Millimeter wave (mmW) communication is a promising solution for providing high-capacity wireless network access. However, the benefits of mmW are limited by the fact that the channel between a mmW access point and the user equipment can stochastically change due to severe blockage of mmW links by obstacles such as the human body. Thus, one main challenge of mmW network coverage is to enable directional line-of-sight links between access points and mobile devices. In this paper, a novel framework is proposed for optimizing mmW network coverage within hotspots and in-venue regions, while being cognizant of the body blockage of the network's users. In the studied model, the locations of potential access points and users are assumed as predefined parameters while the orientation of the users is assumed to be stochastic. Hence, a joint stochastic access point placement and beam steering problem subjected to stochastic users' body blockage is formulated, under desired network coverage constraints. Then, a greedy algorithm is introduced to find an approximation solution for the joint deployment and assignment problem using a new "size constrained weighted set cover" approach. A closed-form expression for the ratio between the optimal solution and approximate one (resulting from the greedy algorithm) is analytically derived. The proposed algorithm is simulated for three in-venue regions: the meeting room in the Alumni Assembly Hall of Virginia Tech, an airport gate, and one side of a stadium football. The simulation results show that, in order to guarantee network coverage for different in-venue regions, the greedy algorithm uses at most three more access points (APs) compared to the optimal solution. The results also show that, due to the use of the additional APs, the greedy algorithm will yield a network coverage up to 11.7% better than the optimal, AP-minimizing solution.


The wide scatter in experimental results has not allowed drawing solid conclusions on self-diffusion in the chalcopyrite CuInSe2 (CIS). In this work, the defect-assisted mass transport mechanisms operating in CIS are clarified using first-principles calculations. We present how the stoichiometry of the material and temperature affect the dominant diffusion mechanisms. The most mobile species in CIS is shown to be copper, whose migration proceeds either via copper vacancies or interstitials. Both of these mass-mediating agents exist in the material abundantly and face rather low migration barriers (1.09 and 0.20 eV, respectively). Depending on chemical conditions, selenium mass transport relies either solely on selenium dumbbells, which diffuse with a barrier of 0.24 eV, or also on selenium vacancies whose diffusion is hindered by a migration barrier of 2.19 eV. Surprisingly, indium plays no role in long-range mass transport in CIS; instead, indium vacancies and interstitials participate in mechanisms that...


The stimulation by yeast extract of acid production in milk by various lactobacilli was studied. It was found that supplementing milk with purine and pyrimidine bases and amino acids allowed nearly maximal acid production by Lactobacillus bulgaricus strain 7994, L. acidophilus 4796, 4356, and 4357, and L. leichmannii 326 and 327. Further supplementation with deoxyribotides allowed maximal acid production by L. acidophilus 204, but L. acidophilus 207 required adenosine or adenylic acid. L. casei strain 7469 showed no appreciable response to the amino acids or purine and pyrimidine bases, and is presumed to require an unidentified factor in corn steep liquor.


Bezunartea et al. Scale Effects on Heave Plates for Semi-Submersible Floating Offshore Wind Turbines: Case Study With a Solid Plain Plate (Journal of Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering, Vol. 11, pp 1–14, 2019) studied scale effects on the hydrodynamics of heave plates by conducting model scale experimental tests. Three models with different scales of one leg of the HiPRWind platform, equipped with a plain heave plate, were built and tested with forced harmonic heave motions. They showed that the influence of the model scale on the coefficients is clearly weaker than that of the heave motion amplitude. Among the pending tasks in that work was to conduct velocity field measurements of the flow with Particle Image Velocimetry techniques (PIV). This paper discusses some of the results of such measurements, carried out forcing vertical harmonic motions. In these measurements, it is assessed how significant scale effects are also in the local kinematics of the flow, thus complementing the global ones carried out in the referred work. From velocity and vorticity graphs, the flows show great similarities across the three scales, consistent with the ones found in the prequel paper. A metric has been developed whose outcomes are aligned with these results but further work is necessary to develop key indicators to compare flow fields from PIV across different scales.


Compulsory Licensing of Patents plays a significant role within Intellectual Property Law (IP Law) as a safeguard assuring public interest against the monopoly that patents grant owners. The effect of the exercise of the compulsory licensing system is an outright deprivation of a ones intellectual property right as guaranteed by the constitution. The Industrial Property Act requires that there be remuneration upon the issuance of a Compulsory Licence. This is similar to the requirements within Article 40, but it qualifies that compensation must be 'just and prompt.' In order to fulfil the constitutional directive, there is a well-established statutory regime under Land Regulations but the same is protection is not accorded to Patent ovmers subject to Compulsory Licensing. This paper seeks to compare the validity of establishing an equal legal standing between compulsory licensing and Eminent Domain. The scope of this study is limited specifically to the concept ofjust compensation within Land Law and Patent Law and is therefore, seeking to argue for the need of a valuation guideline to be followed in the issuance of Compulsory Licenses. It is deduced that Compulsory Licensing amounts to an exercise of the powers conferred to the state within Article 40 of the Constitution within Intellectual Propetiy Law. It is better known as the Power of Eminent Domain. Furthermore, that there is a need to establish remuneration guidelines within IP law with many countries already having established guidelines.


