We study a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model where agents are concerned about model uncertainty regarding climate change. An externality from greenhouse gas emissions adversely affects the economy's capital stock. We assume that the mapping from climate change to damages is subject to uncertainty, and we adapt and use techniques from robust control theory in order to study effi ciency and optimal policy. We obtain a sharp analytical solution for the implied environmental externality, and we characterize dynamic optimal taxation. A small increase in the concern about model uncertainty can cause a significant drop in optimal energy extraction. The optimal tax which restores the social optimal allocation is Pigouvian. Under more general assumptions, we develop a recursive method and solve the model computationally. We find that the introduction of uncertainty matters qualitatively and quantitatively. We study optimal output growth in the presence and in the absence of concerns about uncertainty and find that these can lead to substantially different conclusions. ∗We thank participants at the 2013 Midwest Macro Conference and at the Econometric Society Summer 2013 meetings for comments and suggestions. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Federal Reserve System.


This essay remembers two great South African lawyers, Nelson Mandela, who became post-apartheid South Africa's first President, and Arthur Chaskalson, the man whom Mandela chose to head the country's new Constitutional Court. Both men's lives, remarkable in themselves, also help us to understand what it means to be a "man of the law." Mandela was a revolutionary and a lawbreaker, but he was also a lawyer who was never disbarred despite being imprisoned for almost three decades – and in fact his life turns out to exemplify a faith in law: not a naive notion that apartheid law was just, but a deep commitment to the importance and value of just law. Arthur Chaskalson, for his part, was a leader of the South African bar who used South African law against itself in the struggle against apartheid. He too believed in law, but again not in a naive way: he did not imagine that law would end apartheid, but he knew that South African law still contained elements of justice, and he used those elements to contribute to apartheid's dissolution and to help build the legal order of the new South Africa. Both Mandela and Chaskalson were lawyer-statesmen, to use Anthony Kronman's phrase, but their lives teach us that lawyer-statesmen are not always people who exchange moral certainty for wisdom and forbearance, as Kronman's account seems to suggest. Different times call for different kinds of statesmen and stateswomen, and Nelson Mandela and Arthur Chaskalson brought to their lifelong struggle against searing injustice deep fidelity to law, but also political passion and radical conviction.


There is more and more empirical evidence to show that highly skilled people are an important determinant of economic growth. Consequently, policy-makers are eager to keep their graduates in the region or attract graduates from elsewhere. It is also well known that people with a higher level of education exhibit high rates of spatial mobility. Much less is known about mobility patterns according to discipline and academic grade. Do the best people stay or leave, and does this vary according to discipline and type of region? This paper investigates the relationship between ability, field of study and spatial mobility using a micro-dataset on Dutch university and college graduates. The findings indicate that there are substantial net flows mainly towards the economic centre of the Netherlands, but that there are also flows between peripheral regions and to other countries. The paper finds that university graduates are more spatially mobile than vocational college level graduates and that when one looks at spatial behaviour according to discipline, there are also striking differences between graduates. This, however, does not necessarily mean that peripheral regions also lose their best graduates. For several disciplines, employers in the peripheral areas are able to retain the graduates with the highest grades, contrary to what the standard human capital framework predicts. However, the study finds that if graduates leave the region, those with the highest grades are more likely to move abroad.


Peripheral T cell lymphomas (PTCLs) are uncommon and less well studied. Most PTCLs present as systemic disease and often involve bone marrow. Bone marrow involvement by PTCLs may damage the normal hematopoiesis and bring more challenge to clinical management of these patients. This study focuses on the clinical pathological features and clinical outcomes in 13 patients with nodal peripheral T cell lymphoma and subsequent bone marrow biopsy positive for the same lymphoma. Eight patients were diagnosed of peripheral T cell lymphoma - not otherwise specified (PTCL-NOS), 3 angioimmunoblastic T cell lymphoma (AITL), 1 anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), and 1 T cell lymphoma of gamma-delta origin (TCL-gamma/delta). All patients had peripheral blood abnormalities: 11 anemia, 7 thrombocytopenia, 5 neutropenia, and 2 lymphocytosis. Of interest, the CD4/CD8 phenotype of PTCL was shown correlating with abnormal peripheral blood findings: CD4+/CD8- phenotype was more often associated with anemia and thrombocytopenia, and CD4-/CD8+ phenotype was associated with lymphocytosis. Chemotherapy remains the choice of first line treatment for these patients with or without stem cell transplantation. 12 patients had treatment and follow up data available for review, 5 were in remission or free of disease during the follow up period; 5 patients were alive or in hospice with persistent disease and 2 died of disease due to multiple complications. The outcome of PTCL treated with the standard chemotherapy has been less favorable compared with B cell lymphomas. Majority of the patients with nodal PTCL have bone marrow involvement at the time of initial diagnosis, which has significant impact on normal hematopoiesis and may be a significant factor in the overall unfavorable prognosis for these patients. Further investigation with better knowledge about this disease will be helpful in the development of more efficient therapy and improve the disease free survival and life quality for these patients.


We have examined the feasibility of determining coronary collateral blood flow in an open-chest dog by a "load line" type of analysis as is often employed to analyze transistors and vacuum tubes. The load line equation states that collateral flow is given by the quantity: [Formula: see text] where PcP is peripheral coronary pressure, AOP is aortic pressure, Qret is retrograde flow, and K is a constant. The validity of this equation was critically tested in a series of dog experiments in which the collateral vessels were found to approximate a linear resistance, the source pressure for the collaterals (K in the equation) was found to be 0.8 of aortic pressure, and the retrograde flow with zero back pressure was found to account for all of the collateral flow. Finally, we found that estimates from the equation correlated well with direct microsphere measurements of collateral flow. All of these findings support the use of the proposed technique which determines collateral flow by three easily measured laboratory parameters.


This study aims to analyze how many the economic factors that influence the development of Indonesia's export volume. Variables used in this research are investments (X1), U.S. Dollar Exchange Rate (X2), Export Price Index (X3) and Gross Domestic Product (X4), using secondary data during the period of 15 years ie from year 1993 to 2007. Secondary data obtained from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) in East Java. From the results obtained by testing the hypothesis that the variables X1, X2, X3, and X4 has a significant (real) on the dependent variable is Volume Exports in Indonesia, this is indicated by the test F test = 8.723 greater than Ftable = 3.48. The analysis tool used is multiple linear regression using secondary data for 15 years. Keywords : Investment, Exchange Rate, Export Price Index, GDP


Background Opioid analgesics are effective for postsurgical pain but are associated with opioid-related adverse events, creating a significant clinical and economic burden. Gastrointestinal surgery patients are at high risk for opioid-related adverse events. We conducted a study to assess the impact of an opioid-sparing multimodal analgesia regimen with liposome bupivacaine, compared with the standard of care (intravenous [IV] opioid-based, patient-controlled analgesia [PCA]) on postsurgical opioid use and health economic outcomes in patients undergoing ileostomy reversal. Methods In this open-label, multicenter study, sequential cohorts of patients undergoing ileostomy reversal received IV opioid PCA (first cohort); or multimodal analgesia including a single intraoperative administration of liposome bupivacaine (second cohort). Rescue analgesia was available to all patients. Primary outcome measures were postsurgical opioid use, hospital length of stay, and hospitalization costs. Incidence of opioid-related adverse events was also assessed. Results Twenty-seven patients were enrolled, underwent the planned surgery, and did not meet any intraoperative exclusion criteria; 16 received liposome bupivacaine-based multimodal analgesia and eleven received the standard IV opioid PCA regimen. The multimodal regimen was associated with significant reductions in opioid use compared with the IV opioid PCA regimen (mean, 20 mg versus 112 mg; median, 6 mg versus 48 mg, respectively; P < 0.01), postsurgical length of stay (median, 3.0 days versus 5.1 days, respectively; P < 0.001), and hospitalization costs (geometric mean, $6482 versus $9282, respectively; P = 0.01). Conclusion A liposome bupivacaine-based multimodal analgesic regimen resulted in statistically significant and clinically meaningful reductions in opioid consumption, shorter length of stay, and lower inpatient costs than an IV opioid-based analgesic regimen.


Problem statement: Geological studies are requiring standard methods and procedures to acquire precisely information. However, traditional methods might be difficult to use due to highly earth complex topography. Regarding the previous prospective, the advantage of satellite remote sensing in its application to geology is the wide coverage over the area of interest, where much accurate and useful information such as structural patterns and spectral features can be extracted from the imagery. Yet, abundance of geological features are not be fully understood. Lineaments are considered the bulk geological features which are still unclear in spite of they are useful for geological analysis in oil exploration. In this sense, the lineament extraction is very important for the application of remote sensing to geology. However the real meaning of lineament is still vague. Lineaments should be discriminated from other line features that are not due to geological structures. In this context, the lineament extraction should be carefully interpreted by geologists. Recent research was presented the mapping of geological features in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) using multispectral remotely sensed data. Approach: In doing so, image enhancement contrast, stretching and linear enhancement was performed to acquire an excellent visualization. Further, automatic detection algorithm of Canny was performed to extract linear features in multispectral remote sensing data, lineaments and fractures. Results: Uncertainties DEM model was performed by using fuzzy B-spline algorithm to map spatial lineament variations in a Three Dimensional (3D) visualization. Conclusion: In conclusion, an excellent tool for 3D geological features mapping can be established by integration of the canny algorithm with DEM which was generated by using fuzzy B-spline.


