abstract:This paper argues that the study of authorial image management should give more attention to the way literary fiction participates in shaping the author's public image. This point has not been sufficiently taken into account in studies of author celebrity or persona making. These studies, to a great extent, focus on extraliterary activity. From another direction, some critics in narrative studies have given place to ways in which fiction shapes judgements of the author. However, these approaches, by and large, subordinate the author's image to a more general approach to the interpretation of texts. Such approaches do not give enough room to the way some people read in order to learn about the author. The paper, therefore, suggests a method of reading fiction (alongside paratexts) for authorial image with a focus on the importance of the conflation and interconnection between characters and authors. The special value of characters who are authors is explained. As an example of this emphasis, the paper analyses how authors present themselves as old. The paper briefly analyses how Philip Roth highlights his age circa the publication of Exit Ghost (2007), to then present a reading of Nicole Krauss circa the publication of The History of Love (2005), who is associating herself with old age despite in fact being in her early thirties. Both authors depict elderly author-characters in order to shape their images. As a whole, the paper offers an emphasis on reading novels and especially character in the context of literary celebrity and authorial image.


To investigate the nature of the complex formed between DXA and Miracil D (l-diethylaminoethylamino-4-methyl-lOthiaxanthenone, Lucanthone, Nilodin), a series of derivatives of this carcinostatic, schistosomicidal, and bacteriostatic com pound have been examined in three test systems: the growth of intact Bacillus subtilis, the heat-denaturation profile of na tive DNA, and the subcellular DNA-directed RNA polymerase from Escherichia coli. The derivatives differed from the parent compound by modifications of the diamino side chain, the pres ence of other substituents on the heterocyclic ring system, or in the ring system itself. In the series of congeners in which only the side chain dif fered from Miracil D, substitution of a methyl group for hy drogen on the proximal nitrogen or absence of the terminal nitrogen was accompanied by loss of activity in all three test systems; a variety of other substitutions were compatible with activity. In the 6-chloro-Miracil D series, however, alkyl sub stitution on the proximal nitrogen of the side chain did not abolish activity. Derivatives with alterations in the 4-substituent of Miracil D, or modifications in the ring system itself, included a number of compounds which stabilized the DNA helix against heat denaturation but did not inhibit growth of B. subtilis significantly. On the basis of these data, the concept is proposed that the proximal nitrogen of the side chain of Miracil D interacts with a phosphate residue of the DNA backbone and that the hetorocyclic ring system interacts, probably by intercalation, with base residues in DNA. Correlations of the activities of the derivatives in these test systems with anticancer and schistosomicidal potencies are dis cussed.


This thesis presents the development and international validation of a unique, unifying comprehensive framework that structures disaster evaluation typologies along the disaster timeline. This Framework improves the validity of disaster evaluation by clarifying various evaluation typologies and strengthens the evidence-base of health interventions delivered in response to disasters. It provides consistent terminology and standards for evaluation and reporting across the different phases of a disaster. This in turn provides comparability to better understand the process, outcomes, and impacts of the efficacy and efficiency of interventions.


The Australian Dark Energy Survey (OzDES) is a five-year, 100-night, spectroscopic survey on the Anglo-Australian Telescope, whose primary aim is to measure redshifts of approximately 2500 Type Ia supernovae host galaxies over the redshift range 0.1 < z < 1.2, and derive reverberation-mapped black hole masses for approximately 500 active galactic nuclei and quasars over 0.3 < z < 4.5. This treasure trove of data forms a major part of the spectroscopic follow-up for the Dark Energy Survey for which we are also targeting cluster galaxies, radio galaxies, strong lenses, and unidentified transients, as well as measuring luminous red galaxies and emission line galaxies to help calibrate photometric redshifts. Here, we present an overview of the OzDES programme and our first-year results. Between 2012 December and 2013 December, we observed over 10 000 objects and measured more than 6 000 redshifts. Our strategy of retargeting faint objects across many observing runs has allowed us to measure redshifts for galaxies as faint as mr = 25 mag. We outline our target selection and observing strategy, quantify the redshift success rate for different types of targets, and discuss the implications for our main science goals. Finally, we highlight a few interesting objects as examples of the fortuitous yet not totally unexpected discoveries that can come from such a large spectroscopic survey.


Longer term exposure to high poverty neighbourhoods can affect individual socio-economic outcomes later in life. Previous research has shown strong path dependence in individual neighbourhood histories. A growing literature shows that the neighbourhood histories of people is linked to the neighbourhoods of their childhood and parental characteristics. To better understand intergenerational transmission of living in deprived neighbourhoods it is important to distinguish between inherited disadvantage (socio-economic position) and contextual disadvantage (environmental context in which children grow up). The objective of this paper is to come to a better understanding of the effects of inherited and contextual disadvantage on the neighbourhood careers of children once they have left the parental home. We use a quasi-experimental family design exploiting sibling relationships, including real sibling pairs, and "synthetic siblings" who are used as a control group. Using rich register data from Sweden we find that real siblings live more similar lives in terms of neighbourhood experiences during their independent residential career than synthetic sibling pairs. This difference reduces over time. Real siblings are still less different than synthetic pairs but the difference gets smaller with time, indicating a quicker attenuation of the family effect on residential outcomes than the neighbourhood effect


Multi-task learning (MTL) has been widely applied in Natural Language Processing. A major task and its associated auxiliary tasks share the same encoder; hence, an MTL encoder can learn the sharing abstract information between the major and auxiliary tasks. Task-specific towers are then employed upon the sharing encoder to learn task-specific information. Previous works demonstrated that exchanging information between task-specific towers yielded extra gains. This is known as soft-parameter sharing MTL. In this paper, we propose a novel gating mechanism for the bridging of MTL towers. Our method is evaluated based on aspect-based sentiment analysis and sequential metaphor identification tasks. The experiments demonstrate that our method can yield better performance than the baselines on both tasks. Based on the same Transformer backbone, we compare our gating mechanism with other information transformation mechanisms, e.g., cross-stitch, attention and vanilla gating. The experiments show that our method also surpasses these baselines.


Firms strive to achieve the sustainable competitive advantage in diverse and changing marketplaces. Coping with such circumstances has required firms to align information technology with business strategy in order to exploit their capabilities and change business practices. In this regard, an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system has become increasingly important for organizations to build strong capabilities, improve operational performance, enhance business decision making and compete in a global business context.  In other words, an ERP system integrates an organization's resources and also involves business processes and organizational changes. With the ubiquitous growth of IS investment, implementation of ERP systems has grown strongly. Recently, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have started to adopt ERP systems. An example is Egypt, where they have done so to increase their competitiveness in the global market. However, historically, ERP implementation has been shown to have a high failure rate, which is one of the main reasons users resist using the ERP system. Conversely, users' acceptance of the ERP system is the key to the ERP implementation. Thus, this study attempts to find out the important factors that affect end users' intention to use the ERP system during the pre-implementation phase of the ERP lifecycle in the higher education context.  The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) with minor adjustments is the basis of this study. Ultimately, the findings of this research could enrich employees' experience by giving HEIs a tool for better understanding those factors affecting their ability to effectively utilize ERP systems. The proposed model has the ability to enhance the current level of the motivating factors influencing employees' motivation to utilize ERP systems.


Participation in activity is essential for the psychological well-being of people with dementia. The potential benefits of home-based activity programmes may depend on family carers, but little is known about their experience. This study aimed to elicit carers' experiences of involving the person with dementia in activity. Thirty in-depth interviews (i.e. initial and follow-up) were carried out with 15 co-resident carers of people with dementia who were recruited through local community mental health teams. Data were analysed using a grounded theory method. Overall, findings from initial interviews were taken back to the participants at the follow-up interviews. Five activity patterns were identified, which ranged from their usual activity patterns along a continuum through recognizable, illogical, irresponsible and finally reaching a dispossessed pattern. Carers used particular strategies and experienced particular emotional responses along this continuum. This work highlights the complex, temporal and dynamic nature of family carers' involvement in activity engagement. Clinician's interventions could be enhanced by: (1) recognizing the long-term experience of carers in decision making; (2) understanding the strategies used; (3) allowing carers to talk through and share their experiences in a non-judgmental way; (4) ensuring that carers are happy with any suggested interventions.


Background: Adulteration and substitution of Nagakesara is a well-established fact in the medicinal plant literature though it is referred by the authors of important Ayurvedic texts to cure piles, dysentery, hiccup etc. The botanical identities of controversial sources of Nagakesara are flowers of Mesua ferrea L. and Ochrocarpus longifolius Benth. and Hook. f., Calophyllum inophyllum L., Dillenia pentagyna Roxb. and perchance their allied species. Though immature fruits of some Cinnamomum species are also reported to be sold as Nagakesara/Sirunagappu in the crude drug markets there are no pharmacognostic studies available for the identification and analysis of this crude drug. Materials and Methods: In this study, marketed Nagakesara/ Sirunagappu samples were procured from Chennai raw drug market and analyzed as per the standard methodologies for pharmacognostic studies. Results: Macro-microscopical characters and chemical identity of the samples of immature fruits were established to derive set of characters for the identification of this marketed material. The proposed results would help in identification of this crude drug while used as substitute drug for the official source. Conclusion: The botanical Nagakesara or Sirunagappu is neither stamen nor flower, but it is fruit of Cinnamomum species. As Western Ghats is habitat for several similar looking species of Cinnamomum, there is necessity to study the pharmacognostical characters of all species of Cinnamomum before concluding the botanical source of this ambiguous raw drug of Ayurveda and Siddha.