BACKGROUND
Mutations in the progranulin gene (PGRN) have recently been identified as a cause of frontotemporal lobar degeneration with ubiquitin-positive inclusions (FTLD-U) in some families.

OBJECTIVE
To determine whether there is a difference in the patterns of atrophy in FTLD-U cases with and without PGRN mutations.

DESIGN
Case-control study.

SETTING
Brain bank of a tertiary care medical center. Patients Eight subjects who had screened positive for PGRN mutations (PGRN-positive) and who underwent volumetric magnetic resonance imaging were identified. Subjects were then matched by clinical diagnosis to a group of 8 subjects with a pathological diagnosis of FTLD-U who had screened negative for PGRN mutations (PGRN-negative). All subjects were then age-matched and sex-matched to a control subject.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Voxel-based morphometry was used to assess the patterns of gray matter atrophy in the PGRN-positive group compared with the PGRN-negative group and compared with controls.

RESULTS
The PGRN-positive group showed a widespread and severe pattern of gray matter loss predominantly affecting the frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes. The PGRN-negative group showed a less severe pattern of gray matter loss restricted mainly to the temporal and frontal lobes. On direct comparison, the PGRN-positive group showed greater gray matter loss in the frontal and parietal lobes compared with the PGRN-negative group.

CONCLUSION
Findings from this study suggest that PGRN mutations may be associated with a specific and severe pattern of cerebral atrophy in subjects with FTLD-U.


A linear two player zero-sum pursuit-evasion differential game is considered. The control functions of players are subject to integral constraints. In the game, the first player, the Pursuer, tries to force the state of the system towards the origin, while the aim of the second player, the Evader, is the opposite. We construct the optimal strategies of the players when the control resource of the Pursuer is greater than that of the Evader. The case where the control resources of the Pursuer are less than or equal to that of the Evader is studied to prove the main theorem. For this case a new method for solving of the evasion problem is proposed. We assume that the instantaneous control employed by the Evader is known to the Pursuer. For construction, the strategy of the Evader information about the state of the system and the control resources of the players is used.

 References R. Isaacs. Differential games. John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1965. L. S. Pontryagin. Collected works. Nauka, Moscow, 1988. (Russian) L. D. Berkovitz. Necessary conditions for optimal strategies in a class of differential games and control problems. SIAM Journal on Control , 5 , 1--24, 1967. L. D. Berkovitz. A survey of differential games. Mathematical Theory of Control , Edited by A. V. Balakrishnan and L. W. Neustadt, Academic Press, New York, 373--385, 1967. N. N. Krasovskii and A. I. Subbotin. Game-theoretical control problems. New York, Springer, 1988. W. H. Fleming. The convergence problem for differential games. Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Applications . 3 , 102--116, 1961. W. H. Fleming. The convergence problem for differential games, Part 2. Advances in Game Theory, Annals of Mathematics Studies , (52), Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey,195--210, 1964. A. Friedman. Differential games. Wiley-Interscience, New York, 1971. R. J. Elliott and N. J. Kalton. The existence of value in differential games. Memoirs of the American Mathematical Society , 126 , 1--67, 1972. L. A. Petrosyan. Differential games of pursuit. World Scientific, Singapore, London, 1993. O. Hajek. Pursuit games. Academic Press, New York, San Francisco, 1975. A. Ya. Azimov. Linear differential pursuit game with integral constraints on the control. Differentsial'nye Uravneniya, 11 (10), 1975, 1723--1731; English transl. in Differential Equations 11 , 1283--1289, 1975. A. Ya. Azimov. A linear differential evasion game with integral constraints on the controls. USSR Computational Mathematics and Mathematical Physics, 14 (6), 56--65, 1974. M. S. Nikolskii. The direct method in linear differential games with integral constraints. Controlled systems, IM, IK, SO AN SSSR, (2), 49--59, 1969. A. I. Subbotin and V. N. Ushakov. Alternative for an encounter-evasion differential game with integral constraints on the playersi controls. PMM 39 (3), 387--396, 1975. V. N. Ushakov. Extremal strategies in differential games with integral constraints. PMM , 36 (1), 15--23, 1972. B. N. Pshenichnii and Yu. N. Onopchuk. Linear differential games with integral constraints. Izvestige Akademii Nauk SSSR, Tekhnicheskaya Kibernetika , (1), 13--22, 1968. A. A. Azamov, B. Samatov. $\pi $-strategy. An elementary introduction to the theory of differential games. National University of Uzbekistan. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, 2000. G. I. Ibragimov. A game problem on a closed convex set. Siberian Advances in Mathematics . 12 (3), 16--31, 2002. G. I. Ibragimov. A problem of optimal pursuit in systems with distributed parameters. J. Appl. Math. Mech, 66 (5), 719--724, 2003. E. B. Lee and and L. Markus. Foundations of optimal control theory, John Wiley and Sons Inc., New York, 1967.


