Governments around the world utilize various types of subsidies in order to counter problems of housing shortages and affordability concerns. Reduced interest rate or alternative investments of construction loans are examples of subsidy policies on the supply side that are intended to offset high construction costs and thus boost the housing stocks. Vouchers and direct financial aid for low-income households belong to the demand side of the subsidy policies. These subsidy policies may be expected to have different effects on both the housing stocks of different regions and the distribution of tenure types of housing stocks within a region. Until recently, Sweden has had both general and targeted subsidy policies. An interesting question is whether these types of subsidies produced the intended objectives of increasing the housing stocks. First, the efficiency of general subsidy and its effect on housing stocks of all the regions before it was abolished will be examined. Secondly, the replaced targeted subsidy and how it fared with its objectives as well as how it impacted the tenure neutrality of different types of housing will be analyzed. A multiple regression of two models from un-balanced panel data of construction costs variables in seven regions will be analyzed. Our result seem to indicate that a general subsidy is expected to be ineffective since it may increase the existing stocks of low demand region but not the housing stocks of big regions where the demand is high. A targeted subsidy may change the balance between different types of housings since lower construction costs due to the subsidy could favor the development of certain profitable housing type.


ABSTRACT A major challenge of survivable wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) network design is deciding how much spare capacity there should be and where it should be placed, so that interrupted traffic can be recovered within a very short time. Protection, including link protection and path protection, is the main way to solve this problem and to prevent huge losses. Link protection and dedicated path protection currently dominate this fault recovery field. Both have short recovery time and low resource efficiency. Shared path protection is also resource efficient with acceptable recovery time. More and more industries recognize that shared path protection is the trend and are trying to find good methods to design shared protection paths. This paper proposes a new efficient algorithm-Predetermined Protection Path Design (PPD), which can design maximum sharing protection paths. We describe in detail how PPD works, and compare it with the existing protection algorithms. Simulation results show that PPD can design maximum sharing protection paths and achieve 28% better resource efficiency than dedicated path protection as well as 12% better resource efficiency than the current shared path protection algorithms, with acceptable recovery time. PPD also has good generality, scalability and restorability.


Shame is a powerful and acutely painful "master emotion" that is strongly correlated with maladaptive behav- iors and a host of psychological symptoms. Concerningly, the affect remains under-researched and difficult to identify or address in a clinical setting. This may be caused, at least in part, by shame's intrinsically hidden nature, which drives people to deny the emotion and express it through other means. This study aimed to understand the degree to which people fail to acknowledge their own shame and the psychological and behavioral implications of this shame. Participants completed both a self-report measure of shame and an empirical assessment of internalized shame, as well as measures of shame coping methods and emotional regulation. As expected, results showed no significant correlation between participants' self-rated shame and measured shame. We also saw a significant correlation between assessed internalized shame and use of shame- coping methods as well as difficulty in emotion regulation – specifically, difficulty with clarity of emotion, acceptance of emotions, and strategies for coping with emotions. These findings indicate that people struggle to acknowledge their own shame and also speak to the maladaptive, dysregulated ways people manage their shame. Recognizing shame as a powerful emotion with implications in psychiatric disorders and understanding the factors that prevent people from acknowledging their own shame may help improve treatment for those who struggle with the emotion and reduce the likelihood that they will engage in maladaptive coping behaviors.


It's little surprise that academic librarians at institutions of every size and type are launching initiatives to encourage instructors to adopt Open Education Resources (OER). Whether these programs offer incentives to faculty or simply promote the benefits of OER and other textbook affordability options, they are a win for students who save money and gain a better learning experience. The textbook affordability movement in higher education also places academic librarians in a new leadership role as they manage campus-wide efforts to promote the benefits of OER. ACRL's "2018 Top Trends in Academic Libraries" report identifies multiple challenges to faculty adoption, such as the lack of OER resources or perceived quality, but that these are also "opportunities for librarians to cultivate partnerships with faculty in the discovery, advocacy and preservation of OER."


Thermal barrier coatings(TBCs) are used in high temperature gas turbines to reduce the surface temperature of cooled metal parts such as turbine blades[1]. TBC consist of a bondcoat (e.g. MCrAlY where M is Co, Ni, CoNi, etc.) and a partially stabilized zirconia ceramic topcoat. Usually, the MCrAlY bondcoat is applied by LPPS (low pressure plasma spray) or HVOF(high velocity oxi-fuel spray). The topcoat is applied by APS (atmospheric plasma splay) or EB-PVD (electron beam-physical vapor deposition). High temperature oxidation properties, thermal barrier properties and durability of TBC are very important to increase the reliability in high temperature service. In this study, new TBC has been investigated. The new TBC consists of a two-layered bondcoat (LPPS-MCrAlY plus dense PVD overlay MCrAlY) and the EB-PVD type YSZ columnar structure topcoat. As a result of evaluation tests, it was confirmed that the new TBC had better oxidation properties and durability than a conventional TBC system.


OBJECTIVE
Traditional diagnostic strategies are unable to accurately discriminate between patients with poor and satisfied prognosis in colon cancer. Therefore, it is urgently recommended to identify new biomarkers in favor of better selection of patients at higher risk of recurrence or poor outcomes, with the aim of early intervention or avoiding overtreatment.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
The weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA), together with the proportion of tumor infiltrating immune cells, were employed to screen the key module related to immune infiltration. Using these genes among the key module, a predictive signature was generated via LASSO and multi-Cox regression method. Moreover, a novel nomogram was further developed by combining important clinical parameters and the predictive signature.

RESULTS
Genes among the green module, indicating the highest correlation with regulatory T cells (Tregs), were incorporated into the establishment of predictive model. Then, a Tregs-related risk signature (TRRS) consisting of four genes (NRG1, TEX11, OVOL3 and FCRL2) was established, which performed well in predicting the mortality risk of colon cancer in both internal and external validation groups (p=0.004 for TCGA training set, p=0.016 for TCGA testing set and p=0.03 for GSE39582 dataset). Combining TNM stage and age, we developed a nomogram for 1-, 3-, 5-year OS, presenting a more reliable predictive performance in survival based on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and calibration curves (3-year AUC: 0.83 and 0.74 in the TCGA and GEO database, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS
We constructed a four-gene signature for predicting the prognosis of patients with colon cancer, and further developed the nomogram together with TNM stage and age to improve the predictive efficacy.


Users of complex software applications often learn concepts and skills through step-by-step tutorials. Today, these tutorials are published in two dominant forms: static tutorials composed of images and text that are easy to scan, but cannot effectively describe dynamic interactions; and video tutorials that show all manipulations in detail, but are hard to navigate. We hypothesize that a mixed tutorial with static instructions and per-step videos can combine the benefits of both formats. We describe a comparative study of static, video, and mixed image manipulation tutorials with 12 participants and distill design guidelines for mixed tutorials. We present MixT, a system that automatically generates step-by-step mixed media tutorials from user demonstrations. MixT segments screencapture video into steps using logs of application commands and input events, applies video compositing techniques to focus on salient infor-mation, and highlights interactions through mouse trails. Informal evaluation suggests that automatically generated mixed media tutorials were as effective in helping users complete tasks as tutorials that were created manually.


Abstract This article presents the inaugural memorial lecture at the Nicos Poulantzas Institute in Athens. It examines and extends the work of the eponymous Greek legal and political theorist, political economist, and communist intellectual, Nicos Poulantzas, who radically transformed Marxist state theory, made major contributions to the critique of political economy for the era of Atlantic Fordism and post-war American imperialism, and called for a judicious balance between representative and direct democracy to secure a democratic transition to democratic socialism. It first offers some general reflections on the originality, legacy and actuality of Poulantzas's work in these respects and then reconstructs his later views on the critique of political economy before his death in 1979. Noting his neglect of the environment and issues of political ecology, which was typical of the French and Greek left in the 1970s and also rooted in more general features of Marxist theorizing on nature and the environment, the article elaborates a Poulantzasian view of political ecology based on key arguments from his work. The article concludes by reasserting the validity of his vision of democratic socialism, indicating that it would have become a critique of political ecology, and suggests that he would have approached this in the same spirit of romantic public irony that was advocated by one of his major theoretical and political influences – Antonio Gramsci. Key words: capitalist states; class analysis; democracy; ecology; imperialist rivalries; Nicos Poulantzas; productivism; state theory; the strategic-relational approach


The serotonin (5-HT) hypothesis of depression has played an important role in the history of psychiatry, yet it has also been criticized for the delayed onset and inadequate efficacy of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). With evolvement of neuroscience, the neuroplasticity hypothesis of major depressive disorder (MDD) has been proposed and may provide a better framework for clarification the pathogenesis of MDD and antidepressant efficacy. In this article, we first summarized the evidence challenging the monoamine hypothesis and proposed that the antidepressant efficacy of SSRIs is not derived from elevated monoamine (5-HT, noradrenaline (NE), or dopamine (DA)) concentration or monoamine neurotransmission. Second, we reviewed the role of stress in the pathogenesis of MDD and gave a brief introduction to the neuroplasticity hypothesis of MDD. Third, we explored the possible mechanisms underlying the antidepressant efficacy of typical antidepressants in the context of neuroplasticity theory. Fourth, we tried to provide an explanatory framework for the significant difference in onset of efficacy between typical antidepressants and ketamine. Finally, we provided a brief summarization about this review article and some perspectives for future studies.


