ABSTRACT Performance measurements are a useful tool for measuring and encouraging progress towards desired goals. The mandate of the CREWES Project is to educate students, and to produce valuable research results. We have designed a quantity that encapsulates our progression towards these two aims. Research results are evaluated primarily on the basis of publications, as documented studies of research organizations indicate that this is amongst the most reliable indicators of output. Numbers of graduates are the foundation of the measure of meeting the educational goals. The output measure, as a function of time, shows that The CREWES Project appears to be on track with respect to succeeding in its two-fold mandate. In addition, while output has risen steadily over the lifetime of the project, productivity has remained fairly constant. Additional financial analysis suggests that diffusion of CREWES technology has followed a pattern typical for new technology offerings in the marketplace, and that both revenue and costs can be correlated to external factors.


The Whitehead Institute/MIT Center for Genome Research is responsible for a number of large genome mapping efforts, the scale of which create problems of data and workflow management that dictate reliance on computer support. Two years ago, when we started to design the informatics support for the laboratory, we realized that the fluid and ever-changing nature of the experimental protocols precluded any effort to create a single monolithic piece of software. Instead we designed a system that relied on multiple distributed data analysis and processing tools knit together by a centralized database. The obvious choice of operating systems was UNIX. In order to make this choice palatable to the laboratory biologists--who rightly consider it their job to do experiments rather than to interact with computers, and who have come to expect all software to be as intuitive and responsive as the Apple Macintoshes on their desks--we designed a system that runs automatically and essentially invisibly. Whenever it is necessary for the informatics system to interact with a member of the laboratory we have carefully chosen a user interface paradigm that best balances the user's expectations against the system's capabilities. When possible we have chosen to adapt familiar software to our user interface needs rather than to write user interfaces from scratch. We've managed to hide the power of UNIX behind the innocuous personal computer-based front ends our users know and love, using techniques that should be applicable in other environments as well.


Single image deraining is an important and challenging task for some downstream artificial intelligence applications such as video surveillance and self-driving systems.
Most of the existing deep-learning-based methods constrain the network to generate derained images but few of them explore features from intermediate layers, different levels, and different modules which are beneficial for rain streaks removal.
In this paper, we propose a high-order collaborative network with multi-scale compact constraints and a bidirectional scale-content similarity mining module to exploit features from deep networks externally and internally for rain streaks removal.
Externally, we design a deraining framework with three sub-networks trained in a collaborative manner, where the bottom network transmits intermediate features to the middle network which also receives shallower rainy features from the top network and sends back features to the bottom network.
Internally, we enforce multi-scale compact constraints on the intermediate layers of deep networks to learn useful features via a Laplacian pyramid.
Further, we develop a bidirectional scale-content similarity mining module to explore features at different scales in a down-to-up and up-to-down manner.
To improve the model performance on real-world images, we propose an online-update learning approach, which uses real-world rainy images to fine-tune the network and update the deraining results in a self-supervised manner.
Extensive experiments demonstrate that our proposed method performs favorably against eleven state-of-the-art methods on five public synthetic datasets and one real-world dataset.


In light of declining trade union density, specifically among young workers, this article explores how trade unions recruit, service and organize young people. Our focus is the way in which trade unions market their services to the young. We use, as a lens of analysis, the services and social marketing literature and the concept of an 'unsought, experience good' to explore trade union strategy. Based on interviews with a number of union officials in the state of Queensland, it is clear that unions see the issue of recruitment of young people as significant, and that innovative strategies are being used in at least some unions. However, the research also indicates that despite union awareness, strategies are uneven and resource allocation is patchy. While the research was carried out in one state, the results and conclusion are broadly applicable to the Australian labour movement as a whole, and have implications for union movements in other Anglophone countries.


Purpose Our objective was to investigate the effect of circSMARCC1 on the developmental and biological behavior of colorectal cancer (CRC). Materials and Methods The expression of circSAMRCC1 and miR-140-3p in CRC tissues and cell lines (SW620, HCT116, HT29 and SW480) and a normal cell line (NCM460) was detected using qRT-PCR. The expression levels of circSMARCC1 and its linear subtype were detected. Fluorescence in situ hybridization was performed for the evaluation of the localization of circSAMRCC1 and miR-140-3p in the SW620 cell line. The effects of circSAMRCC1 and miR-140-3p on cell proliferation were investigated using CCK8 and colony formation assays, respectively. The effects of circSAMRCC1 and miR-140-3p on cell migration and invasion were determined using Transwell assay. The binding relationship between circSMARCC1 and miR-140-3p was further assessed by bioinformatics, ChIRP analysis and double luciferase reporter assay. Results The expression of circSAMRCC1 in the CRC tissues and four cell lines is significantly increased, and circSMARCC1 and miR-140-3p are negatively correlated with expression level in the tissue. The downregulation of circSMARCC1 decreased CRC cell viability and suppressed metastasis in vitro and Inhibition of protein (MMP-2, MMP-9, VEGF) expression. miR-140-3p is downregulated in CRC tissues; miR-140-3p mimics inhibited SW620 cell viability, migration and invasion, and miR-140-3p inhibitors reversed the the effect of circSMARCC1 downregulation on cell proliferation, migration and invasion in CRC cells. Conclusion circSMARCC1 competitively combined with miR-140-3p and functioned through a circSMARCC1/miR-140-3p/MMPs axis as a CRC carcinogen, demonstrating its potential as a biomarker for CRC treatment.


The mechanism involved in stick-slip phenomena, such as earthquakes, is controlled by the interfacial shear stress. When two objects are in contact, the force necessary to overcome friction is larger than the force necessary to keep sliding motion going. This difference between static and dynamic friction is usually attributed to the growth of the area of real contact between rough surfaces in time when the system is at rest. We directly measure the area of real contact and show that it actually increases during macroscopic slip, despite the fact that dynamic friction is smaller than static friction. This signals a decrease in the interfacial shear strength, the friction per unit contact area, which is due to a mechanical weakening of the asperities. This provides a novel explanation for stick-slip phenomena in, e.g., earthquakes.


This article attempts to analyse, from the evolutionary perspective, the dual system of OECD Model Tax Conventions that arguably came into existence as a result of a tax policy choice that was introduced from the very beginning of works on bilateral model solutions concerning the elimination of international juridical double taxation. So far, this duality has attracted little attention in the literature despite its theoretical importance. This article attempts to fill in this research lacuna. The presented analysis is also important to consider a much needed shift in the tax policy of the OECD towards taxes on gratuitous wealth transfers mortis causa and inter vivos.


We introduce a new classification algorithm based on the concept of symmetric maximized minimal distance in subspace (SMMS). Given the training data of authentic samples and imposter samples in the feature space, SMMS tries to identify a subspace in which all the authentic samples are close to each other and all the imposter samples are far away from the authentic samples. The optimality of the subspace is determined by maximizing the minimal distance between the authentic samples and the imposter samples in the subspace. We present a procedure to achieve such optimality and to identify the decision boundary. The verification procedure is simple since we only need to project the test sample to the subspace and compare it against the decision boundary. Using face authentication as an example, we show that the proposed algorithm outperforms several other algorithms based on support vector machines (SVM).


This paper reviews developments in funders' data management and sharing policies, and explores the extent to which they have affected practice. The Digital Curation Centre has been monitoring UK research funders' data policies since 2008. There have been significant developments in subsequent years, most notably the joint Research Councils UK's Common Principles on Data Policy and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's Policy Framework on Research Data. This paper charts these changes and highlights shifting emphasises in the policies. Institutional data policies and infrastructure are increasingly being developed as a result of these changes. While action is clearly being taken, questions remain about whether the changes are affecting practice on the ground.


54 subjects aged 21-47 participated in 8 series of experiments (298 altitude investigations) aimed at selecting decompression-safe protocols for transition from hypobaric normoxic environment to reduced pressure. Experimental data is discussed and some protocols for safe transition to reduced pressure are recommended. The experiments allowed to display in diagram form the ratio of permissible magnitudes of residual pressure (the working pressure in the extravehicular suit) to the duration of a preliminary exposure in normoxic hypobaric conditions.


We present a protocol to assess gender equality. Its application in Early Childhood education schools allows us to assess the reality. This protocol develops a quantitative and qualitative descriptive analysis of education in gender equality, and promotes reflection on those models offered at school and in society, as well as an analysis of one's own behaviour. The protocol has been applied to a representative sample from the community of Catalonia, Spain. Results show that there is a high level of awareness with regards to formal manifestations in the educational field, at an institutional, school and classroom level. However, we can see some contradictions in the field of personal beliefs. Quite often, stereotypes and prejudices seem overcome, but in practice there is still some contradiction. From this, we can deduce that in the field of training and centre improvement there should be more emphasis on changing attitudes that are transmitted through teaching and organizational practices.


This paper presents briefly the principles and procedure of typology schemes, which aim at describing and representing the local diversity of rural households, through the analysis of their modes of operation, strategies and prospects, activities and livelihoods' systems. This approach departs from both strict economic analysis and social participatory approaches, which often overlook the diversity that exists among rural households at local level. It basically combines the respective principles and advantages of both approaches. Through a case study, which was carried out in a rural community of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, the paper highlights this local diversity, its representation through a typology scheme, and the issues related to livelihood systems: complementarity between on-farm and off-farm activities and sources of income, the key role of women, significance of subsistence farming activities, existence of productive and potentially profitable activities (wool). Some key questions for the close future are also raised: ageing process at household level (pensions are currently instrumental in livelihood build-up), transmission process to youngsters in a context of PTO land access system, sustainability of farming systems in a fragile and constraining natural environment, weaknesses in the agribusiness environment, basic needs in development support as expressed by people, the worrying situation of certain very poor households, problems and constraints as expressed by farmers. The paper finally discusses the significance of such tools for integrated rural development planning and management purposes. They may be responses to the increasing need for proper diagnosis, in a context of persistent poverty in South-Africa's rural areas and of public willingness to tackle it in an integrated manner.