Nano- and micropatterned structures of tissue engineering scaffolds made of biodegradable and biocompatible polymers profoundly influence cell behavior. The present study describes a technically simple and inexpensive method to rapidly fabricate hexagonal arrays of biodegradable polymer pillars (pincushions). As precursors to these polymer pincushion arrays, highly regular porous biodegradable polymer films (self-organized honeycomb-patterned films, called honeycomb films) were prepared on a glass substrate using a simple casting technique. Scanning electron microscope observations revealed that the honeycomb film was composed of a top and bottom layer. This double-layered structure is attributable to the self-organization of hexagonally packed arrays of water droplets that form the template. When we peeled off the top layer of the honeycomb film under ambient conditions using adhesive tape, we obtained arrays of polymer pincushions on both side of the glass substrate and on the adhesive tape. Each air hole is surrounded by six pincushions, each with a diameter of 0.1-1 μm. We also studied factors that determine the morphology of the pincushions, such as the thermal and mechanical properties of the polymers used. It was shown that the heights, widths, and distances of separation between the pincushions could be controlled by the choice of polymer and the pore structure of the original honeycomb film. Such well-ordered, biologically inspired pincushion structures could find application in biomedical, photonic, and electronic materials.


&NA; Cocaine is often "cut" with various additives to increase the profitability of the drug. One of the most common additives on today's market is levamisole, an anthelmintic medication used to destroy and expel parasitic worms in animals. The use of levamisole‐contaminated cocaine can result in agranulocytosis and vasculitis (inflammation and constriction of small blood vessels). The resulting clotting and decrease in peripheral blood flow lead to cutaneous lesions, particularly on the ears, face, hands, and feet, and in severe cases can cause generalized tissue necrosis throughout the entire body. Treatment is generally supportive, and symptoms typically abate with complete cessation of cocaine use. However, symptoms may recur with subsequent cocaine use and, as this case illustrates, severe neutropenia and extensive vasculitis may lead to overwhelming sepsis and death.


In this study, some biochemical parameters (glucose, urea, calcium, triglyceride, cholesterol, creatinine, uric acid, total protein, iron, albumin, phosphorus, H.D.L., magnesium) hemoglobin and hematocrit depending on the pre-reproductive and reproductive periods and sex were determined in a total of 20 Testudo graeca specimens in the Çanakkale (Turkey). For the biochemical parameters, 0,5 ml of blood was collected from the scale in the lateral ligament of the neck with a 5-ml aspirating syringe. The blood was transferred into the biochemical tubes and centrifuged; the plasma part was separated and was measured by spectrophotometer. In conclusion, plasma biochemistry parameters were determined on sexrelated pre-reproduction and reproduction periods in T. graeca. When comparing the pre-reproductive and the reproductive period in terms of glucose, uric acid and iron values, statistical differences were found in the females. It was determined that cholesterol values of males were significantly different between periods. In the females, glucose value was found high in the pre-reproductive period and uric acid and iron values were high in the reproductive period. Cholesterol values of males were found high in the pre-reproductive period. Iron levels in the pre-reproductive period were significantly different between males and females.


"The increasing demand for water and limited degree of cost recovery for irrigation water delivery are important challenges for policymakers in Indonesia. To meet the increasing demand for water, it is important to reduce water use in irrigated paddy cultivation, long the dominant consumptive user, and to divert water away from agriculture to domestic and industrial sectors. Reducing water use in irrigated agriculture can be achieved through various means, including rationing, improved user management, and water markets. The appropriate method depends on the situation specific to each basin. In the Brantas Basin in East Java, rationing is already practiced, but often leaves the non-licensed, (non-paying) irrigators with insufficient supplies. Moreover, very low irrigation service fee recovery rates hamper ongoing water sector reforms, which seek to strengthen the capacity of local institutions to co-manage water resources. In the Brantas Basin the average value of water in the production of important irrigated crops substantially exceeds estimated water supply costs and current ISF. However, increased water use fees would impose a substantial burden on farm economic welfare, while water savings would be relatively modest. Therefore, to conserve water and enhance the financial autonomy of irrigators alternative management systems are proposed, including 'Integrated Crop and Resource Management' and a water brokerage mechanism." Authors' Abstract


Before its uptake and oxidation by purple sulfur bacteria, elemental sulfur probably first has to be mobilized. To obtain more insight into this mobilization process in the phototrophic purple sulfur bacterium Allochromatium vinosum, we used HPLC analysis and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy for the detection and identification of sulfur compounds in culture supernatants and bacterial cells. We intended to identify soluble sulfur compounds that specifically occur during growth on elemental sulfur, and therefore compared spectra of cultures grown on sulfur with those of cultures grown on sulfide or thiosulfate. While various unexpected oxidized organic sulfur species (sulfones, C-SO(2)-C, and sulfonates, C-SO(3)(-)) were observed via XANES spectroscopy in the supernatants, we obtained evidence for the presence of monosulfane sulfonic acids inside the bacterial cells by HPLC analysis. The concentrations of the latter compounds showed a tight correlation with the content of intracellular sulfur, reaching their maximum when sulfur began to be oxidized. None of the detected sulfur compounds appeared to be a specific soluble intermediate or product of elemental sulfur mobilization. It therefore seems unlikely that mobilization of elemental sulfur by purple sulfur bacteria involves excretion of soluble sulfur-containing substances that would be able to act on substrate distant from the cells.