The concept of employment is an important legal category, not only for labor and employment law, but also for intellectual property law, torts, criminal law, and tax. The right-to-control test has dominated the debate over the definition of "employee" since its origins in the master-servant doctrine. However, the test no longer represents our modern notion of what it means to be an employee. This change has played itself out in research on the theory of the firm, which has shifted from a model of control to a model of participation in a team production process. This Article uses the theory of the firm literature to provide a new doctrinal definition for "employee" based on the concept of participation rather than control. The participation test better delineates the boundaries of employment and provides a framework for addressing the stresses on firms and workers that are rife within the modern economy.


Abstract © 2020 The Author(s). Background: Acoustic telemetry has been used with great success to quantify the movements of marine fishes in open habitats, however research has begun to focus on patterns of movement and habitat usage within more structurally complex habitats. To date, there has been no detailed assessment of the performance of acoustic telemetry within seagrass, which forms a crucial nursery and foraging habitat for many fish species globally. Information on the detection range of acoustic receivers within seagrass is essential to guide receiver array design, particularly positioning systems. Here, we compare detection ranges for transmitters (Vemco V7) within and above the seagrass to determine impacts on the performance of a Vemco Positioning System (VPS). We also investigate the influence of environmental conditions (i.e. wind, time of day, background noise, atmospheric pressure and depth) on detection probability. Results: The performance of the VPS declined dramatically when the transmitters were positioned within the seagrass (positional accuracy = 2.69 m, precision = 0.9 m, system efficiency (i.e. the proportion of successful positions) = 5.9%) compared to above the canopy (positional accuracy = 2.21 m, precision = 0.45 m, system efficiency = 30.9%). The reduction in VPS efficiency when transmitters were within seagrass was caused by a decline in the detection range of receivers (range of 50% detections) from 85 to 40 m, as this limited the ability of the three receivers to simultaneously detect transmissions. Additionally, no detections were recorded for the transmitters within seagrass at a distance greater than 150 m from the receiver. Increasing wind speed from 0 to 50 km h-1 correlated with a 15% reduction in detections while detection probability decreased from 0.8 during the day to 0.55 at night, due to higher in-band noise (69 kHz). Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that tagged fish ensconced within seagrass are unlikely to be detected by receivers or positioned by a VPS. Further, we demonstrate that wind conditions and the time of day create temporal variation in detection probability. These findings highlight the Abstract Background: Acoustic telemetry has been used with great success to quantify the movements of marine fishes in open habitats, however research has begun to focus on patterns of movement and habitat usage within more structurally complex habitats. To date, there has been no detailed assessment of the performance of acoustic telemetry within seagrass, which forms a crucial nursery and foraging habitat for many fish species globally. Information on the detection range of acoustic receivers within seagrass is essential to guide receiver array design, particularly positioning systems. Here, we compare detection ranges for transmitters (Vemco V7) within and above the seagrass to determine impacts on the performance of a Vemco Positioning System (VPS). We also investigate the influence of environmental conditions (i.e. wind, time of day, background noise, atmospheric pressure and depth) on detection probability. Results: The performance of the VPS declined dramatically when the transmitters were positioned within the seagrass (positional accuracy = 2.69 m, precision = 0.9 m, system efficiency (i.e. the proportion of successful positions) = 5.9%) compared to above the canopy (positional accuracy = 2.21 m, precision = 0.45 m, system efficiency = 30.9%). The reduction in VPS efficiency when transmitters were within seagrass was caused by a decline in the detection range of receivers (range of 50% detections) from 85 to 40 m, as this limited the ability of the three receivers to simultaneously detect transmissions. Additionally, no detections were recorded for the transmitters within seagrass at a distance greater than 150 m from the receiver. Increasing wind speed from 0 to 50 km h − 1 correlated with a 15% reduction in detections while detection probability decreased from 0.8 during the day to 0.55 at night, due to higher in-band noise (69 kHz). Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that tagged fish ensconced within seagrass are unlikely to be detected by receivers or positioned by a VPS. Further, we demonstrate that wind conditions and the time of day create temporal variation in detection probability. These findings highlight the need for telemetry studies to perform in situ range testing and consider how fish use vegetated habitats such as seagrasses when positioning receivers and interpreting data.


When the normal progression of life for an aging person is interrupted by a decline in physical and or mental abilities, adult children are often suddenly faced with assuming care of their parent(s). Currently, adult child caregivers of aging parents work up to 100 hours per month at caregiving. Most existing literature is focused on informal caregivers, which can consist of spouses, relatives, and friends' caregiving for persons with debilitating illnesses. Despite the amount of time dedicated to parental caregiving, little is known about the experience of this exclusive caregiver group. The aim of this study was to explore and describe the experience of adult children caregiving for aging parents at any stage of health. A qualitative phenomenological approach was used to interview six daughters and one daughter-in-law. Themes were identified and presented through the use of narratives and poetry. The participants expressed they felt unprepared for caregiving and their culture had a direct impact on the expectations of caregiving. A myriad of unpleasant emotions and loss were voiced, yet their outlooks remained extremely positive. The overall health of adult child caregivers needs to be supported to prepare them for what lies ahead with caregiving. Caregivers report their loved one(s) required several hospitalizations, which lead to performing medical/nursing tasks at home. Nursing then has a unique opportunity during discharge preparation, to identify those who need community, state, and faith-based services. Replication is needed to address the limitation of the number of participants, ethnic, and gender diversity.


Environments of social networking sites (SNS) allow individuals to build an online public profile within a bounded system that aims for relationships with other users (called "friends"). Even though the growth of access to SNS has been lower than the average growth of access to the Internet, SNS are increasingly incorporated into the routine of Brazilian people. In order to emphasize the user's point of view, this study is based on the intention to use Facebook from an individual perception. So the objective of this study is to examine how computer self-efficacy (CSE) may influence the intention to use Facebook. We conducted this study in three phases: (1) exploratory procedures, which were developed from a review of the literature in order to refine the specification of the constructs of our research model; (2) definition of the instrument and data collection, which were then used to analyze the variables of each construct; and (3) an empirical investigation, which was performed with 161 Brazilian users of Facebook to assume an effective treatment of our research model. Our findings highlighted that there is a statistically positive relationship of influence between general and specific CSE and intention to use Facebook. Finally, we may contribute by suggesting that predictions of CSE are strongly influenced by the user's experience.


Objective: To determine the frequency of hyperdiploidy in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and its association with remission status after induction therapy.
Study Design: Observational study.
Place and Duration of Study: Department of Haematology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) and Pediatric Oncology Department Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Rawalpindi, from Apr 2017 to Apr 2018.
Patients and Methods: All diagnosed cases of ALL between 1-12 years of age were selected by convenient nonprobability sampling. All other cases of leukemias including patients of acute undifferentiated leukaemia, acute myeloid leukaemia and patients of ALL who did not yield successful cytogenetic culture or those who died during the induction therapy were excluded from the study. Diagnosis of ALL was done on the basis of morphology, cytochemistry, immunophenotyping and cytogenetics. Cytogenetic analysis was done by using conventional Giemsa banding. Karyotypes were interpreted using the International System for Human Cytogenetic Nomenclature (ISCN). On the basis of cytogenetics two groups were made one with hyperdiploidy and another without hyperdiploidy. Hyperdiploidy was defined as chromosomes >46. All patients of childhoodALL were treated with 'UK ALL 2011' protocol and their remission status was assessed after 1 month of induction therapy by bone marrow examination. Remission status of 2 groups of ALL with and without hyperdiploidy were compared by using chi square test
Results: Out of total 80 patients of ALL, 62 (77.5%) yielding successful cytogenetic culture were included in the study. Mean age at diagnosis was 5.6 ± 2.9 years and male to female ratio was 2.4:1. Analytical immunocytometry revealed 58 (93.5%) as B-ALL while 4 (6.55%) were T-ALL. Hyperdiploidy was detected in 19 (30.6%) and t (9:22) (q34:31) in 1 (1.6%). In all other patients no cytogenetic abnormality was detected. Out of 62 patients, Overall complete haematological remission (CHR) was achieved in 47 (75.8%). Out of 19, patients with hyperdiploidy 18 (94.7%) achieved CHR, as compared to other group without hyperdiploidy in which 29 (67.4%) achieved CHR. The difference was statistically significant (p-value 0.021).
Conclusion: Remission rate was 94.7% in patients of childhood ALL with hyperdiploidy. Patients with hyperdiploidy achieve higher CHR rate as compared to patients without hyperdiploidy.


For practical applications in sensors, dynamic covalent chemistry and molecular (photochromic) switches, soft conjugated materials can be envisaged as promising functional materials. To advance in this research field, deciphering the mechanisms involved on how sensitive the structural and electronic properties are to specific molecular ordering is essential. In stimuli responsive materials, such as piezochromic materials, the molecular orientation and intermolecular interactions can change upon mechanical grinding. In this context, Raman spectroscopy can help to clarify how organic molecular solids respond to high pressure, for instance, by reducing intermolecular interactions and/or changing molecular conformations. On the other hand, DFT calculations can help us to rationalize the nature and stability of the formation of aggregates and complexes, allowing the evaluation of the effects of the surrounding media on different molecular properties. Thus, we propose here a combined Raman spectroscopy and DFT study of molecular crystals and/or aggregates upon soft external stimuli that can be envisaged as a very sensitive approach to understand the structural effects causing any chromic changes. To this end, we focus on different families of conjugated materials with potential application in organic electronics, ranging from cyclophane aggregates to tetrathiazolylthiophenes crystals (Figure 1).


