapted individuals has formerly been modeled using a variety of quantitative genetic models of increasing complexity, including models based on a constant expressed genetic variance and models based on normality. The infinitesimal model can accommodate nonnormality and a nonconstant genetic variance as a result of linkage disequilibrium. It can be seen as a parsimonious one‐parameter model that approximates the underlying genetic details well when a large number of loci are involved. Here, the performance of this model is compared to several more realistic explicit multilocus models, with either two, several or a large number of alleles per locus with unequal effect sizes. Predictions for the deviation of the population mean from the optimum are highly similar across the different models, so that the non‐Gaussian infinitesimal model forms a good approximation. It does, however, generally estimate a higher genetic variance than the multilocus models, with the difference decreasing with an increasing number of loci. The difference between multilocus models depends more strongly on the effective number of loci, accounting for relative contributions of loci to the variance, than on the number of alleles per locus.


Managers of organic food stores – as regarding the influence on health – see reliable origin to be the most important criterion during their product selecting decision making process. In the case of traditional foods they find additive artificial materials and GMOs significant among health risks, in the case of organic foods they think that significant problems arise from the shortness of the "best before†period. Dangers coming from the market orientation are judged to be more serious in the case of traditional foods than in the case of organic foods. It is in connection with the mentality with that during their product selecting decision making they emphasize factors connected to safety (eg.: reliable origin) more than market considerations (eg.: fast circulation or it is included in the choice of the competitors). Healthy foods are expected to have a reliable origin, too. In connection with the reliable origin of the products I could throw light on the contradiction that they regard the reliability of producers and sellers important, at the same time the place of origin has little influence on how safe they regard a particular product. 50% of the shopmanagers looking for products with a reliable origin judge Hungarian foods to be safe, 19% of them judge import, 34% of them judge regional products to be safe. Based on these results I find it needed to make a research that gives the possibility to examine the profiles of differentiated products based on their places of origin, in respect of thier influence on health and their risk factors. In the case of imported products it would be crucial to make difference between products coming from more and coming from less developed countries than our country. In the case of organic foods it is especially reasonable because the major part of their choice is products from abroad, that come from West-Europe (mostly from Germany and Austria), but more and more cheaper eastern organic foods appear in their portfolio (eg.: Romanian). During checking the hypothesis it could be seen that the risks of food safety were sensed in the whole process of production by shop managers. But with their behaviour to reduce risk factors they want to filter the factors of inner ingredients (eg.: artificial additives, GMOs) that directly endanger health, and they do not pay attention to indirect sources of danger (eg.: place of origin). For this reason I think it is needed to analyze the supply chain of organic foods getting into the market from the point of view of safety, so that not only risks coming from inner ingredients are supported. This would provide a starting point for the managers of organic food stores to minimalize the whole circle of risk factors.


Secured communication over the Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is one of the prime concerns nowadays as the wireless communication medium suffers under a wide range of networks. For establishing secured communication over WSN, literature has suggested the key level management protocol, where each transmission is established based on the availability of secured key. This work develops a key management protocol, namely Multi stage key management (MSKM) protocol, for the secured communication over the clustered WSN. The entire protocol is implemented in three stages, such as pre-deployment, key generation, and key authentication and verification. In the first stage, the nodes are provided with the identity, and then, the second stage uses the homomorphic encryption model, for generating the necessary key to the communication. Finally, a mathematical model is developed in this work with several factors, such as a hashing function, homomorphic encryption, dynamic passwords, profile sequence, random number, and EX-OR functions. The proposed MSKM protocol establishes the secured communication over the WSN by authenticating the entities. The entire work is compared with several states of art techniques and evaluated based on several metrics. The proposed MSKM protocol achieved values of 0.122 kb, 0.929, 2.332 kb, and 14.586 joules for the communication overhead, detection accuracy, key memory storage, and energy, respectively.


Abstract An inclusion of corundum (ruby) was found in a clinopyroxene xenocryst in alkali basalt from the late-Cenozoic Chanthaburi-Trat volcanics of eastern Thailand. The clinopyroxene is fairly sodic, highly aluminous and magnesian (0.12-0.14 Na, 0.31-0.33 AlIV and 0.36-0.40 AlVI per 6(O), and Mg/(Mg+Fe2+) > 0.9)) and is chemically similar to clinopyroxene inclusions in rubies from nearby alluvial gem deposits, suggesting a common origin for the two types of occurrence. Sapphirine (Mg/(Mg+Fe2+) = 0.91-0.94) and garnet (py56-67alm11-18grs18-23) also occur as inclusions in alluvial rubies. Thermodynamic calculation of the equilibrium 2 di + 2 crn = 2 cats + en constrains the temperatures of clinopyroxene + corundum crystallization to between 800 and 1150 ± 100°C. Use of other equilibria as stability limits places the pressures of crystallization between 10 and 25 kbar, implying depths of between 35 and 88 km. The most Fe-rich clinopyroxene crystallized at a pressure in the lower part of the range. The pyropic garnet inclusions in corundum crystallized at pressures of >18 kbar (i.e. at depths > ~63 km). The xenocrystic clinopyroxene could have coexisted in equilibrium with garnet of similar composition to the observed inclusions at the deduced temperatures of crystallization. The rubies probably crystallized in rocks of mafic composition, i.e. garnet-clinopyroxenites or garnet-pyriclasites, within the upper mantle.