A new type of hemispherical electron energy analyzer that permits angle and spin resolved photoelectron spectroscopy has been developed. The analyzer permits standard angle resolved spectra to be recorded with a two-dimensional detector in parallel with spin detection using a mini-Mott polarimeter. General design considerations as well as technical solutions are discussed and test results from the Au(111) surface state are presented.


Background: While poplar (Populus spp.) is an important source of raw materials for the wood processing sector in many regions of the world, in New Zealand it has a reputation for producing poor grade recoveries of sawn timber that is unsuitable for structural applications. However, the 'Kawa' poplar clone (Populus deltoides Marshall x P. yunnanensis Dode), which has relatively high wood density, could yield structural timber. This, along with evidence demonstrating building code compliance, would improve utilisation options for this species in New Zealand.
Methods: Sawn timber conversion and grade recovery were quantified for a 28-year-old pruned stand of 'Kawa' poplar grown in Northland, New Zealand. A sample of 90 mm x 45 mm structural boards were tested to determine their mechanical properties and the resulting strength class. Boron preservative retention and penetration were measured to determine whether timber could be treated to the level required under New Zealand's building standards. Density, modulus of elasticity and modulus of rupture were assessed on small defect-free specimens taken from different radial and vertical positions within trees to determine intra-stem and inter-stem variation in these properties.
Results: The overall conversion of logs to sawn timber was 53%, with approximately 94% of this recovery consisting of graded timber. The most common sources of downgrade were knots, pruning wounds, and end-splits. Approximately 70% of the sawn boards were graded as clears, with smaller recoveries of cladding and structural boards. The average length of clear section was approximately 2.5 m. Mechanical testing of structural boards demonstrated that they have characteristic values sufficient to meet the requirements for the SG10 strength class. Preservative treatment achieved the H1.2 specification. Density, modulus of elasticity and modulus of rupture were all higher in specimens cut from the outside of the log compared with those taken from near the pith at all heights up the stem.
Conclusions: Mechanical properties and boron treatment results indicate suitability for structural applications in accordance with New Zealand's building code. 'Kawa' poplar also produced high grade recoveries suggesting potential for commercial sawn timber production, especially for structural appearance products.


BACKGROUND
Matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) can degrade extracellular matrix and basement membrane, and play an important role in the development and progression of multiple carcinomas, including oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). A -1306C-->T polymorphism in the MMP-2 promoter disrupts Sp1-binding site, and results in reduction of transcriptional activity. This study aimed to assess the association of such genotype with the risk of OSCC and oral submucous fibrosis (OSF), which is a precancerous condition that exhibits excessive collagen production and etiologically links to areca use.

METHODS
Genomic DNA from the blood samples of 121 OSCC cases, 58 OSF cases and 147 controls were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and subjected to denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (dHPLC) analysis for genotyping. The OSCC were further classified into buccal squamous cell carcinoma (BSCC) and non-buccal squamous cell carcinoma (NBSCC), according to the site of involvement. Fisher's exact test and unconditional logistic regression models were used for statistical analysis.

RESULTS
Subjects carrying CC genotype had nearly twofold increased risk for developing OSCC when comparing with CT or TT genotype. Subjects carrying CC genotype had more apparent risk (greater than fourfold) for developing NBSCC. However, no increase in risk for lymph node metastasis or advanced stage was identified in OSCC cases carrying such genotype. Preliminarily data suggest no significant association between subjects carrying CC genotype and the development of BSCC or OSF.

CONCLUSION
This is the first paper demonstrating that functional genotype of MMP-2 promoter is a risk factor for oral carcinogenesis, particularly for the subsets occurring on non-buccal site.


Diabetic neuropathy is a very common complication of diabetes mellitus, and animal studies have contributed tremendously to its understanding. The aim of this study was to estimate the neuropathic alterations in the Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima fatty (OLETF) rats, an animal model of human type 2 diabetes mellitus. For this purpose, four groups of animals were used: untreated OLETF rats, sucrose-fed for 2 months OLETF rats, untreated Long-Evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) nondiabetic rats as genetic controls of OLETF, and sucrose-fed LETO rats. All were examined at baseline, at the end of the sucrose treatment, and during a washout period. The following parameters were evaluated: motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV), sensitivity to noxious thermal and mechanical stimuli using the tail-flick (TF) and tail-pressure (TP) tests, and blood glucose (BG) and HbA1c levels. Our results showed that BG and HbA1c were significantly higher in OLETF rats when compared with those in control LETO rats. Sucrose caused remarkable increase of BG and HbA1c in the OLETF rats, but not in the sucrose-fed LETO rats. MNCV and thermal nociception significantly decreased in OLETF rats in their 10th month, while the values of the TP test did not differ compared with those from LETO rats. Sucrose administration significantly decreased the MNCV, and increased the pain threshold evaluated by the TF and TP tests, compared with those in the control OLETF rats. The studied parameters were not significantly altered in sucrose-fed LETO rats. In conclusion, our findings show that signs of diabetic neuropathy appear late in the individual development of the OLETF rats, and MNCV and thermal nociception are selectively affected in this strain. Sucrose deteriorated the diabetic state, decreased MNCV, and caused thermal and mechanical hypoalgesia.


The development of Virtual Environment (VE) systems is a challenging endeavor with a complex problem domain. The experience in the past decade has helped contribute significantly to various measures of software quality of the resulting VE systems. However, the resulting solutions remain monolithic in nature without addressing successfully the issue of system interoperability and software aging. This paper argues that the problem resides in the traditional system centric approach and that an alternative approach based on system of systems engineering is necessary. As a result, the paper presents a reference architecture based on layers, where only the core is required for deployment and all others are optional. The paper also presents an evaluation methodology to assess the validity of the resulting architecture, which was applied to the proposed core layer and involving individual sessions with 12 experts in developing VE systems.


Sixty well-nourished, well-hydrated infants, 3 to 24 months of age with uncomplicated acute gastroenteritis, were enrolled in a prospective, randomized, double-blind study that compared the safety and efficacy of two oral solutions. The solutions differed primarily in the sodium concentration (60 v 30 mEq/L) and glucose concentration (2% v 5%). The mean serum sodium concentrations of the two groups did not differ significantly from each other at entry or at the end of the study period. In addition, there were no significant changes in the mean serum sodium concentration within each group at the end of the study period. No child in either group became hypernatremic. Our results indicate that a solution with a high concentration of sodium initially designed for the rehydration of dehydrated children also can be safely and effectively used as a maintenance solution for the treatment of well-hydrated children older than 3 months of age with acute gastroenteritis.


The accuracy of the discharge diagnoses recorded in hospital medical records, and the accuracy of their ICD codes, were retrospectively examined in 174 randomly chosen hospital patients. There was a 29% error rate in the recorded ICD codes when compared at a three digit level to the results obtained by retrospectively reviewing the records, establishing diagnoses and coding them. The error rate increased when medical records coders, rather than medically trained personnel, undertook the task of establishing the discharge diagnoses.


We present a new numerical technique, the Gegenbauer homotopy analysis method, which allows for the construction of iterative solutions to nonlinear differential equations. This technique is a numerical extension of the semi-analytic homotopy analysis method that exhibits spectral convergence while performing sparse matrix operations in Gegenbauer space. This technique is used to present solutions to the Falkner--Skan equation, a well known problem in boundary layer fluid dynamics. These solutions are compared to previously published works, and the convergence properties exhibited by this new technique are considered.

 References N. S. Asaithambi. A numerical method for the solution of the Falkner–Skan equation. Applied Mathematics and Computation , 81 :259–264, 1997. doi:10.1016/S0096-3003(95)00325-8 H. Blasius. Grenzschichten in flussigkeiten mit kleiner reibung. Zeitschrift fur Angewandte Mathematik und Physik , 56 :1–37, 1908. T. Cebeci and H. B. Keller. Shooting and parallel shooting methods for solving the Falkner–Skan boundary-layer equation. Journal of Computational Physics , 7 :289–300, 1971. doi:10.1016/0021-9991(71)90090-8 V. M. Falkner and S. W. Skan. Some approximate solutions of the boundary layer equations. Philosophical Magazine , 12 :865–896, 1930. R. Fazio. Blasius problem and Falkner–Skan model: Topfer's algorithm and its extension. Computers and Fluid , 75 :202–209, 2013. doi:10.1016/j.compfluid.2012.12.012 S. J. Liao. The proposed homotopy analysis technique for the solution of nonlinear problems . PhD thesis, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 1992. S. S. Motsa, G. T. Marewo, P. Sibanda and S. Shateyi. An improved spectral homotopy analysis method for solving boundary layer problems. Boundary Value Problems , 2011(1) :3, 2011. doi:10.1186/1687-2770-2011-3 S. Olver and A. Townsend. A fast and well-conditioned spectral method. SIAM Review , 55(3) :462–489, 2013. doi:10.1137/120865458 S. M. Rassoulinejad-Mousavi and S. Abbasbandy. Analysis of forced convection in a circular tube filled with a Darcy–Brinkman–Forcheimer porous medium using spectral homotopy analysis method. Journal of Fluids Engineering , 133(10) :101207–101207–9, 2011. doi:10.1115/1.4004998 H. Saberi Nik, S. Effati, S. S. Motsa, and M. Shirazian. Spectral homotopy analysis method and its convergence for solving a class of nonlinear optimal control problems. Numerical Algorithms , 65(1) :171–194, 2014. doi:10.1007/s11075-013-9700-4