ABSTRACT This paper uses a large administrative dataset providing 105,149 daily observations on 3,176 youth aged between 18 and 24 years using emergency homeless shelters from January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2019, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Using k-mean cluster analysis we classify youth who use emergency homeless shelters by their intensity of shelter use. In Calgary, most youth use homeless shelters as a temporary and infrequent refuge when housing is lost. For these youth, shelters are an effective and relatively inexpensive approach for helping them resolve their homelessness. A significant number, however, rely on shelters for much longer stays. For these youth, shelters are ineffective and expensive responses to their homelessness. To understand how youth are changing their use of shelters over time, we introduce time series measuring first admissions and readmissions to shelters. We show that how youth use shelters, and how that use has changed over time, differs for youth who self-identify as Indigenous, Caucasian and visible minority.


This article presents a legal and public policy analysis of Shakeel Begg v British Broadcasting Corporation, a British libel case brought before the High Court in 2016. Begg v BBC provides a lens through which current debates on extremism and counter-extremism in the UK may be analysed. More specifically, the authors use their analysis of the case to address criticisms levied against the UK Government's counter-extremism strategy, including the conceptualisation and definition of "Islamist extremism". The article offers two main contentions. First, that the judgment in Begg v BBC has been undervalued by politicians and policymakers in the UK, as well as by scholars, journalists and other commentators. Second, that Lord Justice Haddon-Cave's judgment in Begg v BBC provides a useful framework for those wishing to define, identify and tackle Islamist extremism, and extremism of any kind, in the UK and elsewhere.


Under the conditions that the wavelength of a particle is much larger than its radius of central mass, and the Schwarzschild field is weak, the scattering of a particle has been studied by many researchers. They obtained that scalar and vector particles abide by Rutherford's angle distribution by using the low level perturbation method and the scattered field's approximation in a weak field. The scattering cross section of a photon coincides with the section in Newton's field of point mass. We can obtain the photon's polarization effect by calculating the second-order perturbation in the linear Schwarzschild field. This article discusses the scattering and absorption of a particle by a black hole involving a global monopole by using the aforesaid method.


ABSTRACT This paper reviews the efforts of 28 interviention programs designed to train parents to teach school-related skills to their young children. Programs reviewed range from the federally funded Home Start program to uon-funded programs rui locally by volunteers. Evaluations of the 28 programs, which were designed and carried out by the program staffs, were examined for evidence of immediate and long-term impact on intelligence test performance and school achievement. The summary of evaluation results is organized by three major topics: the immediate and long-term effects of individual programs; the contribution of features of the parent participation activities to program effectiveness; and the effects of programs upon parent behavior. Nearly all programs produced significant immediate gains; the programs that carried out follow-up testing showed that program children retained an advantage in IQ score and school achievement over comparison children in elementary school. The magnitude of gains was found to be only modestly related to five variables of program format and content. A short review of the history of parent education programs and a list of the programs reviewed are also included. (Author/SHJ


A plaque assay for the quantitation of pneumonia virus of mice is described. To obtain reproducible plaque formation, proteolytic enzymes had to be incorporated in the overlay medium. The plaque morphology observed in the presence of pancreatin and chymotrypsin was superior to that seen with trypsin. Although the plaque assay was found to be slightly less sensitive than the TCID(50) determination described by Harter and Choppin, it enables cloning of the virus by plaque selection and permits further study of pneumonia virus of mice.


In this study 24 participants drove a simulator while listening to three types of messages in both synthesized speech and recorded human speech. The messages consisted of short navigation messages, medium length (approximately 100 words) email messages, and longer news stories (approximately 200 words). After each message the participant was presented with a series of multiple choice questions to measure comprehension of the message. Driving performance was recorded. Findings show that for the low driving workload conditions in the study, (cruise control, predictable two-lane road with no intersections, invariant lead car) driving performance was not affected by listening to messages. This was true for both the synthesized speech and natural speech. Comprehension of messages in synthetic speech was significantly lower than for recorded human speech for all message types.


A key challenge in complex visuomotor control is learning abstract representations that are effective for specifying goals, planning, and generalization. To this end, we introduce universal planning networks (UPN). UPNs embed differentiable planning within a goal-directed policy. This planning computation unrolls a forward model in a latent space and infers an optimal action plan through gradient descent trajectory optimization. The plan-by-gradient-descent process and its underlying representations are learned end-to-end to directly optimize a supervised imitation learning objective. We find that the representations learned are not only effective for goal-directed visual imitation via gradient-based trajectory optimization, but can also provide a metric for specifying goals using images. The learned representations can be leveraged to specify distance-based rewards to reach new target states for model-free reinforcement learning, resulting in substantially more effective learning when solving new tasks described via image-based goals. We were able to achieve successful transfer of visuomotor planning strategies across robots with significantly different morphologies and actuation capabilities.


This report discusses the proceedings and recommendations of the 2012 Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) Research Peer Exchange. The 2012 UDOT Research Peer Exchange took place in October of 2012. Representatives from eight different state DOTs, as well as representatives from four federal agencies, gave presentations on the implementation of research in his or her organization. Participants also attended the UDOT Annual Conference where they presented a condensed version of their state or agency's implementation of research and were able to see the inner workings of the UDOT. On day three, participants provided feedback for UDOT on how they could improve their research program. Participants then discussed leadership, how it fostered research implementation, and vice versa. Top suggestions for involving leadership were gathered from each participant at the end of the exchange. The participants were asked to focus on four areas: Implementation, Innovation, How Leadership Affects Research, and How Research Affects Leadership.


The vehicles used to explore the Martian surface require a high degree of autonomy to navigate challenging and unknown terrain, investigate targets, and detect scientific events. Increased autonomy will be critical to the success of future missions. In July 1997, as part of NASA's Mars Pathfinder mission, the Sojourner rover became the first spacecraft to autonomously drive on another planet. The twin Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) vehicles landed in January 2004, and after four years Spirit had driven more than four miles and Opportunity more than seven miles-lasting well past their projected three-month lifetime and expected distances traveled. The newest member of the Mars rover family will have the ability to autonomously approach and inspect a target and automatically detect interesting scientific events. In fall 2009, NASA plans to launch the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover, with a primary mission of two years of surface exploration and the ability to acquire and process rock samples. In the near future, the Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission, a cooperative project of NASA and the European Space Agency, will likely use a lightweight rover to drive out and collect samples and bring them back to an Earth return vehicle. This rover will use an unprecedented level of autonomy because of the limited lifetime of a return rocket on the Martian surface and the desire to obtain samples from distant crater walls.


India accounts for only about 2.4% of the world's geographical area and 4% of its water resources, but has to support about 17% of the world's human population and 15% of the livestock. Agriculture is an important sector of the Indian economy, accounting for 17% of the nation's GDP, about 11% of its exports, about half of the population still relies on agriculture as its principal source of income and it is a source of raw material for a large number of industries. Accelerating the growth of agriculture production is therefore necessary to meet the rising demand for food, but also to increase incomes of those dependent on agriculture to ensure inclusiveness. The productivity of farms depends greatly on the availability and judicious use of farm power by the farmers. Agricultural implements and machines enable the farmers to employ the power judiciously for production purposes. Agricultural machines increase productivity of land and labour by meeting timeliness of farm operations and increase work out-put per unit time. Besides its paramount contribution to the multiple cropping and diversification of agriculture, mechanization also enables efficient utilization of inputs such as seeds, fertilizers and irrigation water. Mechanization in agriculture enhances production and productivity of crops through timeliness, better management of inputs, improved quality of work and reduction of post-harvest losses. The study revealed that the domestic sale of tractor is the highest (45.41%) for the 41–50 hp range followed by 36% for the 31–40 hp range during 2015–16. The demand of high power category tractors in India increased for using high capacity farm machines on custom hiring basis. The states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra together account for about 45.21% of the total tractors sale in India during 2015–16. The net area sown by a tractor was 487 ha during 1975–76 and reduced to 24 ha by 2015–16 that still lags behind the developed countries and even some of the developing countries of the world (e.g. China) in terms of the net area sown by a tractor. Farm power availability of India was 0.48 kW/ha in 1975–76 reached to 2.13 kW/ha in 2015–16, which is 4.44 times higher over a period of forty years. A positive direct correlation was found between available farm power, food grain productivity and cropping intensity for the country. With the increase in intensity of cropping, the turnaround time is drastically reduced and it is not possible to harvest and thresh the standing crop, on one hand, and prepare seed bed and do timely sowing operations of subsequent crop, on the other hand, in the limited time available, unless adequate farm power and matching implement is available.