Plant genetic resource conservation strategies, informed by an understanding of the geographical distribution of genetic variation within species, are likely to result in a wider representation of conserved diversity in ex situ gene banks and in situ genetic reserves. The main objective of this study was to map the geographical distribution of genetic variation, as revealed by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPDs), in four wild relatives of the cultivated lentil, namely Lens culinaris ssp. orientalis, L. odemensis, L. ervoides and L. nigricans. Areas of high diversity and unique diversity were located for each taxon, and regions where further germplasm collection was most likely to yield novel genetic variation were identified. There were centres of diversity for L. culinaris ssp. orientalis in southeast Turkey and northwest Syria, and in south Syria and Jordan. A centre of diversity was found to exist in Sweida province, south Syria, for L. odemensis, and for L. ervoides along the coastal border region between Syria and Turkey stretching down along the Syrian coast. There was a centre of diversity for L. nigricans in west Turkey. Analytical techniques previously used at the species level were found to be useful at the genotypic level to objectively target areas for future collection missions, to increase diversity in ex situ collections and to target areas for in situ conservation.


This paper develops an efficient and accurate numerical method for the computation of electromagnetic waves scattered by random rough surfaces. The method is based upon a combination of the Transformed Field Expansion method, which represents the solution as a provably convergent power series, and the Monte Carlo technique for sampling the probability space. The compelling aspect of the proposed method is that, at each perturbation order and every sample, the governing Transformed Field Expansion equations share the same deterministic Helmholtz operator on a deterministic domain. Thus, an LU factorization of the matrix discretization of this single operator can be employed repeatedly for all orders and every sample. Consequently, the computational complexity of the whole algorithm is significantly reduced as a result. Numerical examples are described which demonstrate the accuracy of the algorithm. AMS subject classifications: 35J05, 35Q60, 65C05, 65C30, 78M22


The Leksell GammaPlan software version 10 introduces a CT image-based segmentation tool for automatic skull definition and a convolution dose calculation algorithm for tissue inhomogeneity correction. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the impact of these new approaches on routine clinical Gamma Knife treatment planning. Sixty-five patients who underwent CT image-guided Gamma Knife radiosurgeries at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in recent years were retrospectively investigated. The diagnoses for these cases include trigeminal neuralgia, meningioma, acoustic neuroma, AVM, glioma, and benign and metastatic brain tumors. Dose calculations were performed for each patient with the same dose prescriptions and the same shot arrangements using three different approaches: 1) TMR 10 dose calculation with imaging skull definition; 2) convolution dose calculation with imaging skull definition; 3) TMR 10 dose calculation with conventional measurement-based skull definition. For each treatment matrix, the total treatment time, the target coverage index, the selectivity index, the gradient index, and a set of dose statistics parameters were compared between the three calculations. The dose statistics parameters investigated include the prescription isodose volume, the 12 Gy isodose volume, the minimum, maximum and mean doses on the treatment targets, and the critical structures under consideration. The difference between the convolution and the TMR 10 dose calculations for the 104 treatment matrices were found to vary with the patient anatomy, location of the treatment shots, and the tissue inhomogeneities around the treatment target. An average difference of 8.4% was observed for the total treatment times between the convolution and the TMR algorithms. The maximum differences in the treatment times, the prescription isodose volumes, the 12 Gy isodose volumes, the target coverage indices, the selectivity indices, and the gradient indices from the convolution and the TMR 10 calculations are 14.9%, 16.4%, 11.1%, 16.8, 6.9%, and 11.4%, respectively. The maximum differences in the minimum and the mean target doses between the two calculation algorithms are 8.1% and 4.2% of the corresponding prescription doses. The maximum differences in the maximum and the mean doses for the critical structures between the two calculation algorithms are 1.3 Gy and 0.7 Gy. The results from the two skull definition methods with the TMR 10 algorithm agree either within ± 2.5% or 0.3 Gy for the dose values, except for a 4.9% difference in the treatment times for a lower cerebellar lesion. The imaging skull definition method does not affect Gamma Knife dose calculation considerably when compared to the conventional measurement-based skull definition method, except in some extreme cases. Large differences were observed between the TMR 10 and the convolution calculation method for the same dose prescription and the same shot arrangements, indicating that the implementation of the convolution algorithm in routine clinical use might be desirable for optimal dose calculation results. PACS numbers: 87.55.D, 87.55.kd.


In order to develop the notions about the causes of age-dependent changes in the organism resistance to the influence of damaging stress factors the study of aldehyde reductase activity manifestations was carried out in the liver of 1.5-, 2-, 6-, 12-, 24-months-old rats subject to immobilization stress with different values of pH of reactive mixture. It has been shown that the immobilization stress is accompanied by the shift of the enzyme pH-optimum to the acid side. This change manifestation in 1.5-months-old and 24-months-old animals has been less significant as compared with that in the rats of other age groups.


This article aims at researching on the relationship of country image and customer perception on product quality and purchasing intention in South Korean. Additionally, the moderating roles of product quality warranty and country image transferred strategies are also taken into investigation in this empirical research. In order to make a research on these areas, questionnaire forms were distributed by emails and sending hard copies to 350 target samples in South Korea including Koreans and foreigners who have been living in South Korea and 215 forms were returned back and analyzed by SPSS v.21. The results indicated that gender, age groups and nationalities can significantly influence consumers' perception on the relationship country image and product quality. Surprisingly, the image of origin country produced products does not really affect consumers' perceived product quality, but the image of manufacturing country has a strong and significant influence on consumers' perception in terms of product quality. More interestingly, country image transferred strategy is ineffective in altering consumers' psychological perceptions on country image and perceived product quality. Apart from this, product quality warranty is still workable for boosting consumers' confidence in consuming products in Korean context. Even though this empirical research was considerably and carefully implemented, there are still some significant limitations in practice. The limitations and suggestion are finally introduced and explained.


ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study explores generic properties of hard news reports and editorials and the nature of
linguistic devices invoked by journalists to communicate issues of conflict in Uganda.
It describes the textual architecture of a hard news report and an editorial unfolding in the Ugandan
print media, and the features that define English-language and Runyankore-Rukiga hard news and
editorials. The study further explicates the nature of overt and covert linguistic resources that news
reporters and editorialists employ to communicate issues conflict in English and Runyankore-
Rukiga across government and private newspapers. It also examines strategies that news reporters
employ to establish their stance towards the news event being communicated and seeking to align
or disalign with the issue in a manner that seeks to enlist the reader to do likewise.
The study employs the multi-dimensional and multi-perspective approaches of discourse analysis to
examine news stories and editorials that communicate issues of conflict. Using genre-theoretic and
appraisal–theoretic principles, the study explores a diachronic corpus of 53 news reports and 27
editorials drawn from four selected newspapers, Daily Monitor, The New Vision, Entatsi and
Orumuri. It therefore, involves a cross-linguistic comparison of English and Runyankore-Rukiga
news texts across government and privately-owned newspapers.
The investigation demonstrates that news reports in Runyankore-Rukiga and English in the
Ugandan print media exemplify similar generic properties and textual organisation to the Englishlanguage
hard news reports obtaining in the Anglo-American world. The editorial texts also largely
exhibit rhetorical moves similar to the ones employed in the English-language editorials.
Nonetheless, a chronological development of news segments occurs across a considerable number
of hard news reports in English and Runyankore-Rukiga. This is evident in the use of markers of
cohesion such as anaphoric references, time adjuncts, or a mere positioning of events of similar
nature in adjacent segments, which leads to some of them hanging together. Consequently, this
feature constrains reordering of segments without causing textual unintelligibility.
In particular, the Runyankore-Rukiga news reports display a lengthy and value-laden opening
whose elements are usually at variance with the body components or even the actual news event.
The interpersonal meanings are actuated via metaphors, implicit judgement, non-core lexis, and
occasional proverbs. While both government and private newspapers restrain from overt judgement of human conduct,
news reporters from the private newspapers invoke implicit attitudes to assess the behaviour of
news actors and occasionally highlight the negative actions, particularly of the police, army, or
other government agents depicting their conduct as inappropriate. The government leaning
newspapers often assess their conduct in positive terms or avoid mentioning events in which their
conduct…


In a paper of 1933, D.H. Lehmer continued Pierce's study of integral sequences associated to polynomials, generalizing the Mersenne sequence. He developed divisibility criteria, and suggested that prime apparition in these sequences -- or in closely related sequences -- would be denser if the polynomials were close to cyclotomic, using a natural measure of closeness. We review briefly some of the main developments since Lehmer's paper, and report on further computational work on these sequences. In particular, we use Mossinghoff's collection of polynomials with smallest known measure to assemble evidence for the distribution of primes in these sequences predicted by standard heuristic arguments. The calculations lend weight to standard conjectures about Mersenne primes, and the use of polynomials with small measure permits much larger numbers of primes to be generated than in the Mersenne case.


OBJECTIVE
Acute upper gastrointestinal (UGI) hemorrhage is a common, often serious condition encountered in the emergency department (ED). Previous research has suggested that transfusion of blood products may interfere with the hypercoagulable state induced by significant blood loss. Our objective was to determine whether the frequency of rebleeding is higher in patients with UGI bleeding who have received early blood transfusion.

METHODS
The study was a retrospective chart review of patients admitted to hospital through the ED with a diagnosis of UGI hemorrhage. Inclusion criteria limited analysis to patients presenting with hematemesis, melena, or bloody nasogastric aspirate, in whom a UGI lesion was confirmed endoscopically during admission.