A double-blind randomized clinical trial was performed comparing the therapeutic effects of Actovegin@versus placebo in elderly patients with organic brain syndrome. In addition to the necessary basic internal medicine therapy, 40 geriatric patients received daily intravenous infusions of 250 ml Actovegin@ 20% p.i., and 20 patients received 250 ml 0.9% saline solution as placebo over a period of four weeks. Of the patient sample, 58% were hospitalized for simple dementia (ICD-9: 290.0) and 42% due to senile dementia with depressive or paranoid symptoms (ICD-9: 290.2). Based on the Syndrome Short Test (SKT) and the Sandoz Clinical Assessment Geriatric Scale (SCAC) score, the patients suffered from mild to moderate dementia. The therapeutic effect on the total SCAG score and the Clinical Global Impression (CGI) were the primary study variables. The scores for the SCAG subscales and the SKT score served as secondary variables. The mean total SCAG score in the drug group decreased from 56.3 at the start of therapy to 36.3 points at the end of therapy, and in the placebo group the total score went from 61.2 to 52.0 (p < 0.01). The CGI showed that with Actovegina. 70% of the patients experienced 'distinct improvement" or "improvement" compared to only 35% with such results in the placebo group. The SCAG subscales and the total SKT score also demonstrated the superior effects of ~ctove~in@corn~


We report on clinical, laboratory, and angiographic findings that appear to characterize a group of 13 middle-aged patients who suffered acute coronary syndromes (ACS) despite little angiographic evidence of atherosclerotic heart disease (ASHD) or other risk factors. Nine of the 13 were ≤46 years of age and the rest ranged to 59 years. All had evidence of platelet disorders (PD): seven had chronic immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), one had familial thrombocytopenia, and five had other disorders affecting platelets. Evidence of long-standing chronic platelet activation was the common feature of the group, as found by (i) elevated platelet microparticles (PMP), (ii) thrombocytopenia, and (iii) enhanced procoagulant activity of plasma. Data on the 7 with ITP were compared to 20 ITP without ACS: the former had higher PMP (p < 0.01) and platelet-associated IgM (p < 0.05) relative to the ITP patient controls. Another set of patient controls consisted of 20 ACS with documented ASHD: although activation indicators were abnormal also in this group relative to normal controls (p < 0.01), the PD group of 13 had more marked abnormalities in all tests (p < 0.03), particularly in PMP and thrombocytopenia (p < 0.01). The seven youngest in the PD group appeared to respond to antiplatelet therapy since no recurrence of coronary ischemia was seen in up to 3 years of observation. It is suggested that chronic platelet activation by antibodies or immune complex may predispose those in the PD group to ACS (e.g., when under stress) despite the absence of ASHD and few other known risk factors. The true incidence of this syndrome is unknown but may be substantial. Key Words: Chronic platelet activation-Platelet microparticles-Platelet.associated IgM-Immune thrombocytopenia-Acute coronary syndromes-Middle age.


Computational Thinking (CT) has been described as an essential skill which everyone should learn and can therefore include in their skill set. Seymour Papert is credited as concretising Computational Thinking in 1980 but since Wing popularised the term in 2006 and brought it to the international community's attention, more and more research has been conducted on CT in education. The aim of this systematic literary review is to give educators and education researchers an overview of what work has been carried out in the domain, as well as potential gaps and opportunities that still exist. Overall it was found in this review that, although there is a lot of work currently being done around the world in many different educational contexts, the work relating to CT is still in its infancy. Along with the need to create an agreed-upon definition of CT lots of countries are still in the process of, or have not yet started, introducing CT into curriculums in all levels of education. It was also found that Computer Science/Computing, which could be the most obvious place to teach CT, has yet to become a mainstream subject in some countries, although this is improving. Of encouragement to educators is the wealth of tools and resources being developed to help teach CT as well as more and more work relating to curriculum development. For those teachers looking to incorporate CT into their schools or classes then there are bountiful options which include programming, hands-on exercises and more. The need for more detailed lesson plans and curriculum structure however, is something that could be of benefit to teachers.


In the face of weak global growth in major export markets the Caribbean economies have underperformed. The situation is much more severe among service producers1 which have suffered the decline in tourist arrivals and offshore banking services. The goods producers have benefited from the commodity boom and have tended to show more robust growth. The expectations for 2013 are that growth will be positive in the region with the service producers growing at 1.5per cent and the goods producers at 3.6per cent. This performance will depend heavily on improved performances in the major export markets. The fiscal policy stance in most countries in the region in 2012 tended to be expansionary with the average deficit increasing from 3.1 per cent of GDP to 3.4 per cent. The economic structure was an indicator of fiscal health as the service producers had greater deficits. The central challenge on the fiscal side in the region is the large debt problem. Between 2011 and 2012 the average debt burden increased marginally from 64.2per cent of GDP to 65.5per cent of GDP and in a few cases the debt burden was in excess of 100 per cent of GDP. This situation calls for a consistent attempt at fiscal consolidation over the medium term. With respect to monetary policy, the stance was mostly neutral given sluggish demand and stable prices. In a few cases, lending rates trended down slightly but deposit rates also declined and money supply remained practically constant. At the same time, domestic credit to both the private and public sector remained unchanged and the private sector remained risk averse. Inflation trends in 2012 were mixed but overall inflation remained relatively low. The current account balance which is a source of growing concern, increased due to rising imports and sluggish exports. Elevated commodity prices helped to keep the cost of imports high .In terms of the financial and capital accounts, there was an increase in FDI inflows to the subregion but much of this was outside of the tourism sector.


Significance Pertussis has reemerged as an important public health concern since current acellular pertussis vaccines (aP) replaced older whole-cell vaccines (wP). In this study, we show nonhuman primates vaccinated with aP were protected from severe symptoms but not infection and readily transmitted Bordetella pertussis to contacts. Vaccination with wP and previous infection induced a more rapid clearance compared with naïve and aP-vaccinated animals. While all groups possessed robust antibody responses, key differences in T-cell memory suggest that aP vaccination induces a suboptimal immune response that is unable to prevent infection. These data provide a plausible explanation for pertussis resurgence and suggest that attaining herd immunity will require the development of improved vaccination strategies that prevent B. pertussis colonization and transmission. Pertussis is a highly contagious respiratory illness caused by the bacterial pathogen Bordetella pertussis. Pertussis rates in the United States have been rising and reached a 50-y high of 42,000 cases in 2012. Although pertussis resurgence is not completely understood, we hypothesize that current acellular pertussis (aP) vaccines fail to prevent colonization and transmission. To test our hypothesis, infant baboons were vaccinated at 2, 4, and 6 mo of age with aP or whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccines and challenged with B. pertussis at 7 mo. Infection was followed by quantifying colonization in nasopharyngeal washes and monitoring leukocytosis and symptoms. Baboons vaccinated with aP were protected from severe pertussis-associated symptoms but not from colonization, did not clear the infection faster than naïve animals, and readily transmitted B. pertussis to unvaccinated contacts. Vaccination with wP induced a more rapid clearance compared with naïve and aP-vaccinated animals. By comparison, previously infected animals were not colonized upon secondary infection. Although all vaccinated and previously infected animals had robust serum antibody responses, we found key differences in T-cell immunity. Previously infected animals and wP-vaccinated animals possess strong B. pertussis-specific T helper 17 (Th17) memory and Th1 memory, whereas aP vaccination induced a Th1/Th2 response instead. The observation that aP, which induces an immune response mismatched to that induced by natural infection, fails to prevent colonization or transmission provides a plausible explanation for the resurgence of pertussis and suggests that optimal control of pertussis will require the development of improved vaccines.


Background: As more early career scientists enter into diverse career pathways, visiting local companies or organizations can support their exploration of these paths. As an efficient way to facilitate this, we developed a collaborative regional site visit program: the Enhancing Local Industry Transitions through Exploration (ELITE) Consortium. Consortium members arrange half-day visits to local industry sites, thus providing companies and trainees the opportunity to meet and identify potential professional and career opportunities. Three different training institutions worked cooperatively in the development and maintenance of the program. The ELITE Consortium was developed with eight phased steps; guidelines and operating procedures were created for each of these steps and are provided along with sample materials for institutions interested in building similar programs. Methods: Prior to fully developing the program, trainee interests were evaluated via questionnaire. During program implementation and thereafter, program directors tracked attendance and collected career outcome data from publicly available sources to identify first job positions after training. Regression analyses and chi-squared analyses were used to examine site visit matches and career outcome data. Results: Analyses suggest a positive impact of site visits on postdoctoral and graduate trainees' career outcomes at companies or institutions that match a similar sector (e.g., for-profit) and type (e.g., biotech, pharmaceutical, contract research organization). Despite a small sample size, evidence suggests an especially positive impact on trainees who organize site visits to companies compared with those who simply participate. Conclusions: The ELITE Consortium was successful in helping trainees explore and identify a multitude of career paths. Trainees attained employment either directly or in related companies and institutions visited by ELITE participants. The joint, three-institution, flexible nature of the ELITE Consortium positively impacts the program's sustainability and reach. The toolkit provided here will help other institutions to replicate and adapt the program with minimal effort.


The dietary flavonoid quercetin reduces blood pressure and improves endothelial function in several rat models of hypertension. We analyzed the effects of quercetin and its methylated metabolite isorhamnetin on the aortic endothelial dysfunction induced by incubation with angiotensin II (AngII) in vitro for 6 h. AngII diminished the relaxant responses to acetylcholine in phenylephrine-contracted aorta. Coincubation with quercetin or isorhamnetin, or addition of superoxide (O(2)(-)) dismutase or apocynin to the assay medium, prevented these inhibitory effects. At 6 h, AngII induced a marked increase in O(2)(-) production as measured by dihydroethidium fluorescence, which was prevented by quercetin and isorhamnetin. AngII also increased the expression of p47(phox), a regulatory subunit of the membrane NADPH oxidase. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that overexpression of p47(phox) occurred mainly in the medial layer. p47(phox) overexpression was also prevented by quercetin and isorhamnetin. Taken together, these results show for the first time, to our knowledge, that quercetin and isorhamnetin prevent AngII-induced endothelial dysfunction by inhibiting the overexpression of p47(phox) and the subsequent increased O(2)(-) production, resulting in increased nitric oxide bioavailability.