Within the last forty years there has been a rapid increase in the production of synthetic composite, those incorporating fibres in various plastics (polymer) dominating the market. These are especially true for materials that are needed for aerospace, under water and transportation application. Yet there is a demand for low density strong stiff abrasion and impact resistant materials which are not corroded and degraded easily.
In recent years the natural or bio fibre composites have attracted substantial importance as a potential structural material. These bio fibre composites are immersing as a viable alternative to glass fibre reinforced composite especially in automotive and building product applications. The combinations of bio-fibres such an kenaf, hemp, flax, jute, henequen, pine apple leaf fibre and sisal with polymer matrices from both renewable and non renewable resources to produce composite materials that are competitive with synthetic composites requires special attention. These composites have attained commercial attraction in automotive industries.
In the present investigation, composite samples with varying filler content (0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%. 60%, 70%) are made using coir fibres as the reinforcement and polyester as the matrix. Abrasion wear studies are carried out using DUCOM FRICTION AND WEAR MONITOR. on the various coir fibre (10%,20%,30%) reinforced polyester composite have been Tests are performed varying the applied load, velocity and at abrasive particle sizes. It has been found that wear rate reduces with increase in the reinforcement content. Because, as the reinforcement content increases the material loss takes place in all directions. Also it is found that wear rate increases with increasing velocity and increasing load. The wear rate increases with bigger size of abrasive particles. Further, the examination of the worn surfaces of the composites by scanning electron microscopy(SEM) showed that the cracks were spreading in all direction at higher vol% of reinforcement (i.e 30%), also the micro grooves formed are a result of micro-ploughing.
The dielectric behavior of the coir fibre reinforced polyester composite is measured using HP-4192A LF Impedance Analyser, connected with a data acquisition system. It is found that, with increase in the amount of reinforcement, there is a decrease in the dielectric loss. With increase in the reinforcement content the dielectric constant shows a higher value than the pure polyester sample. Change in frequency shows a stabilizing trend on the dielectric constant. However with the increase in temperature the dielectric constant of the composite shows a slightly increasing trend.


The standard model is that word identification in reading is a holistic process, most efficient when words are centered in the visual field. In contrast, rational models of reading predict word identification to be a constructive process, where readers efficiently gather visual information about a word, and may combine visual information about different parts of the word obtained across multiple fixations to identify it. We tease apart these accounts by arguing that rational models should predict that the most efficient place in a word to make a second fixation (refixation) depends on the visual information the reader has already obtained. We present evidence supporting this prediction from an eye movement corpus. Computational model simulations confirm that a rational model predicts this finding, but a model implementing holistic identification does not. These results suggest that refixations can be well understood as rationally gathering visual information, and that word identification works constructively.


This report presents the findings of the review of the Northern Territory (NT) Code of Practice for Responsible Gambling 2016 (the Code) conducted by the Australian National University for the NT Government. The NT Code of Practice for Responsible Gambling sets out minimum requirements that gambling providers are mandated to implement to reduce harms associated with gambling in the NT. The Code includes harm minimization measures across 10 different categories. Gambling operators must implement and comply with these measures as part of their licensee conditions. The review involved venue observations, a survey of gambling venue staff, depth interviews with venue staff, depth interviews with NT Government compliance officers and a public submission process. The review found that the NT Code is one of the more comprehensive of the Australian codes, with several of the measures included in the NT Code absent from some of the other state and territory codes. Overall, the review revealed a significant level of venue noncompliance with the Code. There was also considerable variability in the implementation of measures in venues that were compliant. These findings point to a lack of adequate enforcement of the Code, as well as significant issues with training and implementation.


Long-term physical survivability of most robotic systems today is achieved through durable hardware. In contrast, most biological systems are not made of robust materials; long-term sustainability and evolutionary adaptation in nature are provided through processes of self-repair and, ultimately, self-reproduction. Here we demonstrate a large space of possible robots capable of autonomous self-reproduction. These robots are composed of actuated modules equipped with electromagnets to selectively control the morphology of the robotic assembly. We show a variety of 2-D and 3-D machines from 3 to 2n modules, and two physical implementations that each achieves two generations of reproduction. We show both automatically generated and manually designed morphologies


Long-term experiments are required to evaluate the impact of irrigation, nutrient utilization, and year factor as well as to assess the potential consequences of climate change. However, in the long-term experiment, it may be necessary to display spatial data for each parcel, either for investigation of soil heterogeneity or presentation. This article aims to provide help for researchers working in long-term experiments for storing and displaying spatial data.
After the outlines of each experimental site were measured with GPS, a spatial database has been created in Quantum GIS. Then, a filter script in R statistical environment using RStudio graphical interface was written. The script helps avoid the QGIS data input interface so that large data can be attached to each parcel directly and as a result there is no need for a separate data entry, only the basic statistical database.
The created GIS database can be used in many ways; it can be exported to KML file format that can be displayed using Google Earth. It is possible to view exported KML files in Google Drive with importing them to Google My Maps application, and with that a browser can display the map. With the Google Drive the maps can be shared within the research group, additionally the outlines can be edited and it is possible to upload the measurement data to the attributes table to existing empty table columns. The map created in Quantum GIS can be used for presentation purposes.


his paper deals with the L2 conservation hypothesis. It is argued that, in its initial stages, adult L2 acquisition is primarily determined by the LI grammatical system. The acquisition model presented here is in line with the Full Transfer/Full Access hypothesis of Schwartz and Sprouse but is more specific as for the terms transfer (= conservation) and access, and as for the development of morphology.The learner is using his LI system with a target language vocabulary, which has the paradoxical consequence that the LI impact seems to grow the more L2 the learner acquires. This pattern is illustrated by the acquisition of possessive structures by Turkish and Moroccan adults learning Dutch outside the classroom. They appear to act as linguistically conservative individuals who, initially, generate L2 possessive structures by combining their LI grammatical with their limited L2 vocabulary. Consequently, the Turkish and Moroccan learners have different paths of acquisition. They are similar, however, on a more abstract level. Both groups are able to learn specific new parametric values quite early in the acquisition process, and they both have extreme difficulties in learning L2 morphology.


A Poiseuille-flow problem in a cylindrical capillary in the whole range of Knudsen numbers with incomplete tangential momentum accommodation of molecules incident on the wall has been worked out. The linear non-homogeneous integral equation for the macroscopic gas velocity flow has been solved by the Bubnov-Galerkin method. For a limited range of Knudsen numbers, generally known results have been obtained. An experimental investigation of the rare gases helium, neon and argon in the range of Knudsen numbers 103−10−3 has been made on packets consisting of 10 and 100 glass capillaries with molten walls. Comparison of theoretical and experimental data enables us to define both slip constants and tangential momentum accommodation coefficients. In the free-molecule flow regime the accommodation coefficients are 0·935, 0·929 and 0·975 for helium, neon and argon, respectively. In the viscous slip-flow regime these coefficients are equal to 0·895, 0·865 and 0·919, respectively. This difference in the tangential momentum accommodation coefficients is, most probably, due to the variable density of adsorbed molecules coating the capillary wall. Gas viscosity coefficients which coincide with those of Kestin within 0.5% have also been calculated. Argon was used as the calibrating gas.


This Application note describes a complete process development workflow from PreDictor ™ plate screening to a 400 mL pilot-scale purification for capturing recombinant pro-insulin expressed in E. coli. PreDictor 96-well prefilled filter plates, Assist software and Tricorn™ 5/50 columns packed with 1 mL media (resins) were used to develop optimized conditions for the capture step. High-throughput screening quickly narrowed down the number of candidate chromatography media and suggested binding and elution conditions for further investigation. When capture step conditions were further optimized and verified, the purification was scaled up 400-fold. Scale-up was smooth and predictable, reaching a final-scale yield of 96% and a target molecule purity of 82%. Screening in PreDictor plates also saved considerable time and sample compared with column experiments. A second study (1) describes a similar workflow for the intermediate purification of the insulin obtained following the enzymatic cleavage of pro-insulin.


The rapid development of next generation sequencing technology is changing the way of biological research in many aspects, which has become the most popular platform for the genomic structural variation detection. In this paper, we focus on the single-sample next generation sequencing data analysis, and propose a hierarchical structure to model the dispersion of minor allele frequency in the genome scale. The empirical Bayes method is employed to estimate the hyper-parameters, and the minor allele is identified as a sequencing error or heterozygous allele according to the posterior probabilities. We suggest to leave the ambiguous positions with moderate posterior probabilities ungenotyped for better genotype-call error control. The performances of our proposed method are investigated by simulations and a real dataset.


The effect of nanoscopic, shape persistent polystyrene (PS) nanoparticles on the rheological properties of linear PS is studied and a dramatic viscosity reduction is observed. This is an ideal blend which simplifies enthalpic interactions between the components and can be used to delineate the effect of particle size on the properties of the blends. Homogeneous blends are assured through small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments which establish the absence of phase segregation (depletion flocculation) in the nanoparticle-polymer blend. We previously found that nanoparticles reduce the viscosity of high molecular mass linear PS when the interparticle gap is smaller than the linear polymer size. In the present study, we find that such confinement of entangled polymers is necessary for the viscosity reduction since lower concentrations provide a viscosity increase. Furthermore, the behavior is found to be dependent on the presence or absence of entanglements and confinement is seemingly not important for unentangled polymers. It is proposed that constraint release caused by the addition of nanoparticles is responsible for some of the observed changes in viscosity although it is suspected this is a very complicated phenomenon and introduction of free volume by the nanoparticles is certain to play a key role.


