Fibrosis is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, accounting for 45% of deaths in the industrial world. Fibrogenesis for multiple diseases and organs has been associated with the dysregulation of integrins and plays a role in different disease states. Integrins are cell adhesion molecules that reside on the surface of cells as transmembrane proteins made of an alpha and beta subunit. There are 24 known integrin molecules classified into different families depending on the subunits (i.e. αv family of integrins) or by the ligands they bind to (i.e. RGD binding family of integrins). They play an important role in many different vital cell processes including migration, proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. The integrins' involvement in all of these processes can facilitate the communication between extracellular matrix, inflammatory cells, fibroblasts, and parenchymal cells through their ability to bind to extracellular matrix ligands, cell-surface ligands, and soluble ligands. Despite their critical role in fibrosis, integrin compensatory regulation is not fully understood. The objectives of this study were to characterize how the αv integrins regulate each other in both a normal and pro-fibrotic environment in order or decipher any mutual regulation between the αv integrins and to assess if there is a good in vitro model to look at potential compensation mechanisms specifically in an inflammatory environment. Antibody inhibitors and siRNA were used to manipulate the expression profiles of LX-2 cells that were incubated under normal culture conditions or after treatment with TGF-β, a known ligand for the αv integrins and a pro-fibrotic cytokine, to mimic a pro-fibrotic environment in vitro. LX-2 cells are spontaneously immortalized human hepatic stellate cells and stellate cells are believed to play a role in fibrotic diseases of the liver. Cells were analyzed by qPCR and flow cytometry to assess the changes in the integrin expression profile. The integrin profile of LX-2 cells was not changed by antibody treatment targeting αvβ3 or αvβ5. Upon knockdown of β3 or β5 expression using small interfering RNA (si-RNA) treatment, a marked decrease in the cell surface expression of the αv subunit was observed without a change in the mRNA levels of the αv subunit. Knockdown of β3 expression using si-RNA treatment did not affect the cell surface expression of αvβ5 and knockdown of β5 expression using si-RNA treatment did not affect the cell surface expression of αvβ3. Our data suggests the αv subunit pairs mostly with β3 and β5 and that under these normal conditions the αv subunit is not re-pairing with other subunits when knocked down.


The introduction of ceramic particulate into metallic powder will unavoidably lower the compressibility and formability of the mixed powder. In order to overcome these problems, in this study, warm compaction was introduced in the forming of an NbC particulate reinforced iron-base valve-guide cup, which is used in a combustion engine. Warm compaction was used not only because it can provide compacts with high green density but also it can increase the formability of the mixed powder. The part composed of an iron-base material which possesses 10wt%NbC with a relative density of 97.7%, a tensile strength of 815MPa, an elongation of 1.5%, a hardness of HRC33 and an impact toughness of 11J/cm2. Its working surface composed of an iron-base material which possesses 15wt% NbC with a high relative density of 98.2%, a tensile strength of 515MPa, a hardness of HRC 58 and a remarkable tribological behavior. The sintered part successfully passed a 500 hours bench test. No serious wear on the working surface can be observed after the test. Results indicated that the sintered part has excellent wear resistivity and the NbC particulate reinforced iron-base composite is a suitable material for parts that work under severe wear condition.


Purpose
This study aims to investigate the factors associated with the implementation of risk-based internal audit (RBIA).

Design/methodology/approach
As a first step, a literature review of the relevant literature is performed and five potential factors related to the implementation of RBIA are identified. Based on that, this paper constructs a questionnaire survey sent out to 185 internal auditors, executives and accountants in Greece to receive 90 responses during the period of November 2019–January 2020. Multiple regression analysis is conducted to identify the factors related to the implementation of RBIA.

Findings
This paper shows that there is a statistically significant positive relationship between the implementation of RBIA and: the provision of risk management training, an active audit committee role and the establishment of a formalized risk management system.

Practical implications
The results have important implications for internal auditors, chief executive officers and accountants who wish to enhance internal audit effectiveness and the accuracy and quality of financial information.

Originality/value
Empirical studies on the factors related to the implementation of RBIA are rare. This is the first study to create empirical variables based on a thorough review of the relevant literature to empirically investigate the factors that are related to the implementation of RBIA in an emerging economy. By focusing on the Greek context, this study also sheds light to other countries with similar corporate governance systems, thus providing insights to settings where the Type II agency problem exists (La Porta et al., 1999).


The COMPASS/BeiDou-2 Navigation Satellite System from China has attained regional operational status and is expected to reach the same level of popularity as GPS once it has reached its full constellation. Already now Australia is a beneficiary of the regional COMPASS configuration as enough satellites are available to perform Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT). This contribution considers combined COMPASS-GPS single point positioning (SPP), relative code positioning and single- and multiple-frequency single-baseline RTK, in Western Australia, Perth. A combined system increases the redundancy and thus allows for more precise position estimates, improved reliability and robustness against failure of any of the systems. We will compare its performance with that of COMPASS- and GPS-only. For single-baseline RTK, we focus our attention on single-epoch ambiguity resolution with the advantage that the system becomes independent of cycle slips. The performance is evaluated by ambiguity success-rates and by comparing the estimated positions to very precise benchmark coordinates. We make use of the LAMBDA method for integer ambiguity resolution, in combination with the Fixed Failure-rate Ratio Test to validate the resolved ambiguities. It will be shown that the increased strength of the combined model allows for improved ambiguity resolution performance and increased positioning robustness and accuracy over the COMPASS- and GPS-only solutions.


Intervertebral discs (IVDs) are small joints that lie between adjacent vertebrae. The localization and segmentation of IVDs are important for spine disease diagnosis and measurement quantification. However, manual annotation is time-consuming and error-prone with limited reproducibility, particularly for volumetric data. In this work, our goal is to develop an automatic and accurate method based on fully convolutional networks (FCN) for the localization and segmentation of IVDs from multi-modality 3D MR data . Compared with single modality data, multi-modality MR images provide complementary contextual information, which contributes to better recognition performance. However, how to effectively integrate such multi-modality information to generate accurate segmentation results remains to be further explored. In this paper, we present a novel multi-scale and modality dropout learning framework to locate and segment IVDs from four-modality MR images. First, we design a 3D multi-scale context fully convolutional network, which processes the input data in multiple scales of context and then merges the highlevel features to enhance the representation capability of the network for handling the scale variation of anatomical structures. Second, to harness the complementary information from different modalities, we present a random modality voxel dropout strategy which alleviates the co-adaption issue and increases the discriminative capability of the network. Our method achieved the 1st place in the MICCAI challenge on automatic localization and segmentation of IVDs from multi-modality MR images, with a mean segmentation Dice coefficient of 91.2% and a mean localization error of 0.62 mm. We further conduct extensive experiments on the extended dataset to validate our method. We demonstrate that the proposed modality dropout strategy with multi-modality images as contextual information improved the segmentation accuracy significantly. Furthermore, experiments conducted on extended data collected from two different time points demonstrate the efficacy of our method on tracking the morphological changes in a longitudinal study. © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


Study objective: Most studies of place effects on health have followed the multilevel analytical approach that investigates geographical variations of health phenomena by fragmenting space into arbitrary areas. This study examined whether analysing geographical variations across continuous space with spatial modelling techniques and contextual indicators that capture space as a continuous dimension surrounding individual residences provided more relevant information on the spatial distribution of outcomes. Healthcare utilisation in France was taken as an illustrative example in comparing the spatial approach with the multilevel approach. Design: Multilevel and spatial analyses of cross sectional data. Participants: 10 955 beneficiaries of the three principal national health insurance funds, surveyed in 1998 and 2000 on continental France. Main results: Multilevel models showed significant geographical variations in healthcare utilisation. However, the Moran's I statistic showed spatial autocorrelation unaccounted for by multilevel models. Modelling the correlation between people as a decreasing function of the spatial distance between them, spatial mixed models gave information not only on the magnitude, but also on the scale of spatial variations, and provided more accurate standard errors for risk factors effects. The socioeconomic level of the residential context and the supply of physicians were independently associated with healthcare utilisation. Place indicators better explained spatial variations in healthcare utilisation when measured across continuous space, rather than within administrative areas. Conclusions: The kind of conceptualisation of space during analysis influences the understanding of place effects on health. In many contextual studies, viewing space as a continuum may yield more relevant information on the spatial distribution of outcomes.


Uncontrolled confounding due to unmeasured confounders biases causal inference in health science studies using observational and imperfect experimental designs. The adoption of methods for analysis of bias due to uncontrolled confounding has been slow, despite the increasing availability of such methods. Bias analysis for such uncontrolled confounding is most useful in big data studies and systematic reviews to gauge the extent to which extraneous preexposure variables that affect the exposure and the outcome can explain some or all of the reported exposure-outcome associations. We review methods that can be applied during or after data analysis to adjust for uncontrolled confounding for different outcomes, confounders, and study settings. We discuss relevant bias formulas and how to obtain the required information for applying them. Finally, we develop a new intuitive generalized bias analysis framework for simulating and adjusting for the amount of uncontrolled confounding due to not measuring and adjusting for one or more confounders.


In this paper, it is advocated that defenders should take active action to stop DDoS attacks. We propose a new model based on differential games theory. Four main actors are included, attacker, defender, victim, and botnet. It is our belief that victims who experience an attack should cooperate with defender to defend for a DDoS-attack. The model indicates the minimum number of bots that should blocked by defender. A differential games model is used to determine how a defender combats an attacker and protect the servers. The feasibility and effectiveness of our approach is validated by measuring the performance of an experimental prototype against a series of attacks. The advantages of the scheme are discussed and further research directions are given.


