The "longing" and "belonging" features of Taha Hussein's cultural perspective of Mediterraneanism is revis-ited. Taha Hussein (1889-1973) plays a great role in the Egyptian cultural perspective of Mediterraneanism. The concept of Mediterraneanism was a recurrent one in his thought. Taha Hussein well expressed his point of view in his most famous book The Future of Culture in Egypt , which was first published in Cairo, 1938. In analyzing the Egyptian cultural identity, Taha Hussein became the strictest advocate of Graeco-Roman studies in Egypt. There is an underlying relationship between teaching Greek and Latin and the Egyptian cultural perspective of Mediterraneanism as held by Taha Hussein. He judged Greek and Latin in terms of their contribution to the Egyptian cultural identity. The implications of Taha Hussein's cultural perspective of Mediterraneanism have been vigorously explored up till now in the Egyptian academia. It has something to contribute to the Egyptian literary discourse as well. My study provides the occasion for some future new light to be shed on the Egyptian cultural perspective of Mediterraneanism.


Humanoid robotics offers a unique research tool for understanding the human brain and body. The synthesis of human motion is a complex procedure that involves accurate reconstruction of movement sequences, modeling of musculoskeletal kinematics, dynamics and actuation, and characterization of reliable performance criteria. Many of these processes have much in common with the problems found in robotics research, with the recent advent of complex humanoid systems. This work presents the design and development of a new-generation bipedal robot. Its modeling and simulation has been realized by using an open-source software to create and analyze dynamic simulation of movement: OpenSim. Starting from a study by Fuben He, our model aims to be used as an innovative approach to the study of a such type of robot in which there are series elastic actuators represented by active and passive spring components in series with motors. It has provided of monoarticular and biarticular joint in a very similar manner to human musculoskeletal model.
This thesis is only the starting point of a wide range of other possible future works: from the control structure completion and whole-body control application, to imitation learning and reinforcement learning for human locomotion, from motion test on at ground to motion test on rough ground, and obviously the transition from simulation to practice with a real elastic bipedal robot biologically-inspired that can move like a human being


Comparative phenotype and transcriptome analyses were performed with Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579 exposed to acid down-shock to pH 5.5 set with different acidulants. When acidified with hydrochloric acid (HCl), growth was diminished, whereas 2 mM undissociated lactic acid (HL) or acetic acid (HAc) stopped growth without inactivation (bacteriostatic condition), and 15 mM undissociated HAc caused growth arrest and, finally, cell death, as reflected by a 3 to 4 log inactivation (bactericidal condition). Within the first 60 min after pH down-shock, the intracellular ATP levels of cultures shocked with HCl were increased. The bacteriostatic pH shocks did not result in increased nor decreased intracellular ATP levels, indicating that the high energy status within the stressed aerobically grown B. cereus cells could be maintained. In contrast, exposure to 15 mM undissociated HAc resulted in significant lower ATP levels, which was in accordance with the observed inactivation. The transcriptomic responses pH down-shocked cultures were studied in the same time frame. The analyses revealed general and specific responses coupled to the different phenotypes and the acidulant used. The general acid stress response, shown in all different pH shocks, involves modulation of pyruvate metabolism and an oxidative stress response. The shifts in pyruvate metabolism include induction dehydrogenases of a butanediol fermentation pathway under non-lethal acid stress conditions and of lactate, formate, and ethanol fermentation pathways under 15 mM HAc stress. Other 15 mM HAc-specific responses were induction of the alternative electron-transport systems, including cydAB, and fatty acid biosynthesis genes. Differences in gene expression for the bacteriostatic organic acid stress conditions compared to the growth-retarded inorganic stress condition indicated a more stringent oxidative stress response, including induction of an additional catalase gene and a gene encoding a Dps-like protein. Moreover, modulations in amino acid and oligopeptide transport were also found for the 2 mM HAc and HL shocks. HL-specific and HAc-specific responses both involve amino acid metabolism. Our study on the genome-wide responses of aerobically grown B. cereus pH 5.5 shocks provides a unique overview of the different responses induced by three acidulants relevant for food preservation.


Abstract The Carnmenellis granite and its aureole contain the only recorded thermal groundwaters (up to 52 °C) in British granites. They occur as springs in tin mines at depths between 200 and 700 m and most are saline (maximum mineralization 19 310 mg 1−1). Mining activity has disturbed the groundwater circulation pattern developed over a geological time-scale and levels of bomb-produced tritium (> 4 TU) indicate that a significant component (up to 65 %) of the most saline waters are of recent origin. All components of all the mine waters are of meteoric origin. Radiogenic 4He contents, 40Ar/36Ar ratios, and uranium series geochemistry suggest that the thermal component has a likely residence time of at least 5 × 104 years and probably of order 106 years. The thermal waters have molar Na+/Cl− ratios considerably less than 1 but they are enriched relative to sea water in all major cations except Mg. The groundwater is also particularly enriched in Li with contents ranging up to 125 mg 1−1. The groundwater salinity, which may reach a maximum of 30 000 mg 1−1, is shown to result from weathering reactions of biotite (probably through a chloritization step) and plagioclase feldspar, to kaolinite. On volumetric considerations, fluid inclusions cannot contribute significantly to the groundwater salinity, and stable isotope ratios rule out any contribution from sea water. Groundwater silica contents and molar Na+/K+ ratios suggest that the likely equilibration temperature is 54°C, which would imply a depth of circulation of about 1.2 km.


The approximate string matching is a fundamental and recurrent problem that arises in most computer science fields. This problem can be defined as follows:
Let $D=\{x_1,x_2,\ldots x_d\}$ be a set of $d$ words defined on an alphabet $\Sigma$, let $q$ be a query defined also on $\Sigma$, and let $k$ be a positive integer. We want to build a data structure on $D$ capable of answering the following query: find all words in $D$ that are at most different from the query word $q$ with $k$ errors.
In this thesis, we study the approximate string matching methods in dictionaries, texts, and indexes, to propose practical methods that solve this problem efficiently. We explore this problem in three complementary directions:
1) The approximate string matching in the dictionary. We propose two solutions to this problem, the first one uses hash tables for $k \geq 2$, the second uses the Trie and reverse Trie, and it is restricted to (k = 1). The two solutions are adaptable, without loss of performance, to the approximate string matching in a text.
2) The approximate string matching for \textit{autocompletion}, which is, find all suffixes of a given prefix that may contain errors. We give a new solution better in practice than all the previous proposed solutions.
3) The problem of the alignment of biological sequences can be interpreted as an approximate string matching problem. We propose a solution for peers and multiple sequences alignment.
\medskip All the results obtained showed that our algorithms, give the best performance on sets of practical data (benchmark from the real world). All our methods are proposed as libraries, and they are published online.


The article is based on the investigation of traditional dwellings in Guanzhong region. Combining with the ecological architectural experiences in traditional houses, the article is starting from design feature of traditional dwellings, energy consumption, thermal sensation of dweller three aspects, it has analyzed planning layout, structure and conformation, building materials, the pattern of energy consumption, thermal comfort in traditional buildings, and realized the principal problem in existence, Through the comparison, we found the disadvantages of heat design in rural houses. Thrashing out main question which including in the traditional architectural design in Guanzhong region, Seeking out the pattern of green ecological buildings, which can fulfill the ecological energy saving buildings, facilitating function, amens- amenities, Structural Safety, and come to traditional culture in Guanzhong area, and the houses also have the low cost .


This article examines how non-traditional labor organizations, also known as "alt labor," can improve the working conditions of migrant farm workers in the United States and Canada. I consider the work of three labor organizations — the Agricultural Workers Alliance (Canada) ("AWA"), Justice in Motion (U.S.) ("JIM"), and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (U.S.) ("CIW") — by focusing on the variety of "legal engagements" that these organizations have to create better working conditions for migrant farm workers. I argue that labor organizations engage with the law in numerous ways, including: improving the rights consciousness of workers; supplementing the work of regulators to increase compliance; undertaking private enforcement of their own; instituting new rights and entitlements through court challenges; building and coalescing social movements; and designing and implementing private regulatory system. I find that the AWA and JIM perform important work to build the rights consciousness of workers and improve compliance with existing legal standards in ways which public regulators are unable to do. However, most workers do not bring forth claims because they fear employer retaliation. The CIW, on the other hand, has devised a private regulatory system that overcomes some of the limitations of public regulatory systems, for example, by allowing farm workers to vindicate their rights regardless of their migration status. Most importantly, the CIW's private regulatory system requires business entities at the top of the supply chain to take responsibility for working conditions on farms. This system engages with the political economy of the food system because those businesses at the top of the supply chain are best positioned to effect working conditions. I conclude by suggesting that labor organizations actively trying to achieve justice on our fields, like the AWA, JIM and CIW, may point the way for a rejuvenated labor movement.


Fishery activities were described in a tropical estuary of the Northeast Coast of Brazil. Semi-structured questionnaires were applied to fishers (N=263) at three villages of the Goiana Estuary. The average individual income was US$ 329 (SE ± 14.83), and at least 17 (7%) interviewees have an income <U$109 / month, considered a chronic poverty state. Gillnet with small mesh size (<60 mm) was the most cited gear, although others as trap barriers (seasonally), longline, lobster trap, spear diving, hook and line are also used. Lobster is the most profitable catch, and 68 (53%) fishers are dedicated to its capture, especially during rainy season. Seasonal closure for recovering of lobsters populations is enforced by law during the late dry and early rainy seasons. However, interviewees frequently admitted to fish for lobster off-season, according to market demands and household needs. Dependent dive for lobster capture is also illegal, yet common. Fishers pointed overexploitation of fish stocks as the main problem in the region, especially for lobster. These preliminary results emphasize the urgent need of further efforts to collect information about fishery gears, production, catchability and mortality of target and non-target species while providing food and income for coastal communities. State and community co-governance of the artisanal fishery is a possible way to reduce the pressure on heavily exploited species whilst ensuring the sustainable use of marine resources along the Northeast Brazilian coast.