To understand the reasons for population change we need to understand the mechanisms through which it occurs. Throughout western Europe there have been declines in farmland birds. These declines have been paralleled by major changes in agricultural management. Which have resulted in major changes in habitat structure. This paper describes the habitat selection at two scales (within and between fields) of a number of seed-eating farmland birds. Habitat preferences for most species were related to the density of seeds present. Which differed markedly between habitats. Seed density declined with distance from hedgerow in cultivated fields but not stubble fields. Yellow hammers were restricted to foraging close to hedgerows, whilst skylarks foraged in the centre of fields, but moved closer towards the edges as the winter progressed and seed densities declined. This work has clear consequences for agricultural management and the conservation of declining bird populations.


How These lie at the of Arellano's Magical Realism and the History of the in , which examines expressions of wonder in and in magical realism. These two areas of literary studies but Arellano rejuvenates the field by canonical through the critical lens of affect studies. magical realism. Arellano's on the variability of the the that wonder" (xiv). realist


Majority of ovarian cancers are diagnosed at advanced stages with intra-peritoneal spread as the most common mode of disease metastasis. The formation of cancer spheroids is essential for the collective migration process, where shed tumour cells from the primary tumour form aggregates rather than disseminating as individual cells and seed within the peritoneal cavity. These cancer spheroids consist of leader cells (LC) and follower cells (FC), with the LC subset as key drivers of cellular movement and invasion. LCs have stem cell-like properties and are highly chemo-resistant with a specific survival addiction to several cell signalling pathways, such as the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. We explore in this book chapter, the evidence supporting the role of LC in OC metastasis and the suppression of LC as an attractive therapeutic option for the treatment of advanced OC.


This investigation into plant and insect interactions was carried out at a riparian grassland site in Shincliffe, Durham and commenced during the month of May and ended in early July. Vegetation surveys were carried out throughout the growing season to establish the species composition, plant and flower density, dominant plant species and various plant characteristics of the community as a whole. The plant found most frequently in flower during May was Stellaria holostea, whilst in June the plants most frequently in flower included S. holostea, Cruciata laevipes and Aegopodium podagraria. In July A. podagraria was once more the most frequently flowering plant. There was also a progressive increase in plant diversity, morphology and flower colour throughout the study period. Observation periods throughout the investigation enabled the overall insect and pollinator assemblage of the community to be identified. Insect abundance was found to be diumally heterogeneous throughout the study period. The only 'within' differences in ranked activity were identified for Diptera in June and 'others' in July. There were also significant differences in the absolute diurnal activity within the orders of Diptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera and 'others'. There were also quite striking and significant seasonal variations in the insect assemblage. Pollinator abundance was also found to be diurnally heterogeneous in June and July, whilst being homogeneous throughout May. In addition the dominant pollinators varied seasonally. There were no significant 'within' pollinator differences in ranked or absolute activity during any of the months. During all three months plant - pollinator interactions were looked at in some detail. Significant relationships were found to exist between the ranked number of flowers and the ranked number of pollinators per quadrat. In May there were also significant relationships between the ranked number of Diptera, Coleoptera and flowers per quadrat. In June there was a significant correlation between the ranked number of Hymenoptera and flowers per quadrat. There were no such findings for the month of July. Finally, during May there was a significant correlation between the ranked number of flowering stems and the ranked number of pollinator visits per quadrat. The preference and avoidance of certain plant characteristics such as colour and flower morphology were identified for some groups of pollinators. However, although some of these interactions were analysed, the precise nature of pollinator behaviour was difficult to prove. A closer look at individual plant species and their associated pollinator assemblages enabled generalisations to be made, but these associations were not apparent when the community was studied as a whole.


This guide provides easy access to information to students of Business Management. As well as details about library resources, it contains links to external sources and information about how to complete assignments and assessments.


A major driver for the cost of a SAR satellite is the size of the antenna, which largely determines the dimensions of the payload, and, hence, indirectly of the whole satellite. Apart from influencing the sensitivity of the SAR, the dimensions of the SAR antenna also determine the width of the imaged swath and the strength of ambiguous responses. Ambiguities appear as ghosts or additional noise in the image. Techniques are discussed for suppress-ing ambiguities during processing, which are demonstrated to be viable for point targets. Targets with scattering characteristics which are stable over long periods of time can be used with interferometric SAR (InSAR) techniques to monitor small displacements. As these so-called permanent scatterers have point target characteristics and a relatively high RCS, a SAR instrument with a small antenna can be considered. It has been demonstrated that an interferometric SAR system measuring the long-term motion of permanent scatterers placed in geologically instable regions can serve a range of important and lucrative applications.


Apart from two very low power plants, the Rance tidal plant is still, fifteen years after its commissioning, the only operational tidal power station in the World. Despite certain teething problems - easily explained in the case of such an original development which necessitated the successive shutdown of all the sets to overhaul the generators the concrete and steel structures have proven fully able to resist the onslaught of the marine environment and output is at the level originally envisaged, making due allowance for actual operating conditions. The year 1981 proves this in particular : the net effective output of 500 GWh (deducting the consumption of pumping and auxiliaries) should be increased by approximately 40 GWh to be compared with the scheduled level of output (exceptional outage of sets to overhaul generators, operating conditions making output advantageous at certain hours of the day, etc.). From a more general point of view, it is recalled that although the energy dispersed naturally by tide currents in the oceans is of the same order of magnitude as the energy dispersed by rivers (approximately one-third), it is impossible from this comparison to make an estimate of the share of this energy which could be harnessed. The main tidal sites known are listed in Table I, those which have been recently under study are in Table II, and those in operation or under construction in Table III. The descriptive parameters used are in particular : - the average inter-annual tide range A ; - the area of basin S (in km2) at a level exceeding the average sea level by one-fourth of the average tidal range ; - the quantity 1/2 SA 2 then gives the order of magnitude of the annual production potential of the site. Although none of the large tidal plants listed are presently under construction, five recent events of significance for tidal energy must be mentioned : 1) The completion in 1981 of the report on the Severn development by the Committee created for this purpose by the British Government. 2) The order placed for an experimental set with a rim generator to be installed in an existing dyke on the Annapolis site in Fundy Bay (Canada). 3) The completion at end 1981 of the Garolim development project in Korea by the SOGREAH-LCHF group with EDF support. 4) The initiation of feasibility studies lor the Kutch project in India. 5) Resumption of the study on the possibility of harnessing tidal energy on the Channel coast by EDF in 1980. The main characteristics of these developments are given in Tables II and III.


Stock market volatility has its existence from the long time but its complete eradication is not possible, the only thing which can be done is just to know its behavior and pattern that how it behaves. The present study is aimed to understand the nature and different patterns of volatility in Indian equity market. The daily observations comprising of closing data of SENSEX of Bombay Stock Exchange and S&P CNX Nifty of National Stock Exchange for the period of 10 years i.e. from January 2003 to December 2012 is used for analysis. The data was collected from the websites www.bseindia.com and www.nseindia.com. The present study is attempted to examine the volatility of returns in Indian stock market. GARCH models were used to see the volatility of Indian equity market. It was found that there was spillover of information in the Indian stock market and with the significant coefficient of dummy in improved model. It was concluded that negative shocks do have greater impact on conditional volatility compared to positive shocks of the same magnitude in the Indian stock market.


In this study, we present a framework for rapid prototyping of finite element (FE) theory for computer implementations. For this purpose, we propose an object-oriented (OO) application programming interface in the form of a domain-specific modeling language (DSML). In contrast to the traditional OO approach, the proposed framework deliberately avoids the use of subclassing for concrete implementations of node and element classes; it uses external objects, namely descriptors, instead. The descriptive design of the DSML provides developers with generic programming support for the construction and solution of discretization schemes, in the context of partial differential equations, in a self-explanatory syntax. We take advantage of Python's descriptor protocol to make descriptors behave like natural dependencies of their owner class. We propose several descriptors to account for both theoretical and implementationspecific aspects of FE programming. By using concrete examples, we demonstrate that enhancing these descriptors with both symbolic and numerical computational utilities results in a concise and customizable code base for analysis and pre/postprocessing purposes. We select Python as the base programming language because of its support for essential programming features such as customizable classes, dynamic code, arbitrary arguments, method decoration, and descriptor protocol.


This paper engages with a changing politics of male circumcision. It suggests that various shifts which have occurred in how the issue is debated challenge legal constructions of the practice as a private familial issue. Although circumcision rates have declined in those Western nations which have traditionally practised it, the procedure is now being promoted as a medicalised response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa. Such initiatives propose a new biomedical rationale for the practice and have been difficult to confine to the African context or to adult bodies, prompting a resurgence of enthusiasm for neonatal male circumcision on the part of professional bodies in the USA and elsewhere. Although we have reservations about such public health policies, which we suggest downplay risks inherent in the procedure both for the individual and for the advancement of public health, we argue that such strategies have the potential to move debates about circumcision beyond the parameters of traditional 'medical law', with its focus on the doctor–patient nexus and the issue of who can validly consent to medical procedures. We suggest that, as with female genital cutting, male circumcision ought to be debated within a paradigm of social justice which gives adequate weighting to the interests of all affected parties (including women whose health may actually be compromised by the procedure) and which renders visible the socio-economic dimensions of the issue. In line with a social justice approach, we argue that public health initiatives must comply with international ethico-legal standards and be attentive to the emergence of an international human right to health. The shift in analytical frame that we propose has the potential not only to make us re-think our approach to the ethics and legality of male circumcision by challenging its construction as a familial decision but also to impact on the need for a broader conceptualisation of health law as rooted in social justice.