The priority of Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) to hemiplegic patients on the affected side must be reconsidered due to a lack of effect in its procedure. By the improvement of the theory and techniques of PNF, the improvement of therapeutic effects on hemiplegia patients could be expected in connection with their progress, however the outcome of medical examination has hardly been changed on hemiplegia patients at the clinical aspect over the last 40 years. Although PNF is thought to be more suitable for the normalization of a movement pattern to perform synthetic coordinated movements by affected side priority, it takes too long to lead to the active contraction of the peripheral muscles. Sometimes, even the atrophy of an unaffected side and the trunk can be seen. In considering the PNF of unaffected side priority the effect of facilitation is larger than that of affected side priority. Therefore, if the unaffected priority is used a smaller number of patients will be bedridden by atrophy and contracture. From the recent research on new born power of a neural stem cell (NSC), the elucidation of the mechanism for the effectiveness of the kinetic rehabilitation by the unaffected side priority enables us to expect the functional recovery of a damaged area. The NSC would also affect to the rehabilitation in the realm of the nervous system. It's recommended to try to use and get the evidence of PNF by unaffected side priority.


There have been considerable research efforts devoted to quantum simulations of Fermi-Hubbard model with ultracold atoms loaded in optical lattices. In such experiments, the antiferromagnetically ordered quantum state has been achieved at half filling in recent years. The atomic lattice away from half filling is expected to host d-wave superconductivity, but its low temperature phases have not been reached. In a recent work, we proposed an approach of incommensurate quantum adiabatic doping, using quantum adiabatic evolution of an incommensurate lattice for preparation of the highly correlated many-body ground state of the doped Fermi-Hubbard model starting from a unit-filling band insulator. Its feasibility has been demonstrated with numerical simulations of the adiabatic preparation for certain incommensurate particle-doping fractions, where the major problem to circumvent is the atomic localization in the incommensurate lattice. Here we carry out a systematic study of the quantum adiabatic doping for a wide range of doping fractions from particle-doping to hole-doping, including both commensurate and incommensurate cases. We find that there is still a localization-like slowing-down problem at commensurate fillings, and that it becomes less harmful in the hole-doped regime. With interactions, the adiabatic preparation is found to be more efficient for that interaction effect destabilizes localization. For both free and interacting cases, we find the adiabatic doping has better performance in the hole-doped regime than the particle-doped regime. We also study adiabatic doping starting from the half-filling Mott insulator, which is found to be more efficient for certain filling fractions.


In this paper, we study the contribution of network coding (NC) in improving the multicast capacity of random wireless ad hoc networks when nodes are endowed with multi-packet transmission (MPT) and multi-packet reception (MPR) capabilities. We show that a per session throughput capacity of Θ(nT3 (n)) can be achieved as a tight bound when each session contains a constant number of sinks where n is the total number of nodes and T(n) is the transmission range1. Surprisingly, an identical order capacity can be achieved when nodes have only MPR and MPT capabilities. This result proves that NC does not contribute to the order capacity of multicast traffic in wireless ad hoc networks when MPR and MPT are used in the network. The result is in sharp contrast to the general belief (conjecture) that NC improves the order capacity of multicast. Furthermore, if the communication range is selected to guarantee the connectivity in the network, i.e., Ω (√(log n/n)) = T(n) = O(log log n/log n), then the combination of MPR and MPT achieves a throughput capacity of Θ(log 3/2 n/√n) which provides an order capacity gain of Θ(log2 n) compared to the point- to-point multicast capacity with the same number of destinations.


This article makes a case for treating individual data subjects as gatekeepers against misuse of personal data. Imposing gatekeeper responsibility on individuals is most useful where (a) the primary wrongdoers engage in data misuse intentionally or recklessly; (b) misuse of personal data is likely to lead to serious harm; and (c) one or more individuals are able to detect and prevent data misuse at a reasonable cost.

As gatekeepers, individuals should have a legal duty to take reasonable measures to prevent data misuse where they are aware of facts indicating that the person seeking personal data from them is highly likely to misuse it or to facilitate its misuse. Recognizing a legal duty to prevent data misuse provides a framework for determining the boundaries of appropriate behavior when dealing with personal data that people have legally acquired. It does not, however, abrogate the need to impose gatekeeping obligations on big technology companies.

In addition, individuals should also owe a social duty to protect the personal data in their possession. Whether individuals have sufficient incentive to protect their personal data in a particular situation depends not only on the cost of the relevant security measures, but also on their expectation of the security decisions made by others who also possess that data. Even a privacy conscious individual would have little incentive to invest in privacy protective measures if he believes that his personal data is possessed by a sufficiently large number of persons who do not invest in such measures. On the flip side, an individual's decision to protect his personal data generates positive externalities—it incentivizes others to invest in security measures. As such, promoting the norm of data security is likely to lead to a self-reinforcing virtuous cycle which helps improve the level of data security in a given community.


Algae is a major component of the first trophic level and is vital for many species of aquatic life because it provides food and shelter. Algae uses the process of photosynthesis which requires light and essential nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. We hypothesize adding commercial fertilizer to our water samples will affect algae growth; this is especially true in the sample from the outlet because it's likely the algae from the outlet would be exposed to more fertilizer runoff than algae from the main. We used 35 mL samples of water from Dolese Lake in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and added 0.35 mL of a nutrient (sodium phosphate, urea, or fertilizer) to each sample. We measured the results using a spectrometer. All our samples showed a decrease in algae growth, most likely due to the length of our trial.


Abstract Tadpoles of two closely related Amazonian species of Colostethus are described. Colostethus marchesianus was described by Melin in 1941 from Missão Taracuá, Rio Uaupés, Amazonas, Brazil, and has been depicted as widely occurring throughout the Amazon region; Melin did not describe the tadpoles of this species. Subsequent descriptions of the tadpole of C. marchesianus have been based on specimens from Ecuador, Peru, and from north of the Amazon River in Amazonas, Brazil. However, variation among populations referred to as C. marchesianus has indicated that this taxon may actually be a complex of undescribed species. We revisited the type locality to obtain specimens of C. marchesianus with the objective of redescribing the adult and describing the tadpole for the first time. We also obtained tadpoles of a recently described species, Colostethus caeruleodactylus, that occurs south of the Amazon River in Amazonas, Brazil, and is similar to C. marchesianus. Tadpoles of the two species can be separated from each other based on the reduced number of tooth rows and other features of the oral disc. We suggest that size, arrangement, and number of papillae may be a synapomorphy uniting members of a clade consisting of C. marchesianus and C. caeruleodactylus and possibly closely related species whose tadpoles are unknown at present.


Content-sharing social network platforms rely heavily on user-generated content to attract users and advertisers, but they have limited authority over content provision. We develop an intervention that leverages social interactions between users to stimulate content production. We study social nudges, whereby users connected with a content provider on a platform encourage that provider to supply more content. We conducted a randomized field experiment (N [Formula: see text]) on a video-sharing social network platform where treatment providers could receive messages from other users encouraging them to produce more, but control providers could not. We find that social nudges not only immediately boosted video supply by 13.21% without changing video quality but also, increased the number of nudges providers sent to others by 15.57%. Such production-boosting and diffusion effects, although declining over time, lasted beyond the day of receiving nudges and were amplified when nudge senders and recipients had stronger ties. We replicate these results in a second experiment. To estimate the overall production boost over the entire network and guide platforms to utilize social nudges, we combine the experimental data with a social network model that captures the diffusion and over-time effects of social nudges. We showcase the importance of considering the network effects when estimating the impact of social nudges and optimizing platform operations regarding social nudges. Our research highlights the value of leveraging co-user influence for platforms and provides guidance for future research to incorporate the diffusion of an intervention into the estimation of its impacts within a social network. This paper was accepted by Victor Martínez-de-Albéniz, operations management. Funding: H. Dai thanks the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) [Hellman Fellowship and Faculty Development Award] for funding support. R. Zhang is grateful for financial support from the Hong Kong Research Grants Council [Grant 16505418] and the Shanghai Eastern Scholar Program [Grant QD2018053]. Supplemental Material: The data files and online appendix are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4622 .


Food intake of 30 women over 80 years of age and residing in a long-term care facility was determined for a five-day period using the weighed intake method. Purposes of the study were to examine the contribution to nutrient intake of foods from eight major food groups; to characterize intake by time of day; and to examine the effect of age on nutrient intake. The results indicated that intakes of calcium, thiamin, vitamin A, zinc, and protein were below recommended levels. Analysis of intake by food group revealed that the grain group was the primary source of energy and many nutrients. Percentage consumption of foods in this group was significantly higher than that of vegetables or meat and alternates. Analysis of intake by time of day indicated that more energy was consumed at breakfast than at dinner. Advanced age was negatively correlated with overall dietary adequacy, although the distribution of energy intake from the eight food groups did not change with age. Implications of the results, for these subjects and similar groups of elderly, are discussed.