We study how state fragility conditions affect macroeconomic outcomes in subSaharan African economies, and identify some of the most plausible transmission mechanisms. Applying dynamic panel estimation techniques and structural vector autoregressions to data on 48 sub-Saharan African economies over the period 1995 to 2014, we show that countries with greater fragility suffer higher macroeconomic volatility and crisis; they also experience weaker growth. When we jointly control for state fragility along with selected macroeconomic policy variables, we find that the latter seizes to play a significant role—providing circumstantial evidence of the "seesaw effect". Hence, we conclude that it is state fragility conditions, and not necessarily macroeconomic policies, that are of first-order importance in explaining macroeconomic performance in Africa. Moreover, the knock-on effects are mostly mediated through the fiscal channel, the aid channel, and the finance channel. Consequently, interventions to fragile states should best be organized in such a way that they focus on exploiting the potential for using fiscal policy, aid, and finance as instruments to improve macroeconomic outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa.


The 17 January 1994 Northridge, California, earthquake (M=6.7) triggered more than 11,000 landslides over an area of about 10,000 km². Most of the landslides were concentrated in a 1,000-km² area that includes the Santa Susana Mountains and the mountains north of the Santa Clara River valley. We mapped landslides triggered by the earthquake in the field and from 1:60,000-scale aerial photography provided by the U.S. Air Force and taken the morning of the earthquake; these were subsequently digitized and plotted in a GIS-based format, as shown on the accompanying maps (which also are accessible via Internet). Most of the triggered landslides were shallow (1-5 m), highly disrupted falls and slides in weakly cemented Tertiary to Pleistocene clastic sediment. Average volumes of these types of landslides were less than 1,000 m³, but many had volumes exceeding 100,000 m³. Many of the larger disrupted slides traveled more than 50 m, and a few moved as far as 200 m from the bases of steep parent slopes. Deeper ( >5 m) rotational slumps and block slides numbered in the hundreds, a few of which exceeded 100,000 m³ in volume. The largest triggered landslide was a block slide having a volume of 8X10E06 m³. Triggered landslides damaged or destroyed dozens of homes, blocked roads, and damaged oil-field infrastructure. Analysis of landslide distribution with respect to variations in (1) landslide susceptibility and (2) strong shaking recorded by hundreds of instruments will form the basis of a seismic landslide hazard analysis of the Los Angeles area.


The closed semiring is an algebraic structure which unifies a family of path problems, including all-pairs shortest path, transitive closure and minimum spanning tree, defined on directed or undirected graphs. In resemblance to the dynamic programming formulation on closed semirings, we define a connectionist network architecture, called the binary relation inference network, to solve the problems represented. The extension and summary operators of closed semiring correspond to the site and unit functions of the network. But the network structure offers an obvious advantage of being simply extended for asynchronous and continuous-time operation. Analog circuits for the network are presented and simulation results are described, with particular reference to the minimum spanning tree problem.


Spontaneous ventilation in mammals is driven by automatic brainstem networks that generate the respiratory rhythm and increase ventilation in the presence of increased carbon dioxide production. Hypocapnia decreases the drive to breathe and induces apnea. In humans, this occurs during sleep but not during wakefulness. We hypothesized that hypocapnic breathing would be associated with respiratory-related cortical activity similar to that observed during volitional breathing, inspiratory constraints, or in patients with defective automatic breathing (preinspiratory potentials). Nineteen healthy subjects were studied under passive (mechanical ventilation, n = 10) or active (voluntary hyperventilation, n = 9) profound hypocapnia. Ventilatory and electroencephalographic recordings were performed during voluntary sniff maneuvers, normocapnic breathing, hypocapnia, and after return to normocapnia. EEG recordings were analyzed with respect to the ventilatory flow signal to detect preinspiratory potentials in frontocentral electrodes and to construct time-frequency maps. After passive hyperventilation, hypocapnia was associated with apnea in 3 cases and ventilation persisted in 7 cases (3 and 6 after active hyperventilation, respectively). No respiratory-related EEG activity was observed in subjects with hypocapnia-related apneas. In contrast, preinspiratory potentials were present at vertex recording sites in 12 of the remaining 13 subjects (p < 0.001). This was corroborated by time-frequency maps. This study provides direct evidence of a cortical substrate to hypocapnic breathing in awake humans and fuels the notion of corticosubcortical cooperation to preserve human ventilation in a variety of situations. Of note, maintaining ventilatory activity at low carbon dioxide levels is among the prerequisites to speech production insofar as speech often induces hypocapnia. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Human ventilatory activity persists, during wakefulness, even when hypocapnia makes it unnecessary. This peculiarity of human breathing control is important to speech and speech-breathing insofar as speech induces hypocapnia. This study evidences a specific respiratory-related cortical activity. This suggests that human hypocapnic breathing is driven, at least in part, by cortical mechanisms similar to those involved in volitional breathing, in breathing against mechanical constraints or with weak inspiratory muscle, and in patients with defective medullary breathing pattern generators. This fuels the notion that the human ventilatory drive during wakefulness often results from a corticosubcortical cooperation, and opens new avenues to study certain ventilatory and speech disorders.