Objectives This study aimed to assess physician comfort, knowledge, and implementation barriers regarding the use of intranasal fentanyl (INF) for pain management in patients with long-bone fractures in a pediatric emergency department (ED) with an INF pain pathway. Methods A retrospective chart review was conducted of patients, 3 to 21 years old, in our ED with an International Classification of Diseases-9th Revision code for a long-bone fracture from September 1, 2013, to August 31, 2015. Patients were divided into 4 groups: (1) received INF on the pathway appropriately; (2) "missed opportunities" to receive INF, defined as either INF was ordered and then subsequently canceled (for pain ratings, ≥6/10), or INF was ordered, cancelled, and intravenous (IV) morphine given, or INF was not ordered and a peripheral IV line was placed to give IV morphine as first-line medication; (3) peripheral IV established upon ED arrival; (4) no pain medication required. Additionally, a survey regarding practice habits for pain management was completed to evaluate physician barriers to utilization of the pathway. Results A total of 1374 patients met the inclusion criteria. Missed opportunities were identified 41% of the time. Neither younger patient age nor more years of physician experience in the ED were associated with increased rates of missed opportunities. The survey (95% response rate) revealed greater comfort with and preference for IV morphine over INF. Conclusions The high rate of missed opportunities, despite the implementation of an INF pain pathway, indicates the need for further exploration of the barriers to utilization of the INF pain pathway.


In this article we examine how therapeutic culture disseminates into and affects teacher education in Norway. This is done through a close examination of knowledge practices revolving around the term psychosocial. Based on fieldwork data and drawing on Karin Knorr Cetina's concept of epistemic objects, we analyse how the psychosocial is practised, taught, and interpreted in a Norwegian primary and secondary teacher education institution. We identify three key epistemic characteristics of the psychosocial: ubiquity, emotional orientation, and self-centeredness. Due to its oscillation between compatibility and friction, the psychosocial is both nurturing and disruptive, intuitive, and demanding, meaningful and alienating. More broadly, the application of the psychosocial in teacher education can be understood in light of the interplay between intellectualisation and emotionalisation processes in modern societies. By providing insight into a previously unexplored area, the article contributes to new understandings of the changing cultural conditions of the teaching profession.


Circadian rhythms integrate many physiological pathways, helping organisms to align the timing of various internal processes to daily cycles in the external environment. Disrupted circadian rhythmicity is a prominent feature of modern society, and has been designated as a probable carcinogen. Here, we review multiple studies, in humans and animal models, that suggest a causal effect between circadian disruption and increased risk of cancer. We also discuss the complexity of this connection, which may depend on the cellular context. SIGNIFICANCE: Accumulating evidence points to an adverse effect of circadian disruption on cancer incidence and progression, indicating that time of day could influence the effectiveness of interventions targeting cancer prevention and management.


The computer performance has been improved tremendously since the development of the first allpurpose,
all electronic digital computer in 1946. However, engineers, scientists and researchers keep
making more efforts to further improve the computer performance to meet the demanding
requirements for many applications.
There are basically two ways to improve the computer performance in terms of computational speed.
One way is to use faster devices (VLSI chips). Although faster and faster VLSI components have
contributed a great deal on the improvement of computation speed, the breakthroughs in increasing
switching speed and circuit densities of VLSI devices will be diflicult and costly in future. The other
way is to use parallel processing architectures which employ multiple processors to perform a
computation task. When multiple processors working together, an appropriate architecture is very
important to achieve the maximum performance in a cost-effective manner. Systolic arrays are ideally
qualified for computationally intensive applications with inherent massive parallelism because they
capitalize on regular, modular, rhythmic, synchronous, concurrent processes that require intensive,
repetitive computation. This thesis can be divided into three parts. The first part is an introductory part containing Chap. I
and Chap. 2. The second part, composed of Chap. 3 and Chap. 4 concerns with the systolic design
methodology. The third part deals with the several systolic array design for different applications.....


ABSTRACT This study examined the associations of preschool children's executive function (EF) and learning behaviour (CLB) with their concurrent academic skills and the role of CLB as a mediator for the EF-academic skills link. One hundred seventy-nine children were assessed on EF and math and literacy skills. Parents and teachers completed a questionnaire that assessed CLB. We found that both EF and CLB were significantly associated with math and literacy skills. However, EF and CLB were not associated, and there was no support for the mediational model of EF on CLB. This finding suggests that EF and CLB may tap unique aspects of children's learning related skills and are directly and independently associated with children's concurrent math and literacy skills.


The book "The Bourgeois: Between History and Literature" written by Franco Moretti, the professor in the Humanities at Stanford University and the founder of the Center for the Study of the Novel and Literary Lab, is devoted to the history of the bourgeois as a social class of the modern Western society. The bourgeois, refracted through the prism of literature, is the subject of "The Bourgeois". Addressing to some pieces of the Western literature, the author tries to scrutinize reasons of the bourgeois culture's golden age and to reveal causes of its further fall. Moretti focuses not on real relationships between social groups but on legitimate cultural forms, which demonstrate peculiarities of the bourgeois and demarcate it from working and ruling classes. In addition, the author seeks an answer to the questions why the notion of bourgeois was being replaced with the concept of the middle class and why the bourgeois failed to resist political and cultural challenges of the modern Western society. The journal of Economic Sociology publishes "Introduction: Concepts and Contradictions" from "The Bourgeois". In the Introduction, Moretti formulates the problem of the study, defines key concepts and explains the applied methodology, demonstrating weaknesses and strengths of the formal analysis of literary prose for understanding the social history. In the Introduction, Moretti describes the book's structure and sheds lights on the dark corners, which require additional research.


Fire is one of the hazards that may affect urban areas with high density settlements. Thus, research on fire mitigation is important to be conducted. This paper examines the behavior and preparedness of occupants in high density settlements towards fire risks in urban area. The case study is located at Kelurahan Sukahaji, Kecamatan Babakan Ciparay, Bandung that has very high density settlement as well as prone to fire hazards. This study assess 232 respondents in the study areas on information related to demography, understanding about fire, behavior and preparedness. The respondents understanding on the types of fire sources are still low. Similarly, the behavior related to the activites using fire are still dangerous because some activities are conducted with other activities which make people less aware of the fire hazards. Nevertheless, their knowledge on how to extinguish fires are quite good. This paper recommends more trainings on knowledge of fire source and behavior to be conducted to occupants living in high density settlements in order to reduce fire disaster risk.


The Swedish government has set up the overall goal that no net emissions of greenhouse gases can occur after 2050. A sub-target has been developed for road transports which states that the use of fossil fuels must be reduced with 80% to 2030 in order to be completely abolished to 2050. A public inquiry mapping how this can be achieved was handed in to the government late in 2013. The use of alternative fuels for road transport, both biofuels and electricity, is expected to give the biggest contribution to the reduction of the use of fossil fuels. The inquiry sets up a number of goals for how much the use of alternative fuels must increase to 2030 in order to reach the overall goal and which instruments that are needed in order to do so.The aim of this thesis is to evaluate how these goals can be reached and what the most likely obstacles that may hinder the reaching of these goals may be. The thesis also evaluates the instruments that the inquiry proposes.The results show that the possibilities for reaching the different goals vary greatly. The goal for the use of electricity as a fuel may be reached for passenger cars but is considerably harder to reach for heavier vehicles since the electrification of these are not yet commercialized. The use of biofuels has better technical conditions for reaching the necessary level that the inquiry presents. This demands however the implementations of generous instruments since biofuels often are significantly more expensive than fossil fuels to produce. The inquiry presents a set of instruments that are well suited for increasing the use and production of biofuels but the conditions for implementing these instruments are limited.


Using data on annual individual labor income from three representative panel datasets (German SOEP, British BHPS, Australian HILDA) we investigate a) the selectivity of item non-response (INR) and b) the impact of imputation as a prominent post-survey means to cope with this type of measurement error on prototypical analyses (earnings inequality, mobility and wage regressions) in a cross-national setting. Given the considerable variation of INR across surveys as well as the varying degree of selectivity build into the missing process, there is substantive and methodological interest in an improved harmonization of (income) data production as well as of imputation strategies across surveys. All three panels make use of longitudinal information in their respective imputation procedures, however, there are marked differences in the implementation. Firstly, although the probability of INR is quantitatively similar across countries, our empirical investigation identifies cross-country differences with respect to the factors driving INR: survey-related aspects as well as indicators accounting for variability and complexity of labor income composition appear to be relevant. Secondly, longitudinal analyses yield a positive correlation of INR on labor income data over time and provide evidence of INR being a pre-dictor of subsequent unit-non-response, thus supporting the "cooperation continuum" hy-pothesis in all three panels. Thirdly, applying various mobility indicators there is a robust picture about earnings mobility being significantly understated using information from completely observed cases only. Finally, regression results for wage equations based on observed ("complete case analysis") vs. all cases and controlling for imputation status, indicate that individuals with imputed incomes, ceteris paribus, earn significantly above average in SOEP and HILDA, while this relationship is negative using BHPS data. However, once applying the very same imputation procedure used for HILDA and SOEP, namely the "row-and-column-imputation" approach suggested by Little & Su (1989), also to BHPS-data, this result is reversed, i.e., individuals in the BHPS whose income has been imputed earn above average as well. In our view, the reduction in cross-national variation resulting from sensitivity to the choice of imputation approaches underscores the importance of investing more in the improved cross-national harmonization of imputation techniques.