The purpose of the present study was to assess the compliance of infection control practice among clinical dental students. We used an audit checklist observing dental students in this cross-sectional study involving 80 4th and 5th year dental students at the School of Dental Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia. The audit checklist comprised 5 items before treatment, 20 during treatment and 11 after the treatment procedure. Data were analysed with an SPSS IBM version 24 and a comparison was made using the t-test. A P-value <0.05 was considered significant. The mean compliance percentage toward practice was 90.3% (+6.3). Overall, 95.1% of the students had been complying before treatment, 88.7% during treatment and 90% after the treatment procedure. The most non-compliance practices observed were not washing the hands before treatment (56.2%), not wearing PPE and heavy-duty gloves during cleaning procedures (60%) and touching other parts of the body while wearing gloves (20%). Female students and year 4 students are more complying with practicing infection control (p<0.05). The percentage of students comply towards infection control practice was high, but the findings highlight the needs of continued infection control education and monitoring in practices regarding infection control among dental students at the School of Dental Sciences, University Sains Malaysia. Keywords: Infection control practice; Dental students; Audit


In this issue, Vandepitte and coworkers report a high prevalence of HIV and sexually transmitted infections among sex workers in Kampala, Uganda. HIV prevalence was 37% among 1027 women recruited from red-light areas in Kampala in 2008 and 2009—80% of women were positive for herpes simplex virus-2, 13% were infected with gonorrhea, and 9% with chlamydia. This finding is noteworthy because it adds to a growing body of literature documenting worrisome trends that HIV prevalence and incidence may be increasing in Uganda,1,2 a country that has been hailed as one of the few poster children of HIV prevention success.

Uganda's success in decreasing national HIV prevalence from a high of 18% in 1992 to 6% in 2005 has been widely heralded.3 This decline has been largely attributed to reductions in multiple partnerships (in particular casual sex),4 in addition to social and contextual factors such as community mobilization and communication about HIV.5

Despite the evidence documenting declines in HIV prevalence and concomitant reductions in risk behavior, growing evidence points to a subsequent increase in HIV prevalence and incidence and a rise in sexual risk behaviors in Uganda. Household surveys conducted in southwest Uganda that included annual testing show that HIV prevalence declined from 8.5% in 1990/1991 to 6.2% in 1999/2000 and subsequently increased to 7.7% in 2004/2005.2 In a nationally representative household survey in Uganda conducted in 2004–2005, the incidence rate was found to be 1.8 infections per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval, 1.5–2.1).1 While this is likely an overestimate due to the nature of the BED assay, it still suggests an elevated incidence for a country with a prevalence of 6%. Individuals who had outside partners and did not use condoms with them had an HIV incidence of 7.8/100 person-years and were more likely to have incident HIV than those with no outside partners (adjusted odds ratio, 3.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.7–6.1). Behavioral data also suggest a shift towards more risk taking behaviors particularly an increase in multiple sex partners and nonspousal sex and a decrease in condom use in nonspousal sex partners among men.6 Among men aged 15 to 49 years, self-reported multiple partnerships increased from 24% in 2001 to 29% in 2005; in this same group nonspousal sex increased from 28% in 2001 to 37% in 2005.6 The proportion of married men who reported sex with someone other than a spouse was 11% in 2001 and 18% in 2005. Between 2001 and 2005, condom use during last nonspousal sex declined from 61% to 54% in men aged 15 to 49 years.6

The high prevalence of HIV in sex workers in Kampala documented by Vandepitte and coworkers raises the question of the role of Most At Risk Populations (MARPs) in countries with mature generalized epidemics, such as in Uganda. Numerous publications in the 1990s discussed the effects of targeting core groups versus the general population in generalized epidemic settings.7–9 In 1991, Plummer stated that "the current emphasis for prevention in generalized epidemic settings may neglect core groups" and he noted that while core groups were important early on in the epidemic, their importance re-emerged as the epidemic declined.8 Despite this caution, more than 20 years ago and recent calls to address MARPs, it appears that there has been too little focus on MARPs, core groups, or core transmitters of late.10 Yet in the 1990s, prevention programs targeted at sex workers were effective in significantly decreasing HIV prevalence in sex workers in generalized epidemic settings.11–14

According to a 2009 report by the Ugandan National AIDS Commission, sex workers and their clients account for 10% of new infections.3 However, this only accounts for partners of clients in a single year and thus may underestimate downstream transmission and the model was based on limited empirical data. The report also found few outreach programs directed to MARPS and a summary of prevention resources spent on MARPs in the 2006/2007 fiscal year found that no funds were spent on MARPs. The 2009 National AIDS Commission report concluded that currently no policies were targeting MARPs and that condoms were not sufficiently targeted to MARPs where they are most effective. A recent study among Ugandan sex workers on the trans Africa highway found that only 18.9% reported 100% condom use and access to condoms for sex workers was less than optimal.15 Fortunately, the 2010 UNGASS Progress Report for Uganda highlights that MARPS are priority areas for the National Prevention Plan in 2010.16

The apparent lack of prevention programs targeting MARPs is likely due to a greater focus on the general population in a generalized epidemic setting. However, the shift towards more risk taking behaviors reported by Ugandan men6 suggests that recent prevention programs targeted at the general population have not been effective. Uganda, like many countries in sub-Saharan Africa faces numerous challenges to adequate HIV prevention. For example, over 3-quarters of adults do not know their HIV status3 and it is estimated that only about half of risky sex acts are covered by condoms.3 Further, only 25% of the male population is circumcised1 and an evaluation of health facilities by the Ugandan Ministry of Health found only 6% of facilities were performing male circumcision.3

In addition, it is not clear to what extent social and contextual factors, purportedly key to the original decline in HIV, have been tackled in Uganda's recent prevention response. Reducing intimate partner violence, alcohol misuse, discrimination based on gender, HIV, or sexual orientation as well as promotion of education and human rights remain important targets for prevention programs.17,18

More research and interventions are needed in these neglected areas, especially in Uganda. Legislation proposed in late 2009 in Uganda would have invoked prison terms and heavy fines for gay men and the death penalty for an HIV-positive man proven to have had sex with another man.19 While Men who have sex with Men (MSM) may not be a major driver of the Ugandan epidemic, an environment which supports such legislation could force MARPs to go underground thus making access to prevention services more difficult and likely contribute to increasing prevalence.

Last but not least, sex workers have a basic human right to prevention, care, and treatment. Obstacles go beyond the local and national levels. The Anti-Prostitution Loyalty Oath put into effect by the US government in 2003 requires that PEPFAR (President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) funding recipients agree that no PEPFAR funds can be used "to provide assistance to any group or organization that does not have a policy explicitly opposing prostitution and sex trafficking."20 This clause thus excludes de facto any grass roots sex worker organization from getting access to PEPFAR resources and impedes much needed harm-reduction interventions.21 Effective HIV prevention and respect for human rights necessitate repeal of this clause.

In conclusion, effective implementation of proven prevention interventions requires combination approaches that target all populations at risk of acquiring and transmitting the virus, synergy with HIV care and treatment programs, strategic and operational flexibility to address new information, integrity to avoid misuse of available resources,22 and attention to continuous quality improvement in addition to ensuring high coverage. Importantly, the article by Vandepitte and coworkers reminds us as we struggle to improve and expand current prevention programs that gains made in curtailing the epidemic can be lost and that constant attention to "knowing one's epidemic" and providing effective prevention to those at risk remains imperative.


The breakdown characteristics of two-dimensional 4H-SiC diode structures have been studied using an anisotropic drift-diffusion model. The degree of anisotropy was estimated from recent full band Monte Carlo simulations. Identical diode structures have previously been used in the literature to measure the hole impact ionization coefficients of 4H-SiC. The reported measurements from different research groups show large differences in the impact ionization coefficients. The authors' numerical simulations show that the differences in these measurements can be explained by the difference in device geometry used by the research teams a one considers an anisotropic impact ionization process. This indicates that it is very important to consider anisotropic impact ionization in the design and characterization of 4H-SiC power devices.


Age at first birth has been shown to be correlated with melanoma risk, but the results were inconsistent. Thus, a meta-analysis was undertaken to evaluate the relationship between age at first birth and melanoma risk. Studies published up to September 6, 2014 were identified through searches of PubMed and EMBASE databases. Random-effect model was used to pool the study-specific risk estimates (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Three case-control, three nested case-control, and five cohort studies were found to be eligible. In a comparison of the oldest versus youngest age at first birth, the pooled RR for melanoma risk was 1.47 (95% CI: 1.07-2.02) in all studies, 1.37 (95% CI: 0.47-4.02) in population-based case-control studies, 2.69 (95% CI: 1.56-4.64) in hospital case-control studies, 1.38 (95% CI: 0.66-2.88) in nested case-control studies, and 1.39 (95% CI: 0.89-2.17) in cohort studies. In the subgroup analysis according to sites where studies were performed, the pooled RR was 1.44 (95% CI: 0.99-2.08), 1.18 (95% CI: 0.30-4.60), and 2.36 (95% CI: 1.42-3.93) for Europe, Americas, and Australia, respectively. In the subgroup stratified by whether the included study provided adjustment for specific potential con - founders or important risk factors, the relationship between age at first birth and melanoma risk was significantly modified by age, naevi/pigmentation, sunlight exposure, and hair colour. This meta-analysis based on available observational data reveals that age at first birth is positively associated with melanoma risk. However, this find - ing should be interpreted cautiously, as residual confounding cannot be excluded. More investigations with well- designed are warranted to extend this finding.