Modern civil engineering structures exposed to human-induced dynamic loading due to walking, such as footbridges and long-span floors, are becoming increasingly slender and therefore more prone to vibrations generated by people. As a consequence, the vibration serviceability of these structures is becoming their governing design criterion. Currently, the design procedures for the vibration serviceability check used in practice are mainly of a deterministic nature. This means that the walking force is modelled via a unique set of parameters, such as walking frequency, step length and force amplitude assumed to be representative for all pedestrians. Therefore, the natural inter-subject variability that exists in these parameters generated by different people is neglected. Moreover, these parameters vary with each step even in the force time history of a single person (intra-subject variability). This implies that the walking force is a narrow-band random process rather than a deterministic force. As a result of these shortcomings, current design procedures based on deterministic forces do not predict reliably the vibration responses to single person walking across as-built slender structures. To improve design procedures, it is necessary to take into account the both inter- and intrasubject variabilities in the walking force. This implies that a probability-based approach, whereby the probability of occurrence of various walking parameters can be taken into account, might be more appropriate to model the walking excitation. In this thesis, a probability-based framework for a vibration serviceability check due to a single person walking is developed. For this, the probability density functions for walking frequencies, step lengths, magnitude of walking force and imperfections in human walking are proposed. They are used as building blocks to develop a design procedure that can estimate the probability of occurrence of a certain level of vibration response. Based on this result, a probability that the vibration response will not exceed certain predefined limiting values can be found. Moreover, a methodology for finding a reasonable limiting vibration level, based on the assumption that some human-structure dynamic interaction takes place when walking across perceptibly moving bridge, is suggested. A provisional value of 0.35 m/s2 is identified for two footbridges investigated. The probability-based design procedure developed in this thesis can be used for vibration serviceability check of footbridges responding in one or more vibration modes to excitation induced by a single walker. The method has potential to be used for vibration serviceability check of other slender structures


SUMMARY: A new mesophilic species of the genus Bacillus was isolated from soil. Within the genus it most nearly resembles B. circulans but is clearly distinct in that it produces no motile colonies and no gas from glucose in the presence of an inorganic nitrogen source, hydrolyses casein, liquefies inspissated serum and gives a restricted egg-yolk reaction. It also differs from all other Bacillus spp. tested in that its growth is stimulated by 4% NaCl, and that pantothenic acid satisfies a nutritional requirement. The name Bacillus pantothenticus is proposed.


OF THESIS NANOCONTROLLER PROGRAM OPTIMIZATION USING ITE DAGS Kentucky Architecture nanocontrollers employ a bit-serial SIMD-parallel hardware design to execute MIMD control programs. A MIMD program is transformed into equivalent SIMD code by a process called Meta-State Conversion (MSC), which makes heavy use of enable masking to distinguish which code should be executed by each processing element. Both the bit-serial operations and the enable masking imposed on them are expressed in terms of if-then-else (ITE) operations implemented by a 1-of-2 multiplexor, greatly simplifying the hardware. However, it takes a lot of ITEs to implement even a small program fragment. Traditionally, bit-serial SIMD machines had been programmed by expanding a fixed bitserial pattern for each word-level operation. Instead, nanocontrollers can make use of the fact that ITEs are equivalent to the operations in Binary Decision Diagrams (BDDs), and can apply BDD analysis to optimize the ITEs. This thesis proposes and experimentally evaluates a number of techniques for minimizing the complexity of the BDDs, primarily by manipulating normalization ordering constraints. The best method found is a new approach in which a simple set of optimization transformations is followed by normalization using an ordering determined by a Genetic Algorithm (GA).