In the paper is proposed the use of the personal digital assistant (PDA) to share the common sense of time to the measurement instruments (MIs) not reachable, or not convenient to reach, by wired or wireless connections to the distributed measurement system (DMS). For this reason is not possible to use the standard synchronization protocol, or the propagation of a electromagnetic signal used as reference one. Therefore, once synchronized to the common reference node clock of the DMS, the PDA is used to physically bring the common sense of time to inaccessible and stand alone MI. The suitable synchronization method is pointed out. It is based on the system frequency in the place of the system time. The procedure to synchronize the PDA to the DMS, and that performed into the PDA to operate in synchronized manner are described. To validate the synchronization method and to highlight the advantages, the results of preliminary experimental tests are shown.


The present study examines subcortical connections of paraventricular thalamic nucleus (Pa) following small anterograde and retrograde tracer injections in cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis). An anterograde tracer injection into the dorsal midline thalamus revealed strong projections to the accumbens nucleus, basal amygdala, lateral septum, and hypothalamus. Retrograde tracer injections into these areas labeled neurons specifically in Pa. Following a retrograde tracer injection into Pa, labeled neurons were found in the hypothalamus, dorsal raphe, and periaqueductal gray. Pa contained a remarkably high density of axons and axonal varicosities immunoreactive for serotonin (5‐HT) and orexin/hypocretin (ORX), as well as a moderate density of fibers immunoreactive for corticotropin‐releasing hormone (CRH). A retrograde tracer injection into Pa combined with immunohistochemistry demonstrated that ORX and 5‐HT axons originate from neurons in the hypothalamus and midbrain. Pa‐projecting neurons were localized in the same nuclei of the hypothalamus, amygdala, and midbrain as CRH neurons, although no double labeling was found. The connections of Pa and its innervation by 5‐HT, ORX, and CRH suggest that it may relay stress signals between the midbrain and hypothalamus with the accumbens nucleus, basal amygdala, and subgenual cortex as part of a circuit that manages stress and possibly stress‐related psychopathologies. J. Comp. Neurol. 512:825–848, 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Displays' new rendering capabilities combined with the ever-growing number of video applications have fueled the emergence of new video formats addressing wider color gamut and larger frame size. Thus, the need in scalable compression technology to provide backward compatibility with legacy devices and capitalize on the superior compression performance of High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) has increased significantly. This paper gives an overview of the work carried out in the Joint Collaborative Team on Video Coding of ITU-T Study Group 16 (VCEG) and ISO/IEC JTC1/SC29/WG11 motion picture experts group (MPEG) to define scalable extensions of HEVC (SHVC) targeting these market requirements. The color gamut scalability (CGS) tool of SHVC is specially designed to support efficient scalable coding with multiple layers in different color spaces. The genesis of the SHVC-CGS tool is presented and the performance of the various proposals is compared. Finally, the design of the recently adopted SHVC-CGS inter-layer prediction is detailed. The experimental results validate its efficiency in coding video with extended color gamut and high dynamic range.


OF DISSERTATION BEYOND THE BATTLE: RELIGION AND AMERICAN TROOPS IN WORLD WAR II This dissertation examines the ways in which military personnel interacted with religion during World War II. It argues that the challenges of wartime service provided the impetus and the opportunity to improvise religious practices, refine religious beliefs amid new challenges, and broaden religious understanding through interaction with those from other traditions. Methodologically, this dissertation moves beyond existing analyses that focus primarily on institutions and their representatives such as military chaplains. Instead, it explores first-person accounts left by men and women who were not part of the chaplain corps and analyzes ways in which non-chaplains engaged religion. The exigencies of war contributed to religious innovation as soldiers and sailors improvised religious practices. Lay leaders sometimes filled in to lead services as chaplains were often not available. Soldiers and sailors also modified individual religious practices such as diet, fasting, and prayer to fit the context of military service. The challenges of wartime service also led troops to refine previously held religious beliefs as well as to adopt new interpretations based on personal experiences. Soldiers and sailors often clung to whatever religious beliefs or practices they saw as potentially beneficial. Finally, religious mixing combined with social dislocation and stress to create an atmosphere in which troops questioned and reformulated their religious identities. As soldiers and sailors formed bonds with those from other traditions, it became more difficult to maintain previous assumptions rooted in suspicion and rumor about other faiths. Understanding how soldiers and sailors interacted with religion in World War II anticipates significant aspects of what many scholars have described as a religious revival in the two decades following the war. It suggests that many veterans returned to civilian life with more confidence in their own religious agency and with sharpened conceptions of what they considered religious essentials.