Java programs are executed by a Java virtual machine (JVM), which interprets intermediate compiled bytecode that is nominally platform independent. Although early versions of Java interpreted unoptimized bytecode in a relatively unsophisticated manner, recent developments including static analysis, just-in-time compilation, JVM optimization, and instruction-level optimizations have improved execution efficiency. Consequently, Java is now competitive with C and C++ for some applications and on some platforms. Despite Java's increasing popularity, there is a lingering perception that deficiencies in the language make it unsuitable for high-performance computing. In this paper we address some of those deficiencies and discuss the suitability of using Java in a distributed environment.


Propagandists on both sides of the French civil wars known as the Fronde drew upon religious symbols and traditions to rally their readers to condemn or support the rebellion against Queen Anne d'Autriche, regent for young King Louis XIV, and her chief minister Cardinal Jules Mazarin . The cult of the saints remained strong during the Fronde . After a spectacular procession of the relics of Saint Genevieve, patron saint of Paris, failed to bring peace to the kingdom in June 1652, multiple writers gave voice to this legendary figure . This essay examines four Mazarinades (the political pamphlets of the Fronde) in which Saint Genevieve speaks directly, either to press for peace or raise threats of revolution . It argues that the use, by turns, of maternal and militaristic aspects of this female saint demonstrates the symbolic power of gendered voices in a time of political crisis .


InP and InAs quantum rods were synthesized via the reactions of monodispersed indium droplets with phosphide or arsenide ions, respectively. In these reactions indium droplets, which do not act as a catalyst but rather as a reactant, are completely consumed. For the synthesis of InP and InAs quantum rods with a narrow size distribution, a narrow size distribution of indium particles is required because each indium droplet serves as a template to strictly limit the lateral growth of individual InP or InAs nanocrystals. Free-standing InP (130 Å diameter and 870 Å length) and InAs (180 Å diameter and 745 Å length) quantum rods without residual metallic catalyst at the rod tip were synthesized from the diluted transparent solutions of metallic indium. Both kinds of synthesized nanorods are in the strong confinement regime since the Bohr diameters of InP and InAs are 200 and 700 Å, respectively.


The economic benefits from improving health status are obvious, yet there remains a lack of agreement on how to quantify and compare the benefits and the accompanied costs. In our study, we extend Liu et al. (2008)'s study on the role of health status on income in China and examine whether their conclusions still hold under new specifications and in a broader time horizon. Our results show a larger impact of health status on income after replacing household income with individual income. We find this effect becomes even more pronounced in the 2000s. Moreover, our results show an inverted-U relationship between age and income, which is an improvement over Liu et al. (2008)'s work and is in line with other empirical studies. By admitting the endogeneity issue, we find the impact of health status becomes even larger after instrumenting health status. The results of GMM estimation, which allows for efficient estimation under heteroskedasticity of unknown form, are consistent the IV estimations.


The implications of the western financial and economic crisis brought the global financial system into a system-threatening imbalance. Even though a total breakdown of the financial system has been averted, all parties concerned are still confronted with the consequences. Thereby, banking institutes are challenged by a high level of complexity and dynamics introduced by new regulatory frameworks, turmoil in capital markets and cautious customers. All these changes result in the need for banks to draw the necessary conclusions for their individual strategies to survive in a fiercer competition. Against this background and challenges, numerous German savings banks currently re-examine opportunities to optimise their (net commission) earning structure by offering liability derivatives to their clients.
The aim of this thesis is to provide a better understanding of such derivative sales in German savings banks by developing a conceptual framework exploring and explaining the critical factors for establishing a business-level strategy for this highly ambivalent business field against the background of the crisis.
Taking the ontological and epistemological position of a constructivist, the strategy of inquiry was informed by a (qualitative) grounded theory approach, using semi-structured interviews with experts as data gathering technique. The underlying emphasis on three different German savings banks in relation to size, location and business strategy offered a solid base to meet the set research objectives and to establish new primary findings.
Based on an exploration of the institutes' courses of action, a discussion of the financial crisis' influences and derived expert views on success and sustainability for the business field, five main categories were elaborated, which differentiate successful from less successful business units. For each main category a partial model was created explaining interdependencies and causalities. By consolidating these findings and partial models, an initial conceptual framework was developed, which supports the implementation of a possible successful and sustainable business-level strategy for derivative sales in German savings banks.
The improved understanding and the conceptualisation of derivative sales in savings banks are highly relevant for practice and theory as they offer in-depth-expertise of a market-environment which is swiftly and radically changing but still has high potential for increasing customer loyalty as well as profits and thus can generate competitive advantages for the institutes offering these services.


Abstract : The Hartstone benchmark is a set of timing requirements for testing a System's ability to handle hard real time applications. It is specified as a set of processes with well-defined workloads and timing constraints. The name Hartstone derives from Hard Real Time and the fact that the workloads are presently based on the well-known Whetstone benchmark. This report describes the structure and behavior of an implementation in the Ada programming language of one category of Hartstone requirements, the Periodic Harmonic (PH) Test Series. The Ada implementation of the PH series is aimed primarily at real-time embedded processors where the only executing code is the benchmark and the Ada runtime system. Guidelines for performing various Hartstone experiments and interpreting the results are provided. Also included are the source code listings of the benchmark,information on how to obtain the source code in machine-readable form, and some sample results for Version 1.0 of the Systems Designers XD Ada VAX/VMS - MC68020 cross-compiler.


With the increase of women in leadership positions, steps need to be taken ensuring equal treatment and opportunity are available. Research has shown that gender bias still influences people's perceptions of leaders and social roles. Unconscious bias can prevent qualified individuals from advancing in leadership positions. Drawing on previous research, this article will address the barriers that gender bias creates for women seeking leadership opportunities. Recognizing personal bias is the first step to diminishing the influence of gender stereotypes. Solutions include maintaining an open dialogue about differences and focusing on building individual strengths. Women and men can empower each other to become more effective leaders by stepping away from gender bias and enhancing their valuable leadership traits.


The excitation-contraction coupling can be defined as the mechanisms involved when the action potential initiates a contraction response of the cardiac muscle cell. The action potential is conducted from cell to cell, resulting in a synchronized contraction of the myocardium. Both the propagation of the action potential and the myofibrillar contraction are dependent on changes in free Ca++ concentrations. Recently, the mediators and the molecular and structural components involved in the subcellular transforming of the action potential into a contraction have been characterized. The opening of voltage-dependent L-type Ca(++)-channels in the cell membrane stimulates a release of Ca++ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum. This Ca(++)-mediated Ca(++)-release appears to be a graded mechanism and is associated with the presence of structural couplings (Ca++ synapses) in the cardiac muscle cell.


Abstract Morpholinium hydrogen sulfate as an ionic liquid was employed as a catalyst for the synthesis of a biologically active series of multi-substituted imidazoles by a four-component reaction involving the combination of benzil with different aromatic aldehydes, ammonium acetate, and 1-amino-2-propanol under solvent-free conditions. The key advantages of this method are shorter reaction times, very high yield, and ease of processing. Furthermore, the resulting products can be purified by a non-chromatographic method and the ionic liquid catalyst is reusable. All of these novel compounds have been fully characterized from spectral data. The X-ray crystal structures of two representative molecules are also detailed.


Inherited pyrimidine 5'-nucleotidase type-1 (P5'N-1) deficiency is the most frequent abnormality of red cell nucleotide metabolism causing non-spherocytic hemolytic anemia. We describe two novel mutations in two Italian patients affected by P5'N-1 deficiency. One mutation is a two base deletion that occurs at the splice site junction between intron 7 and exon 8 (c.396-397del AG); the second is an in-frame deletion of three adjacent bases (c.427-429del CAA), leading to deletion of glutamine 143. The kinetic properties of Q143del variant were not grossly altered, but the variant was very heat unstable even at physiological temperatures.


We investigate powerspace constructions on topological spaces, with a particular focus on the category of quasi-Polish spaces. We show that the upper and lower powerspaces commute on all quasi-Polish spaces, and show more generally that this commutativity is equivalent to the topological property of consonance. We then investigate powerspace constructions on the open set lattices of quasi-Polish spaces, and provide a complete characterization of how the upper and lower powerspaces distribute over the open set lattice construction.


This article explores the childhood, educational experiences and professional life of Susan Setae. As the founder and current president of Papua Hahine Social Action Forum--an organization involved in caring and providing support for victims of violence--Susan makes an important contribution to the lives of her fellow citizens in Papua New Guinea. The article documents Susan's early influences and her passion to see women in Papua New Guinea live lives free of violence.


In this study, mixing efficiencies of oscillating micromixers based on a compact disc under various operating conditions and geometric parameters were analyzed. By alternating the direction of rotation, stirring of liquids inside the chamber can be used for mixing. The experimental results showed that under the same operating conditions, deeper chamber and lower liquid filling ratio resulted in better mixing efficiency. Under the same distance of motion, oscillating frequency had more impact on the mixing efficiency than the oscillating amplitude. In addition, the experimental results also demonstrated that this batch mixing mechanism can also be utilized to achieve satisfactory mixing of liquids with viscosity of 100 cp within 10 seconds.