RESULTS
A total of 214 charts were analyzed. Baseline demographic characteristics were similar in transfused and non-transfused patients. Presenting hemoglobin level was lower in the transfused group (86.5 v. 119.2 g/L, p < 0.001). Recurrent bleeding occurred in 99 (46%) patients and was more common in transfused patients (67 [66%] v. 33 [29%], p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis revealed that transfusion and presenting hemoglobin level were the only variables with a statistically significant independent association with bleeding recurrence (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05 respectively).

CONCLUSIONS
Our results support previous research suggesting that transfused UGI bleed patients have a higher rate of rebleeding. However, because of the retrospective design, causality cannot be inferred.


Most of today's MAC implementations can be turned into permissive mode, where no enforcement is performed but alerts are raised instead. This behavior is very close to an anomaly IDS except that the system is configured through a MAC policy. MAC implementations such as SELinux and AppArmor come with a default policy including real life and practical rules ready to be used as is or as a basis for a custom policy. In this paper, we first propose an extension of an IDS based on information flow control. We address issues concerning programs execution and improve its expressiveness in terms of security policy. This extended model can be configured to reach a wide variety of different security goals. Particularly, it allows for information flow checking based on users and/or programs dependent policy rules. Furthermore, suspicious modification of binary programs can be detected to avoid malware execution. We also propose an algorithm for deriving an AppArmor MAC policy into an information flow policy, and thus get the advantage of having a ready to use policy offering good security. We finally show a practical example of deriving such a policy in order to configure our IDS.


Processing of biomass feedstocks to produce energy, fuels, and chemicals via a combination of different applied technologies is considered a promising pathway to achieve sustainable waste management, with many environmental and economic benefits. In this chapter, we review the current state of the main processes associ-ated with energy recovery and biofuel production under the concept of waste biorefineries. The reviewed technologies are classified into thermochemical, biological, and chemical, including combustion, gasification, steam explosion, pyrolysis, hydrothermal liquefaction, and torrefaction; anaerobic digestion, fermentation, enzymatic treatment, and microbial electrolysis; and hydrolysis, solvent extraction, transesterification, and supercritical conversion. Their brief history, current status, and future developments are discussed within a perspective of valorization and managing of current waste streams with no solution.


Under Department of Energy sponsorship, Sandia National Laboratories and Los Alamos National Laboratory cooperated to develop a prototype infrasonic array, with associated documentation, that could be used as part of the International Monitoring System. The United States Government or foreign countries could procure commercially available systems based on this prototype to fulfill their Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) obligations. The prototype is a four-element array in a triangular layout as recommended in CD/NTB/WP.224 with an element at each corner and one in the center. The prototype test configuration utilize an array spacing of 1 km. The prototype infrasound system has the following objectives: (1) Provide a prototype that reliably acquires and transmits near real-time infrasonic data to facilitate the rapid location and identification of atmospheric events. (2) Provide documentation that could be used by the United States and foreign countries to procure infrasound systems commercially to fulfill their CTBT responsibilities. Infrasonic monitoring is an effective, low cost technology for detecting atmospheric explosions. The low frequency components of explosion signals propagate to long ranges (few thousand kilometers) where they can be detected with an array of sensors. Los Alamos National Laboratory`s expertise in infrasound systems and phenomenology when combined with Sandia`s expertise in providing verification quality system for treaty monitoring make an excellent team to provide the prototype infrasound sensor system. By September 1997, the prototype infrasound system will have been procured, integrated, evaluated and documented. Final documentation will include a system requirements document, an evaluation report and a hardware design document. The hardware design document will describe the various hardware components used in the infrasound prototype and their interrelationships.


This paper presents the design, layout, and successful simulation of a configurable logic block (CLB) for a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) architecture based on a next-generation technology, quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA). Previous work on QCA-based FPGAs has focused on programmable interconnect. In contrast, this paper focuses on programmable logic. A novel single-layer CLB with fixed interconnect is developed by implementing four look-up tables (LUTs). Also, this paper presents a novel serial write/random-access read QCA memory design, which is one of the components in a LUT QCADesigner software is used to design and simulate a 4-to-16 decoder, 16-bit memory, and output circuit to implement a LUT. The simulation of the CLB confirms the expected outcomes


The numerical simulation of flow field of a new rectangular suction inlet installing guide plates with different rake angles was carried out by means of the K-ε turbulence model based on the Fluent hydromechanics calculation software. And that the influences of different rake angles of the internal guide plates on the flow field were analyzed. Consequently, the optimal rake angle of 45° was defined at last. Finally, the practical rectangle suction inlet, according to the numerical simulation results, was developed by installing internal guide plates with the optimal rake angle, which optimizes the distribution of internal and external flow field and improves the average side velocities of flow. Practical test results indicate that the new rectangular suction inlet could realize the uniform thickness collection to achieve the smooth work surface when collecting the bulk materials.


We demonstrate an atomic interferometer in which the atom passes through a single-zone optical beam consisting of a pair of bichromatic counterpropagating fields. During the passage, the atomic wave packets in two distinct internal states trace out split trajectories, guided by the optical beams, with the amplitude and spread of each wave packet varying continuously, producing fringes that can reach a visibility close to unity. Theoretically, the rotation sensitivity of this continuous interferometer (CI) can be comparable to that of the Borde-Chu interferometer. The relative simplicity of the CI makes it a potentially better candidate for practical applications.


RFC 3263 defines how a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)
implementation, given a SIP Uniform Resource Identifier (URI), should
locate the next-hop SIP server using Domain Name System (DNS)
procedures. As SIP networks increasingly transition from IPv4-only to
dual-stack, a quality user experience must be ensured for dual- stack
SIP implementations. This document updates the DNS procedures
described in RFC 3263 for dual-stack SIP implementations in
preparation for forthcoming specifications for applying "Happy
Eyeballs" principles to SIP.


This chapter introduces a conceptual framework which links consumers' demographic characteristics with their attitudes toward major shopping area attributes (the push/pull factors), as well as their motivations toward cross-border shopping. It is built on the extant literature of outshopping, cross-border shopping, and consumer switching behavior. It has been tested with data collected from 485 Hong Kong residents. A nonparametric approach will be used to analyze the data. Findings of this study show that "age" and "education" characteristics are good indicators for most of the macrofactors (shopping area attributes). As for microfactors (motivational factors), "age" and "gender" are the best indicators. Results of this study also confirm previous findings that demographic characteristics of consumers affect their cross-border shopping behavior. Low prices on products and good services are the most important pull-factor attracting cross-border shopping. It further reveals that a higher percentage of cross-border shoppers are from lower income families, having only secondary education level, and in the age category of 30–49. Implications for retailers, governments, and tourism-related institutions are discussed.


Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma is the commonest subtype of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. It may present with primary nodal or extranodal involvement. Up to 40% of patients present with primary extranodal involvement, the commonest involved sites being gastrointestinal tract, testes, central nervous system, thyroid, nose, sinuses, skin, breast, bone and respiratory tract. Skeletal Muscle is a rare site of primary lymphomatous involvement. We present a case of Diffuse Large B Cell lymphoma primarily involving the skeletal muscles and breast, initially managed as a case of acute pyogenic myositis with sepsis with Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome. In addition, the patient had hypercalcemia, cortical vein thrombosis, proteinuria and renal dysfunction, which were all speculated to be paraneoplastic in etiology.


This paper addresses the problem of block-online processing for multi-channel speech enhancement. We consider several variants of a system that performs beamforming supported by DNN-based Voice Activity Detection followed by post-filtering. The speaker is targeted through estimating relative transfer functions between microphones. Each block of the input signals is processed independently in order to make the method applicable in highly dynamic environments. The performance loss caused by the short length of the processing block is studied and compared with results achieved when recordings are processed as one block (batch processing). The experimental evaluation of the proposed method is performed on large datasets of CHiME-4 and on another dataset featuring moving target speaker. The experiments are evaluated in terms of objective criteria and Word Error Rate achieved by a baseline Automatic Speech Recognition system, for which the enhancement method serves as a front-end solution. The results indicate that the proposed method is robust with respect to the length of the processing block and yields significant WER improvement even for a short block length of 250 ms.


Estimating scene geometry from data obtained with cost-effective sensors is key for robots and self-driving cars. In this paper, we study the problem of predicting dense depth from a single RGB image (monodepth) with optional sparse measurements from low-cost active depth sensors. We introduce Sparse Auxiliary Networks (SANs), a new module enabling monodepth networks to perform both the tasks of depth prediction and completion, depending on whether only RGB images or also sparse point clouds are available at inference time. First, we decouple the image and depth map encoding stages using sparse convolutions to process only the valid depth map pixels. Second, we inject this information, when available, into the skip connections of the depth prediction network, augmenting its features. Through extensive experimental analysis on one indoor (NYUv2) and two outdoor (KITTI and DDAD) benchmarks, we demonstrate that our proposed SAN architecture is able to simultaneously learn both tasks, while achieving a new state of the art in depth prediction by a significant margin.


This article presents the design, simulation, implementation, and test procedures for a bio-inspired patch antenna array and transmission system. The array structure was based on the Fibonacci pattern found in oak trees, with the antenna elements in the positions of the leaves. We present the antenna array's validation in an anechoic chamber, and tests performed on the transmission system under non-line-of-sight (NLOS) conditions.


This paper describes the performance of stainless-steel micro-relays, with platinum-rhodium metal foil contact elements, in handling high-power RF signals. The electrical and thermal responses are described for electrostatically actuated three-terminal micro-relays that are directly assembled on printed circuit boards. The preliminary designs have footprints of 6.4 mm2. Fabricated relays have 90-V turn-on (pull-down) voltage. The down-state insertion loss and up-state isolation were better than 0.2 and 25 dB over the band of dc-5 GHz, respectively. The devices can accommodate incident RF power up to 18.5 W at 3 GHz when cooled by forced air from a mini-fan.