Processing large volumes of data has become increasingly important to businesses and government [218]. One of the popular tools used in processing large sets of data is MapReduce. As new MapReduce applications are developed to be deployed in untrusted environments, such as public clouds, or to process sensitive data or to be deployed across data centres, well understood security measures may be deployed, such as authentication and authorisation or encryption of messages passed between cluster nodes. However, there may be situations where authorised individuals cannot be trusted, such as "rogue" system administrators, or, in the cloud, where the MapReduce cluster nodes have been compromised. Where the input data is sensitive, such as medical data, we require a means to protect this data from exposure. Furthermore, we may need to protect the intermediate data and details of the computation from snoopers to prevent information leakage. To take full advantage of MapReduce cloud computing services, we require a means to process the data securely on such a platform. We designate such a computation, secure computation in the cloud (SCC). SCC should not expose input or output data to any other party, including the cloud service provider. Furthermore, the details of the computation should not allow any other party to deduce its inputs and outputs. Most importantly, we require the computations to be performed in practically reasonable time and space. The ability to perform MapReduce computations on encrypted data would offer a solution to these problems. However, this poses a significant problem in that many encryption schemes transform the original data in such way that meaningful computation on the encrypted data is impossible. Our work aims to provide a practical SSCC system (CryptMR) inspired by CryptDB [272]. Our solution (CryptMR) has detailed several novel cryptographic methods suitable for implementation in a secure computation in the cloud solution using MapReduce. We encrypt integer data using a novel somewhat homomorphic encryption scheme (SHE). This SHE can be made fully homomorphic. We also provide novel order-preserving (OPE) and searchable symmetric encryption (SSE) for the purposes of sorting and searching. Our OPE scheme is, to our knowledge, the first scheme to rely on a computationally hard primitive rather a security model. We have implemented all of these encryption schemes and devised experiments to test their suitability for large-scale distributed computing by integrating them into Hadoop MapReduce (MR) applications. In addition to the work on encryption schemes, we have provided a novel probabilistic method for verifying that mappers and reducers are correctly computing and reporting their results (see chapter 10). This work uses random sampling to minimise the probability that a cheating mapper or reducer can successfully report a false result. We evaluated our "proof-of-concept" implementation in a small scale cloud environment. Our results show that sampling 5 to 10% of intermediate or final data allows us to detect cheating with very strong probability.


In this paper, the semi-orthogonal compactly supported spline wavelets are used as basis functions for the efficient solution of the thin-wire electric field integral equation (EFIE) in frequency domain. The method of moments (MoM) is used via the Galerkin procedure. Conventional MoM directly applied to the EFIE, leads to dense matrix which often becomes computationally intractable when large-scale problems are approached. To overcome these difficulties, wavelets can be used as a basis set so obtaining the generation of a sparse matrix; this is due to the local supports and the vanishing moments properties of the wavelets. In the paper, this technique is applied to analyze electromagnetic transients in a lightning protection systems schematized as a thin-wire structure. The study is carried out in frequency domain; a discrete fast Fourier transform algorithm can be used to compute time profiles of the electromagnetic interesting quantities. The unknown longitudinal currents are expressed by using multiscale wavelet expansions. Thus, the thin-wire EFIE is converted into a matrix equation by the Galerkin method. Results for linear spline wavelets along with their comparison with conventional MoM that uses triangular basis functions and the point matching procedure are presented, for two case studies. Good agreement has been reached with a strong reduction of the computational complexity.


Bacteriophage biology should move beyond a model system to support human health Phage therapy is the use of bacteriophages—viruses that infect and replicate within a bacterium—to treat pathogenic bacteria. This approach had a short history in the premolecular era of Western medicine, but it died out before the mid-20th century mainly as a result of justly critical reports from the American Medical Association and the development of chemical antibiotics (1). Now, the global antibiotic resistance crisis and a new appreciation for the importance of the human microbiota have led to a resurgence of interest in phage therapy, not only in the classic sense of treating bacterial infections (2) but also for its potential role in modulating microbiota (3). A landmark 2015 meeting (4) on phage-based therapeutics hosted by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) included not only phage biologists but also participants from private companies, public and governmental research organizations, clinicians, and the federal regulatory community. Opinions on the practicality of phage applications replacing traditional antibiotic regimens ranged from full-speed ahead, mostly from the biotechnology industry, to overt skepticism on the part of some physicians. In any case, participants left the meeting convinced that a "Phage Therapy 2.0" is on its way.


Patients who undergo craniotomy for brain tumor resection are prone to experiencing seizures, which can have debilitating medical, neurological, and psychosocial effects. A controversial issue in neurosurgery is the common practice of administering perioperative anticonvulsant prophylaxis to these patients despite a paucity of supporting data in the literature. The foreseeable benefits of this strategy must be balanced against potential adverse effects and interactions with critical medications such as chemotherapeutic agents and corticosteroids. Multiple disparate metaanalyses have been published on this topic but have not been applied into clinical practice, and, instead, personal preference frequently determines practice patterns in this area of management. Therefore, to select the current best available evidence to guide clinical decision making, the literature was evaluated to identify meta-analyses that investigated the efficacy and/or safety of anticonvulsant prophylaxis in this patient population. Six meta-analyses published between 1996 and 2011 were included in the present study. The Quality of Reporting of Meta-analyses and Oxman-Guyatt methodological quality assessment tools were used to score these meta-analyses, and the Jadad decision algorithm was applied to determine the highest-quality meta-analysis. According to this analysis, 2 metaanalyses were deemed to be the current best available evidence, both of which conclude that prophylactic treatment does not improve seizure control in these patients. Therefore, this management strategy should not be routinely used.


While there is a strong sex bias in the presentation of autism, it is unknown whether this bias is also present in subclinical manifestations of autism among relatives, or the broad autism phenotype. This study examined this question and investigated patterns of co-occurrence of broad autism phenotype traits within families of individuals with autism. Pragmatic language and personality features of the broad autism phenotype were studied in 42 fathers and 50 mothers of individuals with autism using direct assessment tools used in prior family studies of the broad autism phenotype. Higher rates of aloof personality style were detected among fathers, while no sex differences were detected for other broad autism phenotype traits. Within individuals, pragmatic language features were associated with the social personality styles of the broad autism phenotype in mothers but not in fathers. A number of broad autism phenotype features were correlated within spousal pairs. Finally, the associations were detected between paternal broad autism phenotype characteristics and the severity of children's autism symptoms in all three domains (social, communication, and repetitive behaviors). Mother–child correlations were detected for aspects of communication only. Together, the findings suggest that most features of the broad autism phenotype express comparably in males and females and raise some specific questions about how such features might inform studies of the genetic basis of autism.


Immune activation is the best marker of HIV disease progression in both adults and children. However, the factors that drive immune activation in HIV-infected children remain incompletely understood and may differ from those in adults. Immune activation was investigated in a cohort of 93 untreated HIV-infected children, of median age 10.8 years, and 37 HIV-uninfected children. CD8(+) T cell activation, which was higher in HIV-infected than HIV-uninfected children (p<0.001), did not correlate with viral load (R=-0.03, p=0.838). Similarly, programmed death 1 (PD-1) expression on CD8(+) T cells, which was higher in HIV-infected children than HIV-uninfected children (p<0.001), was not associated with viral load (R=0.11, p=0.40), but correlated with CD8 activation (R=0.41, p=0.002). Both CD8 activation and PD-1 expression were partially driven by the magnitude of the HIV-specific CD8(+) T cell response. CD3(+)CD4(+)CD25(hi)FoxP3(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) were depleted in HIV-infected, compared to HIV-uninfected, children [median 1.0% (IQR 0.6, 1.9) vs. 2.6% (IQR 1.7, 3.2) CD3 cells; p<0.001]. Depletion was associated with increased CD8 activation (R=-0.27, p=0.068), suggesting that the decline in Tregs may allow immune activation to increase. Taken together, immune activation and PD-1 upregulation in children are not directly driven by viral load but may be influenced by the magnitude of the immune response to HIV itself, and to the depletion of Tregs that occurs during HIV infection. Further understanding of the factors that drive immune activation in children is critical to developing future therapeutic strategies in this population.


Purpose: To calculate Preventable Trauma Death Rate (PTDR), Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS) is the most utilized evaluation index of the trauma centers in South Korea. However, this method may have greater variation due to the small number of the denominator in each trauma center. Therefore, we would like to develop new indicators that can be used easily on quality improvement activities by increasing the denominator. Methods: The medical records of 1005 major trauma (ISS >15) patients who visited 2 regional trauma center (A center and B center) in 2014 were analyzed retrospectively. PTDR and PARK Index (Preventable Major Trauma Death Rate, PMTDR) were calculated in 731 patients with inclusion criteria. We invented PARK Index to minimize the variation of preventability of trauma death. In PTDR the denominator is all number of deaths, and in PARK Index the denominator is number of all patients who have survival probability (Ps) larger than 0.25. Numerator is the number of deaths from patients who have Ps larger than 0.25. Results: The size of denominator was 40 in A center, 49 in B center, and overall 89 in PTDR. The size of denominator was significantly increased, and 287 (7.2-fold) in A center, 422 (8.6-fold) in B center, and overall 709 (8.0-fold) in PARK Index. PARK Index was 12.9% in A center, 8.3% in B center, and overall 10.2%. Conclusion: PARK Index is calculated as a rate of mortality from all major trauma patients who have Ps larger than 0.25. PARK Index obtain an effect that denominator is increased 8.0-fold than PTDR. Therefore PARK Index is able to compensate for greater disadvantage of PTDR. PARK Index is expected to be helpful in implementing evaluation of mortality outcome and to be a new index that can be applied to a trauma center quality improvement activity. [ J Trauma Inj 2015; 28: 115-122 ]


1. Assistant Professor, Hailey College of Commerce, University of the Punjab Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan 2. Associate Professor, Hailey College of Commerce, University of Punjab Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan 3. PhD Scholar, Department of Management Sciences, Superior University Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan PAPER INFO ABSTRACT Received: January 19, 2021 Accepted: March 01, 2021 Online: March 15, 2021 The rationale behind this study is to examine the impact of Islamic work ethics (IWE) on turnover intention (TI) among employees of commercial banks across Pakistan. Further, this research also explores the mediating role of IM on the association between IWE and TI. Survey design opted was crosssectional, in order to gather data through a convenience sampling technique. Two hundred and eighty-seven employees of commercial banks participated in the survey. For testing the proposed model we employed partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique in Smart PLS3.0. The findings indicate that IWE has a positive relationship with IM, and IM has a negative relationship with TI. It has also been seen that IM mediates the relationship between IWE and TI. The human resource wing should incorporate IWE principles and standards as part of their plan to achieve exceptional workrelated outcomes such as high performance, commitment, and lower TI. Organizations should charily assess the magnitude and type of IWE of employees before employing or promoting them. Furthers, managers take steps to promote IWE principles and standards at the organization. IWE principles and Islamic teaching guide individuals in all areas of life; therefore, managers should teach IWE principles and standards via training sessions to increase the level of IWE in subordinates.