ABSTRACT Purpose: The importance of brand value has been increasingly recognized in business-to-business (B-to-B) marketing settings. Leek and Christodoulides (2012) proposed a comprehensive B-to-B brand value framework based on qualitative examination, which has yet to be quantitatively examined. As such, the objectives of this study are twofold: first, to quantitatively investigate Leek and Christodoulides' (2012) B-to-B brand value framework and reveal the relative importance of the various attributes/elements; second, to explore whether the attribute/element priority in Leek and Christodoulides' (2012) value framework differs for various types of buyers with respect to supplier characteristics, environmental factors, and situational factors. The research context is small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Taiwan. For industrial marketers, a better understanding of attribute/element priority pertaining to brand value is helpful in terms of marketing efficiency and success probability. Methodology/Approach: Based on data from 22 SME buyers in Taiwan, a cluster analysis was performed to classify SME buyers into different buyer groups based on supplier characteristics, environmental factors, and situational factors, while an analytic hierarchy process was used to indicate the preference structure under different buyer groups. Findings: The results reveal that the functional value items outperformed emotional value ones; further, quality, technology, and after-sales service were the top three elements of brand value. However, the attribute/element priority varied across different buyer groups. In general, the importance of functional value items was greater than that of emotional value items for most SME types. Top attributes/elements that exceeded 10% importance weight were almost all function-related, aside from emotion-related credibility—the primary concern (20.3%) of forced SMEs that held pessimistic perceptions regarding the economic environment, and procured within a highly concentrated market structure. Originality/Value: This research study contributes by indicating the relative importance of brand value attributes/elements in the SME context and examining whether the attribute/element priority varies for distinct types of buyers. Based on the results, a target marketing strategy is provided for B-to-B marketers to effectively design marketing offerings and create brand value for their business buyers.


MALAYI MICROFILARIAE by ASHLEY MEGAN ROGERS (Under the Direction of Adrian J. Wolstenholme) ABSTRACT Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi, and B. timori, are filarial nematodes that cause lymphatic filariasis, an extremely debilitating disease, which is prevalent in the developing world. Current control is based on mass drug administration with annual doses, under a two-drug regimen. One of these drugs, ivermectin, has been considered a wonder drug since its discovery, but its mode of action in filarial nematodes is still unclear. Currently, ivermectin is thought to decrease helminth-immunomodulation by inhibiting protein secretion from the excretory/secretory pore. We performed in vitro motility assays, neutrophil attachment assays, and neutrophil activation assays, which suggest a role for the immune system, in conjunction with ivermectin, in clearing microfilariae from blood circulation. Also, transcriptomic analysis of microfilariae treated with ivermectin, in vivo, reveals gene regulation that could indicate a mode of action in filarial nematodes. Due to increasing resistance it is imperative to understand ivermectin's mode of action.


Summer Lecture Series 2006: Physicist Carl Haber and colleagues have found a way to digitize century-old recordings believed to be unplayable, and as a result, some of the music and spoken word recordings in the Library of Congress collection may spring back to life. Learn how basic scientific research done at Berkeley Lab may yield results of benefit in other areas of science and culture. Series: "Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Summer Lecture Series"


TCR rearrangements were used to probe the clonal origin of myelin basic protein (MBP)-reactive T cells from patients with multiple sclerosis (n = 7) and normal subjects (n = 3). The majority of MBP-specific T cell lines were specific for the immunodominant MBP(84-102) and MBP(143-168) peptides and were restricted by HLA-DR molecules. In two patients with the DR2 haplotype, the T cell response to MBP was focused on the MBP(84-102) peptide. In both patients, in vivo expanded population(s) (three expanded populations in the first patient, one expanded population in the second patient) dominated the response to the MBP(84-102) peptide. Two MBP(84-102)-specific T cell clones from a normal subject with the DR2 haplotype were also found to have identical TCR sequences. Clonality was proven by demonstrating that independent clones had identical TCR alpha- and TCR beta-chain sequences as well as identical sequences of a TCR gamma-chain or of a second TCR alpha-chain rearrangement. Repeated analysis of one patient after 13 mo demonstrated that the three expanded clones had persisted in vivo. A representative of one of the expanded clones was again obtained after 31 mo by IL-2 stimulation suggesting that this clone was activated in vivo. These data suggest that the response to human MBP is dominated in at least some subjects by expanded clones that may persist in vivo for relatively long periods of time.


Using the information rating consisting of disclosure items from five dimensions – regulatory compliance, timeliness, financial forecast, annual report, and corporate website, we examine how a firm's disclosure quality influences its stock's price efficiency and expected return in Taiwan stock market. We find the stock of a firm with better disclosure quality reflects both market-wide and firm-specific news more efficiently after controlling investor attention and stock liquidity variables. Furthermore, the component of information rating which is associated with outside governance, inside governance, and turnover of the important position variables also negatively correlates with a firm's stock price delay. Finally, our findings show that the governance-determined information rating component of stock price delay significantly and positively explains stock returns in the following year, suggesting a negative relationship between a firm's cost of equity capital and its governance-determined disclosure quality.


Information system effectiveness is an important phenomenon for both researchers and practitioners. Despite widespread interest, and the importance of the uses, there have been no efforts to validate Computerworld's Premier 100 rankings of information system effectiveness. This paper uses structural equation modeling in an attempt to validate the measuring instrument used to derive the Computerworld rankings.Alternative models for the measuring instrument are proposed. Using a reflective model, the findings raise doubts as to the reliability of the rankings, and both content validity and construct validity are also suspect. The reliability and validity are problematic because multiple indicators of the same construct must be homogeneous for it to make sense to combine them into a composite index. A solution to this problem is to represent information system effectiveness as a multidimensional construct, that is part of a causal model. Based on previous research in the area, suggestions are offered to improve the measuring instrument.


In French L1 syllabuses, the term connecteur is defined according to semantic criteria and covering invariable words, and even syntagms commuting with adverbial phrases. They are given in lists and thus cannot be really used to interpret L1 texts.L2 learners are not made aware of the functioning of these heterogeneous L2 units, which makes their task even more arduous. The L1 filter compounded by limited awareness of the functioning of L1 thus leads to one-to-one relations that hinder L2 skills especially when items learnt by rote are artificially inserted instead of being used to connect ideas. A unified and contrastive grammatical terminology would allow an efficient metalinguistic awareness.


Morphological relationships among sympatric animal species have often been seen as indirect evidence for competition. Many early ecomorphological studies revealed patterns that were taken as indicating character displacement and character release, driven by competition or lack thereof. These patterns may result from a coevolutionary morphological response or from species sorting according to size. Thus, the relationship between morphology and competition may be crucial for understanding both the morphological evolution of animals and the role of competition in structuring communities. Some earlier research perceived as indicating morphological relationships conditioned by interaction of species was conducted on mammals, particularly carnivores. Subsequent criticism in the ecological literature demonstrated that many of the perceived patterns could not be statistically confirmed, thus calling into question this line of evidence for competition. More recent ecological literature relies on strong statistical analyses and careful consideration both of guild composition and of which morphological traits should be examined. This literature, resting largely on mammals, includes several cases that suggest a coevolutionary morphological response to interspecific competition. These studies have focused on the trophic apparatus directly related to food procurement by mammals ‐ the teeth. Island mammals often show striking morphological patterns, some of which have been interpreted as resulting from release from competition with mainland species that have not reached islands. However, few of these patterns were critically evaluated to demonstrate their support for the hypothesis of character release. Despite several decades of interest and research, many questions regarding competitively induced morphological patterns remain unresolved and require further research. Mammals are especially promising subjects for such research.


In this paper, an innovative piezoelectric energy harvesting unit (PEHU) for the piezoelectric energy harvesting system (PEHS) from highway traffic is introduced. The proposed PEHU contains a non-linear force amplification mechanism, which substantially increases the electricity output of the PEHU in contrast to the conventional designs with direct loading to the piezoelectric stacks. Quasi-static laboratory tests have been performed to validate the design and the mathematical model. In a quasi-static load cycle of 1333N, a preloaded PEHU prototype is able to generate a voltage of 128V and a potential electric energy of 120mJ with a displacement as small as 2.54mm. The energy density that the PEHS can potentially deliver is estimated to be 8.64J/(m.pass.lane) and is the highest reported in the literature. This level of power generation suggests that the PEHU has a great potential for roadway energy harvesting.


The development of a novel amphibian walking robot prototype is proposed according to the need of duty under bad circumstance. It can be used as the carrier of the reconnaissance equipment, the weapon system and the communication system, and complete many kinds of missions in the place near the sea and tideland which a man can not complete. Some new dynamics questions is introduced because of multi-leg structure features and functionality of the amphibious. The integrated approach of series parallel is proposed to solve the characteristic that swing and supporting phase are appeared respectively during walking. Hydrodynamic effect is also considered in our dynamics equation. At last, the least distribution model of driving moment and driving energy of robot are set up in this paper. These conclusions have very important effects to the control of robots.


We present a new method for tagging image regions using uncertain information granules. This tagging forms an efficient route for the elicitation of knowledge from domain experts with respect to images. We then use this uncertain granular information to train a fuzzy machine learner and then to classify unseen images. This method is particularly suited to applications where an expert input into the classification process is essential but where the expert's time is in extremely short supply. Results are presented within the example domain of detecting the lung disease from computed tomography scans.