Pleural empyema represents a frequent disease, characterized sometimes by blurred and unspecific signs or symptoms but requiring timely diagnosis in order to plan the most appropriate therapeutic regimen. Several classifications have proposed and the most widely used is the American Thoracic Society (ATS) one, according to increasing severity depending of the extent of disease. Different therapeutic strategies such as conservative regimens (antibiotic therapy and chest tube placement) and surgical one (empyemectomy with pleural decortication) were applied. To this date, minimally invasive surgery is assuming an important role in the management of empyema and represents the gold standard in stage II disease and a valid alternative to the classical approach in stage III in absence of a complete obliteration of the pleural space. Aim of the work is to define, through a comprehensive review of literature, the role of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery according to limits and advantages compared to conservative methods and the most invasive surgical approaches.


A novel explicit time domain spectral finite element is developed which enhances the simulation accuracy and efficiency of active guided wave based SHM systems for laminated composite strips, in three distinct ways. A new generalized theoretical framework is formulated for piezolaminates which captures symmetric and antisymmetric Lamb waves by employing third-order Hermite polynomials in the approximation of displacements and electric potential through the thickness. The physical presence of piezoelectric actuators and sensors is encompassed in the governing equations. Stiffness, mass, piezoelectric and electric permittivity matrices are assembled, and the coupled transient electromechanical response is predicted by a properly formulated explicit time integration scheme. The excellent accuracy and computational efficiency of the developed FE is first validated against reported numerical results. Additional correlations are presented with measured Lamb wave responses generated by PZT active sensor pairs on carbon/epoxy plate strips. doi: 10.12783/SHM2015/106


ABSTRACT Agricultural policies in sub-Saharan Africa have paid insufficient attention to sustainable intensification. In Uganda, agricultural productivity has stagnated with aggregate increases in crop production being attributed to expansion of cultivated land area. To enhance sustainable crop intensification, the Ugandan Government collaborated with stakeholders to develop agricultural policies using an evidence-based approach. Previously, evidence-based decision-making tended to focus on the evidence base rather than evidence and its interactions within the broader policy context. We identify opportunities and pitfalls to strengthen science engagement in agricultural policy design by analysing the types of evidence required, and how it was shared and used during policy development. Qualitative tools captured stakeholders' perspectives of agricultural policies and their status in the policy cycle. Subsequent multi-level studies identified crop growth constraints and quantified yield gaps which were used to compute the economic analyses of policy options that subsequently contributed to sub-national program planning. The study identified a need to generate relevant evidence within a short time 'window' to influence policy design, power influence by different stakeholders and quality of stakeholder interaction. Opportunities for evidence integration surfaced at random phases of policy development due to researchers' 'embededness' within co-management and coordination structures.


Retail globalization resulting in the modern building gives the influence to modernize bazaar. Is it appropriate if the government uses the same method when the bazaar cycle consecutively happens in Johar in the 1930s and 1970s where modern retail buildings were ineffectively used? There is no theory that can explain this phenomenon. The modern retail building is like a leaky container. Initially, the concept of retail in the United Kingdom is like a bazaar. The bazaar in Semarang was a tourist destination in 1950 just like a bazaar in other countries now. A next collaboration research needs to conduct with the United Kingdom and other countries that make the bazaar as a tourist asset.
Keywords: research; bazaar; traditional market; retail; practice.
eISSN 2514-751X © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/aje-bs.v3i10.323


Halitosis is a common condition with a multitude of oral and systemic factors implicated in its causality. Although, the pathological factors involved in the systemic causes of halitosis are varied, the oral factors are more consistent and mostly involve the production of malodorous volatiles by the oral microbiota. This phenomenon can therefore be modelled 'in vitro' and two such models, utilising planktonic oral bacteria
and tongue-derived biofilms, were used to ascertain the effects of amino acids and foods in the generation of malodour, mainly focusing on the volatile, sulfur-containing compounds. To that end, simple amino acids as well as garlic, onion and coffee were evaluated in both the models. It
was found that odorous food components could be retained and released within the biofilm model and that amino acids could be metabolised to a variety of different malodorous compounds. These models were applied in the evaluation of zinc, an active incorporated in oral healthcare products to combat malodour. Further, a thorough evaluation of the role of the bacterium, 'Solobacterium moorei' was undertaken, finding that the organism could generate copious amounts
of hydrogen sulfide.


ABSTRACT A number of existing empirical studies have attempted to estimate the foreign direct investment (FDI)-related productivity spillover effects to domestic firms in host economies using various methodologies and measures of FDI. This literature has produced mixed results. While some studies found positive spillovers, others reported zero or even negative spillovers. In this paper, using a model of firm heterogeneity, we provide a rigorous theoretical justification for the mixed findings. We show that FDI-related productivity spillover effects can be decomposed into a direct and an indirect effect. If the direct effect is positive then relatively less capable domestic firms that were not able to survive in the industry (before the arrival of foreign firms) can enter the industry, which decreases the average (expected) productivity of the industry. If this indirect effect is sufficiently strong then the overall impact of FDI on productivity of domestic firms can be zero or negative. Hence, irrespective of the type of FDI (vertical or horizontal) and control variables included in empirical models, one may find negative or zero spillover effects.