We present detailed calculations of the magnetic ground state properties of Cs$_2$CuCl$_4$ in an applied magnetic field, and compare our results with recent experiments. The material is described by a spin Hamiltonian, determined with precision in high field measurements, in which the main interaction is antiferromagnetic Heisenberg exchange between neighboring spins on an anisotropic triangular lattice. An additional, weak Dzyaloshinkii-Moriya interaction introduces easy-plane anisotropy, so that behavior is different for transverse and longitudinal field directions. We determine the phase diagram as a function of field strength for both field directions at zero temperature, using a classical approximation as a first step. Building on this, we calculate the effect of quantum fluctuations on the ordering wavevector and components of the ordered moments, using both linear spinwave theory and a mapping to a Bose gas which gives exact results when the magnetization is almost saturated. Many aspects of the experimental data are well accounted for by this approach.


In 2013, the Irish Government published its National Disability Strategy Implementation Plan 2013-2015. As part of this strategy, a number of goals were set around participation, including job access for people with disabilities. This specific objective recommended a number of actions, including the commitment to publish a comprehensive employment strategy (CES) for people with disabilities. This strategy, the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities, was published in 2015 for the period 2015-2024. The objective of this strategy, which is cross-governmental, is to support people with disabilities in accessing the labour market. Building on existing actions in the CES, the National Disability Authority (NDA) commissioned the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) to undertake quantitative research into the workplace skills and abilities of persons with disabilities. To undertake this research, a number of nationally representative data sources were utilised to characterise the skills/educational endowments and gaps among persons with disabilities compared to those without. Specifically, data from the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC), the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), the Census of Population, and the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) were examined. Where the data permitted, we differentiated those with a disability by type, everyday difficulties (e.g. difficulty dressing), and/or severity level. We also examined the employment characteristics of people with disabilities compared to persons without, and investigated the impact of having a disability on an individual's employment prospects. What follows is a summary of the principal findings from this research, including some discussion on future directions.


This thesis is about social class and economic inequality, using the Goldthorpe class schema. It tests theories claiming that social class is increasingly irrelevant to inequality and people's life-chances with data on incomes and material living standards from the British Household Panel Survey. It covers the period over which the survey ran, i.e. 1991-2008. During this time many prominent social theories dismissed class analyses while others sought to retain the class concept but dismissed its economic foundations, seeking to ground it in culture instead.
 Economic inequality has not figured highly on the agenda of class analysts, at least not those working with the Goldthorpe class schema. There is a substantial body of work on mobility, voting behaviour, income poverty and material deprivation, but inequality in a broader sense has for the most part been neglected. This thesis is a step towards rectifying this situation. Thus it provides new information about within-career social mobility as well as income inequality within and between classes, on whether income mobility reduces class inequalities over time, and cast light on class inequalities in material living standards.
 The findings suggest that class is far from irrelevant to economic inequality. Class differences in incomes are persistent, between class inequalities contribute more to inequality overall than within-class inequalities, and while income mobility does reduce class inequalities over time it is not to the extent that supports the hypothesis that class is irrelevant to people's economic fortunes.


A greenhouse experiment was conducted over two growing seasons to study the physical and mechanical properties of a recycled multilayer plastic cover and its effect on the production of greenhouse-grown tomatoes. Two experimental greenhouses were constructed, one covered with recycled multilayer film and the other with conventional virgin monolayer film. The air temperature under both covers was similar; the soil temperature in the recycled multilayer house was a few degrees lower in the afternoon hours to midnight than in the virgin monolayer house. The recycled multilayer film retained its strength and elasticity over a useful service life of 7 months (one growing season), after which severe degradation occurred as manifested by a 50% loss of elongation at break. During the useful lifetime of the film, haziness, light scattering, and light transmission of the recycled film was similar to the conventional film. The thermal analysis of the recycled film revealed a low stability against thermo-oxidative degradation and the infrared analysis indicated the presence of a measurable amount of degradation products, mainly carbonyl groups, in the recycled film in comparison with conventional film. During the useful lifetime of recycled film, yield compo-


Introduction: The media is an important source of health-related information for patients, general public, policymakers and health professionals and has a large influence on their knowledge and opinions. No studies so far have explored the content, nature and quality of health journalism in Bangladesh. Objectives: To i) explore the nature and quality of media coverage of health stories in Bangladeshi newspapers, ii) understand the perceptions of reporters about medical- and health journalism, including the perceived barriers and facilitators, and iii) identify factors influencing health reporting. Methods: In a mixed-method pilot study, during a five-month period, all medical and healthcare related news articles published in three leading Bangladeshi daily newspapers (N=461), were content analyzed, and journalists were asked in a questionnaire about their knowledge and medical skills. Results: Only 44% of the articles reported in a positive tone on health services aspects, while 27.1% were related to malpractice or treatment errors. Many articles contained questionable medical information (49.9%), mostly regarding unregistered clinicians (67.5%), often referred to as 'doctor'. Treatment errors by unregistered clinicians were reported seven times more often than those by registered physicians (p<0.001). A survey was completed by 23 selected medical- or health journalists (77% response); most of them (78.3%) had no previous training in health journalism and in only 26.1% this was offered by their media house. Journalists self-reported their own insufficient understanding of medical terminology (73.9%), ethics (95.7%) and relevant laws (91.3%). Conclusion: This study is an eye opener about shortage of medical knowledge among health journalists in a developing country. This shortage may often result in misinformation regarding medical (mal)practice, health laws and ethics. There is ample room for improvement of the quality of health news reporting and health journalism skills in Bangladesh. N=287