In this article we read particular fragments of poststructuralist theory to constitute a narrative epistemological position that enables us to question the morality of psychology's narratives of gendered subjectivities. Drawing on the work of Lyotard (1984) and White (1987) we theorise narrative form as complicit with moral order and the morality of subject positioning. We then question the positioning of a particular woman through a narrative telling of her psychology. The specific narrative is the judge's summation in a murder trial where the case is defended through a plea of insanity. The accused woman's psychology is told through reference to trial evidence: the expert testimony of psychologists and psychiatrists. We read fragments from the judge's summation and from expert testimony to exemplify the moral order of the positioning they enable and constrain. Finally, we discuss the implications of our reading for interventions into the social power relations of legitimate psychological knowledges. (Feminism, Poststructuralism, Narrative, Morality, Insanity, Mental Disorder)


In the last decades, the powerful self-assembly properties of DNA have been harnessed to produce complex structures at the nanoscale with high precision and yield. DNA origami is one of the most robust examples of this, where a 7000-nucleotide strand of biological origin is folded by hybridizing with hundreds of synthetic oligonucleotides, the programmed sequence of these "staple strands" determines the shape of the assembled object. The long "scaffold strand" permeates every helix of the assembled object acting as a backbone, finding the path for the scaffold strand is trivial in designs where the helices are packed on a parallel lattice but becomes challenging in other designs. In this thesis we expand the design space of DNA origami to wireframe structures based on polyhedral meshes by the introduction of a software package consisting of: a routing algorithm for finding A-trail Eulerian circuits, a rapid physical simulation for converting the mesh to a DNA design with low strain, and vHelix, a graphical user interface for manual modification of the structure and processing of DNA sequences (Paper I). We find that this method can produce wireframe DNA origami structures with refined shapes and features, and we investigate these structures with negative stainedand cryo electron microscopy. The helices in these structures are not packed on a tight lattice and we find that they can assemble and remain stable at physiological salt concentrations unlike previously demonstrated 3D DNA origami. We then expand this method to two-dimensional sheets (Paper II), first by generating three rectangular sheets with different vertex geometries and investigating them with atomic force microscopy to find that six-armed vertices are needed for non-distorted structures. The geometry with six-arm vertices is then used to generate four flat sheets with complex internal and external features, these structures fold with high yield to their programmed shape. It is apparent from electron microscopy that these structures are not as rigid as structures based on the parallel packing of helices. In Paper III we study the effect of design choices on the rigidity of wireframe structures, specifically on rods where the flexibility can be estimated by measuring the persistence length. In addition to experiments we use coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to evaluate the rigidity in silico. We find that the rigidity of rods increases with increasing number of facets in the cross-section, and that the breakpoints between staples negatively affects rigidity and that his effect can be reduced by enzymatic ligation. The simulations reveal that the rigidity of the structures is greatly reduced by increasing the salt concentration. In Paper IV we further explore the power of coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulation to predict the dynamics of DNA nanostructures. First, we track the end to end distance of the helices of a structure throughout a simulation and find that the behavior varies greatly between helices where some are practically rigid and others show large deformations. We then implement this concept in an iterative fashion where a structures rigidity is estimated by simulation and from this first generation a number of mutant structures are created by modifying one or more edges. These mutant structures are then simulated and the effect of the modifications are measured on their adjacent helices or on the entire structure, and modifications that are beneficial are inherited in the next generation of the structure. Using these methods, we are able to create a moderate evolution towards a lower flexibility in wireframe DNA origami structures. LIST OF SCIENTIFIC PAPERS I. Benson, E., Mohammed, A., Gardell, J., Masich, S., Czeizler, E., Orponen, P., & Högberg, B. (2015). DNA rendering of polyhedral meshes at the nanoscale. Nature, 523(7561), 441. II. Benson, E., Mohammed, A., Bosco, A., Teixeira, A. I., Orponen, P., & Högberg, B. (2016). Computer-Aided Production of Scaffolded DNA Nanostructures from Flat Sheet Meshes. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 55(31), 8869-8872. III. Benson, E., Mohammed, A., Rayneau-Kirkhope, D., Gådin, A., Orponen, P., & Högberg, B. Evaluation of optimal design choices for rigidity of wireframe DNA origami structures. Manuscript IV. Benson, E., Gådin, A., & Högberg, B. Evolutionary refinement of DNA nanostructures using coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations. Manuscript Additional papers not included in the thesis: I. Zhao, Y.X., Shaw, A., Zeng, X., Benson, E., Nyström, A.M. and Högberg, B., (2012). DNA origami delivery system for cancer therapy with tunable release properties. ACS nano, 6(10), 8684-8691. II. Shaw, A., Lundin, V., Petrova, E., Fördős, F., Benson, E., Al-Amin, A., Herland, A., Blokzijl, A., Högberg, B. and Teixeira, A.I., (2014). Spatial control of membrane receptor function using ligand nanocalipers. Nature methods, 11(8), 841-846. III. Shaw, A., Benson, E. and Högberg, B., (2015). Purification of functionalized DNA origami nanostructures. ACS nano, 9(5), 4968-4975.


INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is a non-invasive technique used for the neurochemical study of the brain in vivo. The aim of this work is to review the main investigations that have focused on the study of cerebral pathology.

DEVELOPMENT
Cerebral MRS studies started in 1983 but the maximum development has been in the 90's. The pathologies more investigated were Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, schizophrenia, and depression. Although several nuclei can be observed the most investigated are phosphor (P31) and hydrogen (H1). Nowadays proton MRS is the more frequently used technique. The low levels of N-acetyl-aspartate are a good indicator of neuronal loss. Their determination is complementary to the volumetric structural studies from magnetic resonance imaging. The peak of myo-inositol seems to be a neurochemical marker for the Alzheimer's disease.

CONCLUSIONS
MRS have contributed to the increase of knowledge about the physiopathology of normal aging, degenerative processes, demyelinating and psychiatric diseases. Potentially can contribute to differential diagnose in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Recently it has also been opened a new research potential in the field of the pharmacological treatment effects in discrete cerebral regions.


Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a relatively common childhood behavior disorder that typically is treated with psychotropic medication (e.g., methylphenidate), behavioral strategies, or their combination. This article provides an overview of the school-related difficulties associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. School-based intervention strategies including behavioral interventions, modifications to academic instruction, and home-school communication programs are described briefly. Several important gaps in the school-based intervention literature are identified with particular attention to the need for feasible, effective strategies that can be used in general education settings with a variety of age groups. An overview of the purpose and content of the special series is provided.


The aerosol measurements have been carried out at Kolhapur (16°42′N, 74°14′E) by using twilight technique. Newly designed Semiautomatic Twilight Photometer was operated during the period 1 January 2009 to 30 December 2011 to study the vertical distribution of the mesospheric aerosol number density per cubic decimeter (dm). Here after aerosol number density per cubic decimeter (dm) is abbreviated as 'AND'. In the present study vertical distribution of AND during strong meteor showers days is discussed. In the present work an attempt is made to calculate the mesospheric aerosol number density per cubic decimeter (AND) using Twilight Sounding Method (TSM), for the first time in India. The dust particles during strong meteor showers intrude in the Earth's atmosphere below 120 Km. The dust particles of strong meteor showers penetrate the lower atmosphere and also act as cloud condensation nuclei


Intradiploic encephalocele is a rare condition of herniation of the brain parenchyma through the diploic space. A 52-year-old man presented with a parietal intradiploic encephalocele manifesting as an intermittent headache for 7 months. CT revealed an osteolytic lesion involving the right parietal bone. MRI demonstrated brain herniation within the diploic space. Surgery may be unnecessary in the absence of concurrent symptoms or neurological deficits. After 2 years of follow-up, symptoms were improved without neurological deficits and CT findings. We report the X-ray, CT, and MRI findings of an extremely rare case of parietal intradiploic encephalocele in adulthood.


Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging utilizes brief, high energy, focused acoustic pulses to generate radiation force in tissue, and conventional diagnostic ultrasound methods to detect the resulting tissue displacements in order to image the relative mechanical properties of tissue. Parametric images of maximum displacement, the time the tissue takes to reach its peak displacement, and tissue recovery time provide information about tissue material properties and structure. FEM simulations have been developed and validated of tissue mechanical and thermal response to ARFI excitation. Potential clinical applications under investigation include: soft tissue lesion characterization, assessment of diffuse and focal atherosclerosis, and imaging of thermal lesion formation during tissue ablation procedures. In both in vivo and ex vivo data, structures shown in matched B-mode images are in good agreement with those shown in ARFI displacement images. In ex vivo tissue ablation studies (HIFU and RF-ablation), thermal lesion size correlates well with matched pathology images. In vivo breast studies, palpable breast masses exhibit smaller displacements (i.e. they are stiffer) than surrounding tissues. Some malignant masses appear larger in ARFI displacement images than in matched B-mode images, consistent with a desmoplastic reaction; however, this is not the case for all malignant breast masses that have been studied. Benign fibroadenomas, in general, exhibit less contrast than malignant masses in ARFI displacement images. Results from ongoing studies will be presented.


In 2014, a radical shift took place in Danish water planning. Following years of a top-down water planning approach, 23 regional water councils were established to co-create and provide input to Danish authorities on the development of River Basin Management Plans (RBMP). The water councils advised local authorities on the application of measures to improve the physical conditions in Danish streams within a given economic frame. The paper shows the difference the use of water councils (public participation) made by comparing the final water council proposal included in the 2015 RBMP to the RBMPs proposed by the central government (Nature Agency) in 2014. The study concludes that the measures proposed by the water councils will generally deliver better results than the proposed Nature Agency plans, which do not include the same level of participation. Specifically, the water councils with stakeholder involvement proposed a much longer network of streams (3800 km), yielding a better ecological outcome than the shorter stream network (1615 km) proposed by the Nature Agency for the same budget. Having a structured and fixed institutional frame around public participation (top-down meeting bottom-up) can produce cost-effective results, but the results show that cost-effectiveness was not the only deciding factor, and that local circumstances like the practicalities of implementing the measures were also considered when developing the Programmes of Measures. The findings suggest that the use of water councils in water planning has significant advantages, including the fact that the knowledge of local conditions helps to identify efficient solutions at lower costs, which can be useful for administrators, policy-makers, and other stakeholders implementing the Water Framework Directive in years to come.