Politics should be included in the academic and community discussion of spatial disparity. Poverty, healthcare, and access to transportation are frequent metrics when comparing geographic social advantage, but politics is almost always absent. Is it possible that political participation has an effect on the socioeconomic status or wellbeing of a community? Using voter turnout data from the Kansas City Election Board in all 37 elections in Kansas City, Missouri since 2000 and Census data, we can determine there is a statistically significant relationship between geography and voter turnout. Geographic variation in voter turnout can be reliably predicted using socioeconomic status – income, poverty, race, and disability. Furthermore, using Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services zip-code level mortality data, we can calculate life expectancy. We can then tentatively make the claim that voter turnout has a statistically significant lagged relationship with life expectancy. This can imply that voting results in long-term health benefits for a community. SOCIOGEOGRAPHIC TURNOUT DISPARITIES 3


The present study aims to improve the dyeability and antimicrobial activity of natural extract onwool fabric by using lowtemperature plasma treatment. The fungal pigments were extracted from the species of Thermomyces, purified and characterized using UV-Vis and FTIR spectra and used for dyeing process. An experiment has been designed using Box- Benkhen with three levels and three variables using pH, temperature and time as independent variables with wash, rubbing, light fastness and bacterial reduction (%) as dependent variables and the conditions were optimized. Regression equations have been obtained to analyze the fastness properties and bacterial reduction and the optimum process parameters were identified. The method is also to modify the conventional dyeing process using plasma pretreatment onwool fabric before dyeingwith natural fungal extract and to analyze the parameters like wash fastness, rubbing fastness, light fastness and bacterial reduction (%). The results showed that optimum concentration of the fungal pigment was 2% on weight of the fabric and the optimumcondition for dyeingwas 60 deg C, 30min at a pH of 3 and the plasma pretreated samples brings better fixation levels, improvement in fastness properties and imparts good antibacterial activity for the dyed wool fabric at optimum condition. It was also inferred that the plasma treated samples does not showed any influence with increase in the treatment time. iƒ" 2014 Trade Science Inc. - INDIA


A co-polymer with hydrophobic and hydrophilic segments was allowed to adsorb from aqueous solution onto glass previously made hydrophobic by derivatization with octadecyl dimethylchlorosilane. The polymer is thought to adsorb via its hydrophobic segments, leaving the hydrophilic segments free to extend into the water. After allowing cells to settle on the treated surface, the shear stress at the chamber wall required to remove red blood cells, Dictyostelium discoideum amoebae and Escherichia coli was determined in a calibrated laminar flow chamber. On octadecyl glass a shear stress of 2-3 Nm-2 evicts 50% of adherent red cells and E. coli. No D. discoideum amoebae could be removed at 5Nm-2. In striking contrast, the lowest experimentally obtainable shear stress of 0.03 Nm-2 removes 97.0-99.5% of cells of all three types from the polymer-treated surface, even after a cell residence time of 1 h without flow in the absence of free polymer. The minimum shear stress of 0.03Nm-2 corresponds to only approximately equal to 20 times the force of gravity on a red cell. The mechanism of action of the polymer and the implications of the results are discussed.


Aum's activities have had a global impact on counterterrorism thinking. Its use of chemical and biological weapons caught the attention of policy makers and security forces globally, and Aum became a seminal influence on the way security and government agencies, especially in the United States, conceptualized the future of terrorism to be chemical, religious, and apocalyptic in nature. Such perceptions conditioned counterterrorism policies in the years prior to 11 September 2001, and strategic studies specialists now debate whether this led the usa in particular to underestimate threats from other more conventional modes of terrorist violence. Even after 9/11, Aum continues to feature in counterterrorism discourses and military training manuals, and continues to represent, for security services and policy makers, the "public face" of chemical and biologically oriented terrorism. This article examines these issues and shows how the Aum Affair was not simply restricted to Japan but had a global impact and profile.


Objective: Osteoporosis is a systemic metabolic disease. The etiology of osteoporosis is involved in many environmental and genetic factors. We investigated the association of IGF-I (rs35767, rs2288377 and rs5742612) and VDR (rs7975232, rs2228570, rs1544410 and rs11568820) polymorphisms with the risk of osteoporosis. We also assessed the effect of gene-environment interactions in the development of this disease.
Methods: A total of 320 patients with osteoporosis and 320 controls were recruited. IGF-I (rs35767, rs2288377 and rs5742612) and VDR (rs7975232, rs2228570, rs1544410 and rs11568820) were amplified and genotyped by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method.
Results: The AA genotype of rs2288377 was associated with an elevated risk of osteoporosis compared to the TT genotype (OR=1.90, 95% CI=1.08-3.39). In dominant model, the TA+AA genotype of rs2288377 had an increased risk of developing osteoporosis in comparison to the TT genotype (OR=1.50, 95% CI=1.08-2.08). In recessive model, the AA genotype of rs2288377 revealed a higher risk of developing osteoporosis than the TA+TT genotype (OR=2.19, 95% CI=1.28-3.79). Moreover, IGF-I rs35767 and rs5742612, and VDR rs7975232, rs2228570, rs1544410 and rs11568820 were not significantly associated with the risk of osteoporosis.
Conclusions: Our study suggests a significant association between the IGFI rs2288377 polymorphism and the risk of osteoporosis in the Chinese population.


The relationship mountain communities have with global capitalism are complex, being mediated by a diverse topography and ecology, which both provide opportunities for capital accumulation, while also isolating older, 'pre-capitalist' modes of production. This paper takes a case study valley from Nepal's eastern hills, tracing over two centuries of agrarian change and evolving interactions between 'adivasi' and 'semi-feudal' economic formations with capitalism. In recent years, the expansion of markets, rising demand for cash and climate stress has solidified migrant labour as a core component of livelihoods, and the primary mechanism of surplus appropriation from the hill peasantry. Through a focus on three altitudinal zones however, it is demonstrated how the trajectory of this transformation, including the interactions with persisting pre-capitalist formations is mediated by both political-economic processes, and the local agro-ecological context.


This paper has identified some theoretical reasons and empirical evidence for negative scores that occur in Japan and Korea or unstable NPS scores that can be experienced. A psychological analysis of NPS results sheds light on the validity of the negative NPS scores that are often found in Japan and Korea. Usually customer experience surveys utilize a "single stimulus" such as the "company" or the "company's products / services." However, in the case of the "recommendation to friend" question of the NPS system there are two stimuli namely the "company product/service" and the influence of "friends." Hence, the survey outcomes from this question can be very different when compared with other single stimulus questions such as "overall satisfaction" or "repurchase." Japanese and Korean people may have a positive attitude towards the company but they will provide low NPS scores because they are reflecting that they would not run the risk of ruining their relationships with their friends by making a recommendation. As a result, in the NPS system these people will be labeled as "detractors" when in fact they are "ambivalent customers." Using several Japanese and Korean based marketing research industry examples and case studies, different strategies are proposed to address the issue of negative scores in the NPS system in Japan and Korea. The Customers Psyche appears to be the key determinant factors for both types of behavioural items (items with a single stimulus as well as items with two stimuli).


A public economics framework is used to consider how pharmaceuticals should be priced when at least some of the research and development incentive comes from sales revenues. Familiar techniques of public finance are used to relax some of the restrictions implied in the standard use of Ramsey pricing. Under the more general model, poor countries should not necessarily cover even their own marginal costs, and the pricing structure is not related to that which would be chosen by a monopolist in a simple way. This framework is then used to examine ongoing debates regarding the international patent system as embodied in the World Trade Organization's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.


Roadsides in Sweden offer suitable habitats for species that naturally occur in the old agricultural landscape, a habitat that is less common today. These species are favored by small-scale disturbance such as of mowing which is to some extent applied in roadsides for management of the road surface. The Swedish Transport Administration has worked according to the environmental directives for sustainable populations of threatened species that occur along roadsides. Roadsides with threatened species and species that represent the old agriculture landscape have been located and described. Such roadsides have been named species rich roadsides (artrik vagkant) and can be found in different environments spread across the country. The Swedish Transport Administration has developed recommendations for special management to support species of old agricultural landscape in roadsides. Previous studies have shown a negative development of the species rich roadsides, with reduced numbers of species rich roadsides. This project has analyzed whether there is a relationship between the management of species rich roadsides and the negative development of species rich roadsides, and also make recommendations for improving management methods needed for improving the development of species rich roadsides. Data have been used from previous inventories of species rich roadsides, the study area restricted to Region Mitt. The present management of species rich roadsides has a significant negative effect of the development of species rich roadsides. To improve the development of species rich roadsides, management must be adapted to the environment the roadside is located to.


Sf films such as Blade Runner and Ghost in the Shell take a deep interest in the Hong Kong urbanscape at the turn of the century. With its history of dislocation, migration, and marginality in its colonial days, Hong Kong emerges as a model city for the sf genre of "future noir"; its overcrowded, disjunctive cityscape provides a perfect setting for multiculturalism in a postmodern context. This article takes readers on a guided tour of a unique shopping mall at the hub of Hong Kong urbanscape, Times Square, as an illustration of how we can read out of it an "urban secret located at the intersection" of sf and the postmodern. This content downloaded from 22.214.171.124 on Sat, 20 Dec 2014 19:23:12 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions


Program Description: Although there are well-established surgical techniques to reconstruct the ossicular chain, these methods remain varied, often based more on local tradition than on scientific research. The increasing number of available prostheses further increases the number of potential surgical variables. Successful ossiculoplasty as a part of tympanoplasty therefore continues to pose a significant challenge to the otolaryngologist. The goal of this miniseminar is to present the current best surgical technique for ossiculoplasty. Toward this end, we have assembled a panel of distinguished otologists who will draw on significant advances in basic research and ossicular prosthesis design, in addition to their vast clinical experience. Following a brief introduction, each panelist will present his preferred surgical technique of ossiculoplasty for reconstruction of the ossicular chain. The remaining time will be devoted to case presentations to identify the best ossiculoplasty method in specific clinical situations. This miniseminar will provide information that should improve the ability of each participant to perform successful ossiculoplasty.