There has been a significant decline in arboreal mammals in northern Australia, especially in the lower rainfall region of the tropical savannas. Currently, we lack a fundamental understanding of the habitat requirements of these species to prevent further declines. We investigated how variation in habitat structure influences den‐tree selection by an arboreal, hollow‐dwelling marsupial, the savanna glider (Petaurus ariel; Gould, 1842), in northern Australia from two populations at the climatic extremes of the species' geographic range. We used traditional habitat surveys complemented by advanced terrestrial Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) technology to compare site habitat structure and subsequent den‐tree selection by P. ariel. Canopy height, total canopy cover and tree size were positively correlated with rainfall. At the higher rainfall site, P. ariel selected larger trees for denning than neighbouring trees; mean trunk diameter at breast height was 53.4 cm (95% CI: 49.6–56.8) and 33.8 cm (95% CI: 30.0–37.6), for den and neighbouring trees respectively. At the lower rainfall site, P. ariel den trees were no larger than neighbouring trees but were more likely to be Eucalyptus tectifica than any other available tree species. At both sites, P. ariel selected den trees that were more likely to be hollow bearing (through larger tree size or specific tree species). We found terrestrial LiDAR to be a useful tool for mapping fine‐scale variation in habitat structure which enabled us to account for variation in den‐tree selection between sites. However, we remained dependent on traditional habitat surveys to count hollows and identify tree species. With a better understanding of the relationship between tree size and den‐tree selection, future studies could use terrestrial LiDAR to map the probability of den‐tree availability for hollow‐dwelling species at a landscape scale. We emphasize the importance of protecting hollow‐bearing eucalypt trees for the conservation of arboreal mammals in northern Australia.


Lifestyle modifications including diet, exercise, and physical activity (PA) form the cornerstone of management of prediabetes. Among these interventions, PA promotion has been gaining popularity and has been used with a variety of clinical populations. However, limited literature is available on the effects of a PA promotion program on prediabetes in a resource-limited setting. This was a single-group, before/after study with 80 participants with prediabetes fulfilling the inclusion criteria. Baseline biochemical parameters including fasting blood glucose (FBG) and PA levels were obtained. PA was promoted through various activities, keeping in mind the individual's preference. Adherence to the program was monitored and outcomes were reassessed after 8 weeks of PA promotion. A total of 66 participants completed the 8-week program and were analyzed. The mean ± standard deviation age of participants was 52.27 ± 1.02 years; 52% were men and 48% were women. At entry, the median PA level was 480 metabolic equivalents (METs) · min · wk−1 (240–1140 METs · min · wk−1); 35 subjects were categorized as sedentary and 31 as active having a mean ± standard deviation FBG of 112.91 ± 7.61 mg/dL. Following 8 weeks of intervention, PA increased to 1100 METs · min · wk−1 (720–2240 METs · min · wk−1), with 57 subjects categorized as active and 9 subjects as sedentary. We also observed a marginal decrease in FBG by 0.83 ± 1.83 mg/dL (P > 0.05, not significant). Participation of individuals with prediabetes in an 8-week PA promotion program significantly improved PA levels while demonstrating only a marginal decrease in FBG.


ABSTRACT A hypothesis was verified that dietary methionine (Met) improves the growth and antioxidant status of turkeys, and that its effects depend on dietary inclusion levels and sources. A total of 816 female Hybrid Converter turkeys was fed wheat‐soybean meal‐based diets supplemented with 3 sources of Met: DL‐, L‐isomers and DL‐hydroxy analog (DLM, LM, and MHA, respectively). In 4 4‐week periods (from one to 16 wk of age), dietary Met content corresponded to NRC (1994) recommendations or was increased by approximately 50% (in one to 8 wk by 44 to 46% and in 9 to 16 wk by 55 to 56% vs. the NRC guidelines) to match the recommendations of some breeding companies. Increased Met content resulted in higher final body weights of turkeys (P = 0.002), an improved feed conversion ratio (P = 0.049), increased total glutathione concentration and ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) values, and decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration (all P < 0.001) in the blood plasma of turkeys. In comparison with DLM, LM and MHA contributed to an increase in plasma glutathione concentration (P = 0.001), a decrease in plasma triacylglycerol (P = 0.003) and uric acid (P = 0.001) concentrations, and a decrease in liver MDA (P = 0.001) levels. A decrease in plasma MDA (vs. DLM) and lipid peroxides (LOOH) (vs. DLM and LM) concentrations as well as a decrease in plasma superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity (vs. DLM and LM) also were noted in the MHA treatment (P = 0.016, P = 0.001 and P = 0.011, respectively). In conclusion, the results of the study indicate that the antioxidant status of turkeys could be affected by dietary Met levels and sources. The dietary Met content increased by 50% relative to NRC recommendations, improved the growth performance of turkeys, and strengthened their antioxidant defense system. In comparison with DLM, LM and MHA could be considered positive nutritional factors as manifested by a beneficial decrease in plasma and hepatic MDA concentrations as well as an increase in plasma glutathione levels, and the effect of MHA was more pronounced.


The molecule 2-methyl-2-butenal (2M2B) is a maternal pheromone in rabbits and an interomone in dogs elicit-ing behavioral and heart-rate changes. The molecule 2M2B is manufactured in dog collars (Nurturecalm 24/7 Canine Calming Pheromone Collar, Meridian Animal Health, Omaha, NE) and in aerosol sprays (Sentry Calming Spray for Dogs, Sergeant's Pet Care Products Inc., Omaha, NE). To determine volatile release of this molecule in the collar and liquid, solid-phase microextraction followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was performed on the headspace over the test materials. In Exp. 1, a snippet of dog collar and 3 mL of aerosol liquid were compared with a standard of 2M2B in isopropyl alcohol. In Exp. 2, a dog collar was removed from its wrapping and placed at room temperature for 49 d. On d 0, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42, and 49 relative concentrations of molecules volatilized were calculated from area under the corresponding gas-chromatography peak. Release of 2M2B followed an exponential decay rate over time. In Exp. 3, collars were placed on 3 dogs for 35 d. Dogs were variable in their level of activity. Dog-worn collars had smaller and more variable concentrations of the 2M2B in the head space at 35 d than the same collar kept in the laboratory at room temperature. This paper authenticates a technique for the assay of low concentrations of pheromones or interomones released from plastic collars or a liquid formulation. Furthermore, pheromone or interomone release over time was documented both in laboratory and field settings.


Improper control of expression of ATP binding cassette transporter-encoding genes is an important contributor to acquisition of multidrug resistance in human tumor cells. In this study, we have analyzed the function of the promoter region of theSaccharomyces cerevisiae YOR1 gene, which encodes an ATP binding cassette transporter protein that is required for multidrug tolerance in S. cerevisiae. Deletion analysis of aYOR1-lacZ fusion gene defines three important transcriptional regulatory elements. Two of these elements serve to positively regulate expression of YOR1, and the third element is a negative regulatory site. One positive element corresponds to a Pdr1p/Pdr3p response element, a site required for transcriptional control by the homologous zinc finger transcription factors Pdr1p and Pdr3p in other promoters. The second positive element is located between nucleotides −535 and −299 and is referred to as UASYOR1 (where UAS is upstream activation sequence). Interestingly, function of UASYOR1 is inhibited by the downstream negative regulatory site. Promoter fusions constructed between UASYOR1 and the PDR5 promoter, another gene under Pdr1p/Pdr3p control, are active, whereas analogous promoter fusions constructed with the CYC1 promoter are not. This suggests the possibility that UASYOR1 has promoter-specific sequence requirements that are satisfied by another Pdr1p/Pdr3p-regulated gene but not by a heterologous promoter.


Women and men have unequal opportunities to address land degradation. Although adoption of Sustainable Development Goal target 15.3 leads the world to "strive towards land degradation neutrality (LDN)" by 2030, gender concerns are sparsely considered in LDN programming to date. To achieve LDN in regions with deeply entrenched sociocultural norms requires gender responsiveness, accounting for the varied gender components of land degradation. This paper identifies innovative entry points for, and benefits of, integrating gender issues into LDN, as well as the risks of gender inaction. Assessment of the literature on the links between gender and land reveals land degradation is gendered and closely tied to gender biases in land rights, access to resources and incentives, opportunities to participate in decision making, and the distribution of costs/benefits of projects targeting land improvement. Analysis of selected LDN‐related projects shows that interventions seem to target gender biases by engaging: women's groups that are locally recognised as change agents in driving inclusiveness and gender specialists to coordinate gender mainstreaming activities. Entry points for gender‐responsive LDN are identified, including interventions that merge LDN gender plans with existing gender schemes at local and global levels, enable gender‐sensitive early warning systems, and narrow gender disparities and safeguard women's land rights through gender‐sensitive LDN financing mechanisms. Gender‐responsive LDN is one of several avenues to support growing international efforts to promote gender equality and female empowerment, alongside movement towards a future where more balanced relations ensure women and men can interact with and care for land in more equitable and nonhierarchical ways.


We present Rataplan, a robust and resilient pixel-based approach for linking multi-modal proxies to automated sequences of actions in graphical user interfaces (GUIs). With Rataplan, users demonstrate a sequence of actions and answer human-readable follow-up questions to clarify their desire for automation. After demonstrating a sequence, the user can link a proxy input control to the action which can then be used as a shortcut for automating a sequence. Alternatively, output proxies use a notification model in which content is pushed when it becomes available. As an example use case, Rataplan uses keyboard shortcuts and tangible user interfaces (TUIs) as input proxies, and TUIs as output proxies. Instead of relying on available APIs, Rataplan automates GUIs using pixel-based reverse engineering. This ensures our approach can be used with all applications that offer a GUI, including web applications. We implemented a set of important strategies to support robust automation of modern interfaces that have a flat and minimal style, have frequent data and state changes, and have dynamic viewports.