Effect of adding up to 5wt% CaF2 on the densification and microstructural development of hot pressed aluminum nitride (AlN) was investigated. SEM investigation showed that the grain size of the sintered sample decreases with the increasing content of CaF2. Secondary-phase evolution paths converge from CA6 to CA phase above 1650°C. TEM micrographs showed that formed secondary phases could evaporate from sintered bodies at higher temperatures in the carbon-containing nitrogen atmosphere and the residuals were mainly distributed at triple grain junctions, keeping direct connections of AlN grains. Translucnet AlN ceramics were prepared using CaF2 additive sintered at 1850°C for 5 h.


Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have gained tremendous success in solving complex inverse problems. The aim of this work is to develop a novel CNN framework to reconstruct video sequences of dynamic live cells captured using a computational microscopy technique, Fourier ptychographic microscopy (FPM). The unique feature of the FPM is its capability to reconstruct images with both wide field-of-view (FOV) and high resolution, i.e. a large space-bandwidth-product (SBP), by taking a series of low resolution intensity images. For live cell imaging, a single FPM frame contains thousands of cell samples with different morphological features. Our idea is to fully exploit the statistical information provided by these large spatial ensembles so as to make predictions in a sequential measurement, without using any additional temporal dataset. Specifically, we show that it is possible to reconstruct high-SBP dynamic cell videos by a CNN trained only on the first FPM dataset captured at the beginning of a time-series experiment. Our CNN approach reconstructs a 12800×10800 pixel phase image using only ∼25 seconds, a 50× speedup compared to the model-based FPM algorithm. In addition, the CNN further reduces the required number of images in each time frame by ∼ 6×. Overall, this significantly improves the imaging throughput by reducing both the acquisition and computational times. The proposed CNN is based on the conditional generative adversarial network (cGAN) framework. We further propose a mixed loss function that combines the standard image domain loss and a weighted Fourier domain loss, which leads to improved reconstruction of the high frequency information. Additionally, we also exploit transfer learning so that our pre-trained CNN can be further optimized to image other cell types. Our technique demonstrates a promising deep learning approach to continuously monitor large live-cell populations over an extended time and gather useful spatial and temporal information with sub-cellular resolution.


BACKGROUND
The quality of the places where workers take their breaks may affect the completeness of recovery in the time available. Little is known about how characteristics of a company canteen buffer the relationship between job demands and fatigue.

OBJECTIVE
We addressed the possibility that the company canteen buffers the relationship between job demands and fatigue to the extent that workers perceive it to hold restorative quality. Further, we considered how the restorative quality of the canteen signals the provision of organizational support, another job resource thought to buffer the demands-fatigue relationship.

ETHODS
A questionnaire was completed by 141 male blue collars workers during their lunch break in the factory canteen of an Italian industrial organization.

RESULTS
Canteen restorative quality correlated positively with organizational support. In multivariate regression analyses, the demands-fatigue association was weaker among workers who saw greater restorative quality in the canteen. This buffering effect was accounted for by a buffering effect of organizational support.

CONCLUSIONS
When settings for rest in the workplace have higher restorative quality, they may better function as job resources in two respects: serving the immediate needs of workers for recovery from job demands, and signaling the interest of the organization in their well-being.


An ex situ AlN seed layer was formed by physical vapor deposition (PVD) on a Si substrate, aiming at the production of high-quality GaN on Si by metal–organic vapor-phase epitaxy. A low density of initial GaN islands were obtained by reducing the trimethylgallium (TMGa) flow rate. The dislocation density of GaN was dramatically reduced with 3D growth compared with 2D growth, as indicated by measurements of XRD rocking curves (FWHM of 384 and 461 arcsec for 0002 and diffractions, respectively) and cathodoluminescence (CL) mapping (dark-spot density of 3.4 × 108 cm−2) for 1-µm-thick crack-free GaN on a Si substrate. The values were almost equivalent to those of the layers grown on sapphire substrates.


In recent experiments on sodium chloride clusters structural transitions between nanocrystals with different cuboidal shapes were detected. Here we present results for the thermodynamics and dynamics of one of these clusters (NaCl)35Cl−. As the time scales for the structural transitions can be much longer than those accessible by conventional dynamics simulations, we use a master equation to describe the probability flow within a large sample of potential energy minima. We characterize the processes contributing to probability flow between the different nanocrystals, and obtain rate constants and activation energies for comparison with the experimental values.


Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a prevalent disorder and the most common cause of dementia in elderly populations. Genetic and environmental factors together play a role in developing late onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD). According to the recent published papers, ACE is one of the candidate susceptibility genes for LOAD. In this study, allele and genotype frequencies for rs4291 and rs1799752 polymorphisms of ACE gene, for 100 Iranian patients, affected with AD and 100 healthy controls were compared using Chi-square test. No statistically significant differences were found in genotype and allele frequencies of rs4291 and rs1799752 polymorphisms between our LOAD patients and controls. The pair-wise haplotype analysis of rs4291 -240 A/T and rs1799752 Alu I/D polymorphisms were also performed, but no significant associations were identified. Key words : ACE, Alzheimer's disease, Iranian, association, polymorphism.


Due to increase in fuel consumption and depleting oil resources it became a mandatory to search for alternative fuel source for powering vehicles. This work examines experimentally the effect of direct water injection strategies on performance and emissions characteristics of hydrogen and bio diesel fuelled direct injection diesel engine. The experiment is conducted for no load, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% of rated load. The brake specific fuel consumption of diesel and 100 % pungam bio diesel is almost same at 75% loads and it will vary slightly at full load conditions. The hydrogen injection will show that it will decrease the BSFC gradually from no load to full load. But water injection will slightly increase the BSFC of 0.035 as compared 4 lpm hydrogen without water injection. As per emission of test engine is concerned NOx and CO2 are reduced greatly with water injection, but NOx emission will increase greatly without water injection as increase in hydrogen flow rates. There is about 80-82 % reduction in NOx emission is observed for water injection due to it decrease the local flame temperature produced by the hydrogen , which became major reason for NOx formation in diesel engines. The major drawback observed while in water injection was tremendous increase in HC emissions; there is 50-60 % improvement in HC emission was observed at high loads. It is due to water injection greatly disturbs the combustion of diesel engine which became a cause for increase in HC emissions. The major problem is smoke intensity. Engine will produce enormous amount of smoke while water is injected.


Cloud manufacturing has been of considerable interest to Chinese academic researchers over the last decade. This paper presents a broad perspective of the research on cloud manufacturing in China. The topics studied mainly include design of cloud manufacturing architecture, resource and capability virtualization, combinatorial optimization of virtual resource and capability, design and collaboration of cloud manufacturing services, intelligent searching and matching method and trust evaluation. The present literature survey also includes two successful cases applying cloud manufacturing in China to verify the feasibility of the cloud manufacturing architecture and services. Potentially interesting directions for future research in this area are also identified.


Abstract We show that the simple act of viewing emails contains privacy pitfalls for the unwary. We assembled a corpus of commercial mailing-list emails, and find a network of hundreds of third parties that track email recipients via methods such as embedded pixels. About 30% of emails leak the recipient's email address to one or more of these third parties when they are viewed. In the majority of cases, these leaks are intentional on the part of email senders, and further leaks occur if the recipient clicks links in emails. Mail servers and clients may employ a variety of defenses, but we analyze 16 servers and clients and find that they are far from comprehensive. We propose, prototype, and evaluate a new defense, namely stripping tracking tags from emails based on enhanced versions of existing web tracking protection lists.


Abstract: Adaptive management is often proposed as the most effective way to manage complex watersheds. However, our experience suggests that social and institutional factors constrain the search for, and integration of, the genuine learning that defines adaptive management. Drawing on our work as social scientists, and on a guided panel discussion at a recent AWRA conference, we suggest that watershed‐scale adaptive management must be recognized as a radical departure from established ways of managing natural resources if it is to achieve its promise. Successful implementation will require new ways of thinking about management, new organizational structures and new implementation processes and tools. Adaptive management encourages scrutiny of prevailing social and organizational norms and this is unlikely to occur without a change in the culture of natural resource management and research. Planners and managers require educational, administrative, and political support as they seek to understand and implement adaptive management. Learning and reflection must be valued and rewarded, and fora established where learning through adaptive management can be shared and explored. The creation of new institutions, including educational curricula, organizational policies and practices, and professional norms and beliefs, will require support from within bureaucracies and from politicians. For adaptive management to be effective researchers and managers alike must work together at the watershed‐scale to bridge the gaps between theory and practice, and between social and technical understandings of watersheds and the people who occupy and use them.


A recent special issue of this journal focussed on the emergence of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) movement as a key driver of Scottish social policy. In this article, we extend the critiques advanced therein by locating ACEs within a wider cultural turn towards psychological trauma which, over the past decade, has become reified as a master theory across social welfare. Yet, the concept is insubstantial and ill-defined, and the claims made for policy based upon it are at best disputable. Its prominence is less evidence-based than it is testimony to how a particular (cultural and professional) ideology, regardless of its intellectual merit, can be insinuated into policy discourse. ACEs, we suggest, is utilised to provide the trauma paradigm with some ostensibly quantifiable substance. We illustrate our argument through reference to the Scottish Government's National Trauma Training Programme (2020). We go on to consider some of the implications of such ideological capture for the direction of Scottish social welfare policy and practice. The prominence given to trauma perspectives has potentially iatrogenic consequences for those identified or self-identifying as traumatised. At a wider level, it reflects a professional and epistemic privileging of a narrow, ostensibly therapeutic, worldview which, in turn, acts to marginalise 'the social' that characterised erstwhile Scottish approaches to welfare.