Much of structural control research and applications in civil engineering have been concerned with structures equipped with passive, hybrid, or active control devices in order to enhance structural performance under extraordinary loads. In most cases, the structure and the control system are individually designed and optimized. On the other hand, an exciting consequence of structural control research is that it also opens the door to new possibilities in structural forms and configurations, such as lighter buildings or bridges with longer spans without compromising on structural performance. Moreover, this can only be achieved through integrated design of structures with control elements as an integral part. This paper addresses the integrated design of structures with imbedded control systems and devices. Simultaneous optimization of such controlled structures is considered, showing that new structural forms and configurations can be achieved through integrated design.


We report on a broad and unprecedented increase in seismicity rate following the M=9.0 Tohoku mainshock for M ≥ 2 earthquakes over inland Japan, parts of the Japan Sea and Izu islands, at distances of up to 425 km from the locus of high (≥15 m) seismic slip on the megathrust. Such an increase was not seen for the 2004 M=9.1 Sumatra or 2010 M=8.8 Chile earthquakes, but they lacked the seismic networks necessary to detect such small events. Here we explore the possibility that the rate changes are the product of static Coulomb stress transfer to small faults. We use the nodal planes of M ≥ 3.5 earthquakes as proxies for such small active faults, and find that of fifteen regions averaging ∼80 by 80 km in size, 11 show a positive association between calculated stress changes and the observed seismicity rate change, 3 show a negative correlation, and for one the changes are too small to assess. This work demonstrates that seismicity can turn on in the nominal stress shadow of a mainshock as long as small geometrically diverse active faults exist there, which is likely quite common.


We present the case of two children with cancer in the final stage of life, we describe the treatment given in this phase based on palliative sedation and analgesia to provide comfort to the patients and to offer calm to their relatives. We reviewed the literature information on support of sedation and analgesia at this stage of life, and the use of drugs such as midazolam and morphine. With the information provided in this article we expect physicians to convince themselves that opportune sedation and analgesia are useful and beneficial at the terminal stage of life.


Author(s): Ditta, Annie Stanfield | Advisor(s): Storm, Benjamin C | Abstract: People are inherently creative in that they produce ideas to solve problems often in their everyday lives. Work on idea production has investigated the role of viewing examples on people's ability to think of new ideas, to mixed results. Some work has found that people experience fixation when they are exposed to examples that are meant to help them think more creatively (demonstrating a negative effect on the ability to think of new ideas), while other work has shown that being shown examples can be helpful for producing more creative ideas (demonstrating a positive effect). However, no work to date has examined the effect of 1) different sources of examples (i.e., self- vs. other-generated), and 2) the manner in which one interacts with these examples on creative thinking (i.e., retrieving, restudying, or doing nothing with those ideas). To examine these effects, the set of experiments in this dissertation utilized a modified version of the Alternative Uses Task to investigate the effects of example type and interaction method on the ability to generate new ideas. In these experiments, participants were asked to generate their own examples or study someone else's examples in two phases, where the ideas from the initial phase served as examples for the second phase. Before thinking of additional ideas, participants were asked to interact with the example ideas in different ways (i.e., retrieve from memory, restudy, or do nothing with them). Results from these experiments demonstrate that recalling and restudying a diverse set of initial examples—whether one's own or someone else's—may not induce measurable differential effects in the Alternative Uses Task. The results from these experiments add to the growing literature on idea generation ability after exposure to examples in a number of important ways.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the efficacy and safety of treating vulvar lichen sclerosus with mometasone furoate, a synthetic analogue of beclomethasone.

STUDY DESIGN
Thirty-one consecutive patients with biopsy-proven vulvar lichen sclerosus (LS) seen at the Florence Vulvar Clinic were entered into the study. Each subject's symptoms and the gross appearance of the lesions were recorded using a severity score according to the authors' previous studies. The patients were treated with a regimen of 0.1% mometasone furoate cream applications to the affected areas once daily for 4 weeks and then twice weekly for 8 weeks. After 12 weeks of treatment, the subjects were asked to rate the changes in their symptoms and were reevaluated by the same examiner for the gross appearance of the lesions. In every patient the before/after treatment total severity scores were compared using Wilcoxon's signed-rank test for statistical significance.

RESULTS
With mometasone furoate all the patients had a significant improvement (P < .001) in the gross aspects of the disease and a very dramatic decrease in symptoms (P < .001), with nearly all the subjects having complete symptomatic remission. Compliance was excellent, and no side effects were observed.

CONCLUSION
The improved risk/benefit ratio of mometasone furoate may minimize the possible long-term side effects expected when using a very potent topical steroid. Therefore, momentasone furoate cream may be an alternative to clobetasol propionate for treatment of vulvar LS, with similar efficacy but higher levels of safety and tolerability.


OBJECTIVES
We asked in our research whether the premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and its concomitants, differ between "sedente" and "migrant" populations hailing from the same ethnic group, owing to their living in contrasting socio-ecological conditions.

METHODS
A total of 501 Oraon adolescents (sedente: 200, migrant: 301) were studied. Data on PMS was reported retrospectively using a list of 29 standard symptoms. Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied on PMS. PCA, which resulted in six principal components (PC1 to PC6) were loaded with "behavioral and cognitive," "negative mood," "pain and fluid retention," "vestibular and breast tenderness," and "fatigue," and/or "gastrointestinal" symptoms. Step-wise hierarchical regression was applied using migration status (step 1), socio-demographic (step 2), menstrual (step 3), and nutritional and lifestyle variables (step 4) as concomitants for each principal component.

RESULTS
Significantly, a greater number of migrants reported PMS but of milder intensity, unlike the sedentes. Significant sedente-migrant differences were found in the concomitants for PMS. Multivariate analyses showed differential socio-demographic (occupational, educational and wealth status, religion), nutritional (dietary carbohydrate protein and fat, tea intake, body mass index, percent body fat, waist hip ratio, fat mass index), menstrual (age at menarche, cycle length, dysmenorrhoea) and anemic status of the sedentes and the migrants were significantly associated with PMS.

CONCLUSIONS
Sedente and migrant participants, despite hailing from the same ethnic group, sharply differed in the prevalence of PMS and its concomitants owing to their living in contrasting socio-ecological conditions.


Msx genes, homeobox-containing genes, have been isolated as homologues of the Drosophila msh gene and are thought to play important roles in the development of chick or mouse limb buds. We isolated two Msx genes, Msx1 and Msx2, from regenerating blastemas of axolotl limbs and examined their expression patterns using Northern blot and whole mount in situ hybridization during regeneration and development. Northern blot analysis revealed that the expression level of both Msx genes increased during limb regeneration. The Msx2 expression level increased in the blastema at the early bud stage, and Msx1 expression level increased at the late bud stage. Whole mount in situ hybridization revealed that Msx2 was expressed in the distal mesenchyme and Msx1 in the entire mesenchyme of the blastema at the late bud stage. In the developing limb bud, Msx1 was expressed in the entire mesenchyme, while Msx2 was expressed in the distal and peripheral mesenchyme. The expression patterns of Msx genes in the blastemas and limb buds of the axolotl were different from those reported for chick or mouse limb buds. These expression patterns of axolotl Msx genes are discussed in relation to the blastema or limb bud morphology and their possible roles in limb patterning.


The objective of this study was to visualize and simulate the thermal physical process during double droplet train impingement for three different horizontal impact spacings (S = 0.65 mm, 1.2 mm and 2 mm). Two identical HFE-7100 droplet trains were produced using a piezoelectric droplet generator at a frequency of 6000 Hz with a corresponding droplet Weber number of 312. A translucent sapphire substrate with a thin film ITO coating was used as heater in the experiments. The heat transfer and hydrodynamics of double droplet train impingement have been visualized using IR thermal imaging and high speed optical imaging techniques, respectively. The double droplet train impingement process was also simulated numerically using the Coupled Level Set-Volume of Fluid (CLS-VOF) approach with dynamic mesh adaption (DMA). Humps were observed both numerically and experimentally between two adjacent impact craters due to the interactions caused by the impinging droplet trains. It was found that the hump height decreased when impact spacing increased. IR images show that higher impact spacing leads to better heat transfer performance, which could be due to the lower hump height at greater impact spacing conditions. It was also observed that higher impact spacing leads to better thermo-hydrodynamics within and outside the impingement zone. In summary, results show that horizontal impact spacing plays a significant role in double droplet train impingement cooling.
 This work was supported by the National Priority Research Program of the Qatar National Research Fund, Grant No.: NPRP 6-1304-2-525.


Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen of major clinical concern. The virulence of this pathogen is intimately intertwined with its metabolic behavior, and mitochondria have a central role in that metabolism. Mitochondria have undergone many evolutionary changes, which include lineage-specific adaptations in association with their eukaryotic host. Seven lineage-specific genes required for electron transport chain function were identified in the CTG clade of fungi, of which C. albicans is a member. Additionally, examination of several highly diverged orthologs encoding mitochondrial proteins demonstrated functional reassignment for one of these. Deficits imparted by deletion of these genes revealed the critical role of respiration in virulence attributes of the fungus and highlight important evolutionary adaptations in C. albicans metabolism. ABSTRACT Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen of major clinical concern. The virulence of this pathogen is intimately intertwined with its metabolism. Mitochondria, which have a central metabolic role, have undergone many lineage-specific adaptations in association with their eukaryotic host. A screen for lineage-specific genes identified seven such genes specific to the CTG clade of fungi, of which C. albicans is a member. Each is required for respiratory growth and is integral to expression of complex I, III, or IV of the electron transport chain. Two genes, NUO3 and NUO4, encode supernumerary subunits of complex I, whereas NUE1 and NUE2 have nonstructural roles in expression of complex I. Similarly, the other three genes have nonstructural roles in expression of complex III (QCE1) or complex IV (COE1 and COE2). In addition to these novel additions, an alternative functional assignment was found for the mitochondrial protein encoded by MNE1. MNE1 was required for complex I expression in C. albicans, whereas the distantly related Saccharomyces cerevisiae ortholog participates in expression of complex III. Phenotypic analysis of deletion mutants showed that fermentative metabolism is unable to support optimal growth rates or yields of C. albicans. However, yeast-hypha morphogenesis, an important virulence attribute, did not require respiratory metabolism under hypoxic conditions. The inability to respire also resulted in hypersensitivity to the antifungal fluconazole and in attenuated virulence in a Galleria mellonella infection model. The results show that lineage-specific adaptations have occurred in C. albicans mitochondria and highlight the significance of respiratory metabolism in the pathobiology of C. albicans. IMPORTANCE Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen of major clinical concern. The virulence of this pathogen is intimately intertwined with its metabolic behavior, and mitochondria have a central role in that metabolism. Mitochondria have undergone many evolutionary changes, which include lineage-specific adaptations in association with their eukaryotic host. Seven lineage-specific genes required for electron transport chain function were identified in the CTG clade of fungi, of which C. albicans is a member. Additionally, examination of several highly diverged orthologs encoding mitochondrial proteins demonstrated functional reassignment for one of these. Deficits imparted by deletion of these genes revealed the critical role of respiration in virulence attributes of the fungus and highlight important evolutionary adaptations in C. albicans metabolism.


A 2d model of causal set quantum gravity is constructed using a continuum-inspired dynamics. Apart from a restriction to causal set dimension and topology, the model is fully dynamical and includes all relevant 2d conformally flat degrees of freedom. Surprisingly, in the large N limit the partition function is dominated by causal sets that resemble 2d Minkowski spacetime. Thus, in this model the "entropy problem" of causal set theory is overcome and a sensible low energy limit is obtained.


Three non-circulating hydroponic methods for growing lettuce are described which do not require electricity, pumps or wicks. All of the nutrient solution is added prior to planting or transplanting. In the simplest system, lettuce is seeded in a tapered plastic net pot filled with growing medium and placed in a darkened, 4liter plastic bottle filled with nutrient solution with the lower 3-cm-portion of the pot immersed in nutrient solution. Plants are automatically watered, because the entire growing medium in the net pot becomes moistened by capillary action. Plant growth reduces the nutrient solution level, creating an enlarging moist air space. Meanwhile, the root system expands and continues to absorb water and nutrients. Leaf and semi-head lettuce cultivars are usually harvested at about 6 to 7 weeks after seeding. A typical expansion of this concept to a commercial scale employs a 14 cm high tank lined with polyethylene sheeting which is filled with nutrient solution and covered with an expanded or extruded polystyrene sheet resting on the tank frame. Lettuce is planted or transplanted into net pots filled with growing medium and placed in holes in the cover. Lettuce seedlings are initially watered by capillary action, and later, by direct root uptake. The crop is harvested before the nutrient solution becomes exhausted. Another modification of this method is a float-support system in long rectangular raceway tanks. Lettuce is planted or transplanted into net pots placed in a sheet of extruded polystyrene. The cover initially floats on the nutrient solution, and then, comes to rest on 2 parallel plastic pipes (10 cm diam) resting on the tank floor as the nutrient solution level recedes due to plant growth. The tank is filled with water immediately prior to harvesting and floating rafts may be easily moved to a harvesting station.


A study on plants species as resource of food for Bali Starling (Leucopsar rothschildi Stresemann, 1912) was carried out in Ped Village, Nusa Penida, Klungkung Bali, Indonesia between March-April and between August-September, 2006. Explorations methods were conducted in making inventory of plants species and part of plants as food resource. Direct observations were conducted to observe feeding activity of the starling after release. Results of this study showed that 105 plants species have been identified in Ped village. About 30 species (in varied habitus of trees, shrubs, and herbs) acted as food resources for the starling. Part of plants species which had been used as food resources were fruits and seeds. Besides plants as food sources, insects were also available on the studi site (such as grasshopper, ants, caterpillars, butterflies). In addition there were also small reptiles as source of food for the the bird. Plants availability as source of food supports ex-situ conservations of Bali Starling in Ped village.


Reading some well-known childhood poems by Blake and Wordsworth, the article challenges the accepted opinion that the Puritan and Romantic concepts of the child at the turn of the nineteenth century functioned as opposites. Instead, the article offers a reading that unravels the residues of Puritan and catechetical thinking in texts by two of the earliest advocates of the child's perspective as a valuable human and poetic quality. Though denouncing authoritarian and catechetical modes of interaction in which the child's speech is silenced, Blake and Wordsworth, writing at a moment of cultural transition, construct the child in a way that indicates a failure of their own declared purpose of redeeming the child's perspective and voice as valuably distinct from those of the adult. Although formally and grammatically the voice of Blake's poetic child is sometimes restored to him, the child is made a spokesman of a sophisticated and emphatically adult discourse of political radicalism. Similarly in Wordsworth, the construction of the child as a necessary layer in the uncovering of the poetic and autobiographical Self denies the child its valuable difference through an adult voice's ongoing narcissistic ventriloquism. The adult speaker's idealization of the child's freedom is ambiguated by the implicit association of freedom with parental neglect, which involves a disregard of the child's perspective. Thus, in contrast to the declared agenda of the poems, they also imply a desire that the child be less liberated and more regulated by the adult world.


The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) is responsible for protecting and managing the natural resources and heritage on almost 20% of the land in the United States. The DOI's mission requires access to remotely sensed data over vast lands, including areas that are remote and potentially dangerous to access. Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) technology has the potential to enable the DOI to be a better steward of the land by: (1) Improving natural hazard forecasting and the analysis of the impacts. (2) Improving the understanding of climate change to better plan for likely impacts. (3) Developing precipitation and evaporation forecasting to better manage water resources. (4) Monitoring Arctic ice change and its impacts on ecosystems, coasts, and transportation. (5) Increasing safety and effectiveness of wildland fire management. (6) Enhancing search and rescue capabilities. (7) Broadening the abilities to monitor environmental or landscape conditions and changes. (8) Better understanding and protecting the Nation's ecosystems. The initial operational testing and evaluations performed by the DOI have proven that UAS technology can be used to support many of the Department's activities. UAS technology provides scientists a way to look longer, closer and more frequently at some of Earth's most remote areas—places that were previously too dangerous or expensive to monitor in detail. The flexibility of operations and relative low cost to purchase and operate Small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS) enhances the ability to track long-term landscape and environmental change. The initial testing indicates the operational costs are approximately 10% of traditional manned aircraft. In addition, users can quickly assess landscape-altering events such as wildland fires, floods and volcanoes. UAS technology will allow the DOI to do more with less and in the process enhance the Department's ability to provide unbiased scientific information to help stakeholders make informed decisions. It will also provide a digital baseline record that can be archived and used when monitoring future events or conditions. One possible future scenario has scientists carrying sUAS into the field allowing quick deployment and operation to observe the environment or for emergency response. This scenario could also include a persistent monitoring capability provided by a UAS that can stay airborne over a small geographic area for days or weeks, or possibly longer. While the DOI focus is on sUAS, the Department recognizes that larger UAS systems will also play a role in meeting its mission. The Department anticipates meeting long-duration or specialized acquisition commitments, such as state or national aerial photography, by collaboration with other agencies or through commercial contracts. Even though the DOI continues to evaluate UAS and sensor technology to meet the Department's mission, some of its bureaus are already moving towards an operational capability. The authors fully anticipate that by 2020 UAS will emerge as one of the primary platforms for DOI remote sensing applications.


The use of mobile phones in poverty reduction and development has ignited much interest over the past decade. To take advantage of the rapid expansion of mobile phones in developing countries, businesses, government agencies and non-governmental organisations are increasingly turning their attention to the delivery of services through mobile phones in areas such as health, education and agriculture. This paper examines how such m-services could be and are already being used to facilitate agricultural technology adoption among farmers in developing countries, including accessing, using and generating income from new technologies. The paper argues that m-services could help to overcome some of the obstacles to technology adoption by facilitating access to information and learning, financial services, and input and output markets. Existing studies assessing the impacts of mobile phones already point to the potential benefits for poverty reduction and rural development. However, there is a risk that the poorest and marginalised may fall behind. Further research is needed to understand how their particular challenges could be addressed through m-services and other support activities, and how they might become active players in the demand for m-services. Such research will need to draw on various disciplines to allow for an analysis of the economic, social and biophysical dimensions of the users, farming contexts and technologies.


The TiO2 thin films were coated on the 100 meshes stainless steel 304 (SS304) sieves by using the sol-gel method followed by a thermal treatment at 200oC. The prepared TiO2-coated sieves were then employed to setup a photocatalytic reactor for evaluating their abilities on the degradation of VOCs (volatile organic compounds). The UV lamp was enveloped with a cylinder TiO2-coated sieve and located in the center of the reactor. A VOCs diffusing tube was applied to yield acetone under water bath. The yielded gaseous acetone was enforced to pass through the TiO2-coated sieves and reacted by photocatalytic reaction. Both the inflow gas and off-gas were monitored by a PID (photoionization detector) sensor for calculating the treat efficiencies under various conditions. The results showed that the amorphous structure was observed on the TiO2 films after sol-gel method, whereas the crystalline anatase phase was found after annealing at 200oC. The SEM images showed that the surface morphology of TiO2 coated SS304 sieves was very similar to that of uncoated sieves, demonstrating a good uniformity and thin thickness of the sol-gel coating method derived in this work. It was observed that most volatile acetone (almost 100%) was removed after treated with the designed photocatalytic reactor under a high fed flow rate (0.5- 2.0 l/min). As compared with the control experiments (UV OFF test), the adequate photocatalytic abilities of this developed TiO2 coated sieves were demonstrated. With the advantages of high contacting area with VOCs, low headloss, durable substrate and easy maintenance, the TiO2-coated sieves possessed a high potential for applying on the photocatalytic degradation of indoor air pollutants.