Objectives: To assess the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and identify the determinants of low HRQOL among Saudi caregivers of children with anxiety disorders. Methods: This study was conducted during October 2019 till January 2020, at four pediatric psychiatry clinics in Aseer Region. It included 220 Saudi caregivers of children with anxiety disorders. A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. It comprised the Physical Component Summary (PCS-12) and the Mental Component Summary (MCS-12) scores. Results: There were significantly low PCS-12 and MCS-12 scores among female and illiterate caregivers. PCS-12 and MCS-12 mean scores were significantly lower among caregivers of female children, those with several siblings and those with an illness duration >6 years. Predictors for a low PCS-12 score among caregivers included their educational level and a long duration of the child's illness, while those for a low MCS-12 score included the child's gender, their number of siblings, and the duration of their illness. Conclusion: The HRQOL of caregivers of children with anxiety disorders is compromised. Its determinants include mothers, illiterate people, caregivers of female children, caregivers of children with several siblings, and caregivers of children with a long duration of illness. Predictors for low PCS-12 scores among caregivers were their educational level and duration of child's illness, while predictors for low MCS-12 scores were female gender, large number of siblings, and long duration of anxiety disorders.


While the people of pre-colonial and colonial societies in Africa often lived in scattered, sparse settlements, the people of the Northern Tswana kingdoms (present-day Botswana) were found in large towns with thousands of residents. This is puzzling in view of their location on the edge of the Kalahari, where such concentrations would normally be least expected. Moreover, while pastoralism is generally considered antithetical to the formation of densely settled populations, cattle have featured centrally in these kingdoms' political economy. Breaking away from ecological determinism, the author argues that the role played by cattle in these societies was mediated through social and political pro- cesses that favor both state formation and large, compact settlements. The article is particularly concerned with the centripetal forces vested in the cultural and symbolic wealth of Tswana royal towns.


fiver engineering works and other man-induced changes may adversely affect natural character of the river system. In many cases they have caused major morphological and ecological instability problems which can seriously impair the conservation and amenity value of the riverine environment. The results of two projects focused at the restoration of the Morava wetland ecosystem are presented in this paper. Impact of the river regulation is analysed on the basis of defined river processes and ecology evaluation. Monitoring of biotic and abiotic changes provided background information for evaluation of efficiency of the former meander's restoration. As implemented restoration measures were not so effective as it was expected some alternatives of improvements are discussed with regard to the results of field observations, numerical and physical modeling. An optimal solution to protect the oxbow system against successive degradation and restore some extinct river functions is presented.


Males are around three times more likely to possess an autism diagnosis than females. For years this was explained by accounts that considered the male gender more compatible with the autistic phenotype. However, new research suggests that a lack of understanding and recognition of the female autistic phenotype, and a predisposition to associate males with autistic traits, could lead to structural inequalities that hinder the identification of autistic females. To explore how autism and gender are more widely perceived, the present study tested implicit and explicit associations between autism and binary gender using the Implicit Association Test (IAT) and the Autism Quotient (AQ) presented alongside a male or female vignette. A significant association was found on the IAT, identifying an implicit bias towards males and autistic traits. The vignette AQ pairing also revealed some specific items perceived as explicitly male traits, while only reverse-scored items were perceived as female. These findings suggest that current perceptions and even metrics of autism are skewed towards males, which may hinder the identification and understanding of the female autistic phenotype.


Thymocyte function and lipid peroxidation in cell membranes of the cerebral cortex and the myocardium of 72 rats were examined to study the stress-limiting mechanism of 10 and 1000 Hz impulse current effect. The additional measurements were as follows: rat and thymus weight, their proportional relations, thymocyte nuclear population, 11--OCS, thyroid hormones (T3, T4), plasma testosterone and insulin, myocardial and cerebral cortical protein. The animals were immobilized for 6 days in individual tight cages where they had food and water. Antioxidant and antistress effects of impulse currents were revealed at definite regimens of their application: 10 Hz stress limiting action was more potent when applied to stressed animals, but 1000 Hz current proved to be an effective prophylactic procedure.