Lipid signals mediate the response to mitochondrial stress. In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, mitochondrial dysfunction triggers a set of responses associated with mitochondrial repair (UPRmt), drug detoxification, and detection of pathogens. The transcription factor ATFS-1 is sequestered and degraded in the mitochondria and, in response to mitochondrial stress, accumulates in the nucleus to activate the genes that mediate the mitochondrial stress response, including hsp-6 (see Wolff and Dillin). Using reporter genes for the three activated pathways and the avoidance behavior that worms experiencing mitochondrial stress exhibit toward bacteria, their normal food source, Liu et al. examined the C. elegans response to genetic or chemical disruption of mitochondrial function. An RNA interference screen identified 45 genes that, when knocked down, reduced the induction of reporter genes in response to mitochondrial stress. These genes included those encoding proteins involved in lipid metabolism, such as sptl-1 (encoding a serine palmitoyltransferase involved in sphingolipid and ceramide synthesis) and hmgs-1 (encoding HMG-CoA synthase, involved in mevalonate metabolism). Addition of a ceramide mixture, C24 ceramide alone, or a nuclear-targeted ATFS-1 rescued the induction of the UPRmt reporter in worms in which SPTL-1 was knocked down or pharmacologically inhibited. Furthermore, ceramide accumulated at the mitochondria in worms experiencing mitochondrial stress. Mevalonate supplementation rescued the induction of the mitochondrial stress response reporter in worms in which HMGS-1 was knocked down. Statins are drugs that inhibit the mevalonate pathway and are used to inhibit endogenous cholesterol synthesis in patients with high cholesterol, but these drugs can have a serious muscle-damaging side effect. Exposing the worms to statins impaired the induction of the UPRmt reporter. Thus, in addition to compromising mitochondrial function by inhibiting synthesis of a component needed for ATP synthesis, these drugs also inhibit the cell's ability to respond to the impairment in mitochondrial function. Coculturing the worms with various species of bacteria native to their natural environment showed that several species disrupted induction of the UPRmt reporter. Thus, lipids are involved in signaling mitochondrial dysfunction and bacteria can interfere with this response. Y. Liu, B. S. Samuel, P. C. Breen, G. Ruvkun, Caenorhabditis elegans pathways that surveil and defend mitochondria. Nature 508, 406–410 (2014).[PubMed] S. Wolff, A. Dillin, The stressful influence of microbes. Nature 508, 328–329 (2014). [PubMed]


The demand for reform of the financial system has focused on the dollar's loss of international purchasing power (the Triffin dilemma) and its substitution by an international reserve currency that is not a national currency. The problem, however, is not the particular asset that serves as the international currency but rather the operation of the adjustment mechanism for dealing with global imbalances. In a preliminary report issued in May, the Commission of Experts of the President of the United Nations General Assembly on Reforms of the International Monetary and Financial System made clear that the international system suffers from an inherent tendency toward deficient aggregate demand, a reflection of the asymmetry in the international adjustment mechanism. Even the simple creation of a notional currency to be used in a clearing union (proposed by Keynes) cannot do this without some commitment to coordinated symmetric adjustment by both surplus and deficit countries. Thus, the first steps in the reform process must be (1) to offset the balance sheet losses caused by the collapse of asset values and (2) to provide an alternative source of demand to replace the U.S. consumer and an alternative source of finance to offset the deleveraging of financial institutions. This can be done through the coordinated introduction of traditional, countercyclical deficit expenditure policies, on a global scale.


Rush Veneer, Nomophila noctuella Denis & Schiffermuller, 1775 (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) is a pest fed with grass-pasture forage plants in many countries. The aim of this study was to determine damage state, and larvae parasitoids of N. noctuella found at alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) fields of Igdir province in the years 2014-2015. For this aim, a survey was performed every 3-7 days in April-June and September-December months. In the survey, each field was monitored and the larvae were collected from alfalfa fields and kept in boxes covered with nets in the laboratory at 25±1oC and 65±5% RH. and following pupation, adult moths and larvae parasitoids were obtained. During the survey conducted at alfalfa fields, the larvae of the pest preferred alfalfa fields planted in April month and damaged the plantation at changing rates by cutting-eating them from 3-5 cm upper part of root of alfalfa plants at the height of 7-10 cm. Of larvae cultivated in the laboratory, Chelonus oculator (Fabricius, 1775) C. inanitus (Linnaeus, 1767) parasitoids belonging to Braconidae (Hymenoptera) family were also obtained in the study. As a result, the present study revealed that Rush Veneer, N. noctuella for alfalfa plants was a new pest recorded for the first time in Turkey. N. noctuella is the new host of C. oculator and C. inanitus in the world.


Autophagy is a homeostatic cellular recycling system that is responsible for degrading damaged or unnecessary cellular organelles and proteins. Cancer cells are thought to use autophagy as a source of energy in the unfavorable metastatic environment, and a number of clinical trials are now revealing the promising role of chloroquine, an autophagy inhibitor, as a novel antitumor drug. On the other hand, however, the kidneys are highly vulnerable to chemotherapeutic agents. Recent studies have shown that autophagy plays a protective role against acute kidney injury, including cisplatin-induced kidney injury, and thus, we suspect that the use of chloroquine in combination with anticancer drugs may exacerbate kidney damage. Moreover, organs in which autophagy also plays a homeostatic role, such as the neurons, liver, hematopoietic stem cells, and heart, may be sensitive to the combined use of chloroquine and anticancer drugs. Here, we summarize the functions of autophagy in cancer and kidney injury, especially focusing on the use of chloroquine to treat cancer, and address the possible side effects in the combined use of chloroquine and anticancer drugs.


Background: A rectal sub-region (SRR) has been previously identified by voxel-wise analysis in the inferior-anterior part of the rectum as highly predictive of rectal bleeding (RB) in prostate cancer radiotherapy. Translating the SRR to patient-specific radiotherapy planning is challenging as new constraints have to be defined. A recent geometry-based model proposed to optimize the planning by determining the achievable mean doses (AMDs) to the organs at risk (OARs), taking into account the overlap between the planning target volume (PTV) and OAR. The aim of this study was to quantify the SRR dose sparing by using the AMD model in the planning, while preserving the dose to the prostate. Material and Methods: Three-dimensional volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) planning dose distributions for 60 patients were computed following four different strategies, delivering 78 Gy to the prostate, while meeting the genitourinary group dose constraints to the OAR: (i) a standard plan corresponding to the standard practice for rectum sparing (STDpl), (ii) a plan adding constraints to SRR (SRRpl), (iii) a plan using the AMD model applied to the rectum only (AMD_RECTpl), and (iv) a final plan using the AMD model applied to both the rectum and the SRR (AMD_RECT_SRRpl). After PTV dose normalization, plans were compared with regard to dose distributions, quality, and estimated risk of RB using a normal tissue complication probability model. Results: AMD_RECT_SRRpl showed the largest SRR dose sparing, with significant mean dose reductions of 7.7, 3, and 2.3 Gy, with respect to the STDpl, SRRpl, and AMD_RECTpl, respectively. AMD_RECT_SRRpl also decreased the mean rectal dose by 3.6 Gy relative to STDpl and by 3.3 Gy relative to SRRpl. The absolute risk of grade ≥1 RB decreased from 22.8% using STDpl planning to 17.6% using AMD_RECT_SRRpl considering SRR volume. AMD_RECT_SRRpl plans, however, showed slightly less dose homogeneity and significant increase of the number of monitor units, compared to the three other strategies. Conclusion: Compared to a standard prostate planning, applying dose constraints to a patient-specific SRR by using the achievable mean dose model decreased the mean dose by 7.7 Gy to the SRR and may decrease the relative risk of RB by 22%.


This title includes over 500 illustrations and easy-to-follow steps. It is targeted at the countless managa fans the world over who are irresistibly drawn to everything Kawaii and the cult of cute. From Hello Kitty to the huge array of Pokemon characters, the superpopular manga genre known as "Kawaii" has swept Japan, Korea and the rest of Asia and is now storming the rest of the world. "Manga for the Beginner Kawaii" is the first book ever written and illustrated on how to draw these intensely cute and colourfully graphic Kawaii characters.


We analyzed the seismicity of Northern Honshu-Hokkaido region using the declustered earthquake catalog compiled by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), for the period between January 1970 and December 1994. Making use of the ZMAP software tool, we sought to determine whether the quiescence hypothesis is applicable to 16 main shocks (M ³ 7.0) of the JMA catalog. We found a highly significant seismic quiescence prior to the May 26, 1983 Nihonkai-Chubu, MJ 7.7, earthquake. The quiescence that preceded the event lasted more than 3.5 years, and was located in the Japan Sea, off Akita and Aomori Prefectures. It was characterized by a standard deviate Z = 7.4 (Tw = 3 years), within a volume of approximately 200 by 300 by 40 km around the hypocenter. This volume contained 16 earthquakes (M ? 3.8) during the background period which lasted more than 8 years preceding the quiescence, and none during this one. A high concentration of seismic activity exceeding 15 events per year followed the main shock before the rate returned back to the previous value. No quiescence was observed before another strong event of magnitude 7.8 which occurred on July 12, 1993, 200 km north of the former, while three quiescences with the same Z-value were observed in the same region and in the same time period, not followed by any main shocks (false alarms). The probability that the Nihonkai-Chubu earthquake correlated at random with the quiescence period is estimated as approximately 1%, based on the fraction of space-time covered by alarms. The seismicity rate variations observed before and after the 1983 Nihonkai-Chubu earthquake are similar to those observed in the rupture area of the 1980 Irpinia (Italy), M 6.9 earthquake.