In Japan most of the water distribution networks were constructed during the 1960s to 1970s. Since these pipelines were used for a long period, pipeline rehabilitation is necessary to maintain water supply. Although investment for pipeline rehabilitation has to be planned in terms of cost-effectiveness, no standard method has been established because pipelines were replaced on emergency and ad hoc basis in the past. In this paper, a method to determine the maintenance of the water supply on an optimal basis with a fixed budget for a water distribution network is proposed. Firstly, a method to quantify the benefits of pipeline rehabilitation is examined. Secondly, two models using Integer Programming and Monte Carlo simulation to maximize the benefits of pipeline rehabilitation with limited budget were considered, and they are applied to a model case and a case study. Based on these studies, it is concluded that the Monte Carlo simulation model to calculate the appropriate investment for the pipeline rehabilitation planning is both convenient and practical.


The introduction of heterometal ions into coordination polymers (CPs) could yield novel structural types and thus unprecedented properties. This work reports on the syntheses, characterizations and magnetic properties of a series of heterometallic CPs (HCPs), namely Mg1−xCoxLi2(3,5-pdcH)2(DMF)2 (x = 0 (1), 0.285 (2), 0.575 (3) and 1 (4); 3,5-pdcH3 = pyrazole-3,5-dicarboxylic). The CPs are isostructural to each other with a three dimensional neutral framework of apo type topology, which is constructed by 3,5-pdcH2− ligands interconnecting infinite chain-like SBUs of [MLi2(COO)4(DMF)2]n (M = Mg (1), Mg0.715Co0.285 (2), Mg0.425Co0.575 (3) and Co (4)). Compound 1 represents a rare example of an s–s block HCP based on lightweight Mg2+ and Li+ ions. Compound 1 is magnetically inactive, while the successful doping of Co2+ ions into Mg2+ sites endows the resulting heterometallic compounds with antiferromagnetic behaviour. The magnetic behaviour of compounds 2–4 was analyzed and was shown to come from the zero field split or the spin–orbit coupling of the high-spin mononuclear Co2+ ions. Compounds 2 and 3 represent a rare type of HCP which simultaneously contains independent metal ions (Li+) and co-occupied ones (Mg2+ and Co2+) in different crystallographic sites.


Abstract In literary sources death in Roman battle was often portrayed as glorious, yet how the bodies of the war dead were treated was far removed from this ideal. This paper focuses on this dichotomy, and the seeming contradictions in attitudes and behaviours. In ancient Rome, the war dead were little remembered, respected and mourned for. After battle the bodies of dead soldiers were hastily gathered and disposed of en masse. There were no war memorials that listed the names of the dead, no military war cemeteries that acted as places of pilgrimage, little battlefield tourism and no annual commemorative rituals. This stands in stark contrast to the tombstones set up by soldiers in peacetime, to the arches and columns that celebrated victories in the city of Rome, to the triumphal processions that filled its streets and the tales of military bravery that formed literary set pieces. On the one hand to die for Rome was presented as glorious, on the other hand the reality was bloody, brutal and seemingly soon forgotten. This paper investigates how the bodies of soldiers were treated post-battle, uniting the limited archaeological evidence with a range of literary texts. Why was the basic treatment of military corpses deemed acceptable, and how were those corpses manipulated in real, and literary, games of power and politics?


Summary Change-points detection is one of important problems in data analysis. Traditional change-points detection method is based on exact data sets which can't reflect prior information of data. In this paper, a new concept, called "fuzzy point data" which is defined by giving a fuzzy membership to the data in exact data sets, is proposed for helping us handle the confidence of data. We introduce regression-classes mixture decomposition method for Change-points detection in fuzzy point data sets. In the method, different regression classes are mined sequentially in fuzzy point data sets and the estimation of change-points are determined by the two joined regression-classes, the number of the change-points will not be pre-specified. Numerical experiments show that by using fuzzy data point data, important data can make much contribution to mining regression classes. This shows that the change-points we got in fuzzy data point sets are more meaningful than we got in exact data sets.


The work presented in this thesis aims to investigate experimentally and theoretically the transition from stratified to non-stratified horizontal oil-water flows and to improve the understanding of the dual continuous pattern, where both phases retain their continuity at the top and bottom of the pipe respectively but there is dispersion of one phase into the other. Two experimental facilities were used in this study; a 38 mm ID
stainless steel test section in a pilot scale flow facility and a 14 mm ID acrylic test section in a small flow facility running with water and oil (5.5 mPa s viscosity and 828kg/m3 density) as test fluids. A high speed video camera was employed to examine wave characteristics and flow development, capture mechanism of drop formation and
determine the onset conditions of drop entrainment and the dual continuous pattern in both facilities. In the 38 mm ID test section, a conductivity probe was also used to
investigate wave structures before and at the onset of entrainment. A high frequency impedance probe was used to find the phase distribution of the oil-water flow while the
local drop velocity and chord length distributions were measured using a dual impedance probe. In the 14 mm ID test section, the influence of adding polymer in
horizontal oil-water flows was also investigated.

While the flow pattern map developed by Lovick and Angeli (2004a) was used for the 38 mm ID test section, a new flow pattern map was constructed for the 14 mm ID pipe. Dual continuous flow was found to occur for a smaller range of superficial velocities in the small test section compared to the large one. Visual observations from the two test
sections revealed that no drops are formed when interfacial waves are absent. In addition annular flow with oil flowing at the core was observed in both pipes for low
oil velocities and relatively high water velocities. The results from the high speed pictures and the conductivity probe showed that the amplitudes of the waves are
increased as the superficial velocities of the two phases increase and as a result the required superficial water velocity,Usw,for the onset of entrainment decreases as the
superficial oil velocity, Uso, increases. The model suggested by Trallero (1995) for the transition from stratified to non-stratified flow failed to predict the experimental results.
Moreover, the high speed video images and the conductivity probe results showed that the amplitudes of the waves found at 2m from the inlet are smaller than those observed
at 7 m. When drops and the onset of entrainment were observed at 7m from the inlet, these were not observed at 2m from the inlet, which means that all drops forming
downstream the pipe resulted from the waves. In the large pipe, the presence of a bend
after the inlet section (T junction) resulted in larger drops than when no bend was
present (Y junction). The high speed images also revealed that drops formed as a result
of the relative movement between the oil and water phases. The faster phase will
undercut the other one until a drop is detached from the wave crest.
The entrained fractions during dual continuous flow, or the fraction of one phase
dispersed into the continuum of the other were calculated from the phase distribution
data obtained with both inlet configurations (T junction and bend and Y -junction). The
entrained fraction of water in oil (Ew/o)
increased as the input water flow rates increased
at constant superficial oil velocity. Similarly, the entrained fraction of oil in water (Eo/w)
increased as the oil flow rates increased at a constant water superficial velocity.
Moreover, the entrained fractions when the bend was used were higher than those
obtained without it.
From the chord length measurements in dual continuous flow, chord length and drop
concentration were found to decrease with increasing distance from the interface while
the number density of large drops decreased as Usw
increased at each Uso. Also, oil
drops were in general larger than water drops. Drop velocity measurements also
revealed that water drops were faster than the velocity of the upper layer while oil drops
could be either slower or faster than the velocity of the lower layer. The results showed
that average chord length L32 was almost constant for the oil drops while it tended to
decrease for the water drops as the respective layer velocity increased.
In the 14 mm ID pipe, the addition of a polymer in the oil-water flow had a significant
effect on the flow patterns and pressure drop. The transition from stratified to nonstratified
patterns was clearly delayed and the pressure drop was found to decrease after
adding the polymer. The wavy interface in the stratified, dual continuous and annular
flows was damped when polymer was present. The interfacial and water wall shear
stress were also found to decrease after the addition of the polymer.
Theoretically a model was developed based on Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability to
predict whether waves in stratified wavy flow with certain amplitudes and lengths are stable or not. The model compared well with the Viscous KH correlation developed by
Trallero (1995) and with some experimental results. The model was extended to predict
the onset velocities of entrainment by including an empirical wave amplitude and
length. The prediction agreed well with the experimental onset velocities from a number
of studies. Based on a balance between drag force and surface tension on the crests of
the waves, another equation was developed to predict the critical wave amplitude and
length required for drop formation. This equation was used together with the stability
equation to define three regions in a wave amplitude against length graph. These are;
stable wave region; unstable wave region, where waves are unstable but drops may not
form because waves need to grow more before drops can detach; drop entrainment
region. The model agreed well with the experimental results. Finally, an entrainment
model to predict the fraction of one phase entrained into the other during dual
continuous flow, that was based on a balance between rate of drop entrainment and rate
of drop deposition. The model was modified with experimental data from the current
study and was then validated against data from literature. The comparison was reasonable in many cases.