Marketing Mix have very big influence to consumer action to buy product. Therefore company have to earn to accomodate among marketing mix with requirement and desire of consumer. By giving more satisfaction at consumer than all competitor, hence can overdraw many potential consumer, even can maintain cutomer. By obtaining potential consumer which many hence earning cutomer obtained. Execution
of promotion these days progressively felt once. Many promotion medium used by company by is assorted of form and way of, degan of is target of to be all consumer can recognize better to produced service and goods, causing certain fascination and enthusiasm later then made a pitch for certain service and goods This research is case study at worker in PT. Milenia Furniture Industries, Pasuruan with title " Influence of is Expense Of Promotion To Make-Up Of Sale At PT. Industrial Milenia Furniture of Pasuruan. As for target of this research is to know influence from expense of promotion to make-up of sale at PT. Milenia Furniture Industries, Pasuruan and to know which execution of promotion having influence most dominant to make-up of sale at PT. Milenia Furniture Industries, Pasuruan. In this research of writer take two hypothesizing that is There is its influence between expense of promotion to make-up of sale in PT. Milenia Furniture Industries, Pasuruan and media of advertising and personal selling of most having an effect on selling dominantly to make-up of sale at PT. Milenia Furniture Industries, Pasuruan. Analyzer used to know do promotion have an effect on to sale is by using analyzer of regresi simple. Result of calculation by means of regresi to increase sale is equal to 91,8%. From result of analysis of regresi hypothesis test and, hence there by two hypothesis in research is proven. Pursuant to conclusion above writer of implication can that company better PT. Milenia Furniture Industries, Pasuruan more conducting promotion to increase sale.


Due to a lack of reliable data collection systems, traffic fatalities and injuries are often under-reported in developing countries. Recent developments in surrogate road safety methods and video analytics tools offer an alternative approach that can be both lower cost and more time efficient when crash data is incomplete or missing. However, very few studies investigating pedestrian road safety in developing countries using these approaches exist. This research uses an automated video analytics tool to develop and analyze surrogate traffic safety measures and to evaluate the effectiveness of temporary low-cost countermeasures at selected pedestrian crossings at risky intersections in the city of Cochabamba, Bolivia. Specialized computer vision software is used to process hundreds of hours of video data and generate data on road users' speed and trajectories. We find that motorcycles, turning movements, and roundabouts, are among the key factors related to pedestrian crash risk, and that the implemented treatments were effective at four-legged intersections but not at traditional-design roundabouts. This study demonstrates the applicability of the surrogate methodology based on automated video analytics in the Latin American context, where traditional methods are challenging to implement. The methodology could serve as a tool to rapidly evaluate temporary treatments before they are permanently implemented and replicated.


In this paper, the results of the evaluation of using ethanol in a GE 61B gas turbine are presented. For better understanding, combustion analysis for natural gas was performed as a comparison point, calculating fuel and air requirements at the entrance and exit of the combustion chamber, obtaining the principal emissions for both fuels at different temperatures and relationships air-fuel.Using design data taken from the manufacturer website, the four main processes of a complete Joule-Brayton cycle were calculated. In that way, the results were used as a thermodynamic basis in this work. Focus on the combustion turbine, setting the temperature at the entrance of the combustion chamber and varying the temperature at turbine inlet. Afterward, using the temperatures resulted by the calculations, stoichiometric air-fuel ratio and mole fractions were found. Finally, varying air-fuel ratio at diverse mixtures, there were obtained the emissions for both fuels.As results, there were obtained the fuel requirements for natural gas and ethanol, finding that for ethanol, due to its lower calorific value, the amount of fuel is higher in order to obtain the required temperature. In terms of emissions, there was no convincing evidence that ethanol represents a minor emission source than natural gas; therefore, it could be a good substitute of natural gas in those countries were ethanol is produced.© 2013 ASME


The MH-3 gene, which contains a homeo box that is expressed specifically in the adult testis, was identified and mapped to mouse chromosome 6. By means of in situ hybridization with adult testis sections and Northern blot hybridization with testis RNA from prepuberal mice and from Sl/Sld mutant mice, it was demonstrated that this gene is expressed in male germ cells during late meiosis. In the embryo, MH-3 transcripts were present at day 11.5 post coitum, a stage in mouse development when gonadal differentiation has not yet occurred. The MH-3 gene may have functions in spermatogenesis and embryogenesis.


Sediment core ER11-16 from Køge Bugt in Southeast Greenland is used to assess early Holocene palaeoceanographic changes and sediment rafting from icebergs calved from the large outlet glaciers in the area. Diatom analysis reconstructs variability in surface water temperature, salinity and sea-ice concentrations, and benthic foraminiferal assemblages is used to reconstruct subsurface ocean conditions. We report Holocene Thermal Maximum in Southeast Greenland during the early Holocene (at least since onset of the record 9100 cal yr BP) until around 4500 cal yr BP, which contrasts with a delay until the mid-Holocene of the Holocene Thermal Maximum in South and Southwest Greenland. The early Holocene warming in Southeast Greenland was caused by a combination of high solar insolation and a weakened subpolar gyre, both of which served to warm the Irminger Current waters subducting onto the shelf. At the same time, the surface temperature was relatively high and sea-ice cover in the polar surface waters of the East Greenland Current was relatively low. High levels of iceberg rafting occurred in Køge Bugt during the early Holocene, synchronously with these warm oceanic temperatures. This is attributed to an increase in iceberg production from the extensive, but retreating, Greenland Ice Sheet. The warm surface conditions were interrupted by a marked and short-lived increase in sea ice around 8200 years ago, providing the first evidence of this global cold episode in Southeast Greenland. After 4500 cal. yr BP, sea-ice cover increased with an expansion of the East Greenland Current, suppressing the inflow of warmer subsurface Irminger Current water to the Southeast Greenland shelf. We relate this oceanic shift to the decreased Northern Hemisphere summer solar insolation. Multi-centennial variability is observed in the grain size spectrum of iceberg rafted debris; a finding we interpret in the context of palaeoceanographic changes.


The IETF is developed Network Mobility Basic Support (NEMO BSP) to support session continuity and reachability to the Mobile Network Nodes (MNNs) as one unit while they move. While NEMO move and attached to different networks, it needs to register the MNNs. This function of registration decreases the performance of NEMO. NEMO BSP suffers from some challenges. The most important of these challenges are route optimization, seamless mobility, handover latency and registration time. Binding Update No Sense Drop (BUNSD) Binding Cache Entry (BCE) in Local Mobility Anchor (LMA) is proposed to find a possible solution to MNNs. MNNs that are roaming in a Proxy Mobile IPv6 (PMIPv6) domain to perform seamless mobility while they are maintaining their session continuity through mobile router (MR). In this paper, BUNSD-LMA is analyzed mathematically with NEMO BS based on handover latency, total packet delivery delay cost, and throughput time during handoff. The analytical result shows that the BUNSD-LMA had better performance in term of handover, and registrations of MNNs. As a result the total packet loss is decreased and seamless mobility of MNNs enhanced compared to NEMO BS benchmarks.


Disjunct Intervals within Melody: Meanings and Functions through Schenkerian and Post-Schenkerian Theories Composing melody with disjunct intervals is not only a question of taste and style, but also a question of meaning and function. Thus, disjunct intervals may play different roles within melodic structures. Theoreticians from the 20th century have given new insights to analysts, performers and composers. Among them, Heinrich Schenker elaborated a theory that concerns the melodic structure, unfolding and implication within the musical organism. Followers developed further the ideas in different directions. The paper will propose a comparative study about the disjunct interval according to Schenker, to Schenkerian teachers (from Salzer to Cadwallader) and to post-Schenkerian theorists. A systematic presentation along with analytic examples will efficiently highlight the different meanings, tools, and graphic representations. The study will thus put forward what a student or a teacher in composition may learn from this evolution and this may contribute to renew melodic approach and creativity.


There is an urgent need to develop viable, renewable, sustainable energy systems that can reduce global dependence on fossil fuel sources of energy. Biofuels such as ethanol are being utilized as blends in surface transportation fuels and have the potential to improve sustainability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the short term. Bioethanol, the most widely used liquid biofuel, is currently produced by converting sugars or starches from feed crops into ethanol. Use of this fuel source displaces and draws water consumption away from agricultural crops, increases soil erosion by shifting land from perennial grasses to annual crops, and increases use of fertilizers and insecticides. In contrast, bioethanol made from lignocellulosic biomass feedstocks does not have these limitations and in addition, offers a larger resource base: the amount of cellulosic material available for potential use vastly outweighs the amount of available starch‐based feedstock. Therefore, bioethanol from lignocellulosic biomass has attracted considerable interest from biofuel developers. This review is an update of some developments to optimize cellulose extraction from feedstock crops and to improve crop yields and logistics. It concludes that agricultural and forestry systems that incorporate lignocellulosic biomass crops can be designed for improved ecological function and energy use efficiency. Development of crops that have both desirable cell‐wall traits and high biomass productivity under sustainable low‐input conditions can significantly enhance the economics and efficiency of the conversion process. Optimizing the logistics of moving feedstock from field or forest to bio‐refinery can significantly reduce costs of using lignocellulosic feedstocks. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd


In view of the increasing numbers of Hispanics in this country, American health care professionals need to be aware of cultural differences between themselves and their Hispanic patients, especially where health practices are concerned. This paper deals with some of the health-related traditions, values, and beliefs held by various groups of Hispanic extraction in this country. A number of culture-specific disease entities and treatment modes are discussed, with special reference to patient behaviors and attitudes. Implications for health care delivery to Hispanic individuals and families are outlined, and suggestions for service providers are put forth.