An adenoma of the non-pigmented ciliary body was removed locally; 15 years later the eye was enucleated. The globe contained a small tumor with similar histological features but invasive growth.


A front-end loader for agricultural purposes is the most commonly used implement for agri-tractors in Korea. As it is operated to raise, lower and carry various objects in a farming field, it introduces a large amount of stress to a tractor, causing vibrations and often lead to a mechanical breakdown. These high stresses are observed at the starting and ending points of operation, that is, the points at which the highest acceleration and deceleration occur. To reduce the sudden change of the speed, soft-start & end operation were tested with an electrohydraulic directional valve, which has a built-in ramp time spool control function. This valve was controlled by SAE-J1939 associated messages via CANBUS. This shock-absorbing system contains three ECUs (Electronic Control Unit): (a) a loader ECU for receiving and transmitting loader position data, (b) a Joystick ECU to convert a lever position that is constantly being changed by an operator into CAN messages, and (c) a valve ECU to regenerate all messages into the J1939 standard to be understood by the electrohydraulic directional valve. By sensing the loader position and speed, the ramp activation point is determined. As expected, applying ramp time control to the front-end loader control system proved to be effective for reducing the shock level, in contrast to that of the conventional control using a hydraulic manual valve.


Dentofacial deformity refers to deviations from normal facial proportions and dental relationships that are severe enough to be handicapping. These anomalies involve many aspects of patient's life and are sometimes also associated with a reduction of pharyngeal airspace (PAS). This episode of pharyngeal airway collapse effects breathing function of the patients. This leads to a condition called Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). So patients who are undergoing orthognathic surgery should be screened for excessive daytime spmnolence, snoring, increased BMI and medical conditions related to OSA. OSA may be better following a maxillomandibular advancement surgery or may be worsened or developed after mandibular setback surgery. The purpose of this study is to review the changes of PAS and its important related structures such as hyoid bone, the tongues and soft palate after orthognathic surgery in dentofacial deformity patients. The change of head posture, the adaptation and the stability of PAS are also considered.Moderate evidence was found that PAS changes at the level of nasopharyngeal, oropharyngeal and hypopharyngeal. A statistical difference was found between BSSO & IVRO after treatment of mandibular prognathism. The results indicate that bimaxillary surgery in class 3 patients has less unfavourable effects, so it is considered as superior surgery compared to mandibular setback surgery.


Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) comprises the largest group of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). DLBCL can be classified according to their cellular origin and patients with the activated B-cell (ABC) subtype have an inferior prognosis relative to those with the germinal center B-cell (GCB) subtype. Constitutive anti-apoptotic NF-κB signaling is a hallmark of ABC-DLBCL. NF-κB activation is caused by chronic active B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling or constitutive MYD88 signaling. Oncogenic mutations that contribute to pathogenesis of ABC-DLBCL tumors have been identified in critical components of both pathways (Figure (Figure1)1) [1].

Figure 1

Oncogenic mechanisms and target directed therapeutic approaches in ABC-DLBCL

Target directed approaches for ABC-DLBCL therapy have largely focused on the inhibition of upstream protein kinase [2]. Chronic BCR signaling engages the adaptors CD79A and CD79B in a Syk-dependent mechanism. Syk is constitutively active in many B-cell lymphomas and a clinical phase I/II trial using the Syk inhibitor fostamatinib disodium (FosD, AstraZeneca) shows some response also in DLBCL patients. However, most oncogenic mutations in ABC-DLBCL occur further downstream revealing that Syk may not be an optimal target. Downstream of CD79A/B, Btk and PKCβ bridge proximal BCR signaling events to the CARMA1 (CARD11)-BCL10-MALT1 (CBM) complex. Over 20% of ABC-DLBCL tumors carry oncogenic mutations in CD79A/B. Indeed, the irreversible Btk inhibitor ibrutinib (PCI-32765, Pharamcyclics) and the panPKC inhibitor sotrastaurin (STN) are inhibiting the outgrowth of CD79 mutant ABC-DLBCL in preclinical models [3, 4]. Furthermore, positive clinical responses in a phase II trial were reported in relapsed/refractory DLBCL with the selective PKCβ inhibitor enzastarin (LY317615, Eli Lilly) [5]. However, none of these potential drugs is able to target ABC-DLBCL tumors with lesions downstream of PKCβ or in parallel pathways, such as CARMA1 of MYD88, respectively.

Downstream of PKCβ the CBM subunit MALT1 has attracted great attention as a potential therapeutic target [6]. MALT1 serves a dual role in NF-κB signaling in response to antigen receptor stimulation. MALT1 is an adaptor that recruits and activates the IκB kinase (IKK) complex, the gatekeeper of canonical NF-κB. In addition, MALT1 is a paracaspase with a caspase-like proteolytic activity that is required for full NF-κB signaling and survival of ABC-DLBCL cells. MALT1 cleaves and thereby inactivates negative regulators of canonical NF-κB, such as the tumor suppressor A20 and the NF-κB subunit RelB which both counteract pro-survival functions of canonical IKK/NF-κB signaling.

Two classes of MALT1 inhibitors have now been identified that effectively and selectively inhibit the growth of ABC- but not GCB-DLBCL in vitro and in vivo [7, 8]. Interestingly, the compounds are inhibiting MALT1 by two very different mechanisms. Fontan et al have identified a structurally new small molecule inhibitor (MI-2) that is covalently modifying catalytic center of MALT1 [7]. MI-2 was tolerated in mice at the effective dose without obvious signs of toxicity. Usually, irreversible inhibitors require optimal pharmacokinetic properties for clinical development, but recent advances for instance on the irreversible Btk inhibitor ibrutinib reveal that a clinical use may be possible. In a parallel study, we have identified the phenothiazines-derivatives (PD) thioridazine, mepazine and promazine as reversible MALT1 inhibitors [8]. PD are not targeting the active site of MALT1, but exhibit a non-competitive, allosteric mode of action. Mepazine, thioridazine and promazine have a long medical history as antipsychotics and sedatives drugs used for the treatment of psychiatric disorders. Well-established toxicokinetics and pharmacokinetics suggest that targeting MALT1 for cancer therapy by this class of compounds may be safe and feasible. Further, medicinal chemistry could be used to generate novel PD that are more potent MALT1 inhibitors, while reducing their neurological effects. Taken together, both studies demonstrate that MALT1 inhibition is a promising strategy for the treatment of ABC-DLBCL. In fact, targeting MALT1 may possess some advantages over the inhibition of upstream protein kinases. MALT1 inhibition also affects survival of CARMA1 mutant ABC-DLBCL. Further, with an occurrence of 29% the MYD88 mutation L265P is the most frequent oncogenic mutation in ABC-DLBCL. 65% of the MYD88-mutant ABC-DLBCL tumors carry additional mutations in CARMA1 or CD79A/B and MALT1 inhibitors are toxic to ABC-DLBCL with aberrant activation of both pathways [7, 8]. Thus, MALT1 inhibition indeed holds great promises for the treatment of the majority of ABC-DLBCL.

Research on ABC-DLBCL provides a paradigm for the power of using advanced diagnostic tools (e.g. gene expression profiling and genome sequencing) to classify lymphoma entities and to identify specific oncogenic lesions. In parallel the generation of target directed therapeutics will promote the development of more personalized treatment protocols. Because of the various oncogenic lesions and the possibilities of drug resistances, there cannot be enough 'smart' drugs for ABC-DLBCL therapy. In the future, combinatorial treatment protocols may certainly enhance anti-tumor efficacy of the single agents that are currently in preclinical and/or clinical development.


Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare and aggressive neuroendocrine carcinoma associated with a high mortality rate.  A polyomavirus integrated into the genome of most tumors is thought to be pathogenic.  MCCs may be difficult to distinguish from other small cell carcinomas, melanoma, lymphoma, and others.  Immunohistochemical marker studies are essential for accurate and efficient diagnosis. Although the paranuclear dot-like pattern seen with staining for cytokeratin 20 is considered characteristic, antibodies directed at other cytokeratins such as cytokeratin 8 (CAM 5.2), pancytokeratins (AE1/AE3), and other clones that recognize low molecular weight cytokeratins are also useful for diagnosis. We set out to evaluate which stains are helpful in diagnosing the cases of MCC encountered in our patient population.  A retrospective study of 59 cases of MCC from our files was performed. Each MCC was stained with a panel of IHC markers and evaluated for the staining pattern and intensity in an effort to identify the most efficient IHC stains useful in establishing a diagnosis of MCC. [N A J Med Sci. 2018;11(1):34-38.   DOI: 10.7156/najms.2018.1101034]


Monitoring and assessing systemic risk in financial markets is of great importance but it often requires data that are unavailable or available at a very low frequency. For this reason, systemic risk assessment with partial information is potentially very useful for regulators and other stakeholders. In this paper we consider systemic risk due to fire sales spillovers and portfolio rebalancing by using the risk metrics defined by Greenwood et al. (2015). By using a method based on the constrained minimization of the Cross Entropy, we show that it is possible to assess aggregated and single bank's systemicness and vulnerability, using only the information on the size of each bank and the capitalization of each investment asset. We also compare our approach with an alternative widespread application of the Maximum Entropy principle allowing to derive graph probability distributions and generating scenarios and we use it to propose a statistical test for a change in banks' vulnerability to systemic events.