L&T InfoTech is one of the fastest growing Information Technology companies in India. Founded in 1997, as an Indian IT company, L&T InfoTech has it's headquarters at Mumbai, Maharashtra and is owned by Larsen & Toubro. L&T InfoTech offers its services to various industries like Banking and financial services, Communication and media technology, Insurance, Manufacturing, Retail, Hi-tech, Consumer Goods & Distribution, Energy Resources & Utilities, Life Science & Health Care, Public Services, Travel, Transportation, and Hospitality. L&T InfoTech is an Information Technology service provider offering business solutions with latest innovative ideas and technology to needy customers around the world. L&T is one of the top 10 listed companies in India. This paper throws light on various aspects which made L&T InfoTech a unique company with its innovative service offers through its slogan 'Welcome to Possible' to various industries and industry sectors. This case study paper also discusses the strategy of L&T InfoTech while providing services for different sectors like Banking, Insurance, Energy and Utilities, CPG & Retail, Hi-tech, Life Science and Healthcare, Media and Entertainment, and Manufacturing. In this case study, we have analysed the operational strategy, business strategy, financial stability, marketing mix, competitors, training, and recruitment strategy of the company briefly using Theory A. We have also studied the CSR procedure of the company and analyzed its strategies using SWOT framework as research case study


The study of quinine therapy in cases of multiple sclerosis has been in progress for five years. In an earlier report, 1 presented about fourteen months after the study was commenced, it was stated that quinine therapy appeared to have promise. The experience of five years with forty-nine patients seems to justify the conclusion that quinine is beneficial in cases of multiple sclerosis, particularly in the early stages. The hypothetic and theoretical grounds for the employment of quinine were outlined in the communication referred to. They may be briefly recapitulated as follows: Marburg's idea that the lesions in cases of multiple sclerosis might be produced by the action of a circulating lipolytic agent was adopted as a working hypothesis, and experiments were undertaken to test its value. These experiments have given evidence supporting the idea, although they are still not completed. It had already been discovered that some lipases of


Detailed knowledge of the chemical content of organisms, organs, tissues, and cells is needed to fully characterize complex biological systems. The high chemical variety of compounds present in biological systems is illustrated by the presence of a large variety of compounds, ranging from apolar lipids, semi-polar phenolic conjugates, toward polar sugars. A molecules' chemical structure forms the basis to understand its biological function. The chemical identification process of small molecules (i.e., metabolites) is still one of the major focus points in metabolomics research. Actually, no single analytical platform exists that can measure and identify all existing metabolites. In this thesis, two analytical techniques that are widely used within metabolite identification studies have been combined, i.e. mass spectrometry (MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). MS was used to ionize the metabolites and to record their molecular weight and to provide substructure information based on fragmentation in the mass spectrometer. NMR gave the comprehensive structural information on the chemical environment of protons and their linkage to other protons within the molecule. The additional structural information as compared to MS is at the cost of an increased amount of compound needed for NMR detection and spectra generation. Here we combined both analytical methods into a liquid chromatography (LC)-based platform that concentrated compounds based on their specific mass; thereby providing a direct link between MS and NMR data. Another platform was developed that generated robust multistage MS n data, i.e., the systematic fragmentation of metabolites and subsequent fragmentation of resulting fragments. This thesis aims to accelerate metabolite identification of low abundant plant and human derived compounds by following a systematic approach. The acquired structural information from MS n and 1D- 1 H-NMR spectra resulted in the complete elucidation of phenolic metabolites in microgram scale from both plant and human origin. In the chapter 1, the analytical techniques and terms used throughout the thesis are introduced. The second chapterdescribes how a high mass resolution MS n fragmentation approach was tested in both negative and positive ionization modes for differentiation and identification of metabolites, using a series of 121 polyphenolic molecules. An injection robot was used to infuse the reference compounds one by one into a hybrid mass spectrometer, combining MS n possibilities with accurate mass read-out. This approach resulted in reproducible and robust MS n fragmentation trees up to MS 5 , which were differential even for closely related compounds. Accurate MS n -based spectral trees were shown to be robust and powerful to distinguish metabolites with similar elemental formula (i.e. isomers), thereby assisting compound identification and annotation in complex biological samples. In the third chapter, we tested the annotation power of this spectral tree approach for annotation of phenolic compounds in crude extracts from Lycopersicum esculentum(tomato) and the model plant Arabipopsis thaliana. Partial MS n spectral trees were generated directly after chromatographic elution (LC-MS n ). Detailed MS n spectral trees could be recorded with the use of a collector/injector robot.We were able to discriminate flavonoid glycosides based on their unique MS n fragmentation patterns in either negative or positive ionization mode.  Following this approach, we could annotate 127 metabolites in the tomato and Arabidopsis extracts, including 21 novel metabolites. The good quality MS n spectral trees obtained can be used to populate MS n databases and the protocols to generate the spectral trees are a good basis to further expand this database with more diverse compounds. Chapter 4 then describes how an automated platform, coupling chromatography with MS and NMR (LC-MS-solid phase extraction-NMR), was developed that can trap and transfer metabolites based on their mass values from a complex biological extract in order to obtain NMR spectra of the trapped LC-MS peak, out of minute amounts of sample and analyte. Extracts from tomatoes modified in their flavonoid biosynthesis pathway were used as proof of principle for the metabolite identification process. This approach resulted in the complete structural elucidation of 10 flavonoid glycosides. This study shows that improving the link between the mass signals and NMR peaks derived from the selected LC-MS peaks decreases the time needed for elucidation of the metabolite structures. In addition, automated 1D- 1 H-NMR spectrum fitting of the experimental data obtained in this study using the PERCH NMR software further speeded up the candidate rejection process. Chapter 5 illustrates how the two developed analytical platforms could be used for the successful selection, annotation, and identification of 177 phenolic compounds present in different extracts of Camellia sinensis, i.e. green, white, and black tea extracts, including the full identification of microgram amounts of complex acylated conjugates of kaempferol and quercetin. Principal component analysis based on the relative abundance of the annotated phenolic compounds in 17 commercially available black, green and white tea products separated the black teas from the green and white teas, thereby illustrating the differential phenolic metabolite contents of black tea as compared to green and white teas. The change in phenolic profiles reflects the polymerization reactions occurring upon transformation of green tea into black tea. This study shows that the combined use of MS n spectral trees and LC-MS-solid phase extraction-NMR leads to a more comprehensive metabolite description thereby facilitating the comparison of tea and other plant samples. In chapter 6, we aimed to structurally elucidate and quantify polyphenol-derived conjugates present in the human body by studying the urinary excretion of these conjugates.We applied a combination of a solid phase extraction preparation step and the two HPLC-coupled analytical platforms as described in chapters 2 and 3. This analytical strategy resulted in the annotation of 138 urinary metabolites including 35 completely identified valerolactone conjugates. These valerolactones are microbial break-down products of tea phenols. NMR predictions of glucuronidated and sulphonated core metabolites were performed in order to confirm the NMR peak assignments on the basis of 1D- 1 H-NMR data only. In addition, 26 hours quantitative excretion profiles for certain valerolactone conjugates were obtained using diagnostic proton signals in the 1D- 1 H-NMR spectra of urine fractions. In the seventh chapter, the current state of metabolite identification and expected challenges in the structural elucidation of metabolites at (sub)microgram amounts are discussed. The work in this thesis and of other groups working on the hyphenation of MS and NMR shows that the complete de novo identification of microgram amounts and even lower of compound is feasible by using MS guided solid phase extractiontrapping in combination with 1D- 1 H-NMR or UPLC-TOF-MS isolation followed by capillary NMR. Semi-automated annotation of compounds based on their MS and NMR features is now feasible for some well studied compound classes and groups. Altogether, the developed platforms yield new and improved insights in the phenolic profiles of well-studied plants as well as a comprehensive picture of the metabolic fate of green tea polyphenols upon intake in the human body. The followed metabolite identification strategy is useful for other studies that aim to elucidate bioactive compounds, especially when only small sample volumes are available. This thesis also contributes to the acquisition of good quality data for metabolite identification by acquiring robust MS n fragmentation spectra and 1D- 1 H-NMR spectra of partial purified analytes at microgram scale, which paves the path for further developments in data acquisition and analysis, as well as the unravelling of yet unknown metabolites in a faster, more systematic and automated manner.


In the more than sixty years since the advent of nuclear weapons, there has been little meaningful progress toward nuclear disarmament. Some countries have nuclear weapons, while other states are forbidden to acquire them, a status quo that lacks rational basis and cannot be sustained. In this remarkable collection, scholars and policy analysts argue that humankind has a choice: either allow nuclear weapons to continue to proliferate throughout the world or move toward their complete elimination. The vast majority of people on the planet would surely opt to abolish nuclear weapons. But decisions about nuclear weapons are not made by the public, but by small groups of political elites. Consequently, in a world with nuclear weapons, the fate of humanity rests in the hands of a small number of individuals, whose perceptions, communications, and judgment determine whether there is to be a future. The contributors to this volume provide historical perspective on nuclear weapons policy; explore the role of international law in furthering the prospects of nuclear weapons abolition; consider the obstacles to abolition; present a path to achieving a nuclear weapons-free world; and look beyond abolition to consider issues of post-abolition sovereignty and general and complete disarmament. The goal of a nuclear weapons-free world can be awakened by an engaged citizenry bringing pressure from below in demanding action from political leaders. This book contributes to this awakening and engagement. David Krieger is a founder of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation


This paper analyzes the predictability and profitability of the candlesticks strategy, which is the most basic type of technical analysis in China's stock market. By analyzing matched candlesticks samples most similar to the candlesticks of the current stocks in the past six months, we can buy the portfolios best in performance and sell the worst to obtain significant excess returns. The result keeps robust after risk adjustment. This paper verifies the rationality of the third hypothesis of technical analysis and shows that technical analysis has its own value of existence and outlook of growth. JEL Classification Numbers: G11, G12, G14Keywords: Matching Method; Candlesticks; Technical Analysis Hypothesis; Financial Market Anomalies


There is considerable interest in the beneficial role of dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) on reproduction in ruminants. Detailed information regarding the mechanisms behind this beneficial effect is limited. The main objective of this thesis was to test the effects of dietary supplementation with omega-3 (n-3) or -6 (n-6) PUFA on gene expression, fatty acid (FA) composition and steroidogenesis in granulosa and theca cells and pre-implantation embryo development.