Abstract Purpose – During the last years, quality management system has been implemented to foster organizational, cultural and management changes. Moreover, based on the employee engagement processes and the results, an idea was developed to promote and encourage employees for proactive quality improvement decisions. However, the complicated nature of quality management system did not support expected results. Firstly, the employees do not relate their quality activities as a possibility to increase effectiveness of entire organization. Secondly, the introduction of quality management system for employees is associated with appearance of complementary control actions (Mickaitis et al., 2009). This paper aims at focusing on the employee engagement and its impact on the quality management system. Methodology/approach – This research meets the need to improve organization employee engagement into quality management system. The goal of the research is to create an employee engagement into quality management system model in order to determine the relationship between the employee behaviour and employee engagement in the quality management system, as well as to evaluate its applicability in the case of local government institutions. In order to test empirically constructed model a survey was conducted on a sample of 336 employees of a local government institution. The constructed model and the survey variables were based on the theory of planned behaviour. Findings – The result of the study is an employee engagement into quality management system model for the measurement an organization employee engagement impact on quality management system. From the planned behaviour theory point of view, research results show the strongest link between employee engagement and quality management system. The fact of the subjective wellbeing weakly affects employee behaviour and its impact on the quality management system. From a practical point of view, the model has been constructed from validated constructs and is valid for the measurement of employee engagement impact on quality management system. Research limitations/implications – The results of this study cannot be generalized, since the research data was collected from local government institutions perspective. The research can be interpreted as a pilot study. Originality/value – The model of employee engagement impact on quality management system contributes for the better understanding of planned behaviour theory impact on quality management. Keywords – Employee engagement, quality management system, planned behaviour theory. Paper type – Research paper DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.erem.74.4.22119


Abstract Acorn Woodpeckers (Melanerpes formicivorus) at Hastings Reservation in central coastal California exhibit a bimodal peak in annual breeding activity. One peak occurs in spring during which the majority of breeding takes place, while a second is centered in late August as the new acorn crop matures. These latter nests are mostly initiated in late summer but often do not fledge until at least late September and are thus referred to here as 'fall' nests. Fall nests occur in about one-third of all years, taking place when the acorn crop is large and summer temperatures are relatively high. Fledglings from fall nests constitute 4.3% of the population's total productivity and survive and recruit to the population at levels comparable to spring fledglings. Fall nesting is less likely in groups in which either the male or female breeding adults have undergone a change from the prior year, but groups are otherwise indistinguishable. Ecologically, fall nesting is closely tied to the acorn crop and thus to breeding success in the following, rather than the prior, spring. Among North American terrestrial birds in general, fall breeding has been reported in 16% of all species and is significantly more common among residents and colonially nesting species, in which the frequency exceeds 25%. Furthermore, fall nesting is likely to have been underreported in the literature. Thus, this phenomenon is at least an irregular part of the breeding biology of a substantial fraction of North American birds and should be considered a possibility in population studies of temperate-zone species. This is especially true given that fall nesting is likely to increase as global warming takes place.


A case of fatal haematemesis associated with a non-traumatic, non-tuberculous aorto-oesophageal fistula in a 9-year-old Nigerian boy is presented. Autopsy revealed two inflamed and ulcerated mild-oesophageal pulsion diverticula, one of which had eroded into the right pleura as a sinus track. The second diverticulum had perforated and caused mediastinitis and eventually aorto-oesophageal fistula which led to the fatal haematemesis. A mild chest injury is seen as a precipitating factor of the haematemesis and not the initiator of the pathology.


The effect of season and parity order on doe fertility and rabbit growth was evaluated. Two hundred and fifty Hyplus ® does were divided into five groups according to kindling, each in a given season of the year (September, December, February, April and June). Another five groups were separated by parity order (from the first to the fifth kindling). After weaning, each group of rabbits was fed until 77 days of age. The season of the year significantly affected service number of pregnancy, litter size, litter weight at birth, litter weight at 21 days, litter size at weaning as well as live weight at 77 days. Parity order affected service number of pregnancy and litter weight at 21 days in a more limited way. Significant interactions of season and parity order were determined in service number of pregnancy, with the highest values occurring in December (2.2, P ≤ 0.010) and February (1.9, P ≤ 0.010) at the second kindling. Litter size was the largest in December and at the fifth kindling. Significant interactions ( P ≤ 0.015) were also found in litter weight at 21 days, whereby litter weight had increased by the third kindling. However, the highest litter weight was reported after the fourth kindling in December.


The thyroid parafollicular cell is an endocrine cell derived from the neural crest that stores 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT). In common with serotonergic neurons, but in contrast to 5-HT-storing cells that are not neurectodermal derivatives, parafollicular cells also contain a specific 5-HT binding protein. Despite this similarity to serotonergic neurons, parafollicular cells in situ were found to express an endocrine phenotype with few neural characteristics. Thus, the cells costore 5-HT with calcitonin, not calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), which is the product of the calcitonin gene expressed in neurons, and they do not contain neurofilaments. The ability of adult parafollicular cells to respond to microenvironmental perturbations by expressing neuronal characteristics was examined. Sheep thyroid glands were dissociated, and parafollicular cells were purified by affinity chromatography. The purified parafollicular cells were grown in culture on a variety of substrates in the presence or absence of the beta subunit of nerve growth factor (beta-NGF). Parafollicular cells survived in culture for at least a week but retained a roughly spherical shape. Nevertheless, a subset of the cultured parafollicular cells began to display CGRP immunoreactivity. The addition of beta-NGF to the cultured parafollicular cells induced a number of them to extend neurites and increased the proportion of cells in which CGRP immunoreactivity could be found. Neurite-bearing parafollicular cells appeared not to survive for more than 2 d. While their survival was not enhanced when they were grown on collagen, polylysine, laminin, or reconstituted basal lamina, parafollicular cells that had extended neurites in response to beta-NGF survived for at least a week when cocultured with an explant of aneuronal chick hindgut. The effect of the gut was local and only those neurite-bearing parafollicular cells that were growing in direct contact with the explant survived. The thyroid parafollicular cell therefore resembles another crest-derived endocrine cell, the adrenal chromaffin cell, in being able to manifest neural properties in culture. For the parafollicular cell these neural properties include the processing of RNA encoded by the calcitonin gene to express CGRP and neurite outgrowth in response to beta-NGF.


Background Clinicians regularly utilize ankle taping procedures to prevent ankle sprains during practice/competition. Though many different ankle taping applications are employed, the effect of these on biomechanics and performance is unknown. Objective To investigate changes in ankle biomechanics during landing and jump performance with ankle taping. Design Triple-blind randomized. Setting University laboratory. Participants Twenty-eight participants (14 healthy, 14 with chronic ankle instability [CAI]). Interventions Each participant was assigned to a randomized order of three taping applications (1: Traditional Taping [TT], 2: Mulligan Concept Taping [MT], and 3: Kinesiology Taping [KT]) and performed maximum vertical jump and running-stop jump-landings (3 before and 3 after) each ankle taping application. An eight infrared optical cameras system (Vicon Motion Systems Ltd. Oxford, UK) and force plate (AMTI, Watertown, MA) were used to collect all kinematics and kinetics data during running-stop jump-landing. Main Outcome Measurements Maximum height of vertical jump and excursion of dorsiflexion (DF) and inversion (IV) of the ankle between 100 ms before and after initial contact (IC). Results A statistically significant difference for the main effects of tape application [F(2,26)=0.06, p=0.94, M±SD: 0.82±12.55(TT), 1.29±8.64 (MT), 0.42±10.31 (MT); F(2,26)=0.58, p=0.46, M±SD: 0.58±1.38(TT), 0.67±0.65(MT), 0.48±0.97(MT)] and interactions [F(2,26)=0.89, p=0.51; F(2,26)=0.46, p=0.41] on changes of DF and IV were not found regardless of tape application. For MVJ, a statistically significant change across tape application was not found [F(2,26)=0.65, p=0.49]; however, a statistically significant interaction on MVJ was found in the CAI group with KT application[F(2,26)=3.50, p=0.04, M±SD: 0.30±0.69 [Healthy]; −0.36±0.88 [CAI]). Conclusions The use of tape did not have any significant impact on ankle biomechanics during landing. Using KT produced a significant change in MVJ in participants with CAI, but the improvement is unlikely to be clinically meaningful. The use of these taping methods to improve ankle biomechanics or improve jump performance in healthy athletes, or those with CAI, is questionable.


Objective This study aims to understand the health service seeking behavior of migrant workers and explore its association with their living status (i.e., living with family members or not), in Guangdong, China. Methods This was a cross-sectional survey conducted with 912 migrant workers in 2012 using a structured questionnaire adapted from the National Health Service Survey. Data were analyzed using the multivariable logistic regression. Results Of all migrant workers, 58% lived with at least one family member in the host city. Most of the respondents rated their health status being "very good or good" (58%). Fifty-four percent of the respondents reported having at least one disease in the past 12 months. Sixty-two percent of those who reported at least one disease visited doctors in the past 12 months. Of these, 22% returned to their hometown for medical treatment. Logistic regression showed that migrant workers living with families rated themselves as having better health status (P<0.05) but had more diseases (P>0.05) and had higher doctor visitation rate than those living with alone (58% vs. 66%, P<0.05). Conclusion The Andersen health service utilization model helps to understand the health seeking behavior of the migrant workers in the host cities. Migrant workers living with family members were positively associated with self-rated health status and health service seeking behavior in small and medium-sized enterprises. Our findings suggest the importance of the assistance programs and social support to improve seeking of healthcare services among migrant groups, especially those who live alone in the host cities.