In order to improve the interface compatibility of wood fiber and the polylactic acid (PLA), the silane coupling agent to modify the wood fiber was chosen. The Modified Effect of silane coupling agent on the wood fiber is judged inrectly by feat of the modification of viscosity characteristic of the mixed system of wood fiber and the liquid paraffin. The dosage of the silane coupling agent influenced the modification effect the most is shown in the research, the modification temperature, stirring speed and the modification time are followed.


By virtue of the ways online higher education faculty interface with students in asynchronous learning environments, they are rarely what King (1993) described as sages on the stage. Rather, faculty are facilitators of learning or guides on the side. Indeed, effective online faculty members often teach and otherwise encourage learners who may be isolated and alone at computers. Such learners may be preparing to lead families, communities and organizations in a dynamic global environment. This paper explores whether online faculty fit the servant leader model characterized in Robert Greenleaf's (1978) vision beyond the Leadership Crisis. And, if they do, are online faculty who model servant leadership in the classroom and other interactions with learners assisting in leader development? Do faculty model the type of leadership that is conducive to innovative organizational cultures? Do they create trust and meaningful relationships that sustain both student and faculty as continuous learners? These research questions are considered in the context of the online classroom.


Each organization has to deal with employee turnover issues implying a process of employees' interfirm mobility and worker quits. The paper focuses on voluntary turnover when employees leave organizations at their own will. The paper aims at examining factors affecting Russian employees' intentions to leave or to stay in organizations. Based on a sample of 2380 respondents from 80 firms in eight Russian regions, the authors found out that wage satisfaction is dominant but not exclusive factor of Russian employees' decisions with regard to their interfirm mobility. Work content, autonomy at the work place, and career prospects are also highly significant predictors. In contrast to previous research conducted in foreign companies, the presented research findings do not reveal the significance of social relations and psychological atmosphere as important factors influencing employees' intentions to leave or to stay in organizations. This suggests stronger "mercenary–individualistic" orientations of Russian workers in comparison with Western labour markets. The authors concluded that an organization's attempts to retain the more desirable employees should be based on "rules of games" established within the organizational field rather than specific practices of human resource management.


In the past decade, nanometre-scale pores have been explored as the basis for technologies to analyse and sequence single nucleic acid molecules. Most approaches involve using such a pore to localize single macromolecules and interact with them to garner some information on their composition. Though nanopore sensors cannot yet claim success at deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequencing, nanopore-based technologies offer one of the most promising approaches to single molecule detection and analysis. The majority of experimental work with nanopore detection of nucleic acids has involved the α-haemolysin (alpha-HL) ion channel—a heptameric protein with a ∼2 nm diameter inner pore which allows translocation of single-stranded DNA. Analysis of externally induced ion current through the pore during its interaction with DNA can provide information about the DNA molecule, including length and base composition. This review focuses on alpha-HL and its applications to single-molecule detection. Modified alpha-HL and other biological and synthetic pores for macromolecule detection are also discussed, along with a brief summary of relevant theoretical work and numerical modelling of polymer–pore interaction.


Online data collection, through e-mail and Web-based surveys, is becoming an increasingly popular research methodology. In this article, the authors outline the benefits and limitations of this type of data collection to help researchers determine whether their data could be collected online in a way that retains the integrity of the data. A detailed procedure, including strategies to manage limitations, is given for researchers wishing to conduct their own online surveys. ********** In an age of ever-advancing technology, Americans are becoming progressively more computer literate. More and more people have access to the Internet, and the Internet is fast becoming the communication method of choice for many Americans (Duffy, 2000). Researchers from many disciplines are starting to see the benefits of collecting data using the Internet, and increasingly, journals are publishing data that have been collected online (Schleyer & Forrest, 2000). Despite this increased use of the Internet for data collection, there is little published research on the process of data collection online. That is, discipline-specific studies publish the results of their Web-based surveys in discipline-specific journals, but little information is available on the specifics of how Internet-based data collection can be accomplished. Thus, it is difficult for a researcher wishing to use this data collection method to find resources to use as guides. A review of recent issues of the flagship journal of the American Counseling Association and the journals of its largest divisions and affiliates (Journal of Counseling & Development, The Family Journal, Counselor Education and Supervision, Journal of Mental Health Counseling, and Professional School Counseling) found that the publication of data collected online has not yet become standard in the field of counseling. In fact, since 1998, no articles have been published in any of these journals that explicitly state that data were collected from an e-mail-based or Web-based survey method. (One study by Niles, Akos, & Cutler in a 2001 issue of Counselor Education and Supervision used e-mail correspondence to conduct qualitative interviews with participants, although participants originally were contacted via postal mail.) There is, however, an advantage to using Web-based surveys that make it a particularly appealing method for the counseling profession. The advantages of reduced time, lowered cost, ease of data entry, flexibility in format, and ability to capture additional response-set information are universal to Internet-based data collection in all fields. However, in the counseling profession, the additional benefit of access to populations that have not entered the mental health system (e.g., potential clients with mental health problems who have not yet accessed the system) may make online data collection particularly advantageous for counseling research. It is possible that online data collection is not used in the field of counseling because of the limitations of this type of data collection, such as difficulties in obtaining a representative sample, low response rates, and problems with technology. These limitations are valid and pertinent to researchers in every field and are discussed in detail later in this article k also is possible that online data collection has not been used in the counseling literature because of a lack of models and training for this type of research methodology. Therefore, this article is intended to help provide a structure for researchers wishing to engage in this type of data collection. Based on a review of the literature and the findings from a large-scale online study that we previously conducted (Wheaton & Granello, 2001), this article outlines the advantages and limitations of online data collection for the field of counseling and then describes a step-by-step how-to method for researchers wishing to conduct their own Web-based surveys. …


Maximum Power Point Tracking control method based on traditional fuzzy algorithm has disadvantages of slow response and unstable output. To solve the problems, a modified fuzzy control algorithm by combining the traditional two-dimensional fuzzy control with a time-delayed feedback is proposed. It not only fast responds to the changes in ambient environment but also has good stability. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm has superior performance to the traditional fuzzy control.


Nonperturbative techniques in quantum field theory, such as lattice gauge theory, Schwinger- Dyson equations, and applications of the renormalization group, have been successful in describing both the propagator functions and bound states of various theories, most notably those of quarks and hadrons in Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD). The Schwinger-Dyson theoretical framework is presented from basic principles and developed, through examples in a variety of quantum field theories, as a general numerical approach which can yield valuable insight into quantum phenomenology. Explorations include the studies which I have performed to extend bound state theory to the gauge sector of QCD, including the influence of both gluon and ghost fields. This allows for the description of gluon bound states ("glueballs"), which are theoretically viable explanations for previously unidentified resonances in experimental particle searches, and is treated for the first time using the Bethe-Salpeter formalism. This description is sufficiently robust to explore the spectrum of glueballs and provide commentary on the potential for investigation of valence gluon content in meson bound states. Additionally, the first investigation of the full two-loop gluon gap equation is presented and discussed, along with general commentary on the current state of nonperturbative QCD. This computation yields the dressed propagators for quarks, gluons, and ghosts from the coupled set of equations.


Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) has several embedded clause constructions, some of which resemble control in English (and other languages). However, these constructions exhibit some notable differences. Chief among them is the fact that the embedded verb carries agreement features that can indicate both coreference and disjoint reference between a matrix argument and the subject of the complement clause. Through a corpus-based investigation, informed by previous insights regarding the distinction between control and no control, we found no evidence of obligatory control predicates in MSA; these findings contradict accepted generalizations (and predictions) proposed by state-of-the-art theories of control. Nevertheless, although no obligatory control predicates were found, the backward pattern, where the single expressed subject occurs in the embedded clause, revealed morphosyntactic reflexes of the control vs. no control distinction. Coreference between the expressed embedded subject and the unexpressed matrix subject was found to be restricted to a set of predicates. The existence of backward control and its relation to the backward raising construction, also found in MSA, are especially relevant for current debates regarding the theory of control. We propose an analysis that ties together control, raising and restructuring.


The study was conducted in Orlu Agricultural Zone of Imo State Nigeria. Specifically this study examined socioeconomic characteristics of the ware yam farmers, estimated the gross margin of producing ware yam, and determined allocative efficiency of ware yam farmers. Primary data were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics, gross margin analysis, marginal analysis and multiple regression analysis. Results from the study showed that ware yam production is profitable, with gross margin of N58,863.94 per hectare. The results indicated that cost of planting materials and labour constituted 90% of total variable costs. Also, the input resources of land, stakes, fertilizer, labour and planting materials affected yam output positively and significantly. All the resources were underutilized except stakes since their marginal value products were greater than their marginal factor costs. The study concluded that ware yam production is profitable. However, to increase profit, the allocative efficiency of the farmers needs to improve. The study recommends forming cooperatives where the efficient and inefficient farmers can meet and influence each other. The National Root Crops Research Institute and extension agencies should develop and disseminate appropriate ware yam production techniques that will improve resource use efficiency in ware yam production.


Abstract This article discusses selected observations of English usage in signage in Finland, a Nordic nation in which the significance of English has become more pronounced in recent decades. The background for this study comes from a large quantitative survey, carried out in 2007, charting the role of English in the Finnish society. One of the topic areas in this survey deals with people's encounters with English and its visibility in their daily life, and this article aims to add a qualitative angle to these results. The observations discussed here were collected in 2009 during a six-day bicycle trip from Helsinki to the regional centre of Oulu. The analysis moves from mere quantitative recording of signs to a more nuanced analysis of interpretations of their situated meanings in public spaces. These observations show that the presence of English in both urban and rural areas of the country is far from a simple phenomenon, and illustrate how charting signs in space provide valuable information on language contact situations.