A previous study in our laboratory reported increased follicular-fluid progesterone concentrations in ewes fed an n-3 compared to an n-6 PUFA-enriched diet, but detected no differential effect of n-3 and n-6 PUFA enriched high-density lipoproteins (HDL) on granulosa cell steroidogenesis in vitro. Also, n-6 PUFA enriched HDL reduced early embryo development, but in the absence of a net uptake of FA. In view of these observations it was hypothesised that (i) effects of n-3 PUFA on ovarian steroidogenesis are mediated by theca rather than granulosa cells and (ii) during embryo culture lipids are acquired solely from the albumin fraction of serum, so that albumin delivered n- 3 and n-6 PUFA would exert a greater differential effect on embryo development than either LDL or HDL delivered PUFA.

Initial investigations into granulosa cell gene expression profiles using an ovine gonad-targeted cDNA macroarray were unsuccessful, highlighted by subsequent qRTPCR analysis. A thorough investigation confirmed that inconsistencies were due to poor array hybridisation. In vitro data confirmed that n-3 PUFA, via delivery by HDL, increase progesterone production solely in theca cells and that this is associated with an increase in STAR transcript expression. We also demonstrate that albumin is the only serum fraction that leads to a net uptake of FA during embryo culture. PUFA enriched serum and albumin accelerated the development of embryos and increased the yield of morphologically poorer quality blastocysts with increased transcript expression for the antioxidant enzyme SOD1. Important differential effects of n-3 and n-6 PUFA on ovarian steroidogenesis acting solely on theca cells are identified, but differentially effects of PUFA on embryo development are less apparent.


Abstract Apples are among the world's most consumed fruits. However, while the impact of whole-apple intake on cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains unknown. This narrative review summarizes a novel integrated view of whole-apple intake, CVD risk association (through observational studies; OSs), and the effects on CVD risk factors (randomized trials; RTs). In 8 OSs, whole-apple intake was associated with a reduced risk of CVD mortality, ischemic heart disease mortality, stroke mortality, all-cause mortality, and severe abdominal aortic calcification, as well as with lower C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations. In 8 RTs, whole-apple consumption reduced total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, pulse pressure, and plasma inflammatory cytokines, and noticeably reduced CRP, whereas it increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc) and improved endothelial function. Thus, consuming between 100 and 150 g/day of whole apples is associated with a lower CVD risk and decreases in blood pressure, pulse pressure, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and inflammation status as well as with increases in HDLc and endothelial function. These results, support the regular consumption of whole apples as an aid in the prevention of CVD.


The power quality requirement is one of the major issues for power companies and their customers. The analysis of power disturbance characteristics and finding solution to the power quality problems have resulted in an increased interest for power quality. The most concerning disturbances affecting the quality of the power in the distribution system are voltage sag/swell. The DVR is used to mitigate the voltage sag/swell on sensitive load. In this paper Z-source inverter (ZSI) based DVR is proposed to enhance the voltage restoration property of the system. The ZSI uses an LC impedance grid to couple power source to inverter circuit and prepares the possibility of voltage buck and boost by short circuiting the inverter legs. Additionally a fuzzy logic control scheme for Z-source inverter based DVR is proposed to obtain desired injecting voltage. Modelling and simulation of the proposed DVR is implemented in MATLAB/SIMULINK platform.


Enterprise applications need sophisticated in-database analytics in addition to traditional online analytical processing from a database. To meet customers' pressing demands, database vendors have been pushing advanced analytical techniques into databases. Most major DBMSes offer User-Defined Aggregate (UDA), a data-driven operator, to implement many of the analytical techniques in parallel. However, UDAs can not be used to implement statistical algorithms such as Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC), where most of the work is performed by iterative transitions over a large state that can not be naively partitioned due to data dependency. Typically, this type of statistical algorithm requires pre-processing to setup the large state in the first place and demands post-processing after the statistical inference. This paper presents General Iterative State Transition (GIST), a new database operator for parallel iterative state transitions over large states. GIST receives a state constructed by a UDA, and then performs rounds of transitions on the state until it converges. A final UDA performs post-processing and result extraction. We argue that the combination of UDA and GIST (UDA-GIST) unifies data-parallel and state-parallel processing in a single system, thus significantly extending the analytical capabilities of DBMSes. We exemplify the framework through two high-profile applications: cross-document coreference and image denoising. We show that the in-database framework allows us to tackle a 27 times larger problem than solved by the state-of-the-art for the first application and achieves 43 times speedup over the state-of-the-art for the second application.


The calculation of band structure and total energy of solids involves the search for the few lowest (M) eigenvectors and eigenvalues of large matrices (size N × N). Standard algorithms which diagonalise the matrix entirely scale as N3, while procedures for extracting only a subset of M eigenvalues and eigenvectors scale as MN2. Two methods are described which aim at finding the lowest eigenvalues and corresponding eigenvectors of a nonlocal pseudopotential Hamiltonian. Both approaches lead to an algorithm which scales roughly as MN4/3.


Smart factories Industry 4.0 on the basis of collaborative cyber-physical systems represents a future form of industrial networks. Supply chains in such networks have dynamic structures which evolve over time. In these settings, short-term supply chain scheduling in smart factories Industry 4.0 is challenged by temporal machine structures, different processing speed at parallel machines and dynamic job arrivals. In this study, for the first time, a dynamic model and algorithm for short-term supply chain scheduling in smart factories Industry 4.0 is presented. The peculiarity of the considered problem is the simultaneous consideration of both machine structure selection and job assignments. The scheduling approach is based on a dynamic non-stationary interpretation of the execution of the jobs and a temporal decomposition of the scheduling problem. The algorithmic realisation is based on a modified form of the continuous maximum principle blended with mathematical optimisation. A detailed theoretical analysis of the temporal decomposition and computational complexity is performed. The optimality conditions as well as the structural properties of the model and the algorithm are investigated. Advantages and limitations of the proposed approach are discussed.


Since plant cells are encased in rigid cell walls, approaching them as physical systems is necessary to fully understand the multi-level mechanisms controlling developmental processes. Therefore, in my thesis I tried to combine physical and biological methods to
study the morphogenetic processes in the plant epidermis.
I quantified growth of the Arabidopis thaliana sepal, an elliptical floral organ which is comprised of small, square cells and large, elongated 'giant cells' randomly interspersed between the small ones. I detected a wave of high anisotropic growth (growing
predominantly in one direction): along the proximo-distal starting at the tip of the sepal, gradually moving to its base as the organ develops. Interestingly, replacing the giant cells
with files of small cells (observed in the lgo mutant) does not change the overall growth
rate tendencies. In contrast, the Arabidopsis cotyledon, which has a round shape, grows
much more isotropically (at the same rate in all directions), even though its cells have very
elaborate, jigsaw puzzle-like shapes.
I used Cellular Force Microscopy (CFM) to measure stiffness (or, indirectly, turgor
pressure) of sepal cells. A Finite Element Method (FEM) mechanical model showed that
observed differences in measured stiffness values between small and giant cells can be
explained by cell geometry. Furthermore, using osmotic treatments I demonstrated in vivo
that the cell wall is softer in the fast-growing areas than in the slow-growing areas. By
comparing osmotic treatment results in wild type and the ftsh4 mutant, I speculated that
Reactive Oxygen Species play an important role in cell maturation by locally stiffening the
cell wall.
Finally, I focused on more complex cell shapes as I employed genetic engineering, cell
growth and shape quantification and computational modelling to answer the question why
epidermal cells in leaves and cotyledons make jigsaw puzzle-like shapes. Cell shapes are
adjusted to growth direction according to self-enhancing growth restriction, as proven by a
growing mechanical model. I proposed puzzle cells minimize mechanical stress on the cell
wall and therefore prevent it from bursting or needing to introduce additional structural
reinforcements. Finally, I demonstrated several lines of evidence that plants of different
cell shape and size, as well as different species, have an active mechanism of keeping this
stress low.

Taken together, my results contribute to the understanding of the role of cell shape in the
epidermal tissue. They also provide novel input on mechanical properties of the cell wall
during growth supported by in vivo experiments performed using state-of-the-art
biomechanical methods.


This thesis presents an investigation into the reproductive processes of a collapsing population of the European flat oyster Ostrea edulis in the Solent, UK. Oyster populations are in decline worldwide. Their ecological and economic importance requires research to address the many uncertainties still existing regarding their reproduction and recruitment, in order to manage or restore populations successfully. The Solent oyster population supported a productive local fishery from 1972 to about 2006, when catch rates started to decline sharply until the fishery became economically unviable in 2011. Recurrent recruitment failures suggested that the collapse might have been caused by a disturbance of the reproductive processes. This study set out to determine if the reproductive processes were indeed inhibited, and if so, at which life history stage. Population fitness was good and gave no reason to assume that the oysters were incapable of successful reproduction due to poor condition. Histological and visual examination of the reproductive status of 362 animals revealed a significant skew towards male phase oysters (chisquare, P 0.001), while gametogenesis as such was normal in each gender. Fecundity was similar to literature values. No relationship was found between the recruitment failures or the sex ratio shift and prevalence of bonamiosis, as only two animals of the 25 examined with a PCR assay were infected. Ostrea edulis larvae were found in the plankton with a peak of 9 larvae 100 l-1 in August 2010. Larval abundance was within the range of previous records for the Solent from 1984-87. Development of Ostrea edulis larvae cultured in the laboratory was found to be normal. No apparent adverse effects of exposure to air with an increased pCO2 of 1500 atm were found either, leading to hope that the long term viability of the species will not be jeopardized by ocean acidification. No spat settlement was observed in this study. Predation pressure from Ocenebra erinacea was found to be low, and hopefully would not jeopardize restoration attempts. Overall this study showed that while there is a lack of females in the Solent oyster population, the reproductive processes as such function well enough to enable regeneration and maintenance of the population. This study demonstrated the importance of investigating the reproductive processes of a population before planning its regeneration, but it also showed that the basic factors of habitat destruction and unsustainable ?shing pressure must not be overlooked.