Mikolov et al. (2013a) observed that continuous bag-of-words (CBOW) word embeddings tend to underperform Skip-gram (SG) embeddings, and this finding has been reported in subsequent works. We find that these observations are driven not by fundamental differences in their training objectives, but more likely on faulty negative sampling CBOW implementations in popular libraries such as the official implementation, word2vec.c, and Gensim. We show that after correcting a bug in the CBOW gradient update, one can learn CBOW word embeddings that are fully competitive with SG on various intrinsic and extrinsic tasks, while being many times faster to train.


Abstract. In response to ongoing and future-projected global warming, mid-latitude,
nival river basins are expected to transition from a snowmelt-dominated flow
regime to a nival–pluvial one with an earlier spring freshet of reduced
magnitude. There is, however, a rich variation in responses that depends on
factors such as the topographic complexity of the basin and the strength of
maritime influences. We illustrate the potential effects of a strong maritime
influence by studying future changes in cold season flow variability in the
Fraser River Basin (FRB) of British Columbia, a large extratropical watershed
extending from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Coast. We use a
process-based hydrological model driven by an ensemble of 21 statistically
downscaled simulations from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5
(CMIP5), following the Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5 (RCP 8.5). Warming under RCP 8.5 leads to reduced winter snowfall, shortening the
average snow accumulation season by about one-third. Despite this, large
increases in cold season rainfall lead to unprecedented cold season peak
flows and increased overall runoff variability in the VIC simulations.
Increased cold season rainfall is shown to be the dominant climatic driver
in the Coast Mountains, contributing 60 % to mean cold season runoff
changes in the 2080s. Cold season runoff at the outlet of the basin
increases by 70 % by the 2080s, and its interannual variability more than
doubles when compared to the 1990s, suggesting substantial challenges for
operational flow forecasting in the region. Furthermore, almost half of the
basin (45 %) transitions from a snow-dominated runoff regime in the 1990s
to a primarily rain-dominated regime in the 2080s, according to a snowmelt
pulse detection algorithm. While these projections are consistent with the
anticipated transition from a nival to a nival–pluvial hydrologic regime,
the marked increase in FRB cold season runoff is likely linked to more
frequent landfalling atmospheric rivers in the region projected in the CMIP5
models, providing insights for other maritime-influenced extratropical
basins.


High-dose irradiation is an effective treatment for tumors in the head and neck. Radiation-induced complications are uncommon but may result in chronic, progressive symptoms months or years after therapy. In 19 (1%) of 1,950 patients who underwent successful high-dose irradiation of head and neck tumors over a 5-year period, delayed radiation-induced changes were documented with imaging. These changes can be categorized as soft-tissue, bone, and cartilage necrosis; fibrosis leading to functional disorders; arteriopathy; central nervous system reactions, delayed myelopathy, and cranial nerve palsies; and the development of meningiomas. Radiologic features of radiation-induced soft-tissue, bone, and cartilage necrosis include inflammatory swelling adjacent to the area of involvement; deep gas-containing ulcerations; sclerotic appearance of the involved cartilages; fragmentation and sloughing of necrotic bone or cartilage; and abscess and fistula formation. Masticator muscle fibrosis appears as an area of diffusely increased signal intensity on T2-weighted images and of enhancement on postcontrast T1-weighted images. Radiation arteriopathy may manifest as occlusion, subocclusive sclerotic or atheromatous plaque, localized mural thrombus, aneurysm, or, rarely, spontaneous rupture. In central nervous system reactions, imaging findings include demyelination foci in the white matter, focal radiation necrosis, and severe brain atrophy. Radiation-induced meningiomas display the same imaging features as non-radiation-induced meningiomas at computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and angiography, although follow-up examinations may reveal their more aggressive biologic behavior. Knowledge of the radiologic appearance of radiation-induced changes may prevent misinterpretations and facilitate treatment.