Indonesia is the second most linguistically diverse nation in the world. It has established its reputation as one of the largest markets of English language education. This paper examines the context of multilingualism in Indonesia in relation to the increasingly dominant role of English from my viewpoint as a researcher. I begin the paper by outlining how Indonesia is currently adapting to the role of English as a global language. I then discuss the position of English within the linguistic ecology of the country, highlighting how its promotion in the educational system adversely affects the maintenance of the indigenous and heritage languages. Finally, I point to the need for deliberate action in education that promotes multilingualism. I argue for a redirection in the Indonesian educational system towards multilingual education in order to ensure the preservation of the indigenous and heritage languages while adopting English as a Lingua Franca.


Manual pumps are now a days very popular among small and marginal farmers of Bangladesh. Among the manual pumps the farmers predominantly use treadle pumps. It was found from study that the present structural design, the operation of the pump is tedious and at the same time very ineffective, which needs necessary modifications. An improved version of treadle pump called pedal pump was designed and fabricated at Agricultural Engineering Division, Bangladesh Sugarcane Research Institute (BSRI), Ishurdi, Pabna, which is by-cycle operated, comfortable to operate, capable of lifting surface and ground water having discharge range from 60-100 litres per minute at different suction heads (up to 7 meters). The objective of the study was to assess the socio-economic profile of the pedal pump users and to determine the adaptability of the pedal pump by the farmers as perceived by them. For demonstration of pedal pump 12 demonstrated and 120 non-demonstrated farmers were selected at Pabna, Thakurgaon and Chuadanga district of Bangladesh. Demonstration farmers have smaller land holding (0.47 ha) and higher number of family size (8 Nos.) compared to non-demonstration farmers. Pedal pump has a potentiality to use as a small-scale irrigation device opined by 92% demonstration and 88% non-demonstration farmers. Sixty seven percent demonstrated and 80% of non-demonstrated farmers expressed that the price of pedal pump were satisfactory and 67% demonstrated and 64% non-demonstrated farmers expressed their willingness to buy pedal pump. Operation of the pedal pump, as perceived by the farmers is much easier and comfortable than treadle pump. Key words: Marginal farmers; assessment; farmer's adaptability; pedal pump. DOI: 10.3329/jard.v7i1.4435 J Agric Rural Dev 7 (1&2), 145-150, June 2009


An extensive series of volcanic rocks are exposed in the north of Saveh city, Iran, which consist of phyllic, argillic and propylitic hydrothermal alteration types. For the purpose of the investigation, a FieldSpec3® spectroradiometer was used to measure the spectral response of the mineral content of these rocks. The spectral analyses of reflectance curve by The Spectral Geologist (TSG) software could discriminate kaolinite and montmorillonite (argillic), illite, muscovite, phengite and paragonite (phyllic), hornblende and chlorite, siderite (propylitic), hematite and goethite from the gossans. It also detected gypsum of hydrothermal alteration zones. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflectance Radiometer (ASTER) image, which was used for mapping the hydrothermal alteration minerals, contains the Visible and Near Infrared (VNIR) wavelengths between 0.52 µm and 0.86 µm, Short Wave Infrared (SWIR) wavelengths between 1.6 µm and 2.43 µm and Thermal Infrared (TIR) wavelengths between 8.125 µm and 11.65 µm with 15, 30 and 90 m spatial resolutions, respectively. For calibration of the ASTER images, the extracted spectra of different rocks and minerals were used for atmospheric and radiometric corrections. Mixture tuned matched filtering (MTMF) and Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM) were applied on ASTER data to map the hydrothermal alteration of minerals. The use of the spectroradiometry techniques in conjunction with other data exhibits the ability of these new methods for non-destructive and rapid identification of mineral types for more detailed investigation. The results show that the area has undergone different levels of hydrothermal alteration, so much so that phyllic, argillic and propylitic types of hydrothermal alteration are present in the study area. This may point to high potential and promising zones for the exploration of porphyry mineralisation.


Msc in Omics Data Analysis Department of Systems Biology Identification of molecular subtypes and gene expression patterns of breast cancer analysing RNA-seq data By Maria Riera PIQUE BORRAS Breast cancer is the most common diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer death among females worldwide. It is considered a highly heterogeneous disease and it must be classified into more homogeneous groups. Hence, the purpose of this study was to classify breast tumors based on variations in gene expression patterns derived from RNA sequencing by using different class discovery methods. 42 breast tumors paired-samples were sequenced by Illumine Genome Analyzer and the data was analyzed and prepared by TopHat2 and htseq-count. As reported previously, breast cancer could be grouped into five main groups known as basal epithelial-like group, HER2 group, normal breast-like group and two Luminal groups with a distinctive expression profile. Classifying breast tumor samples by using PAM50 method, the most common subtype was Luminal B and was significantly associated with ESR1 and ERBB2 high expression. Luminal A subtype had ESR1 and SLC39A6 significant high expression, whereas HER2 subtype had a high expression of ERBB2 and CNNE1 genes and low luminal epithelial gene expression. Basal-like and normal-like subtypes were associated with low expression of ESR1, PgR and HER2, and had significant high expression of cytokeratins 5 and 17. Our results were similar compared with TGCA breast cancer data results and with known studies related with breast cancer classification. Classifying breast tumors could add significant prognostic and predictive information to standard parameters, and moreover, identify marker genes for each subtype to find a better therapy for patients with breast cancer. Maria Riera Pique Borras


Introduction: Malnutrition is one of the catastrophes on human life and a major public health problem. Children below five years of age are at-risk population and hence malnutrition is the leading cause for morbidity and mortality among them. Feeding practices play a pivotal role in determining the nutritional status of Children.
Objectives: To find the nutritional status of under-five children and to assess whether infant feeding practices are correlated with nutritional status.
Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out from 01 March to 30 June 2012 among 110 conveniently and randomly selected children and their mothers as respondents attending selected child welfare centre (CWC) of Dhaka Cantonment. An electronic weighing scale, a standard height scale and a predesigned structured questionnaire were used. All data were analyzed by SPSS. Association was assessed with Chi square test. The prevalence of malnutrition was assessed by different indices of nutritional status based on Weight for Age Zscore (WAZ), Height for Age Z-score (HAZ) and Weight for Height Z -Score (WHZ).
Results: Mean age of study population was 31.3±16 months. Out of total 110 mothers as respondents 62 (56.4%) mothers fed their child colostrum. Majority of the mothers (81.7.0%) exclusively breastfed their child. Most of the mothers (59.1%) did not provide proper complementary feeding and 37.3% mother fed their child pre lacteal feeding. Total underweight children were 32 (29%), total stunted children were 44(40.0%) and total wasted children were 26(23.6%). The prevalence of Stunting was higher among children who had not exclusively breastfed. This study showed that the relationship of pre-lacteal feeding and complementary feeding with WAZ, HAZ and WAZ were statistically significant.
Conclusion: This study might serve as an initiative to identify the influences of feeding practices on children's nutritional status to promote and protect the optimal feeding practices for improving nutritional status of children under five years.
JAFMC Bangladesh. Vol 18, No 1 (June) 2022: 54-56


Intensive care (a 14-bed intensive care unit), treatment of serious conditions, noninvasive ventilation support and artificial lung ventilation. Programme of lung transplantation, pre-transplantation examination. Interventional bronchological treatment of patients afflicted with stenosis of big airways. Early diagnostics of bronchogenic carcinoma, oncological treatment, including chemotherapy. A centre for the treatment of adult patients suffering from cystic fibrosis. Sleep laboratory for monitoring respiratory disturbances in sleep. Councelling service for asthmatic patients and COPD. Research activities concern mainly the early diagnostics of lung cancer by means of autoflorescence, interventional bronchology and study of pathogenesis of COPD. Undergraduate and postgraduate courses.


Abstract Several studies have reported that plant structural components can exert strong influences on the density and distribution of spiders. However, little is known about which plant traits mediate specific associations between spiders and plants. In southeastern Brazil, the lynx spider Peucetia flava Keyserling 1877 (Oxyopidae) is commonly found on the plant Rhyncanthera dichotoma (Melastomataceae), a shrub that bears glandular trichomes. In this study we investigated if Peucetia occurs strictly on Rhyncanthera and what plant parameters influence the spiders' distribution. In addition, we recorded the vertical distribution of spiders of different ages in the plant canopy. Throughout the year Peucetia was observed only on the glandular plant Rhyncanthera, indicating that this association is specific and predictable. Statistical analysis showed no difference in the number of spiders between plants of Rhyncanthera with and without flowers, suggesting that this specific association is mediated by the presence of glandular trichomes, and not by reproductive structures. The distribution of Peucetia over the year was related to the number of arthropods on plants, as well as the number of leaves and height of the host plants, indicating that Peucetia probably choose sites of high food availability. Adults and subadults occurred on higher places on the crown than young and juveniles.


With the improvement of living standards, people pay more attention to the agricultural products with health protection function, and the selenium-rich agricultural products attract more and more consumers. The main biological role of selenium is to resist oxidation and inflammatory response, mainly focusing on resisting aging, preventing cardiovascular disease, protecting eyesight, counteracting or destroying the toxic properties, preventing cancer and thyroid disease. In most areas of China, there is a widespread shortage of selenium, thus producing selenium-rich agricultural products to provide natural selenium-rich health food to the areas in need of selenium, has gradually become a new hot spot of China's health food industry, but high content of selenium in food is detrimental to human body, even leads to selenium intoxication, and artificially adding inorganic selenium is difficult to guarantee that the selenium content of agricultural products is not exceeded. According to human body's daily demand for selenium in dietetics and the content of selenium in agricultural products in the Chinese food composition table, we put forward the recommendations on the standard of selenium in agricultural products, in order to provide the basis for China to formulate the health standard of selenium content in selenium-rich agricultural products.