Background/Aims Defecation disorders (DD) are part of the spectrum of chronic constipation with outlet obstruction. Although anorectal physiologic tests are required for the diagnosis of DD, these tests are not available in many institutions. This study aims to investigate the predictivity of DD using rectosigmoid localization of radiopaque markers in a colonic transit study. Methods A total of 169 patients with refractory constipation with a mean age of 67 years were studied. All patients underwent anorectal manometry, a balloon expulsion test, and a colonic transit study. Barium defecography was performed if needed. The relationship between DD diagnosed by these anorectal tests and the rectosigmoid accumulation of markers was examined. Results Seventy-nine (46.7%) patients were identified to have DD based on anorectal test combinations. Rectosigmoid accumulation of markers was observed in 39 (23.1%) patients. The sensitivity and positive predictive value of rectosigmoid accumulation for identifying DD were 31.6% and 64.1%, respectively. Rectosigmoid accumulation provided poor discrimination of DD from normal transit constipation, at a specificity of 82.1% but with a sensitivity of only 10.6%. In discriminating DD from slow transit constipation, rectosigmoid accumulation was found to be useful with a positive likelihood ratio of 5.3. Conclusions Rectosigmoid accumulation of markers can differentiate DD from slow transit constipation. However, non-rectosigmoid accumulation does not exclude the presence of DD.


We obtained for the Higgs algebra three kinds of single boson realizations such as the unitary Holstein-Primakoff-like realization, the non-unitary Dyson-like realization, and the unitary Villain-like realization. The corresponding similarity transformations between the Holstein-Primakoff-like realizations and the Dyson-like realizations are given.


Acute necrotising is the most serious form of pancreatic inflammatory diseases leading to multiorgan failure and high (15-20%) mortality. The poor nutritional and metabolic condition of the patient and secondary bacterial translocation further rise the mortality. A recently introduced method of continuous nasojejunal feeding putting the pancreas into rest with basal pattern of secretion resulted in lower mortality rate by using adequate nutrition into the second loop of jejunum bypassing duodenopancreatic stimulations via an endoscopically placed feeding tube. The better nutritional and immunological states of the patients, the restored absorption and intestinal motility promote the recovery of pancreatitis, prevent bacterial translocation, resulting in time and in financial spares. Although surgery is occasionally inevitable because of progression of pancreatitis, nasojejunal feeding improves the general condition of patients more efficiently than parenteral nutrition and makes the scheduling of the operation optimal. The authors retrospectively analyse the results of treatment in 56 patients suffering from acute necrotising pancreatitis, as well as in 30 patients with chronic pancreatitis accompanied with more than 20% of necrosis in the pancreas and admitted to their gastroenterological medical department during 5 years. The effect of parenteral nutrition were less beneficial than that of jejunal feeding regarding the mortality and the necessity of operative interventions. Chronic pancreatitis with severe necrosis behaved similarly to the acute necrotising pancreatitis. The continuous nasojejunal feeding seems to be a promising new method for acute necrotising pancreatitis preventing complications and severe catabolic state of the disease by a cost--effective manner.


This article examines the judicial function of international courts by considering both what it is and what it ought to be. The article identifies and describes two distinct functions - dispute settlement and peace promotion - and explores the tensions that exist in pursuing these two aims. It then introduces a third way of understanding the international judicial function that respects international courts' traditional role as dispute settlers while allowing for their more engaged and proactive function as peacemakers. This third approach conceptualizes that the role of international courts is to resolve disputes. Doing so requires understanding courts as entities that exist within the broader system of international dispute resolution made up of many institutions and methods that collectively aim to promote global peace and security. It also demands considering how the judicial function of courts might evolve (e.g. combining judicial settlement with mediation through integrated approaches) to better serve the needs of nations and the global community in today's complex world.


Currently, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degrees and career pathways are seeing a declining number of people entering these fields. Because of this decline in interest and preparation in these fields, there is a shift in focus in science education to pedagogy methods that are more student-centered and allow students to engage in more authentic scientific practices. Along with declining interest, many students do not have the abstract scientific reasoning skills to be successful in upper-level coursework necessary for these fields. In order to better prepare students and keep them engaged in science coursework, methods that are both scientific inquiry based and can help students develop their scientific reasoning skills are needed. A group of students at Frenchtown High School used a scaffolded reading technique, called the CREATE method, to interpret and understand two scientific primary literature articles, and were compared to students that did not engage in the reading activities. Both groups of students took pre and posttests that measured their understanding of scientific inquiry and scientific reasoning, the treatment group's concept maps were also assessed for reading comprehension. The treatment group saw increased understanding in several areas of scientific inquiry, increased abstract thinking skills, and better reading comprehension from the first article to the second article. These results suggest that this modified CREATE method could be used as a pedagogical tool in the science classroom that would help students better understand how scientists carry out scientific inquiry and increase scientific reasoning skills.


Membrane proteins of Gram-negative bacteria are key molecules that interface the cells with the environment. Despite recent proteomic identification of numerous oligomer proteins in the Escherichia coli cell envelope, the protein complex of E. coli membrane proteins and their peripherally associated proteins remain ill-defined. In the current study, we systematically analyze the subproteome of E. coli cell envelope enriched in sarcosine-insoluble fraction (SIF) and sarcosine-soluble fraction (SSF) by using proteomic methodologies. One hundred and four proteins out of 184 spots on 2D electrophoresis gels are identified, which includes 31 outer membrane proteins (OMPs). Importantly, our further proteomic studies reveal a number of previously unrecognized membrane-interacting protein complexes, such as the complex consisting of OmpW and fumarate reductase. This established complete proteomic profile of E. coli envelope also sheds new insight into the function(s) of E. coli outer envelope.


History's Shadow: Native Americans and Historical Consciousness in the Nineteenth Century. By Steven Conn. (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2004. Pp. xii, 276. Illustrations. Cloth, $35.00.)Steven Conn's book serves as an overview of the disciplining of Native peoples in the nineteenth-century United States: he describes how, by the close of the century, knowledge about Native peoples had been confined to anthropology, and Native peoples themselves confined to realm of culture and excluded from history. His narrative account of the movement of knowledge about Indians from the missionaries, travelers, and government officials who produced it in the late eighteenth century to the certified university-ensconced anthropologists who took hold of it in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is especially useful. But his interpretation of the material falls flat, betraying his lack of expertise in Native history. It's common in literary studies for a scholar to write a book about Indians without sustained experience in the field, less so in history. Conn so scrupulously limits his analysis on the one hand, and rests his arguments on mistaken assumptions about Native history on the other, that the book becomes less than the sum of its parts.Conn freely admits that he is "no historian of Native America," and that his book is not about the representation of Indians. It is rather, he writes, an intellectual history of those who studied Indians that, he insists, can reveal how that study "shaped the American mind" and more particularly "[defined] American science and social science, and "shaped conceptions of the nation's history" (5). He makes three principal claims: that Native peoples "posed fundamental challenges to the way EuroAmericans understood the world"; that the emergence of natural science rather than the Bible as an explanation for the existence of Native peoples "shaped the transition from a sacred world view to a secular one"; and that the necessity of explaining the existence of Native peoples influenced the changing definitions of history itself (5). Thus, Conn is interested in history as a discipline rather than the history of Native peoples in the United States. He surmises that "intellectual encounters" with Native peoples caused EuroAmericans to separate history from myth and from culture and also "from the realm of the past" (6). Over the nineteenth century, Conn argues, EuroAmericans excluded Native peoples from history itself. The book includes an introductory chapter on images of Indians in nineteenth-century art as exemplifying the transformation of Native peoples from historical figures to representative manifestations of cultures; subsequent chapters on the study of Native languages, archaeology, and anthropology; and a concluding chapter on Native peoples and U.S. historiography in the era.The most fundamental problem with the book is Conn's insistence that history as a discipline and the history of Native-EuroAmerican relations can be separated such that those "intellectual encounters" have little or nothing to do with political relations. Historians in this book are sincere if ethnocentric people who try very hard to understand Indians; the possibility that they might be part of a larger system of thinking about and managing Native peoples, justifying and maintaining white authority, receives little or no attention. This absence of attention to the politics of knowledge might explain-at least in part-Conn's simply wrong assertion that Native peoples are gradually removed from history over the course of the nineteenth century. Conn observes that in the early nineteenth century, EuroAmerican writers like James Fenimore Cooper "included" Indians in their historical accounts of America, but with the emergence of professional historians of the United States like George Bancroft in the second quarter of the nineteenth century, Indians began to be shifted out of U. …