As passing through the Japanese colonial period, Daegu has been changed into a modern city. In addition, the nature of the city had changed a lot by withdrawal of Eup-sung and the opening of the road and the increase of population in Japan. Of course, the expansion of the city was caused by the increase of the Japanese population. To understand the current city, it is most important to understand the past city`s characteristics and especially the formation and change of city must be considered with understanding the situation of city. And now the city reflects the role of the city in the past. In fact, the effect of the street constitution in Daegu Eup-sung during Japanese colonial period on the present time was very big and continues. Especially, in order to understand the situation of the city and consider the direction in the future, the analysis of the development process has important implications.This study aimed to consider the change of Daegu Eup-sung Street and Formation of Dwelling Site focusing on the Buksung Street. The purpose of this study is to investigate the nature of the city and changing process of the city by the past Buksung street and the current Buksung street as time goes by.


When treating effluents from anaerobic processing of organic wastes, the challenge lies in the large quantity of recalcitrant COD and in the high nitrogen content. The data presented in this study illustrate an advanced SBR concept that is able to significantly reduce the organic load. It was found that undigested mashed bio-waste bypassing the anaerobic digestion is highly suitable as an external carbon source to compensate deficiencies of readily biodegradable BOD required for denitrification. In order to utilize the carbon source as efficiently as possible, the SBR was operated in a mode by which nitrification/denitrification is achieved by a shortcut process using nitrite. This procedure reduced the requirement of an external carbon source to only 5% (v/v). Moreover, through an optimized SBR sequence for an influent concentration of 14,000 mg COD/l and 3,800 mg TN/l, nearly complete removal of nitrogen (>95%) was achieved. The average removal rates for COD and BOD were 83% and 86%, respectively. The applied hydraulic retention time (HRT) of the SBR was 6.8 days. The elevated temperature of 30-41 degrees C in the reactor as a result of the high biological activity was advantageous in terms of enhanced reaction kinetics and also provided better process stability.


This article shares the results of a study conducted in Oregon which investigates the professional and volunteer development needs of (non 4-H) youth-serving organizations related to positive youth development (PYD). This study elicited feedback from 49 youth-serving organizations through a comprehensive survey. Information gathered included organization demographics (reach, size of staff and use of volunteers), current staff and volunteer development opportunities and requirements and interest in offering staff and volunteer training opportunities related to PYD. The results of this study indicate youth-serving organizations not only recognize the importance of a PYD approach, but also seek staff and volunteer development opportunities to strengthen the PYD capacity within their organizations. The results of this study provide direct implications for 4-H professionals. Due to linkages to the Cooperative Extension System and Land Grant Universities, coupled with 4-H's intricate understanding of PYD theory and practice, 4-H professionals have the ability to be the resource and voice for PYD in communities served.


Dimensional stability issues may occur in paper sheets when subjected to moisture content variations. Paper is in fact mainly composed of hydrophilic wood fibres that experience significant dimensional changes upon humidity variations. The hygro-expansive deformations at the single fibre level and their effects on the meso-structural fibrous network govern the hygro-mechanical response of paper at the macroscopic, sheet scale. The present contribution aims at offering a relation between theoretical predictions and experimental measurements of the hygro-expansive behaviour of paper. Experimental observations of the hygroscopic and mechanical response at the sheet level have been performed, providing the anisotropic hygro-elastic properties of the material in the in-plane principal directions. To understand the multi-scale nature of the phenomenon, a periodic two dimensional meso-structural model of the fibrous network has been developed. The effective material response is extracted via homogenization. The influence of several meso-scale parameters (hygro-mechanical properties and geometry of fibres, inter-fibre bonds and of the network) on the overall behaviour of the material can be studied; in particular, the in-plane fibre orientation distribution along a preferential direction affects strongly the anisotropy of the macro-scale response. The proposed model has been adopted to represent the effective material response, focusing on the hygro-elastic response only and thus neglecting possible irreversible effects occurring at the different scales. A comparison of the experimental data with the results obtained from the model as a function of the fibre orientation distribution reveals a good accuracy of the prediction, thereby showing its applicability to estimate paper's hygro-expansive response.


As a kind of weak-path dependent options, barrier options are an important kind of exotic options. Because the pricing formula for pricing barrier options with discrete observations cannot avoid computing a high dimensional integral, numerical calculation is time-consuming. In the current studies, some scholars just obtained theoretical derivation, or gave some simulation calculations. Others impose underlying assets on some strong assumptions, for example, a lot of calculations are based on the Black-Scholes model. This thesis considers Merton jump diffusion model as the basic model to derive the pricing formula of discrete double barrier option; numerical calculation method is used to approximate the continuous convolution by calculating discrete convolution. Then we compare the results of theoretical calculation with simulation results by Monte Carlo method, to verify their efficiency and accuracy. By comparing the results of degeneration constant parameter model with the results of previous models we verified the calculation method is correct indirectly. Compared with the Monte Carlo simulation method, the numerical results are stable. Even if we assume the simulation results are accurate, the time consumed by the numerical method to achieve the same accuracy is much less than the Monte Carlo simulation method.


The Deckers Creek watershed in northern West Virginia (USA), containing a land area of 166 km2 (63 mi2), has a long history of industrial development and attendant environmental abuses from both land and water pollution practices. The water in Deckers Creek was sampled in 1974 at 29 locations along the main stem and resampled in 1999-2000 to determine water quality changes over this 25-year period. Water samples were analyzed for pH, acidity, alkalinity, iron, and calcium at both times, while aluminum, manganese, zinc, and fecal coliform (FC) bacteria densities were added in 1999-2000. Water at almost all sampling points showed lower acidity and metal contents in 1999-2000 compared with 1974. Water pH increased at the mouth from 5.4 in 1974 to 6.0 in 1999-2000. Acidity and iron concentrations were decreased an average of 70% in the upper stretches of the creek. However, one major untreated point source of water from an abandoned underground mining complex continues to degrade the quality of the creek in its lower stretches. In the upper section, the water quality in Deckers Creek has improved due to decreased surface and underground coal mining activities, reclamation of abandoned and recently permitted surface mined lands, and natural healing of past land use scars from timbering and mining over time. The decrease in mineral extraction activities and the reclamation of disturbed lands has occurred due to the passage and enforcement of water quality and land reclamation laws and regulations. More time and additional reclamation projects will continue to enhance the water quality in the creek. Improved water chemistry in the majority of the creek, however, shows the previously unnoticeable biological contamination from sewage inputs.


Ab stract . Scientific literature considering modes and methods of enterprises innovative products commercialization was analyzed in the article. Also authors' opinions about commercialization of innovative products by manufacturing companies through using the products for own needs were described. Based on the information from the studied literature and statistical data was concluded that the most appropriate and most popular method of commercializing innovative products by machine-building companies is using the products for the needs of the company (for internal needs or for product sales). However, this method has significant advantages as well as partial disadvantages expressed in certain risks occurring during commercialization process implementation. To provide clearer understanding of these issues the article describes the special features of the aforementioned method in accordance with business objectives and conditions of use in the enterprise. Key wo rds: commercialization, innovative products, modes and methods of commercialization, self-commercialization, machine-building companies


For nearly five decades the American Pediatric Society has been a potent factor in the promotion of child health and in the dissemination of knowledge pertaining to child hygiene. It has contributed largely to the aggregate of pediatric knowledge, has stimulated research, has cooperated effectively in the elevation of the standards of medical education and of practice and has encouraged the organization of innumerable agencies dedicated to the betterment of child welfare. The society, however, has given scant consideration to the educational opportunities and responsibilities of the pediatrician in private practice as a family adviser for children. Dr. Jacobi, in 1889, in the first presidential address delivered before this society, said: Unless the education and training of the young is carried on according to the principles of a sound and scientific physical and mental hygiene, neither the aims of our political institutions will ever be reached nor the United States


Objectives Complete inguinal lymphadenectomy for surgical staging of early vulvar cancer (VC) is associated with significant morbidity. Utilizing sentinel lymph node (SLN) inguinal biopsy is an alternative in select women with early stage squamous cell VC. We describe our experience with SLN mapping in patients with early stage VC using indocyanine green (ICG) dye and near-infrared fluorescence (NIR). Methods Ten patients with primary VC with tumor of <4cm, negative clinical groin examination, and pre-operative PET scan demonstrating no evidence of groin metastasis were offered inguinal SLN biopsy with their excisional procedure. Inguinal SLNs were identified via perilesional intradermal injection of 0.5–1.0ml of dilute ICG fluorescent dye (2.5 mg/ml) followed by inguinal nodal excision utilizing NIR with the Novadaq SPY elite florescence imaging system. Results SLNs were readily identified in all patients, and 8/10 patient's SLNs were negative for carcinoma. We biopsied 1–5 nodes with most patients having 2 nodes removed from each sides. One patient had isolated tumor cells less than 0.2mm and another had a SLN with a 6mm metastatic focus. One patient with negative SLN biopsy was later found to have a groin recurrence. Conclusions Although further studies are needed, SNL mapping utilizing ICG dye and NIR may identify sentinel lymph nodes which can be removed, thereby avoiding the morbidity of full inguinal lymphadenectomy in selected patients with early stage VC.