A frequency-quadrupling dual-loop optoelectronic oscillator (OEO) is proposed and demonstrated by two cascaded polarization modulators. The introduction of frequency quadrupling to the proposed OEO requires no optical filtering, which not only increases the maximal achievable frequency by four times, but also enables powerful optical signal processing functions. An experiment is carried out. A high-quality millimeter-wave signal at 39.75 GHz is generated using low-frequency devices. Photonic microwave upconversion at two wavelength channels is also demonstrated on the basis of the proposed frequency-quadrupling OEO.


Employees in finance are known to earn higher wages and returns to talent than non-finance workers since the 1990s, suggesting that finance may have attracted talent at the expense of other industries. However, the allocation of talent is likely to respond to differences in career paths across industries, not in wages at a given date. We analyze the careers of 9,964 individuals from 1980 to 2017 based on their resumes, and find that they tend to remain in the same industry for most of their working lives, consistently with them choosing occupations based on comparisons of entire career paths. Comparing various aspects of careers - levels, slopes, PDV and risk of pay profiles - we document that finance as a whole offers a career premium compared to manufacturing and high tech, through higher and steeper pay pro files. This however masks significant diversity within finance: while asset managers enjoy a large career premium and no commensurate career risks, the opposite applies to banking and insurance employees. Furthermore, relative to manufacturing, the asset management career premium has risen for cohorts entering soon before and during the financial crisis, even after controlling for career risk, while the high-tech career premium has become commensurately large for the latest cohorts.


In this paper, we address a crucial problem in fashion e-commerce (with respect to customer experience, as well as revenue): color variants identification, i.e., identifying fashion products that match exactly in their design (or style), but only to differ in their color. We propose a generic framework, that leverages deep visual Representation Learning at its heart, to address this problem for our fashion e-commerce platform. Our framework could be trained with supervisory signals in the form of triplets, that are obtained manually. However, it is infeasible to obtain manual annotations for the entire huge collection of data usually present in fashion e-commerce platforms, such as ours, while capturing all the difficult corner cases. But, to our rescue, interestingly we observed that this crucial problem in fashion e-commerce could also be solved by simple color jitter based image augmentation, that recently became widely popular in the contrastive Self-Supervised Learning (SSL) literature, that seeks to learn visual representations without using manual labels. This naturally led to a question in our mind: Could we leverage SSL in our use-case, and still obtain comparable performance to our supervised framework? The answer is, Yes! because, color variant fashion objects are nothing but manifestations of a style, in different colors, and a model trained to be invariant to the color (with, or without supervision), should be able to recognize this! This is what the paper further demonstrates, both qualitatively, and quantitatively, while evaluating a couple of state-of-the-art SSL techniques, and also proposing a novel method.


Primer extension studies have shown that the Y-family DNA polymerase IV (Dpo4) from Sulfolobus solfataricus P2 can preferentially insert C opposite N-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-2-acetylaminofluorene (AAF-dG) [F. Boudsocq, S. Iwai, F. Hanaoka and R. Woodgate (2001) Nucleic Acids Res., 29, 4607–4616]. Our goal is to elucidate on a structural level how AAF-dG can be harbored in the Dpo4 active site opposite an incoming dCTP, using molecular modeling and molecular dynamics simulations, since AAF-dG prefers the syn glycosidic torsion. Both anti and syn conformations of the templating AAF-dG in a Dpo4 ternary complex were investigated. All four dNTPs were studied. We found that an anti glycosidic torsion with C1′-exo deoxyribose conformation allows AAF-dG to be Watson–Crick hydrogen-bonded with dCTP with modest polymerase perturbation, but other nucleotides are more distorting. The AAF is situated in the Dpo4 major groove open pocket with fluorenyl rings 3′- and acetyl 5′-directed along the modified strand, irrespective of dNTP. With AAF-dG syn, the fluorenyl rings are in the small minor groove pocket and the active site region is highly distorted. The anti-AAF-dG conformation with C1′-exo sugar pucker can explain the preferential incorporation of dC by Dpo4. Possible relevance of our new major groove structure for AAF-dG to other polymerases, lesion repair and solution conformations are discussed.


Microbial decomposition of organic matter in aquatic environments plays an important role in natural fluxes of methane and carbon dioxide because the gases are end-products in microbial energy metabolism of organic matter. Microbial metabolism depends on the use of electron donors and electron acceptors in redox reactions that generate energy for growth and maintenance. Energy yields can be used to envisage specific patterns of microbial redox reactions and these predictions depend on the hypothesis that, in a specified environment, the metabolic reaction that yields most energy will dominate over any competing reactions. The energy yield hypothesis indicates a sequential order in electron acceptor use by microbes and also make it tempting to conclude that degradation rate of organic matter is different depending on available electron acceptors. The main purpose of this thesis was to study how the presences of different electron acceptors in freshwater sediments influence organic matter decomposition. Mineralization rates of organic matter under six different conditions regarding the electron acceptor availability were investigated in a river sediment sample from Stangan, Sweden, by measuring carbon dioxide and methane production using gas chromatography. This was done during a fixed time period, in vials containing a mixture of water, sediment, buffer solution and a dominating electron acceptor. Six different metabolic processes; aerobic respiration, denitrification, manganese reduction, iron reduction, sulphate reduction and methanogenesis were included. The overall result indicates similar mineralization rates in both oxic and anoxic treatments. The result also indicates that methane formation was present in the iron reduction and methanogenesis treatments and not evident in the oxic treatments. Sulphate reduction, denitrification and manganese reduction seems to inhibit methanogenesis, but the result also indicates that no significant total mineralization was apparent when NO3- and Mn(IV) were the dominating electron acceptors. The similarities between oxic and anoxic mineralization rates indicates that organic matter degradation rates are not dependent on available electron acceptors and that degradation rates of organic matter are independent of the thermodynamically based energy yield.


This study explores the complex relationship between compliment response (henceforth CR) behaviour, identity construction and face. To this end, this study collected 386 Chinese CRs by recording spontaneous multi-party conversations in China's mainland. Using a theory of self and identity adapted from Brewer and Gardner (1996), Brewer (2001), and Hong et al (2010), the analysis, triangulated by follow-up interview data, shows that Chinese CR behaviour has the function of signalling individual identity, relational identity, group identity and cultural identity. Evidence suggests that there is a fairly patterned relationship between CR strategies and identity types, viz. Acceptance, Rejection, Vagueness and Opt out can all index individual identity, relational identity and group identity; Rejection, Vagueness and Opt out conform well to Chinese cultural heritages, hence mark the compliment recipient's cultural identity.
Adopting Spencer-Oatey's (2007) theory on identity and face, I argue that as an important resource of discourse, all the aforementioned types of identities constructed through CR behaviour are motivated by the recipient's face concerns. Drawing on Chen's (2001) notion of self-politeness or self-face, I argue that while mutual-face concerns appear to be the driving force of these identities in most cases, individual identity is very likely to be motivated by the recipients' self-face want. Most notably, my data shows that individuals' personal attributes cannot be simply labelled as "socially approved" or "socially sanctioned" as suggested by Goffman (1967). Rather, they are subject to the compliment recipients' evaluations due to their face sensitivity in identity construction.


BACKGROUND
Delays in access to health care in Canada have been reported, but standardized systems to manage and monitor wait lists and wait times, and benchmarks for appropriate wait times, are lacking. The objective of the present consensus was to develop evidence- and expertise-based recommendations for medically appropriate maximal wait times for consultation and procedures by a digestive disease specialist.

METHODS
A steering committee drafted statements defining maximal wait times for specialist consultation and procedures based on the most common reasons for referral of adult patients to a digestive disease specialist. Statements were circulated in advance to a multidisciplinary group of 25 participants for comments and voting. At the consensus meeting, relevant data and the results of voting were presented and discussed; these formed the basis of the final wording and voting of statements.

RESULTS
Twenty-four statements were produced regarding maximal medically appropriate wait times for specialist consultation and procedures based on presenting signs and symptoms of referred patients. Statements covered the areas of gastrointestinal bleeding; cancer confirmation and screening and surveillance of colon cancer and colonic polyps; liver, biliary and pancreatic disorders; dysphagia and dyspepsia; abdominal pain and bowel dysfunction; and suspected inflammatory bowel disease. Maximal wait times could be stratified into four possible acuity categories of 24 h, two weeks, two months and six months.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS
Comparison of these benchmarks with actual wait times will identify limitations in access to digestive heath care in Canada. These recommendations should be considered targets for future health care improvements and are not clinical practice guidelines.


Abstract. The capability of monitoring and prediction in the marine environment provides information that may allow sustainable development of coastal and offshore regions. Therefore, the continuous measurement of environmental processes becomes an important source of information. The present paper shows data collected during 6 years, and in particular during 2008, in the Dee Estuary. The aim of the data collection is to improve the observations of the mobile sediments in coastal areas and its forcing hydrodynamics and turbulence. Data includes information from the deployment of instrumented rigs measuring sediment in suspension, currents, waves, sea level, sediment size and bedforms as well as cruise work including grab sampling, CTD profiles and side-scan sonar. The data cover flood and ebb tides during spring and neap periods with moderate and mild wave events, thus, having a good coverage of the processes needed to improve knowledge of sediment transport and the parameterizations used in numerical modelling. The data, in raw and treated, are being banked at BODC (British Oceanographic Data Centre, http://www.bodc.ac.uk/ ) which is the formal British organization for looking after and distributing data concerning the marine environment.