The objectives of this study were to evaluate systematically the evidence of the caries‐preventive effect of fissure sealing of occlusal tooth surfaces and to examine factors potentially modifying the effect. The search strategies included electronic databases, reference lists of articles, and selected textbooks. Inclusion criteria were randomized or quasi‐randomized clinical trials or controlled clinical trials comparing fissure sealing with no treatment or another preventive treatment in children up to 14 years of age at the start; the outcome measure was caries increment; the diagnostic criteria had been described; and the follow‐up time was at least 2 years. Inclusion decisions were taken and grading of the studies was done independently by two of the authors. The main measure of effect was relative risk reduction. Thirteen studies using resin‐based or glass ionomer sealant materials were included in the final analysis. The results showed that most studies were performed during the 1970s and a single application had been utilized. The relative caries risk reduction pooled estimate of resin‐based sealants on permanent 1st molars was 33% (relative risk=0.67; CI=0.55-0.83). The effect depended on retention of the sealant. In conclusion, the review suggests limited evidence that fissure sealing of 1st permanent molars with resin‐based materials has a caries‐preventive effect. The evidence is incomplete for permanent 2nd molars, premolars and primary molars and for glass ionomer cements. Overall, there remains a need for further trials of high quality, particularly in child populations with a low and a high caries risk, respectively.


: Immediate attention must be given to the respiratory system of the heroin abuser; then he should be given naloxone HCl. Search for evidence of use of additional drugs, which may compound problems. Pulmonary edema, aspiration pneumonia and pulmonary embolization are the most common complications. Infections, particularly endocarditis, and cardiac arrhythmia also occur with heroin overdose. Hepatitis is common. Treatment must include not only attention to the presenting symptoms but also referral to a rehabilitation center when possible.


Making energy consumption data accessible to software developers is an essential step towards energy efficient software engineering. The presence of various different, bespoke and incompatible, methods of instrumentation to obtain energy readings is currently limiting the widespread use of energy data in software development. This paper presents EACOF, a modular Energy-Aware Computing Framework that provides a layer of abstraction between sources of energy data and the applications that exploit them. EACOF replaces platform specific instrumentation through two APIs---one accepts input to the framework while the other provides access to application software. This allows developers to profile their code for energy consumption in an easy and portable manner using simple API calls. We outline the design of our framework and provide details of the API functionality. In a use case, where we investigate the impact of data bit width on the energy consumption of various sorting algorithms, we demonstrate that the data obtained using EACOF provides interesting, sometimes counter-intuitive, insights. All the code is available online under an open source license. http://github.com/eacof


Learning Objectives: A small subset of patients (0.8%) with antiphospholipid syndrome has widespread thrombotic disease with multiorgan failure, described as catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome (CAPS). Early diagnosis and aggressive therapy is essential because of high mortality (30%). It is often difficult to distinguish CAPS from other conditions which can lead to multiple organ thrombosis due to overlapping features. We present a case which highlights the challenges associated with the diagnosis of CAPS. Methods: A 25 year old white male patient presented with progressive shortness of breath and exertional chest pain. Hemoglobin was 7.3 g/dL, platelets 41 K/uL, PT 12.2 sec and PTT 34 sec. CT chest showed diffuse bilateral lung infiltrates. He was started on continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). Echo showed ejection fraction of 30%. Serum Coxsackie B antibody was positive. Respiratory and blood cultures were negative. HIT antibody was negative. Doppler on admission was negative for deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Immunologic work up was positive Lupus anticoagulant, anti-cardiolipin antibodies and ANA 1:80. Repeat doppler 12 days later showed acute bilateral lower extremities DVT. Brain MRI showed extensive infarcts. He was diagnosed with CAPS based on serology and thrombosis. He received solumedrol 1 gram daily for 3 days followed by solumedrol 1 mg/Kg daily along with 5 sessions of plasmapheresis. His condition improved. He was extubated successfully. Repeat echo showed EF 58% and the patient came off of CRRT. Results: CAPS can be precipitated by infection, and this patient's inciting event was likely Coxsackie infection. It is important to differentiate conditions associated with multiple organ thrombosis as their management differs. Disseminated intravascular coagulation is always associated with an underlying systemic disorder. Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia usually occurs in the setting of heparin exposure and antiphospholipid antibodies are not present. Thrombotic microangiopathies such as TTP and HUS typically do not cause large vessel thrombosis and have specific laboratory abnormal.


Football Association Board All Indonesia (PSSI) increasingly deaf to the criticism from the outside, critics have questioned the ethics committee chairman retains Nurdin Halid. Despite a letter from Fifa which states that the football federation officials, including those who sat in the chair PSSI should clean them from crime.
Jawa pos and SINDO apparently did not want to let just this phenomenon, so that the formulation of this problem is to know about the demands of the media frame Nurdin Halid
resign as Chairman of the PSSI at Jawa Pos and SINDO newspaper. For the purposes of this study is to analyze and find out the comparison of two media frames about the construction of preaching demands Nurdin Halid backed by FIFA as the general chairman of PSSI in newspapers at SINDO and Jawa Pos.
Research method used is the type of framing analysis intepretatif research. Framing analysis did not see the news as a text message just present, but a certain structure and formation, but more visits and how to store text specific goals that can be interpreted in a certain way by the researchers. Research using framing analysis of Pan and Gerald M. Kosicki with syntactic analysis, script, thematic and rhetorical analysis as a tool.
The scope of this study of media texts in newspapers and SINDO and Jawa Pos edition 13 February - 2 March 2008. Ways of collecting data with the literature documenting the news
and literature books. Then the data were analyzed with the framing of the news and do interpret the influence of media content components according to Pamela J. Soemaker and
Stephen D. Reese.
The results of comparative studies of newspapers SINDO and Jawa Post shows that there are similarities and also differences in framing news Nurdin Halid backed demands from PSSI chair. Among the expression is Jawa Pos and wanted an environment conducive SINDO football in Indonesia, and also two framed newspaper that the need of government intervention through Affairs and Sports Committee to fix the situation so that problems that
have brought Indonesia to the domain name because tantrum Nurdin International Halid corruption suspects were also led Organination sport in this country, surely this will bring Indonesia's name in the eyes that the International Indonesia is a country with a culture of corruption.
The difference in frame to the news demands FIFA to Nurdin Halid, Jawa Pos frame to fix the condition of Indonesian football is not only seen from the point of the turn as chairman Nurdin, but also expands the Jawa Pos menyangkutkan problems with violent acts committed
supporter , players, until the mafia referee.
Meanwhile SINDO want handed to masyrakat with firmness in preaching, which causes bahwasannya conditions are not conducive climate in the Indonesian soccer Nurdin Halid
cases due to a suspect corruption, therefore it shows Nurdin Halid SINDO should resign from the chair PSSI chairman. From the perspective of hierarchy theory of interest and Stephen D. Shoemaker Reese, known to be influenced by differences in the extra interest that the media and ideology than for the vision and mission of the media can also suspected that there were indications orgasional didalamnnya interests.


Abstract Marples, B., Wouters, B. G. and Joiner, M. C. An Association between the Radiation-Induced Arrest of G2-Phase Cells and Low-Dose Hyper-Radiosensitivity: A Plausible Underlying Mechanism? Radiat. Res. 160, 38–45 (2003). The survival of asynchronous and highly enriched G1-, S- and G2-phase populations of Chinese hamster V79 cells was measured after irradiation with 60Co γ rays (0.1–10 Gy) using a precise flow cytometry-based clonogenic survival assay. The high-dose survival responses demonstrated a conventional relationship, with G2-phase cells being the most radiosensitive and S-phase cells the most radioresistant. Below 1 Gy, distinct low-dose hyper-radiosensitivity (HRS) responses were observed for the asynchronous and G2-phase enriched cell populations, with no evidence of HRS in the G1- and S-phase populations. Modeling supports the conclusion that HRS in asynchronous V79 populations is explained entirely by the HRS response of G2-phase cells. An association was discovered between the occurrence of HRS and the induction of a novel G2-phase arrest checkpoint that is specific for cells that are in the G2 phase of the cell cycle at the time of irradiation. Human T98G cells and hamster V79 cells, which both exhibit HRS in asynchronous cultures, failed to arrest the entry into mitosis of damaged G2-phase cells at doses less than 30 cGy, as determined by the flow cytometric assessment of the phosphorylation of histone H3, an established indicator of mitosis. In contrast, human U373 cells that do not show HRS induced this G2-phase checkpoint in a dose-independent manner. These data suggest that HRS may be a consequence of radiation-damaged G2-phase cells prematurely entering mitosis.