In extracts of rabbit bone marrow cells was studied effect of erythropoietine on the activity of some enzymes (hexokinase, phosphoglucomutase, phosphohexoisomerase, lactate dehydrogenase, glucoso-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase and NADP-reductase). The NADP-reductase activity was increased under the effect of erythropoietine; the activities of other enzymes studied was not altered.


Motivation is key for athletes to perform at their peak performance. However, not all individuals are motivated in the same way. PURPOSE: The purpose of the current study is to determine the effect of participant's personality traits and applied intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on the performance of a high intensity and low intensity physical task. METHODS: Fourteen participants (8 women, 6 men), with a mean (sd) age of 20.14 (0.91) yrs, completed the Ten-Item Personality Inventory to determine personality types (neuroticism, conscientiousness). Participants then performed in a random order, a high intensity physical activity (pacer test) and a low intensity physical activity (10-foot golf putt) under three motivation conditions (control, extrinsic, intrinsic). Pacer test performance was measured as the number of laps completed in the required time of a pre-designed route. Golf performance was measured as the number of putts needed complete a 10-foot putting task. Separate 2 x 2 mixed model ANOVAs were used to determine the effect on performance of motivation in groups that presented high and low level of neuroticism and conscientiousness. RESULTS: The mean (sd) putting scores were 4.6 (3.2) and 2.8 (2.5) for high neuroticism and low neuroticism groups with intrinsic motivation and 2.0 (0.71) for both high and low neuroticism with extrinsic motivation. The results indicated that golf scores with extrinsic motivation were significantly lower than with intrinsic motivation (p = 0.04). The mean (sd) completed pacer laps were 69.9 (17.7) and 69.2 (19.7) for high conscientiousness and low conscientiousness with intrinsic motivation and 80.8 (14.0) and 59.0 (13.5) for high conscientiousness and low conscientiousness with extrinsic motivation respectively. There was a significant interaction between the level of conscientiousness and type of motivation (p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Extrinsic motivation may be more effective for performance in individuals with high levels of neuroticism. Similarly, extrinsic motivation may be more effective for individuals with high levels of conscientiousness.


Ribonucleoproteins were prepared by ribonuclease digestion of a reconstituted complex of ribosomal protein L 1 and 23-S RNA frons Escherichia coli. Three main ribonucleoproteins were identified. The largest was only obtained in an impure state at low ribonuclease concentrations, whereas the two smaller ones, which were difficult to separate from one another electrophoretically, were stable over a range of enzyme concentrations.

The two smaller ribonucleoproteins yielded a total of 13 RNA subfragments that were judged to be homogeneous electrophoretically. The latter were characterized for molecular weight and the subfragment composition of each of these ribonucleoproteins was established. Furthermore, the subfragments were shown to be maintained together in each ribonucleoprotein by RNA-RNA interactions

The primary and specific binding site of protein L1 was localized on one continuous RNA subfragment of about 110 nucleotides in length by two newly developed binding methods.


—Trellis is a mix-net based anonymous broadcast system with cryptographic security guarantees. Trellis can be used to anonymously publish documents or communicate with other users, all while assuming full network surveillance. In Trellis, users send messages through a set of servers in successive rounds. The servers mix and post the messages to a public bulletin board, hiding which users sent which messages. Trellis hides all network-level metadata, remains robust to changing network conditions, guarantees availability to honest users, and scales with the number of mix servers. Trellis pro- vides three to five orders of magnitude faster performance and better network robustness compared to Atom, the state-of-the-art anonymous broadcast system with a similar threat model. In achieving these guarantees, Trellis contributes: (1) a simpler theoretical mixing analysis for a routing mix network constructed with a fraction of malicious servers, (2) anonymous routing tokens for verifiable random paths, and (3) lightweight blame protocols built on top of onion routing to identify and eliminate malicious parties. We implement and evaluate Trellis in a networked deploy- ment. With 64 servers located across four geographic regions, Trellis achieves a throughput of 220 bits per second with 100,000 users. With 128 servers, Trellis achieves a throughput of 320 bits per second. Trellis's throughput is only 100 to 1000 × slower compared to Tor (which has 6,000 servers and 2M daily users) and is therefore potentially deployable at a smaller "enterprise" scale. Our implementation is open-source.


Abstract The e-commerce adoption level within our society has been growing in the past decade, leading to dynamically evolving demand patterns across retailing channels. In this work, we study a dual-channel retailer's optimal demand shaping strategy, through e-commerce marketing efforts and store service levels, in the presence of this dynamic evolution. Our stylized model integrates the growing adoption of e-commerce within society with individual consumers' channel choice, and explicitly models the reference effects of the retailer's prior decisions on consumer decision-making in a multi-period setting. This model allows us to characterize the settings in which e-commerce marketing is beneficial for the retailer, and to show that the retailer's optimal demand shaping strategy depends on the product's e-commerce adoption phase. Interestingly, we find that if the retailer provides the consumers with information on store availability levels, then the retailer's optimal service levels stay constant over time, even if e-commerce adoption in the society grows.


In 5% (v/v) trifluoroethanol, pH 5.5, 25 degrees C one of the acylphosphatases from Drosophila melanogaster (AcPDro2) forms fibrillar aggregates that bind thioflavin T and Congo red and have an extensive beta-sheet structure, as revealed by circular dichroism. Atomic force microscopy indicates that the fibrils and their constituent protofilaments have diameters compatible with those of natural amyloid fibrils. Spectroscopic and biochemical investigation, carried out using near- and far-UV circular dichroism, intrinsic and 1-anilino-8-naphthalenesulfonic acid-derived fluorescence, dynamic light scattering, and enzymatic activity assays, shows that AcPDro2 has, before aggregation, a secondary structure content packing around aromatic and hydrophobic residues, hydrodynamic diameter, and catalytic activity indistinguishable from those of the native protein. The native protein was found to have the same conformational stability under native and aggregating conditions, as determined from urea-induced unfolding. The kinetic analysis supports models in which AcPDro2 aggregates initially without need to unfold and subsequently undergoes a conformational change into amyloid-like structures. Although fully or partially unfolded states have a higher propensity to aggregate, the residual aggregation potential that proteins maintain upon complete folding can be physiologically relevant and be directly involved in the pathogenesis of some protein deposition diseases.


Our increasingly complex and interconnected societies are continuously exposed to a wide range of risks. Infrastructure systems are subject to functional impairments associated with technological failure, natural threats and malicious acts. The adequate functioning of infrastructures is crucially sustaining our societal and economic activities. Therefore, the protection of infrastructures becomes more and more an important issue for policy makers. This paper reports the experience gained during the preparatory studies carried out by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) to support the European Commission and its member states on the definition of criteria for identifying critical infrastructures. The existing methods for identifying critical infrastructures are mainly based on risk analysis techniques. These approaches were found to be insufficient and need to be complemented with socioeconomic evaluations of potential impacts. This paper highlights the contribution of stakeholders and decision makers in the process of definition and identification of critical infrastructures because the concept of criticality is deeply rooted in sociopolitical acceptance.


Forensic technologies have improved in recent years improving the sensitivity and strength of the investigative potential of forensic scientists. Further, the rules and guidelines for conducting digital forensic investigations have evolved over time. This article examined the different technologies applied in the field. Five technologies were assessed namely: scanning electron microscopy, DNA fingerprinting, alternative light photography, facial reconstruction and LA-ICP-MS. The study found a significant application of technology in forensic investigations, which has aided in improving the field substantially. The study recommends a collaboration of scholars to aid in converging the existing and the emergent knowledge for beneficial application in the field since different stakeholders are involved in the field. Also, it recommends the application of forensic genetics in more areas that are not necessarily linked to human genetic material.


From 2006 till 2012, the 2005 energy performance (EP) regulation (RT 2005) did not entail any obligation to justify the envelope airtightness level. As a consequence, asking for the certification of airtightness quality management approaches was a voluntary request from constructors. Thus, they might be allowed to take into account a better-than-default value into the thermal calculation. Since 2012, French 2012 EP regulation (RT 2012) requires building airtightness level to be justified, with two ways of justification. Either the constructor performs systematic measurements on each building, or the constructor proves that a certified quality management approach is implemented. Thus, since 2012, the number of requests for airtightness quality management certification has significantly increased. In order to evaluate the airtightness quality management approaches, the French State has created a specific national committee. It aims at authorizing constructors to justify their buildings airtightness level through a quality management approach. The CETE de Lyon is in charge of this committee. This paper will present and analyze the evolution of the committee processes and statistics, concurrently with the French EP regulation. The first part will focus on an assessment of the committee validation process. It will also present the evolution of the number of requests and certifications, since 2006. Results show that compared to each previous year (2006-2011), the number of RT 2012 requests in 2012, has been multiplied by 4. Moreover, the number of RT 2012 certifications is, by June 2013, higher than the whole RT 2005 certifications delivered over 6 years. The second part will present the control process implemented by the committee on certified constructors. First, it will present the self-declared airtightness values that are presented by constructors in their yearly renewal files. Then, it will focus on results of the control campaign set up by the committee. Results show that the majority of measured dwellings meet the required airtightness level. Nevertheless, results of that control campaign show that approved constructors do not entirely implement their quality management approach. The paper concludes with the committee process improvements. These improvements must meet the increasing number of requests, without losing quality reputation of these approaches. The State will continue to inspect certified constructors in two ways. Yearly files analysis will focus more on the actual implementation of airtightness quality approach. The control campaign will be maintained because of its impact on constructors. A question is now set on the need to externalize this quality management approach committee because of the number of requests. The process could be the same as the airtightness measurement qualification made in France, a few years ago.