Over the past thirty years, heating in at least 79% of UK homes has involved warming the entire indoor space through the use of a central heating system (Office of National Statistics, 2019), resulting in heating rooms that are used rarely or periodically (e.g. bedrooms) as well as rooms that are used commonly (e.g. living rooms). Zonal heating controls are among the new smart heating technologies on offer and allow occupants to choose which rooms they heat, for how long they are heated and the temperature to which they are heated. This interdisciplinary research aims to evaluate the energy-saving potential of domestic zonal heating controls. A socio-technical research design was used to investigate how the occupants of a set of semi-detached, owner-occupied homes across the Midlands region of the UK (n = 24) interacted with zonal heating controls provided as part of their involvement with a previous research study and how their gas use and indoor air temperature changed following installation.A comparison of weather-normalised gas use for twelve months before and twelve months after installation of zonal heating controls showed a change in gas use between a 25% reduction and a 37% increase in the second year. A further twelve months of gas use was analysed to assess the consistency of change, highlighting an equally broad variation (range of 37% reduction to 18% increase against the baseline). However, 61% of homes consistently reduced, consistently increased or did not appreciably change their gas use over the 24 months following installation of zonal heating controls. Household interviews were used to identify extraneous variables and revealed that, while zonal heating controls could not be definitively attributed to observed gas use change, they may have been influential. Whilst there were small changes in average indoor air temperature after the installation of zonal controls (range of 1.2°C decrease to 1.4°C increase against the baseline), no relationship was found between change in gas use and change in living room or main bedroom air temperature. The assessment of heating times showed that the majority of homes observed to have reduced their gas use were at least 0.2°C cooler over mornings, afternoons, evenings and nights, while homes that had increased their gas use tended to have warmer mornings and cooler evenings. Insights from the household interviews led to the identification of three heating strategies enabled by the zonal heating controls: 1) A basic strategy where zones were heated to the same setpoint for equal durations, 2) An intermediate strategy where zones were heated to different setpoints for equal durations, and 3) An advanced strategy where zones were heated to different setpoints for different durations. No commonality was found between reported strategies or heating motivations and observed change in gas use.Data relating to the operation of the zonal controls were also examined, to determine whether the change in gas use or air temperature could be predicted by the frequency of heating setpoint temperature changes, the frequency of manual overrides or the frequency of changes made using the smartphone app. Operation of zonal heating controls was found not to correlate with change in gas use or air temperature. Household interviews revealed that the eight out of ten households found the zonal controls to be less complicated and have improved functionality compared to their conventional heating controls. For the majority of homes, one occupant continued to 'take charge' of making changes to the heating schedule. Almost half (48%) of the homes interviewed did not make use of the smartphone app to alter their heating schedule. No relationship was observed between the perceived difference in usability, who operated the zonal heating controls and preference for means of control and observed change in gas use.This research has built on studies that rely on modelling and laboratory experiments by investigating the energy-saving potential of zonal heating controls through a multi-year field study. The mixed-method approach has enabled a holistic consideration of the role that zonal heating controls could play in the future of domestic space heating in the wider market. This meets a critical need to complement the analysis of gas use and air temperature change after installation of zonal heating controls, to evaluate their potential as an energy-saving measure, with an assessment of how and why energy use may have increased or decreased. This research contributes to the evidence base for new policies aimed at reducing domestic space heating demand, bolsters understanding of heating strategies for use in modelling applications and supports the future design of heating controls.


Theoretical models are developed for the prediction of the mechanical properties of mature concrete based on the morphology and interactions of its constituents. The models account for the morphology and interactions of cement hydration products, the capillary pores and microcracks. Concrete is modeled as a three-phase material composed of cement mortar, coarse aggregates and ITZ. The modulus of elasticity of concrete is determined using the Hashin's bound model for three-phase composites. Modeling of fracture toughness indicates that the frictional pull-out of coarse aggregates makes major contributions to the fracture energy of concrete. A tensile strength model is developed for concrete based on linear elastic fracture mechanics theories. The predicted theoretical models are in reasonable agreement with empirical models reflecting the experimental performance of concrete.


In this article, the author applies a dynamic conditional correlation model to examine the return relationships among fine wines and equity indexes from the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Japan. Using data spanning from January 2004 to September 2013, the first result provides evidence that fine wine is a hedge against equities. Additionally, fine wine is a weak safe haven during periods of market stress. These empirical results have practical implications for risk managers seeking to preserve the value of their equity portfolios during uncertainty periods where diversification benefits are the most needed.


BACKGROUND: the difficulties which exist in order to value correctly the morbimortality caused by influenza during the childhood and the limitations of the proper vaccine make that the use of this vaccination is still limitated in this phase. The objective of the present study is to value the adverse reactions associated to the influenza immunization in children. METHODS: prospective study, carried out in the campaigns 92/ 93, 93/ 94 97/ 98 on 105 children of Navalcarnero with split-virion influenza vaccine with vaccunal strains recommended by the OMS. All the doses are administered by a nurse who also carries out the postimmunization-controls after 72 hours. The adverse reactions are valued, like the zone of injection, sex, age, the previous vaccination and the collection of data by telephone or in consultation. RESULTS: of global form (318 doses), on a local level appears a reaction of 10,7%, in form of erythema (8,5%), induration (7,9%) and pain (only 97/98, 13,9%) and on a systemic level appears a reaction of 11,9%, in form of rhinorrhea (3,1%), general discomfort (2,5%), fever (2,5%), muscular pains (1,6%) and cough (1,6%). In a 89,5% the systemic effects disappear during the first 48 hours. In no case medical consultation was precised. CONCLUSIONS: the vaccine is safe. The adverse reactions that may appear are scarce, slight and well tolerated. There do not exist significant differences in terms of age, sex, the previous vaccination or the collection of the results by telephone or in consultation. The gluteus presents greater local reactogenicity that the deltoidal zone.


In this Letter we compare the abundance of the member galaxies of a rich, nearby (z = 0.09) galaxy cluster, Abell 2142, with that of halos of comparable virial mass extracted from sets of state-of-the-art numerical simulations, both collisionless at different resolutions and with the inclusion of baryonic physics in the form of cooling, star formation, and feedback by active galactic nuclei. We also use two semi-analytical models to account for the presence of orphan galaxies. The photometric and spectroscopic information, taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 12 database, allows us to estimate the stellar velocity dispersion of member galaxies of Abell 2142. This quantity is used as proxy for the total mass of secure cluster members and is properly compared with that of subhalos in simulations. We find that simulated halos have a statistically significant ( ≳ 7 sigma confidence level) smaller amount of massive (circular velocity above 200 km s − 1 ) subhalos, even before accounting for the possible incompleteness of observations. These results corroborate the findings from a recent strong lensing study of the Hubble Frontier Fields galaxy cluster MACS J0416 and suggest that the observed difference is already present at the level of dark matter (DM) subhalos and is not solved by introducing baryonic physics. A deeper understanding of this discrepancy between observations and simulations will provide valuable insights into the impact of the physical properties of DM particles and the effect of baryons on the formation and evolution of cosmological structures.


This study investigates neuropsychological deficits in recently deployed veterans with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Veterans discharged from 2007 to 2012 were recruited from Veterans Affairs clinics. Independent groups of participants with mTBI (n = 57) and those without TBI (n = 57) were administered the Beck Depression Inventory-II, Combat Exposure Scale, Word Memory Test, and the Self-Awareness of Deficits Interview. Neuropsychological instruments included the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, Letter and Category Fluency, Trail-Making Test-Parts A and B, Christiansen H-abbreviated, Soper Neuropsychology Screen, Wechsler Memory Scale subtests Logical Memory I and II, and the Street Completion Test. The mTBI group performed significantly worse on all of the executive and nonexecutive measurements with the exception of Category Fluency, after controlling for age, depression effort, and combat exposure. Depression and combat exposure were greater for the mTBI group. The mTBI group scored poorer on effort, but only the Multiple Choice subtest was significant. The mTBI group had good awareness of their deficits.


Background/Aims: Gait apraxia characterized primarily by gait ignition failure has been linked to lesions involving the dorsomedial frontal lobes, but the precise locus within this general region has not been determined. It has previously been hypothesized by Thompson and Marsden that disease, disconnection, or dysfunction of supplementary motor area (SMA) may account for the similarities in the gait disorders observed in Binswanger's disease, hydrocephalus, frontal lobe lesions, and Parkinson's disease. We reevaluate this hypothesis. Methods: Clinical description and MRI of 2 subjects with gait apraxia characterized primarily by gait ignition failure. Results: Both subjects had incapacitating gait disorders characterized by particular difficulty with initiating gait and making turns. Both had MRI-demonstrated lesions of the SMA region, parasagittal convexity premotor cortex, or subjacent white matter bilaterally, one due to primary CNS lymphoma, one due to a lobar atrophy. Conclusions: In both these cases, the lesions were substantially more limited and focal than any reported heretofore in the literature on gait apraxia or freezing of gait. The clinicopathologic correlation in these cases provides partial support for the Thompson and Marsden hypothesis, but also may implicate parasagittal convexity premotor cortex in the genesis of gait apraxia.


Magnetospheric modes, including substorms, sawtooth events, and steady magnetospheric convection events, have in the past been described as different responses of the magnetosphere to coupling with the solar wind. Using previously determined event lists for sawtooth events, steady magnetospheric convection events, and substorms, we produce a statistical study of these event types to examine their similarities and behavior in terms of solar wind parameters, auroral brightness, open magnetospheric flux, and geomagnetic indices. A superposed epoch analysis shows that individual sawteeth show the same signatures as substorms but occur during more extreme cases of solar wind driving as well as geomagnetic activity. We also explore the limitations of current methods of identifying steady magnetospheric convection events and explain why some of those events are flagged inappropriately. We show that 58% of the steady magnetospheric convection events considered, as identified by criteria defined in previous studies are part of a prolonged version of substorms due to continued dayside driving during expansion phase. The remaining 42% are episodes of enhanced magnetospheric convection, occurring after extended periods of dayside driving.