Tocotrienol is one of the vitamin E compounds which have potent anti-oxidant activity leading to reduction in oxidative stress and inflammation. Oxidative stress and inflammation are now emerging as pivotal factors in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease (CAD). However, optimal concentrations of palm oil derived tocotrienol rich fraction (TRF) that may lead to reduction of oxidative stress and inflammation in in vitro and in vivo studies are still unclear. The objectives of this study were to determine the optimal concentrations of TRF which leads to the highest antioxidant activity and reduction of inflammation markers in vitro and to study the effects of palm oil derived TRF vitamin E capsules (Palmvitee) contained low dose tocotrienol on oxidative stress in patients with non-familial hypercholesterolaemia (NFH). Antioxidant activities were assessed by Ferric thiocyanate (FTC), 1,1-diphenyl-2picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activities and dichlorofluorescein diacetate (DCFHDA) assays. Supernatant of stimulated endothelial cells was measured for the production of inflammatory markers [e-selectin, p-selectin, soluble intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1), soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) and inter leukin-6 (IL-6)]. Sixty-six patients with NFH (38 males, 28 females, age ± SD age = 46.9 ± 9.4 years) were recruited and randomised to 3 treatments arm, which were palmvitee 300 mg/day (NFHe), atorvastatin 10 mg/day plus placebo (NFHsp) or atorvastatin 10 mg/day plus palmvitee (NFHse). Fasting serum lipids (FSL), oxidised LDL (ox-LDL), malondialdehyde (MDA) and 8-epi-PGF2α were measured at baseline (BL) and 2 weeks, 12 weeks and 36 weeks post-randomisation. Normocholesterolaemic (NC) subjects were recruited in parallel. In the FTC assay, TRF at concentrations 10 and 100 µg/ml showed the highest percentage (%) of inhibition, 96.4 ± 0.2% and 96.3 ± 0.2% respectively. In the DPPH assay, optimal TRF concentration was observed at concentration 62.5 µg/ml with the highest % inhibition (85.2 ± 0.8%). Lowest % increase of DCF fluorescence production was shown by induced RAW 264.7 cells incubated with 88 µg/ml TRF concentration and it was significantly lower than DCF fluorescence produced by RAW 264.7 cells incubated with inducer (lipopolysaccharides and interferon gamma) alone , 95.0 ± 1.4% vs. 194 ± 18.5%, p<0.05. -The results from the DPPH and DCFHDA assay were consistent with the findings from the .FTC method which reported optimal TRF concentration within the range of 10-100 µg/ml, Optimal TRF concentrations leading to maximal inhibition of e-selectin , p-selectin, sICAM-1 , sVCAM-1 and IL-6 in stimulated endothelial cells were 0.8, 0.4, 0.8, 3.4 and 0.2 µg/ml, with percentage inhibition of 88.0 ±2.0%, 88.0 ±0.1%, 55.0 ±3.0%, 75.0 ±4.0% and 56.0 ±12.0%, respectively. NFHe group showed neutral effects on FSL, but reductions in MDA (p<0.005), ox-LDL (p<0.05) and 8-epi-PFGF2α (p<0.05) levels at 12 weeks compared to BL. NFHsp and NFHse groups showed similar reductions in 'Fe and LDL at 2 weeks (p


This paper considers how libraries can support humanities scholars in working with large digitized collections of cultural material. Although disciplines such as corpus linguistics have already made extensive use of these collections, fields such as literature, history, and cultural studies stand at the threshold of new opportunity.

Libraries can play an important role in helping these scholars make sense of big cultural data. In part, this is because many humanities graduate programs neither consider data skills a prerequisite, nor train their students in data analysis methods. As the 'laboratory for the humanities,' libraries are uniquely suited to host new forms of collaborative exploration of big data by humanists. But in order to do this successfully, libraries must consider three challenges:

1) How to evolve technical infrastructure to support the analysis, not just the presentation, of digitized artifacts.

2) How to work with data that may fall under both copyright and licensing restrictions.

3) How to serve as trusted partners with disciplines that have evolved thoughtful critiques of quantitative and algorithmic methodologies.


This report describes the experience of a group of nursing students from Universidad Federal do Piaui, in face of the reality of multiple sclerosis patient. The experience highlight the necessity of an integrated team to achieve fundamental knowledge and to offer a holistic assistance to the patient. The impact of the actions developed by the students, in APPEM (Piauiense Association of Multiple Sclerosis), allows them to better coexist with the difficulties of the disease. In addition, the general community is favored through the knowledge transmited by the activities developed by the group. We conclude that a wider knowledge about a full of mysteries pathology is only possible when the theory is combined with the reality of the patient.


The current discussion on citizenship of the European Union in political science focuses heavily on multiculturalism and identity politics as the essential analytical tools to understanding the developments, particularly since the Amsterdam Treaty. In the context of the European Union when identity rights become the field of negotiation, the framework for the definition of those rights is the economic capacity of the individual, in contrast to national constitutional regimes. In this article I want to examine this bifurcation taking the recent judgment of the European Court of Justice in Carpenter1 as the starting place. The central point is the degree to which the inability of citizenship rights to embrace identity at the national level becomes the field of struggle at the European level between the state and the individual. The power of mediator then exceeds the national level, even where the national identity settlement was the result of a high degree of consensus in the national political scene. But the venue in which the struggle takes place, notwithstanding its fundamental nature as one of identity, is not citizenship or human rights but economic activity. In political science there has recently been renewed interest in analysing citizenship of the European Union through the lens of multicultural citizenship.2 The analytical tools of cultural citizenship and identity creation in the European Union are deployed to examine the extent to which borders remain central in the EU framework of citizenship and identity but often with a normative plea for new identity formation. "The nightmarish dream of a common identity [of EU citizenship] ought to be replaced with reliance on citizenship, human and cultural rights and constitutional principles." (DelgadoMoreira 2000: 153). Others take a colder view of the EU in light of the apparently intractable problems of feeble democratic accountability and legitimacy and suggest that citizenship as a core sovereignty question properly remain at the national level (d'Oliveira in O'Keeffe & Twomey: 1999: 410). Following a different path but still founded in identity politics are claims of a supra national identity or a postmodern identity which replace or supersede the national one (Soysal: 1994). The mechanisms for development of new forms of identity or citizenship practices then depend on the institutions and actors acting on the concept (Weiner:1998). This is not to dismiss the importance of recent work challenging the perspective that in this field the European construction is "eroding historically constructed national collective identities" using constructivist tools which permits a deeper understanding of the inconsistencies at the heart of the concepts (Checkel: 2001). What is surprising in all this work is either the silence or the rejection of the link of economic activity to the development of identity rights in the Union. In law, however, the insertion of citizenship rights from the Union level into the national level is founded on economic criteria and justifications. The recent judgment in Carpenter is paradigmatic of this development and enlightening about the lack of legal legitimacy being given to the multicultural approach to Union citizenship. Mr. Carpenter, from the account in the ECJ's judgment, appears to have been quite an ordinary Englishman, living in the UK. He was a self-employed businessman selling advertising space in medical and scientific journals. Mr. Carpenter had responsibility for his young children by a previous marriage. Mr. Carpenter married Mrs. Carpenter, a Philippine national who was irregularly in the UK having overstayed her permitted visit. Here the first step of the identity trail begins unwinding. The UK authorities refused, as is consistent with national law, to allow Mrs. Carpenter to remain in the UK with her husband. Part of UK identity rights and duties is either not to marry a foreign national irregularly in the UK or if this is irresistible, not to seek to have the spouse live with the national in the UK. Where a UK national marries another UK national or a national of another EU Member State no obstacles to cohabitation are placed in their way. However, if the UK national deviates from these legally privileged choices and marries a foreign national a series of obstacles of varying weights are placed in the way of the couThe central point is the degree to which the inability of citizenship rights to embrace identity at the national level becomes the field of struggle at the European level between the state and the individual. The power of mediator then exceeds the national level, even where the national identity settlement was the result of a high degree of consensus in the national political scene. Developing European Citizenship or Discarding It? Multicultural Citizenship Theory in Light of the Carpenter Judgment of the European Court of Justice


Purpose To evaluate the effects of type II endoleaks and sac pressurization on stent-graft displacement following endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR). Methods Experimental silicone infrarenal aneurysm (6-cm) models were "treated" with a Talent stent-graft deployed with 20-mm proximal and distal landing zones. Inflow and outflow vessels were created as part of the silicone model to control flow into the aneurysm sac. All aneurysm models were uniform, with a diameter neck of 31 mm, a neck length of 20 mm, and iliac artery diameters of 16 mm. The aortic model was secured in a water bath to a pulsatile pump under physiological conditions; the output phase ratio (%systole/%diastole) was set at 65/35 with a pump rate of 80 beats per minute. Commercially available bifurcated stent-grafts were then displaced in vitro utilizing a linear motion apparatus attached to a force gauge. The mean arterial pressure (MAP) and pulse pressure (PP) at the aortic inflow were 60.1±3.1 and 38.3±7.8 mmHg, respectively. Peak force to cause initial stent-graft migration with and without a type II endoleak was recorded and compared. Results In aneurysm sacs with no endoleak, the MAP and sac PP were 32±6.4 and 6±1.3 mmHg, respectively (p<0.01). In aneurysm sacs with a type II endoleak, the MAP and sac PP were 54.1±9.7 and 16.1±4.1 mmHg, respectively (p<0.02). Peak force to initiate migration was 16.0±1.41 N (range 15–18) with no endoleak vs. 23.2±2.2 N (range 20–25) in those with a type IIa endoleak and 23.5±2.5 N (range 20–26) in those with a type IIb endoleak (p<0.001). Conclusions Type II endoleaks are associated with a significantly increased sac pressure. Increased sac pressurization from type II endoleaks results in a significantly greater force to displace a stent-graft longitudinally. Type II endoleaks may therefore inhibit migration and offer a benefit following EVAR; however, clinical correlation of these results is required.


With malls, franchise strips, and big-box retailers increasingly dotting the landscape, many are concerned that U.S. middle-class jobs in manufacturing are being replaced by minimum-wage jobs in retail. Retail jobs have spread, whereas manufacturing jobs have shrunk in number. The authors show that wage rates in the retail sector rise markedly with firm size and with establishment size. These increases are halved when they control for worker fixed effects, suggesting that better workers are sorted into larger firms. Also, higher-ability workers are promoted to the position of manager, which is associated with higher pay. The authors conclude that the growth in modern retail, characterized by larger chains of larger establishments with more levels of hierarchy, is raising wage rates relative to traditional mom-and-pop retail stores.