Abstract. Changes in climate and land use pose a risk to stability of alpine soils, but the direction and magnitude of the impact is still discussed controversially with respect to the various alpine regions. In this study, we explicitly consider the influence of dynamic human-induced changes on the occurrence of landslides in addition to natural factors. Our hypothesis was that if changes in land use and climate have a significant influence on the occurrence of landslides we would see a trend in the incidence of landslides over time. We chose the Urseren Valley in the Central Swiss Alps as investigation site because the valley is dramatically affected by landslides and the land use history is well documented. Maps of several environmental factors were used to analyse the spatial landslide pattern. In order to explain the causation of the temporal variation, time-series (45 years) of precipitation characteristics, cattle stocking and pasture maps were compared to a series of seven landslide investigation maps between 1959 and 2004. We found that the area affected by landslides increased by 92% from 1959 to 2004. Even though catchment characteristics like geology and slope largely explain the spatial variation in landslide susceptibility (68%), this cannot explain the temporal trend in landslide activity. The increase in stocking numbers and the increased intensity of torrential rain events had most likely an influence on landslide incidence. In addition, our data and interviews with farmers pointed to the importance of management practice.


Amputees cannot feel what they touch with their artificial hands, which severely limits usefulness of those hands. We have developed a technique that transfers remaining arm nerves to residual chest muscles after an amputation. This technique allows some sensory nerves from the amputated limb to reinnervate overlying chest skin. When this reinnervated skin is touched, the amputees perceive that they are being touched on their missing limb. We found that touch thresholds of the reinnervated chest skin fall within near-normal ranges, indicating the regeneration of large-fiber afferents. The perceptual identity of the limb and chest was maintained separately even though they shared a common skin surface. A cutaneous expression of proprioception also occurred in one reinnervated individual. Experiments with peltier temperature probes and surface electrical stimulation of the reinnervated skin indicate the regeneration of small diameter temperature and pain afferents. The perception of an amputated limb arising from stimulation of reinnervated chest skin may allow useful sensory feedback from prosthetic devices and provides insight into the mechanisms of neural plasticity and peripheral regeneration in humans.


The Internet of Things (IoT) revolution has major impacts on the network & Information Technology (IT) infrastructure. As IT in the past decade, network virtualization is simultaneously on its way with for instance Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) and Software-Defined Networking (SDN). NFV and SDN are approaches enhancing the infrastructure agility thus facilitating the design, delivery and operation of network services in a dynamic and scalable manner. IoT will push the infrastructure to its limit with numerous and diverse requirements to fulfill, we therefore believe that the agility brought by the combination of NFV and SDN is essential to face the IoT revolution. In this article, we first highlight some IoT challenges that the network & IT infrastructure will face. The NFV and SDN benefits are presented from a network operator point of view. Following a description of the IoT ecosystem and a recall of some of the IoT stakeholders expectations, a new multi-layered IoT architecture involving SDN and NFV and based upon network & IT resources is put forward. Finally, the article illustrates how the proposed architecture is able to cope with the identified IoT challenges.


Faster technological development, shorter product life-cycles, and more intense global competition have transformed the current competitive environment for most firms. This new competitive landscape forces organizations to actively acquire knowledge, as a firm's competitive advantage is now more dependent on continuous knowledge development and enhancement. Therefore, knowledge has become a central theme in strategic management. Against this background, we argue that the knowledge characteristics of R&D projects are fundamental variables to explain governance decisions. Drawing upon the case of STMicroelectronics, we provide evidence that partnering or contracting with universities for innovation is common practice for developing new -original- knowledge, as opposed to applying existing knowledge, for solving a problem. However, the firm is more reluctant to partner, especially with another firm, when this knowledge directly enhances its competitiveness. Moreover, we find that R&D project performance is a bi-dimensional construct. One dimension picks up project efficacy and immediate benefits, while the other includes learning and long-term benefits. Though spanning firm boundaries for innovation does not seem to have appreciable effects on perceived project efficiency, it nonetheless brings about intertemporal benefits related to learning and capabilities development. In a dynamic environment, building knowledge may be more important than protecting it. Thus, an open innovation process may be an exceptionally effective way to build and develop the firm's technological future.


We discuss the Casimir effect for massless scalar fields subject to the Dirichlet boundary conditions on the parallel plates at finite temperature in the presence of one fractal extra compactified dimension. We obtain the Casimir energy density with the help of the regularization of multiple zeta function with one arbitrary exponent and further the renormalized Casimir energy density involving the thermal corrections. It is found that when the temperature is sufficiently high, the sign of the Casimir energy remains negative no matter how great the scale dimension δ is within its allowed region. We derive and calculate the Casimir force between the parallel plates affected by the fractal additional compactified dimension and surrounding temperature. The stronger thermal influence leads the force to be stronger. The nature of the Casimir force keeps attractive.


The limited capabilities of the switches renders the implementation of unorthodox routing and forwarding mechanisms as a hard task in OpenFlow. Our high level goal is therefore to inspect the possibilities of slightly smartening up the OpenFlow switches. As a first step in this direction we demonstrate (with Bloom filters, greedy routing and network coding) that a very limited computational capability enables us to natively support experimental technologies while preserving performance. We distribute the demos in source files and as a ready-to-experiment VM image to promote further improvements and evaluations.


F-Lie algebras are natural generalisations of Lie algebras (F=1) and Lie superalgebras (F=2). We give finite dimensional examples of F-Lie algebras obtained by an inductive process from Lie algebras and Lie superalgebras. Matrix realizations of the $F-$Lie algebras constructed in this way from osp(2|m) are given. We obtain a non-trivial extension of the Poincar\'e algebra by an In\"on\"u-Wigner contraction of a certain $F-$Lie algebras with $F>2$.


The wind environment simulation analysis on planning scheme with computer is still in the exploratory phase. In this paper, the research took years of average meteorological factors of Shanghai as initial conditions to simulate the wind environment around the Wenyuan Building with a flow field simulation analysis of Fluent Airpak [1]. The simulation results were used to analyze the distribution of whirlpool, wind shadow zone, etc and the influence they had made. The experiment indicates that it has a practical value and the guidance meaning for architectural complex planning to simulate the building's surrounding microscopic climate with Fluent Airpak.


Drawing on our clinical expertise with diabetic patients and on a retrospective study focused on patients with foot ulcers or wounds and Peripheral Artery Disease, we show a healing problem exists specifically in diabetic patients, despite arterial revascularization. To overcome this specific problem, Cell Therapy could be a way, exclusively aimed at diabetic patients. We explain the reasons why, as well as the ways and means, and more particularly the concept of tissue reversibility.


This article will look at globalization in the context of higher education and, in particular, higher legal education. The object will be to think about the ways in which non-U.S. based law schools are now offering US style legal education to (1) supply the U.S. legal market or (2) produce U.S. trained lawyers in the home state market or for other legal markets outside the U.S. Specifically, this article will first discuss the history of higher education as a national project and more recent trends and efforts to globalize higher education. The conceptual framework is informed by cosmopolitan, imperial or national aspirations. Starting from a definition of legal education globalization, the article considers the history of legal education as a national and international project. It then examines recent efforts to globalize legal education as an exercise in American cosmopolitanism, internationalism and nationalism and will then critically assesses arguments that, in light of certain characteristics of legal systems and legal education, globalization of legal education may implicate notions of cultural imperialism, in whatever form it takes. It then turns to an examination of one of the more interesting manifestations of globalization abroad — nationalist globalization in the form of developing American law schools outside the U.S. by non-U.S. educational entities, concentrating on two examples, one from Spain and the other from China. Finally, after discussing the ways in which the globalization of American legal education may affect recipient cultures, this article will take the reverse perspective and hypothesize on how the American legal education system may be affected by the same export.


Service outsourcing is the business paradigm, in which an organization has part of its business process performed by a service provider. In dynamic markets, service providers can be selected on the fly during process enactment. The cooperation be-tween the parties is specified in a dynamically made electronic contract. This con-tract includes a process specification that is tailored towards service brokering and cross-organizational process enactment and hence has to conform to market and specification standards. Process enactment, however, relies on intra-organizational process specifications that have to comply with the infrastructure available in an organization for process and data management. In this report, we present a three-level process and data specification framework for dynamic con-tract-based service outsourcing. This framework relates the two process specifica-tion levels through a third, conceptual level. This approach is inspired by the well-known ANSI-SPARC model for data management. We discuss an abstract architec-ture for dynamic service outsourcing based on the three-level framework. We show how the framework and architecture can be placed in the context of existing infra-structures for cross-organizational process support. As service outsourcing is used more and more for core business processes requiring reliable execution, we pay special attention to transaction management.


Wireless local area networks (WLANs) based on the IEEE 802.11 standards are one of today's fastest growing technologies in businesses, schools, and homes, for good reasons. As WLAN deployments increase, so does the challenge to provide these networks with security. Security risks can originate either due to technical lapse in the security mechanisms or due to defects in software implementations. Standard Bodies and researchers have mainly used UML state machines to address the implementation issues. In this paper we propose the use of GSE methodology to analyse the incompleteness and uncertainties in specifications. The IEEE 802.11i security protocol is used as an example to compare the effectiveness of the GSE and UML models. The GSE methodology was found to be more effective in identifying ambiguities in specifications and inconsistencies between the specification and the state machines. Resolving all issues, we represent the robust security network (RSN) proposed in the IEEE 802.11i standard using different GSE models.