Freshwater macroalgae represent a largely overlooked group of phototrophic organisms that could play an important role within an industrial ecology context in both utilising waste nutrients and water and supplying biomass for animal feeds and renewable chemicals and fuels. This study used water from the intensive aquaculture of freshwater fish (Barramundi) to examine how the biomass production rate and protein content of the freshwater macroalga Oedogonium responds to increasing the flux of nutrients and carbon, by either increasing water exchange rates or through the addition of supplementary nitrogen and CO2. Biomass production rates were highest at low flow rates (0.1–1 vol.day−1) using raw pond water. The addition of CO2 to cultures increased biomass production rates by between 2 and 25% with this effect strongest at low water exchange rates. Paradoxically, the addition of nitrogen to cultures decreased productivity, especially at low water exchange rates. The optimal culture of Oedogonium occurred at flow rates of between 0.5–1 vol.day−1, where uptake rates peaked at 1.09 g.m−2.day−1 for nitrogen and 0.13 g.m−2.day−1 for phosphorous. At these flow rates Oedogonium biomass had uptake efficiencies of 75.2% for nitrogen and 22.1% for phosphorous. In this study a nitrogen flux of 1.45 g.m−2.day−1 and a phosphorous flux of 0.6 g.m−2.day−1 was the minimum required to maintain the growth of Oedogonium at 16–17 g DW.m−2.day−1 and a crude protein content of 25%. A simple model of minimum inputs shows that for every gram of dry weight biomass production (g DW.m−2.day−1), Oedogonium requires 0.09 g.m−2.day−1 of nitrogen and 0.04 g.m−2.day−1 of phosphorous to maintain growth without nutrient limitation whilst simultaneously maintaining a high-nutrient uptake rate and efficiency. As such the integrated culture of freshwater macroalgae with aquaculture for the purposes of nutrient recovery is a feasible solution for the bioremediation of wastewater and the supply of a protein resource.


The central argument of this paper is premised on the fact that awareness level of environmental management is characterized by inadequate education which has resulted to environmental degradation, deforestation and killing of game reserves particularly among rural dwellers. Given the agrarian nature, subsistence economy and cultural norms of the local people who share common belief system; repose enormous respects on their traditional head as he is referred to as the custodian of the people, community and culture, thus positioning the traditional ruler as veritable instrument for educating the rural populace. The paper heavily relies on the secondary source of data collection and employs historical analysis. This paper therefore examines the role of traditional ruler in sensitising rural communities on environmental pollution in Nigeria, with the view to explicate challenges and underlying prospects. Keywords: Traditional ruler, local government, rural communities, adoption mechanism, environmental education.


The supply and demand of IS professors shifted in the last decade. Understanding the fluctuation of the IS faculty job market is a critical success factor for future planning and recruitment efforts. This paper presents the results of a longitudinal study that monitored the supply and demand of IS professors between 1992 and 2004. Data, primarily from the AIS and ICIS placement services, were analyzed to identify the trends in this market. Other relevant issues such as the composition of IS faculty position applicants, supply of IS doctorates, and trends in IS professor salary are also discussed. The paper concludes with recommendations to business and IS schools based on the findings. Explain what the findings were


After an aborted start in the early 1990s, the Australian domestic aviation market has seen a significant shift from a duopoly market in which two full-service airlines competed with similar services, to the emergence of three airlines/four brands—three of which are low cost carriers. Aggressive marketing strategies, low fares and increased capacity by low cost carriers Virgin Blue, Jetstar and Tiger Airways have benefited many regional destinations. The research presented in this paper shows that as air fares have fallen consumers have switched from private cars, long distance coach and rail to air. The reasons for this switch include consumer recognition of the savings that are possible through lower travel costs by air and that more time may be spent at the destination. The impact of switching modes is demonstrated by analysing the impact of LCCs on Cairns, a major coastal destination in northeast of Australia.


: The literature pertaining to deaf-blind persons was reviewed to acquaint occupational therapists with the needs of this population and to delineate their role in the habilitation of these persons. Two examples of the occupational therapy role in programming for deaf-blind children were described. In the late 1960s, occupational therapists were needed in small numbers, therapists who could work intensively in specific programs for deaf-blind children; in the late 1970s, a much greater number will be needed to provide services to small numbers of deaf-blind persons of all ages who will be attending the same schools, clinics, sheltered workshops, and group living facilities as will other handicapped persons.


Abstract 4311 Delayed donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) already plays a key role in supporting the graft-versus-tumor effect after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) although the potency of DLI differs for each disease entitiy. The graft-versus-leukemia (GvL)-effect observed after DLI is based on the CTL-mediated immunity which is reactive against minor histocompatibility antigens (mHAg). To date, the role of leukemia-associated antigens (LAAs) in GvL is not clear. We therefore analysed peripheral blood of a 57-year old woman with AML with NPM1 mutation (NPM1 mut ) who developed molecular relapse without detection of myeloid blasts in the peripheral blood and bone marrow at d+171 after allo-HSCT and received preemptive DLI at d+ 260. In parallel to the molecular relapse, chimerism continuously decreased to 60 % in the polymorphonuclear and 75 % in the mononuclear cell fraction. Blood samples were taken before and after DLI and investigated for specific T-cell responses against several LAAs for which cytotoxic T-cell responses were already described. In addition, the immune status of the patient was determined by measuring the counts of CD8+ and CD4+ T-cells as well as B-cells in the peripheral blood at several time points. To test specific CD8+ T-cell responses, ELISpot analysis for interferon gamma and granzyme B were perfomed. Two epitopes derived from the NPM1 mut peptide (NPM1-P3 and –P9) and PRAME (P300 and P435) were tested as well as one epitope obtained from Survivin, RHAMM, Proteinase 3 and WT-1. CD8+ T-cell responses against NPM1-P3, -P9, P300, Proteinase 3, Survivin and WT-1 were detected in blood samples after preemptive DLI but not in samples before DLI. In parallel, former detectable NPM1 mut transcripts were no longer traceable – the patient achieved molecular complete remission - and former mixed chimerism became complete after DLI. Here, we could demonstrate for the first time polyspecific cytotoxic CD8+ T-cell responses against several known LAAs in a patient with AML with NPM1 mut after preemptive DLI in molecular relapse. Interestingly, the immune responses against LAAs were associated with MRD negativity. Whether specific cytotoxic T-cell responses against epitopes derived from the NPM1 mut peptide or the polyspecificity of the cytotoxic T-cells against several LAAs are decisive in the elimination of the myeloid blasts with NPM1 mut remains to be determined in a larger cohort of patients. All in all it is of interest to perform preemptive DLI in patients with molecular relapse systematically. In addition, boostering of T-cells against specific LAAs could possibly be an approach to enhance GvL-effect with reducing GvHD-effect at the same time, but the most suitable LAA or combination of LAAs for each disease entitiy still has to be investigated. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


With the emergence of innovative (networked) organization forms such as enhanced supply chain collaboration and modern forms of public-private partnerships (PPP), effective and efficient collaboration among network participants becomes crucial but often difficult to achieve. One of the leading factors which cause such defective collaboration is the asymmetric information issue among the network participants. Two identifiable problems resulted by the asymmetric information are the moral hazard and adverse selection problems. Former studies mainly positioned asymmetric information problems within the context of traditional business environment; in this paper we suggest that similar problems may also occur in the Government to Business (G2B) context. We discuss these issues via a collaborative pilot case study (hereafter, Beer Living Lab) between the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration (DutchTCA) and a Dutch beer company (Beer Co.). The paper reveals that both moral hazard and adverse selection problems may occur during the G2B interactions and tamper the relationships between the two. In addressing these problems, we propose an advanced information technology (IT) solution, drawing upon an effective and efficient information sharing schema that can on the one hand minimize the moral hazard by enhancing supply chain management for the business and on the other hand preventing tax fraud for the government. Further we argue that the application of the advanced IT may serve as a strong signaling and screening tool for overcoming the adverse selection problem during the PPP forming and result in a win-win situation. The insights learned should benefit those involved in various inter-organizational business networks, partnership as well as supply chain management settings.


Using wide-field J, H, and Ks images obtained with the WIRCam near-infrared camera on the Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope, we investigated the spatial density configuration of stars within the tidal radius of metal-poor globular cluster NGC 6626, which is known to be located near the bulge region and have a thick-disk orbit motion. In order to trace the stellar density around a target cluster, we sorted the cluster's member stars using a mask-filtering algorithm and weighted the stars on the color–magnitude diagram. From the weight-summed surface density map, we found that the spatial density distribution of stars within the tidal radius is asymmetric with distorted overdensity features. The extending overdensity features are likely associated with the effects of the dynamic interaction with the Galaxy and the cluster's space motion. An interesting finding is that the prominent overdensity features extend toward the direction of the Galactic plane. This orientation of stellar density distribution can be interpreted with the result of the disk-shock effect of the Galaxy, previously experienced by the cluster. Indeed, the radial surface density profile accurately describes this overdensity feature with a break in the slope inside the tidal radius. Thus, the observed results indicate that NGC 6626 experienced a strong dynamical interaction with the Galaxy. Based on the result of strong tidal interaction with the Galaxy and previously published results, we discussed possible origins and evolutions of the cluster: (1) the cluster might have formed in satellite galaxies that were merged and created the Galactic bulge region in the early universe, after which time its dynamical properties were modified by dynamical friction, or (2) the cluster might have formed in primordial and rotationally supported massive clumps in the thick disk of the Galaxy.