This study investigates causal effects of changes in subjective probabilities of being pulled over and involved in accidents if driving while intoxicated on individuals' drinking and driving choices. We also examine how hypothetical changes in perceptions of sanction severity affect drunk driving by experiments randomizing the harshness of punishments. We find that higher perceived risks of being pulled over and involved in accidents deter drinking and driving. However, deterrence is limited to persons who are alcohol addicted, lack of self-control over drinking, and are more impulsive. No deterrent effect of harsher legal punishments is found on individuals' drunk driving choices.Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.


In this paper, we focus on a new wood-based panel unit, which was named Micron Wood Flake for its large size in length, a very small size in thickness, and especially its wooden color in appearance. The flakes were obtained by mechanical processing on waste wood based on the micro-processing theory and technique. In order to design the device and determine the key processing parameters, a simulation of micron wood flake was proceeded based on a mathematical model of single wood cell proposed here. Comparing with the experiments results, it showed that the model is feasibility to some extent. In contrast to the other methods of disposing waste woods, the method proposed here is no environment pollution absolutely, consequently, as an application of this kind flakes, a new environment-friendly decorative board was developed, and the physical and mechanical properties of the samples reaches Japanese light particleboard standard JISA5908.


In examining familiar things we come to such unfamiliar conclusions that our very language is twisted and bent even as it guides us. Writing "under erasure" is the mark of this contortion. (1) What, then, is truth? A mobile army of metaphors metonymies, anthropomorphisms ... truths are illusions of which one has forgotten that they are illusions coins which having lost their stamp, are now regarded as metal and no longer as coins. (2) Yet a gaze averted from the beaten track, a hatred of brutality, a search for fresh concepts not yet encompassed by the general pattern, is the last hope for thought. In an intellectual hierarchy which constantly makeseveryone answerable, unanswerability alone can call the hierarchy directly by its name. (3) Sexual difference is one of the major philosophical issues of ... our age. According to Heidegger, each age has one issue to think through, and one only. Sexual difference is probably the issue in our time which could be our "salvation" if we thought it through. (4) I. INTRODUCTION: POSTRUCTURALISM AND LAW In 1967, Jacques Derrida published three philosophical works that altered the critical and philosophical landscape of the late twentieth century. Those works--Of Grammatology, Speech and Phenomena, and Writing and Difference--attempted to rethink the very fabric of thinking itself, and aimed at displacing a mode of reasoning that Derrida argued intrinsically required dominance as a condition of its operation. (5) In brief, Derrida argued that Western philosophy, and by inference Western modes of rationality and being, were based on a desire to suppress difference in the name of identity. Reason, for Derrida, was a form of desire, and was intimately linked with perpetual violence. (6) Derrida's philosophical investigations undermined the idea of reason as a neutral mechanism which could lead to universalizable and "true" conclusions. Indeed, Derrida showed that Western thought was based upon a logical hierarchy. Rather than discovering that our supposedly value-free conceptual terms could be applied without bias, Derrida showed that bias was part of their very structure. (7) He spent much of his career illustrating the ways in which a series of conceptual terms repeated themselves in Western thought and lived experience, delimiting our very capacity to think in novel ways. (8) For Derrida, concepts are things, as tactile in their effect as earth and water, as restrictive as chains, and yet as invisible as ether. (9) His project makes the invisible structures of thought, inquiry, and self-identity visible, showing us how what we often hold to be a condition of freedom in fact turns out to be a yoke of enslavement. (10) This insight is at the foundation of postmodern philosophy, a critical strategy (not a system or method) aimed at unsettling all modes of transcendental, fixed, or essentialist thought. It attacks the hegemonic foundationalism that lies at the base of Western thought. This strategy, also called deconstruction, is thus a kind of philosophical, critical and social practice aimed at rethinking the world. For many, this is deeply threatening. But, as a means of exposing the structurally embedded power relations that inhere in the deepest tissue of our daily lives, deconstruction is also a method of reinventing the world. To some, it is thus deeply utopian. (11) Moreover, deconstruction rethinks the very foundations of thought, not merely its various "superstructural" (surface) manifestations. It is this deep radicalism that has attracted many feminist theorists, who saw in the universalist, egalitarian, and entirely noble promises of modern liberal-democratic thought a troubling distortion of the experience of being a woman. (12) Among contemporary legal philosophers, no one has more thoughtfully engaged in the ongoing discussion surrounding these issues than Drucilla Cornell. She has attempted to bring together postmodernism and legal feminism in an effort to radically re-imagine what it is to be a woman. …


This work focuses on the history of the Fang people of Equatorial Guinea between 1927 and 1979 in an effort to shed some light on the so-called process of retraditionalization that African societies have been undergoing for the last three decades. Contrary to those views that expected that independence would consolidate the process of modernization initiated by colonialism, many African countries, including Equatorial Guinea, have seen how traditional structures have gained ground ever since. This process is often explained as a result of the so-called crisis of modernity. It is argued that, due to the instability provoked by rapid modernization and the failure of modem structures, Africans are recovering their old ways in search for solutions. This explanation, however, stands against those views that considered that colonial conquest put an end to African traditional systems. This thesis argues that, although traditions are certainly back, this is, in fact, a new phenomenon, which started with the advent of colonial conquest. This work shows how colonial structures and the changes that followed resulted in the collapse of the traditional social model. In response to such situation, a new socio-cultural tradition, rooted in the old one, took form - being the development of modem Fang identity its most salient element. Research specifically focuses on transformations in authority, religious beliefs and identity, as well as their relationship. Much emphasis is put on the historicity of the process, covering three main historical stages such as the second half of the nineteenth century, the period of colonial conquest and domination between the 1910s and 1968, and the aftermath of independence between 1968 and 1979. This work does not only examine a peculiar colonial model, the Spanish, on which very little has been written, but also an African society that the English language literature has largely ignored. In so doing, research has relied on both oral sources and documents. Interviews were conducted in Equatorial Guinea. Archival sources were examined both in Alacala de Henares (Madrid), where Spain's public records are based, and Rome, where part of the documents of the Claretian missionary order can be found.


Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers have been extensively utilized in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and characterization of progression. One important CSF biomarker is the amyloid beta 42 (Aβ42) peptide, a key player in AD pathogenesis. The INNOTEST® Aβ42 ELISA kit has been widely used but an advanced level of method development and validation has not been reported. To support a clinical trial in AD, we successfully completed a Good Laboratory Practices (GLP)-level validation of the method to establish the parameters of precision, accuracy, parallelism, selectivity, specificity, and linearity of dilution of the assay in CSF matrix, as well as CSF storage stability. Several modifications were required to optimize the assay and ensure consistent results in a clinical-trial setting. These included the use of additional calibrators, an adjusted standard curve range, a minimum required dilution (MRD) of CSF by 6-fold to avoid matrix interference and mitigation of analyte adsorption to labware by the addition of Tween-20. The optimized method displayed a quantitative range of 375–4,500 pg/mL. The inter-assay precision was ≤12.1 % CV and the inter-assay relative accuracy was ≤10.9 % absolute bias, bringing the total error of the assay to ≤23 %. The intra-assay precision of the assay at the high validation standard and below was ≤5.5 % CV; this enables sensitive detection of biomarker changes across a therapeutic regime. The INNOTEST® Aβ42 ELISA kit, modified as reported here, may be appropriate for many applications, including regulatory agency acceptable clinical diagnosis and pharmacodynamic assessment.


It is commonly held that hearing generally begins on incubation day 12 (E12) in the chicken embryo (Gallus domesticus). However, little is known about the response properties of cochlear ganglion neurons for ages younger than E18. We studied ganglion neurons innervating the basilar papilla of embryos (E12-E18) and hatchlings (P13-P15). We asked first, when do primary afferent neurons begin to encode sounds? Second, when do afferents evidence frequency selectivity? Third, what range of characteristic frequencies (CFs) is represented in the late embryo? Finally, how does sound transfer from air to the cochlea affect responses in the embryo and hatchling? Responses to airborne sound were compared with responses to direct columella footplate stimulation of the cochlea. Cochlear ganglion neurons exhibited a profound insensitivity to sound from E12 to E16 (stages 39-42). Responses to sound and frequency selectivity emerged at about E15. Frequency selectivity matured rapidly from E16 to E18 (stages 42 and 44) to reflect a mature range of CFs (170-4,478 Hz) and response sensitivity to footplate stimulation. Limited high-frequency sound transfer from air to the cochlea restricted the response to airborne sound in the late embryo. Two periods of ontogeny are proposed. First is a prehearing period (roughly E12-E16) of endogenous cochlear signaling that provides neurotrophic support and guides normal developmental refinements in central binaural processing pathways followed by a period (roughly E16-E19) wherein the cochlea begins to detect and encode sound.