Dermatologic disparities disproportionately affect patients with skin of color (SOC). This study evaluated the effectiveness of a focused educational module for improving diagnostic accuracy and confidence in the treatment of patients with SOC among interprofessional health care providers. An SOC educational module involving a pretest, 15-minute lecture, immediate posttest, and 3-month posttest was created. One hundred participants completed the pretest and immediate posttest; 36 of them also completed the 3-month post-test. Our results suggest that a focused educational module may provide long-term improvements in diagnostic accuracy and confidence for conditions presenting in patients with SOC.


The radioactivity induced by carbon ions of the Heavy Ion Medical Machine (HIMM) was studied to asses its radiation protection and environmental impact. Radionuclides in the accelerator component, and in the cooling water and air at the target area, which are induced from primary beam and secondary particles, are simulated by FLUKA Monte Carlo code. It is found that radioactivity in the cooling water and air is not very important at the required beam intensity and energy that is needed for treatment, while radionuclides in the accelerator component may cause some problems for maintenance work and, therefore, a suitable cooling time is needed after the machine is shut down.


Field records, aerial photographs, and satellite imagery show that the perennial ice cover on Ward Hunt Lake at Canada's northern coast experienced rapid contraction and thinning after at least 50 years of relative stability. On all dates of sampling from 1953 to 2007, 3.5 to 4.3 m of perennial ice covered 65–85% of the lake surface in summer. The ice cover thinned from 2008 onward, and the lake became ice free in 2011, an event followed by 26 days of open water conditions in 2012. This rapid ice loss corresponded to a significant increase in melting degree days (MDD), from a mean (±SD) of 80.4 (±36.5) MDD (1996–2007) to 136.2 (±16.4) MDD (2008–2012). The shallow bathymetry combined with heat advection by warm inflows caused feedback effects that accelerated the ice decay. These observations show how changes across a critical threshold can result in the rapid disappearance of thick perennial ice.


Grid-connected unity-power-factor converters based on one-cycle control (OCC) do not require the service of phase-locked loop or any other synchronization circuits for interfacing with the utility. As a result, these schemes are becoming increasingly popular. However, as the power handled by the converter increases, the power factor deteriorates. To understand quantitatively the cause of poor power factor while negotiating high power loads, large signal models for these schemes are developed. Having understood the cause for poor power factor operation, a modified-OCC-based converter is proposed. This scheme has high power factor while supplying high power loads. Detailed simulation studies are carried out to verify the efficacy of the scheme. In order to confirm the viability of the scheme, detailed experimental studies are carried out on a 3-kW laboratory prototype.


Pulmonary embolism is associated with significant mortality and impaired long-term functional outcomes. Timely identification and treatment is crucial for successful management. Unfortunately, prompt diagnosis can be challenging in patients without overt signs of cardiovascular compromise. Point-of-care cardiac ultrasound (POCCUS) can be used to identify signs of acute pulmonary embolism, risk stratify patients for adverse outcomes and assess response to therapy. This report describes a patient with submassive pulmonary embolism and evidence of acute right ventricular strain on POCCUS successfully treated with thrombolytic therapy. The dynamic changes observed on point-of-care ultrasound are presented. [Clin Pract Cases Emerg Med.2017;1(4):340–344.]


Advertising that pushes the boundaries can sometimes be negatively received, some of these advertisements were reported to the regulator of advertising in the UK while Companies has had to apologise for their advertisements. The systemic diversity problem within the advertising industry is also acknowledged wondering if the industry is diverse enough to produce an advertisement that can appeal to a diverse audience. With this background, this paper presents a teaching innovation with the aim of addressing students' understanding of creative marketing campaign in a multicultural society through the integration of advertising practises codes, ASA rulings and secondary research into the public perception of advertisement. The project is divided into five main parts and takes place over a three-week period. Students are expected to work with advertisements that vert reported being offensive, research public's attitude towards them and present their justifications for either agreeing or disagreeing with the rulings. This project allows a better understanding of the creative challenges in developing an ethical and socially responsible marketing campaign; finding a balance between creativity and freedom of expression, they can better internalise the integrative nature of the marketing concept, a valuable skill for the industry.


The (n — 1)-dimensional simplex is the collection of probability measures on a set with n points. Many applied situations result in simplex-valued data or in stochastic processes that have the simplex as their state space. In this paper we study a large class of simplex-valued diffusion processes that are constructed by first "coordinatising" the simplex with the points of a smooth hypersurface in such a way that several points on the hypersurface may correspond to a given point on the simplex, and then mapping forward the canonical Brownian motion on the hypersurface. For example, a particular instance of the Fleming-Viot process on n points arises from Brownian motion on the (n — 1)-dimensional sphere. The Brownian motion on the hypersurface has the normalised Riemannian volume as its equilibrium distribution. It is straightforward to compute the corresponding distribution on the simplex, and this provides a large class of interesting probability measures on the simplex.


other universities followed this admirable example, it would do much to further art and nurture artists. Knowing both Jonson and his works, I feel that this book is a valuable record and analysis and a fine piece of literature. I dedicate this review to the memory of Arthur H. Jonson, the brother of Raymond and for 15 years the curator of Jonson Gallery. He was a rare and noble individual, accomplished both as a writer and musician.


The aim of this research was to evaluate the additional growth rate of dominant follicle (DF) using a pregnant mare's serum gonadotropin (PMSG) in a 7-day progesterone (P4)-gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH)-based program on follicular development and luteal function in White Lamphun cows. Cows in the PMSG-treated group (n=10) received PMSG on day of a P4 device removal (on Day 7) in 7-day P4-GnRH-based program, while cows in the PMSG-untreated group (n=10) did not receive PMSG treatment. Ultrasonography was used to scan ovaries to determine development of ovulatory follicle (OF) and formation of corpus luteum (CL). Blood samples were collected to examine P4 concentration. The OF diameter and CL parameters (size, area, and volume) were greater in the PMSG-treated cows than in the PMSG-untreated cows (P < 0.05). Ten days after ovulation, the greatest P4 concentration was found in the PMSG-treated group (P < 0.05). In conclusion, additional growth rate of DF using PMSG in 7-day P4-GnRH-based program results in increase in OF development, CL parameters, and greater P4 concentration in White Lamphun cows.


We report three siblings of a family with hereditary motor and sensory polyneuropathy (HMSN) and buphthalmos. Electrophysiological studies showed a demyelinating neuropathy and pathological findings showed severe loss of myelinated fibers (MF), thin myelin sheaths and myelin infoldings in a few remaining MF. The presumed mode of inheritance is autosomal recessive. This family probably represents an unique form of CMT4 that may be related to one of the congenital glaucoma genic locus, particularly GLC3A and GLC3B, described in Turkish families.


Purpose of review Hospital-acquired pneumonia and ventilator-associated pneumonia remain significant causes of morbidity, mortality, and financial burden in the United States and around the globe. Although guidelines for the management of patients with these conditions have been available for several years, implementation remains challenging. Here, we review the most common barriers faced by clinicians in implementing the current guidelines and offer suggestions for improved adherence. Recent findings Recent studies have identified barriers to the implementation of the guidelines regarding management of hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia. The most common difficulties encountered are lack of awareness of the guidelines, practice variation among providers delivering care to affected patients, lack of antibiogram information, and lack of antibiotic stewardship programs. Summary Translating the current hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia guidelines to the bedside requires understanding of the current barriers affecting care of patients with these conditions. Adopting clinical guidelines facilitates the management of these patients and improves outcomes. Dissemination of the guidelines, provider education, antibiotic stewardship programs, access to local antibiogram information, audit and feedback, electronic tools and leadership commitment are likely to play important roles in guideline implementation. More studies on hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia guideline implementation are necessary to identify the most effective interventions.


The panel "Examining Key Regulations through the Global Lens: Regulatory Capital for Banks and Insurers" was held on June 11, 2014, at the Global ABS 2014 conference in Barcelona. The panel focused on two pending regulatory proposals: the Basel Committee's second consultation document on revisions to the Basel securitization framework (BCBS 269), published in December 2013 with a comment period ended March 21, 2014, and the European Insurance and Occupational Pension Authority's (EIOPA) Technical Report on Standard Formula Design and Calibration for Certain Long-Term Investments (EIOPA/13/513), also published in December 2013 and being considered by the European Commission. The Basel proposal relates to the international standards for capital treatment of securitizations by banks acting as originators or sponsors of or investors in securitization, while the EIOPA proposals relate to capital requirements under the Solvency II Directive for European insurance and reinsurance companies as investors. The panel members described where each of these proposals stands in its rulemaking process and when they might be finalized and implemented. They also discussed some of the issues that have been identified in comments on the Basel proposal and described the overall structure and method of the Solvency II framework and securitization's place within it. Finally, the panelists touched on some emerging trends, including the greater importance of stress testing for major banks and moves to provide less onerous capital treatment for securitizations meeting defined criteria (as in the EIOPA report) or to calibrate inputs separately for different regulatory or market-standard asset classes (as in comments on the Basel proposal).