Some rare and threatened Croton species have a long history of medicinal usage in East Africa. The objective of this study was to review the phytochemistry and pharmacological properties of five Croton species that are threatened with extinction in East Africa but widely used as herbal medicines in the region. Information on medicinal uses, phytochemistry and pharmacological properties of C. alienus, C. dictyophlebodes, C. jatrophoides, C. megalocarpoides and C. talaeporos was obtained from databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct, Google Scholar, PubMed, BioMed Central (BMC), Springerlink and Scielo. Other sources of information included scientific publications, conference proceedings, theses, books and book chapters obtained from libraries. Literature search revealed that the bark, fruits, leaves and roots of these five Croton species are commonly used as traditional medicines for gastro-intestinal disorders, colds and influenza, body pains and weaknesses and intestinal worms. Phytochemical compounds isolated from these species include alkaloids, anthraquinones, diterpenoids, esters, flavonoids, furanoditerpenoids, limonoids, methylcyclohexanes, phenolics, steroids, tannins and triterpenoids. Pharmacological studies indicate that these species have antifungal, anti-leishmanial and insect antifeedant activities. Preliminary phytochemical and pharmacological research done so far on Croton species is promising, but too general to corroborate some of the medicinal uses of the species.


The SigmaRho Kalman filter is a new implementation useful for design and application in stressful real-time environments. This filter has been implemented in a satellite navigation receiver. This paper presents application of results of the new mechanization compared with the original matrix form of the Kalman filter and Bierman-Thornton UDUT-factored form. A sample problem from the signal processing area is presented with extreme time variation between samples. This problem, often referred to as software radio, requires estimation of signal phase changes in a repetitive signal (carrier) with additive noise where the digital sampling is at a rate well below the carrier repetition rate. The paper also demonstrates a computationally effective implementation of the SigmaRho filter using integer arithmetic. The implementation is successfully applied at sample rates approaching 100 MHz for a carrier at 1.5 GHz, demonstrating its potential as a signal processing tool for high-speed commercial applications.


As demand and supply of Grid resources in Grid computing environments increases rapidly, many Grid researchers have taken particular interest in efficient management of Grid resources. In this paper, a user demand prediction-based resource management model (UDPRMM), which uses the user demand trend of Grid resources as a critical management factor, is proposed. This paper introduces a user demand prediction approach with historical user demands and aims for effective Grid resource management through transaction management between resource users and resource suppliers. For performance evaluation with accuracy and reliability, the UDPRMM is compared with the user demand fixed-based resources management model (UDFRMM) and the user demand random-based resources management model (UDRRMM). The UDPRMM demonstrates improvement greater than 70% with regard Grid resource transactions and greater than 16% with regard to Grid resource transaction quantities in comparison with the UDFRMM and the UDRRMM. In evaluation, the UDPRMM reduces delay time by 21%, over that of the UDFRMM, and 19% over that of the UDRRMM. The empirical results demonstrate the usefulness of the UDPRMM with effective economics-based resource management.


Thin SiN film deposited on Si by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) is used for surface passivation of Si. During the PECVD process Hydrogen is incorporated into the SiN film, and the passivation properties of the resulting SiNx:H layers play an important role in enhancing the energy conversion efficiency of solar cells. It is believed that the Hydrogen present in SiNx:H is responsible for this enhancement, and therefore its concentration in the passivating layer is an important parameter. The Hydrogen composition and its depth profile in thin SiNx:H films of 20nm to 200nm was measured by elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA), using a 1.7MeV He+ ion beam of (1x2)mm2, generated by a high stability 2MV Tandetron ion beam accelerator. Simultaneously, Rutherford backscattering (RBS) spectra were recorded for each sample. The results show that the Hydrogen concentration in the SiNx:H layers is dependent of the deposition conditions. Also, Hydrogen was found to be homogenously distributed across the SiNx:H layer thickness, and the SiNx:H/Si interfaces were well defined.


The overall goal of this project was to further develop the single-well, ``push-pull'' test method as a feasibility assessment and site-characterization tool for studying the fundamental fate and transport behavior of injected surfactants and their ability to solubilize and mobilize dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) in the subsurface. The specific objectives were to develop a modified push-pull test for use in identifying and quantifying the effects of sorption, precipitation, and biodegradation on the fate and transport of injected surfactants, use the developed test method to quantify the effects of these processes on the ability of injected surfactants to solubilize and mobilize residual phase trichloroethane (TCE), and demonstrate the utility of the developed test method for performing site characterization and feasibility studies for surfactant-enhanced DNAPL recovery systems in the field. The results from the intermediate-scale laboratory experiments conducted for this project indicate that the single-well, push-pull test method can provide quantitative information on the effectiveness of injected surfactants in enhancing DNAPL solubilization in natural aquifer sediments. Specifically, the results of this research demonstrate the ability of the single-well, push-pull test to characterize the behavior of multi-component surfactants in the presence of natural aquifer sediment under laboratory and in-situ field conditions.


A guide to library and online resources for students and instructors in the Business Analysis Program in the Faculty of Continuing and Professional Studies.


What does it mean to be black in a nation increasingly infatuated with colorblindness? In The Tie That Binds, Andrea Y. Simpson seeks to answer this crucial question through the prism of ethnic and political identification. Historically, African Americans have voted overwhelmingly Democratic in governmental elections. In recent years, however, politically conservative blacks--from Clarence Thomas to Louis Farrakhan to Ward Connerly-have attracted much of the media's gaze. What is the nature of black conservatives' constituency, and is it as strong and numerous as conservatives would have us believe? To what extent, if at all, does black conservatism stem from a weakened sense of collective racial identity? Simpson tackles the peculiar institution of black conservatism by interviewing college students to determine their political attitudes and the ways in which these are shaped. The result is a penetrating interrogation of the relations between political affiliation, racial identity, and class situation.


Porphyrias are a group of disorders caused by enzymatic defects in the biosynthesis of haem. Congenital erythropoietic porphyria (CEP) or Günther's disease is an extremely rare autosomal recessive disorder. Clinical manifestations include onset in infancy of blistering of sun-exposed areas, atrophic scars, mutilated fingers, and bright red fluorescence of the urine and teeth without neurological involvement. The only available prophylactic treatment for CEP is total avoidance of sunlight. A high degree of suspicion is required for the diagnosis. Early diagnosis is very important to prevent subsequent damage. LEARNING POINTS A rare case of congenital erythropoietic porphyria (CEP) without evidence of haemolysis is described. A high degree of suspicion is required for diagnosing CEP. Early diagnosis prevents further damage.


An old parable says that the Zen Master Fa-Yen, was once asked by an initiate, "What is the First Principle?" Fa-Yen replied, "If I should tell you, it would become the Second Principle." This terse rejoinder describes how most forensic scientists approach the philosophic basis of their discipline: If I should tell you, it would no longer be what it is. Many in the field are of the opinion that we have been applying our methods for too long without sufficient consideration for the underlying principles of what we do. What are "class characteristics"? What is an "association"? We assume we know what these mean but in an open discussion between forensic scientists about our individual assumptions, disagreement would invariably ensue.


Knowledge Exchange Portal for building and maintaining stable relationships in the triangle university-graduate-industry is presented in this paper. The portal has been developed during the educational project "A graduate of our time" in Lublin University of Technology, Poland. The architecture and detailed functions of the portal are presented in the paper, as well as problems of its using in long-time period.


This study aimed to develop the best bioencapsulation condition for potential probiotic bacteria to control Edwardsiella tarda infection in climbing perch, Anabas testudineus larvae. Preliminary metagenomic analyses unveiled the pathogenic bacteria (e.g. Edwardsiella tarda, Pseudomonas fluorescens and Serratia marcescens) and beneficial bacteria (e.g. Bacillus subtilis) were the natural microflora in the climbing perch gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Compared to other pathogens, E. tarda was largely residing in the wild- and farmed-typed A. testudineus GI tract. Multiple in vitro screenings such as antagonistic, hemolytic, antibiotic and bacteriosin-like substance (BLIS) assays were performed in the study to determine the best probiotic against E. tarda, through isolating and evaluating the microflora isolated from intestines of Oreochromis niloticus, Clarias batrachus, Ophicephalus striatus, Trichogaster pectoralis, Anabas testudineus and Pangasius pangasius. Data suggested that L. lactis subsp. lactis (CF4MRS) at > 106 CFU mL-1 could be effectively used to control E. tarda in laboratory condition. This bacterial isolate also showed a strong antimicrobial activity against other fish pathogens such as P. fluorescens, P. aeruginosa, K. pneumonia, E. coli, A. hydrophila, and S. marcescens. HPLC analysis showed that this antimicrobial activity was not attributed to any compounds but the organic acids i.e. lactic acid. When L. lactis subsp. lactis CF4MRS (108 CFU mL-1) was bioencapsulated in Artemia franciscana, it could be effectively used to protect the live feed against E. tarda up to 50% of survival rate. Colonization efficiency of the probiotic was also highly demonstrated in A. franciscana when gfp-transformed L. lactis was used in the bioencapsulation process. In addition, this probiotic also improve the production of amylase, protease, lipase and cellulase enzymes in A. franciscana. For the best bacterial encapsulation result, sodium alginate was suggested in the A. franciscana bioencapsulation instead of starch, gum Arabic and gelatin, as it showed the highest total bacterial count in Artemia (2.44 × 107 CFU mL-1). To determine the effects of the probiotic on climbing perch larvae, A. testudineus larvae were produced by comparing different hormones (LHRHa and SGnRHa). Results suggested induced breeding using LHRHa was the most effective way to produce the fish larvae. In the in vivo pathogenic assays, fish larvae were divided into various groups: Artemia nauplii enriched with 108 CFU mL-1 L. lactis (LA); Nauplii enriched 0.5 g L-1 sodium alginate (SA); Nauplii enriched 0.5 g L-1 sodium alginate containing 108 CFU mL-1 L. lactis (LSA); and nauplii only as the control (A). Fish larvae fed with LSA showed highest larval survival rate (50%) compared to LA (41.7%), SA (31.7%) and A (20%). Lysozyme activity was also highest in LSA (13.89 units mg-1 protein), followed by LA (10.00 units mg-1 protein), SA (8.33 units mg-1 protein) and A (1.33 units mg-1 protein). The result indicated a strong improvement of immune response in fish larvae when LSA was included in larval diet. In a nutshell, combination of L. lactis CF4MRS (108 CFU mL-1 for 8 h) and alginate in Artemia bioencapsulation could improve survival rate of E. tarda-infected climbing perch larvae through up-regulating their innate immune response.


IMPORTANCE
This is the first randomized placebo-controlled evaluation of a medical intervention for the prevention of trastuzumab-related cardiotoxic effects.

OBJECTIVE
To determine as the primary end point whether angiotensin II antagonist treatment with candesartan can prevent or ameliorate trastuzumab-related cardiotoxic effects, defined as a decline in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of more than 15% or a decrease below the absolute value 45%.

DESIGN
This randomized, placebo-controlled clinical study was conducted between October 2007 and October 2011 in 19 hospitals in the Netherlands, enrolling 210 women with early breast cancer testing positive for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) who were being considered for adjuvant systemic treatment with anthracycline-containing chemotherapy followed by trastuzumab.

INTERVENTIONS
A total of 78 weeks of candesartan (32 mg/d) or placebo treatment; study treatment started at the same day as the first trastuzumab administration and continued until 26 weeks after completion of trastuzumab treatment.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
The primary outcome was LVEF. Secondary end points included whether the N-terminal of the prohormone brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and high-sensitivity troponin T (hs-TnT) can be used as surrogate markers and whether genetic variability in germline ERBB2 (formerly HER2 or HER2/neu) correlates with trastuzumab-related cardiotoxic effects.

RESULTS
A total of 206 participants were evaluable (mean age, 49 years; age range, 25-69 years) 103 in the candesartan group (mean age, 50 years; age range, 25-69 years) and 103 in the placebo group (mean age, 50 years; age range, 30-67 years). Of these, 36 manifested at least 1 of the 2 primary cardiac end points. There were 3.8% more cardiac events in the candesartan group than in the placebo group (95% CI, -7% to 15%; P = .58): 20 events (19%) and 16 events (16%), respectively. The 2-year cumulative incidence of cardiac events was 0.28 (95% CI, 0.13-0.40) in the candesartan group and 0.16 (95% CI, 0.08-0.22) in the placebo group (P = .56). Candesartan did not affect changes in NT-proBNP and hs-TnT values, and these biomarkers were not associated with significant changes in LVEF. The Ala1170Pro homozygous ERBB2 genotype was associated with a lower likelihood of the occurrence of a cardiac event compared with Pro/Pro + Ala/Pro genotypes in multivariate analysis (odds ratio, 0.09; 95% CI, 0.02-0.45; P = .003).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
The findings do not support the hypothesis that concomitant use of candesartan protects against a decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction during or shortly after trastuzumab treatment in early breast cancer. The ERBB2 germline Ala1170Pro single nucleotide polymorphism may be used to identify patients who are at increased risk of trastuzumab-related cardiotoxic effects.

TRIAL REGISTRATION
clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00459771.


In 2008 the building of a first windmill park some 30km off the Belgian North Sea coast began. Such offshore constructions represent a novel, artificial, hard substratum habitat on the Belgian continental shelf, where the sea-bottom consists mainly of sandy and muddy sediment. It is anticipated that in the coming years, several hundreds of offshore windmills will be constructed in a dedicated zone off the Belgian coast. SCUBA-based in situ techniques were used to document and sample the fouling assemblage on the hard substratum represented by the concrete foundations of the first windmills constructed in Belgian waters. Here this paper presents and discusses the results of the monitoring undertaken from February 2009 to February 2010. Despite the further offshore location and differences in substratum type, the preliminary results indicated that the overall structure of the marine biofouling assemblage at the Thornton Bank site is similar to that on the foundations of other offshore wind farms in Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands, as well as on other hard structures in the North Sea.


The asphaltic concrete facing is one of the most widely used components for waterproofing rockfill dams. It is, particularly in the case of hydroelectric pumped storage facilities, often highly exposed to significant temperature fluctuations, which are caused by solar radiation, variation in the water level in the reservoir, frost in the winter season, as well as wind speed and direction, and precipitation. To better explain the heat transfer phenomenon, it is necessary to know the temperature variations in the different layers of the asphaltic concrete facing. This study describes the measurement of the temperature in the asphaltic concrete facing (raw and protected) of the Ghrib dam (Ain Defla, Algeria) and its evaluation using a numerical model of the heat flow using the Fluent software. First, a validation of the model by comparison with experimental measurements, in the case of a daily variation in ambient temperature, the comparison of the results of the calculation of the numerical model with the real measurements shows an excellent similarity. Then we simulate the application of thermal protection by adding a reflective paint to the facing surface. The results of this simulation show that the reflection of solar radiation by the reflective surface has the potential to cool the asphaltic concrete facing and reduce the temperatures significantly, the temperature peak as well as reduce it to 11.47 °C, this happens at noon when the heat is very high, which is significant for our asphaltic concrete facing, where the temperatures reach their maximum values (49°C) in the raw case (without protection).


Despite the level of concern generated by adolescents who repeatedly self-harm,
there is a dearth of empirically validated interventions for this client group. In the
adult domain, dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT; Linehan, 1993) is the only
evidence-based intervention for individuals at high risk of repetition, and preliminary
research has suggested its utility with adolescents. This study employed a qualitative
methodology to evaluate an existing inpatient DBT programme for adolescents with
multiple presenting problems including deliberate self-harm. Four female
adolescents were interviewed in depth about their experiences and the perceived
impact of receiving DBT. Transcripts were analysed for significant and recurrent
themes using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Overall, the results
supported existing quantitative data indicating that this client group can benefit from
DBT. Participants emphasised the role of applying DBT skills in gaining a sense of
control over internal experiences and overt behaviours (including self-harm).
However, there were marked individual differences in the degree to which such
control was attained. Furthermore, for most participants, the effective use of DBT
skills was at least partially dependent upon the continued receipt of therapy.
Motivation to engage in and comply with therapy appeared to be significantly
influenced by participants' perceptions of staff and peers within the inpatient unit. A
sense of connection or identification with others emerged as an important source of
learning and inspiration, as well as serving to normalise participants' difficulties.
The role of social comparison was particularly salient in participants' attempts to make sense of the changes in self since entering DBT. The findings are discussed in
relation to the existing literature, with particular emphasis on the extent to which
therapeutic processes deemed important by DBT theory were concordant with
participants' experiences. Implications for clinical practice are highlighted and
directions for future research suggested


To ascertain if lambda VI light chains have unique structural features that account for the preferential association of these proteins with primary or multiple myeloma-related amyloidosis (amyloidosis AL) we have determined the complete amino acid sequence of the variable (V) region of the lambda VI Bence Jones protein SUT. This protein, obtained from a patient with amyloidosis AL, represents a complete light chain consisting of 216 residues and it has structural and serologic properties characteristic for lambda VI light chains. The sequence of the joining segment (J) (positions 100 to 111) of protein SUT is identical to that of the J lambda I segment of the mouse IG lambda light chain gene. V region SUT is closely homologous in sequence to that of another lambda VI amyloid fibrillar protein, AR, differing by 21 residues. The V regions of proteins SUT and AR contain a two-residue insertion at positions 68 and 69 that has also been found in two other lambda VI human light chains but not in the lambda-chains of other V region subgroups.


Haltiwanger and Harrington (1991) among others explore a theoretical study on the effects of demand fluctuations on the degree of oligopoly coordination. They specify that demand movements are deterministic as the assumption of independent, identically distributed demand shocks in each period is excluded. This paper empirically examines the hypothesis implied by the Haltiwanger and Harrington in which current prices and margins vary directly with expected future demand. We also explore the time series properties of demand shocks. Various lag structures are introduced into the estimation. The model is applied to the U.S. aluminum industry. Results support the predictions of the theoretical models.


Infrared thermography (IRT) has been applied as an effective tool for detecting faults in PV modules. In addition, with the recent development of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), they have been used in order to increase the cost-effectiveness and employ IRT for large-scale PV plants or roof-mounted PV systems. With the goal of demonstrating the capabilities of the UAV application, especially in aerial thermography analysis, this article presents an experiment applying UAV based IRT, performed for the fault inspection of a PV plant in South Brazil. The local is a 3 MWp PV plant located in the city of Tubarão in the state of Santa Catharina and consists of three 1 MWp-blocks of different PV technologies. On October of 2016, the plant was affected by a meteorological tsunami, causing several damages. The experiment was focused on the detection of the damages on the polycrystalline PV block of the power plant and a DJI Phantom 3 Advanced was equipped with a lightweight infrared camera to perform the aerial IRT. The measurements in the plant were performed in accordance with the international norm IEC TS 62446-3, under stable radiation and weather conditions, exclusively with irradiances above 800 W/m2 and average wind speeds of 3 m/s. The IRT drone system was essential for identifying damaged and defect portions of the PV power plant fast after the incident. It was possible to detect hot spots, defective bypass-diodes, short- and open-circuited strings. The damages could be noticed even when the UAV flight was at 40 m of altitude. The UAV based IRT assessment helped to identify the defects in a fast manner, without interrupting the power generation. It can be concluded that the technique is very effective, practical and relevant for damage inspection in large PV power plants.