System Dynamics Simulation Models for the Valuation of Exotic Options in Real Investments Gregory J. Fitch As public utilities and government owners face increased budget constraints and greater expectations, alternative project delivery methods will increasingly be used to fast track projects, reduce costs, promote innovation and ensure proper performance for various types of facilities and infrastructure systems. The goals of public utility owners along with economic and financial considerations suggest why some project delivery methods have been selected over other project delivery methods. In response, the first phase of this doctoral research presents a model for selecting the optimum project delivery method that considers economic sustainability as well as other goals of multiple project stakeholders. This first phase of research contributes to the existing body of knowledge and benefits industry practitioners by identifying best practices that improve the project delivery selection process while enhancing risk mitigation efforts. The procurement selection process uses multiple-criteria decision-making and financial risk analysis to select the most economically sustainable delivery method given each project's unique characteristics. A present value analysis establishes a range of values that considers variables that will potentially impact lifecycle costs. The selection of the procurement process is based on best value where financial risks to the concerned government and other project stakeholders are mitigated through service fee agreements and project finance structures, which are both dynamic and provide for real options. The second phase of this research presents an innovative approach for the valuation of the types of real options on project finance structures which are specifically procured through a designbuild-finance-operate project delivery method (also known as a public-private partnership) (P3). This second phase of research includes an investigation into systems engineering and System Dynamics (SD) simulation modeling. An SD model is used for the valuation of real options attached to a P3 project's finance structure. The valuation of these real options is based on the simulation results related to infrastructure performance. The significance of this research is made greater considering that P3s are increasingly being pursued because of their ability to alleviate pressure on government budgets, promote innovation and implement new technologies. These types of contracts, however, tend to be long-term and often need to account for future yet-to-beseen variables that potentially impact the feasibility of this procurement method. This is especially true when the P3 project exists within a portfolio of competing assets across infrastructure systems. This second phase of research presents An SD model that is used to analyze the complexity of an infrastructure asset procured through a P3 within such a portfolio. An illustrative case demonstrates how discrete and continuous events potentially impact the successful procurement of infrastructure within a portfolio of competing assets comprising a regional transportation system. This second phase of research contributes to the existing body of knowledge by demonstrating how An SD model can simulate the real-world causal relationships that impact the procurement of infrastructure through P3s. The SD model is used for the valuation of real options to promote public initiatives, encourage private participation and enhance economic sustainability of P3 as a viable procurement strategy. The third and final phase of this doctoral research considers the increasing complexity of infrastructure procurement as individual assets are increasingly viewed as being part of a larger network of interdependent systems. In response, the objective of this final phase is to present a methodology to simulate the behavior of assets that span across different types of infrastructure systems. This investigation presents a method for analyzing investments that traverses across different infrastructure systems with individual assets procured through a variety of project delivery methods. This third investigation also utilizes An SD simulation model. In the final phase of this doctoral research, however, the SD model captures the causal relationships between competing assets where simulation results elucidate the compounding effects of multiple investments that traverse across two or more infrastructure systems. By doing so, this research contributes to the existing body of knowledge and demonstrates how SD models are effectively used to value real options that are termed exotic. These exotic types of real options occur within a portfolio of competing infrastructure assets where the valuation of each real option must consider the compounding effects of competing alternatives as well as the value of the underlying asset. This research presents a methodology for the valuation of multiple types of exotic options in real investments that traverse across various types of infrastructure systems. This method can also be applied to the valuation of other types of exotic options in various industries including research and development pursuits.


The application of artificial neural networks (ANNs) to the prediction of the Charpy impact toughness of quenched and tempered (QT) steels and ferrous weld metals is examined in detail. It is demonstrated that the Charpy impact toughness can be accurately predicted using the selected input variables and their ranges of values. The capacity of ANNs to handle problems involving large sets of input variables is illustrated by a model developed to predict the impact energy of weld metal (WM) produced by flux cored arc welding (FCAW). The usefulness of ANNs for alloy design and process control is demonstrated through another model developed to predict the toughness of a QT structural steel as a function of composition and postweld heat treatment. Although comparison of the two models indicates that the trends in toughness with changes in Mn and B concentrations are in opposite directions for weld metal and QT steel, it is shown that these trends can be reconciled with reported experimental results and theoretical interpretations.


This paper presents a predictive gain scheduler for path tracking control in a networked control system with variable delay. The controller uses the plant model to predict future position and find the amount of travel possible with the global path as a constraint. Based on variable network conditions and vehicle trajectory's curvature the vehicle is allowed to travel farther on the current control signal while the vehicle trajectory matches the path constraint. This method uses path specific characteristics to evaluate the effectiveness of each generated control signal. By scheduling the gain on the control signal the vehicle tracking performance is maintained with an increase in network delay. The tracking time is decreased compared to other methods since the proposed control method allows the controller to look ahead and thus evaluate predicted effect of each control signal before scaling it. The proposed method is compared with existing delay compensation methods through simulation.


Technological change, from the advent of robots to expanded trade opportunities, creates winners and losers. How should government policy respond? We provide a general theory of optimal technology regulation in a second–best world, with rich heterogeneity across households, linear taxes on the subset of firms affected by technological change, and a nonlinear tax on labor income. Our first set of results consists of optimal tax formulas, with minimal structural assumptions, involving sufficient statistics that can be implemented using evidence on the distributional impact of new technologies, such as robots and trade. Our final results are comparative static exercises illustrating, among other things, that while distributional concerns create a rationale for non-zero taxes on robots and trade, the magnitude of these taxes may decrease as the process of automation and globalization deepens and inequality increases.


The spiking activity of populations of cortical neurons is well described by a small number of population-wide covariance patterns, the "latent dynamics". These latent dynamics are largely driven by the same correlated synaptic currents across the circuit that determine the generation of local field potentials (LFP). Yet, the relationship between latent dynamics and LFPs remains largely unexplored. Here, we characterised this relationship for three different regions of primate sensorimotor cortex during reaching. The correlation between latent dynamics and LFPs was frequency-dependent and varied across regions. However, for any given region, this relationship remained stable across behaviour: in each of primary motor and premotor cortices, the LFP-latent dynamics correlation profile was remarkably similar between movement planning and execution. These robust associations between LFPs and neural population latent dynamics help bridge the wealth of studies reporting neural correlates of behaviour using either type of recordings.


The objective of this study was to determine the fitness of Quadratic, Cubic, Gompertz and Logistic functions to the growth curves of Konya Merino lambs obtained by using monthly records of live weight from birth to 480 days of age. The models were evaluated according to determination coefficient (R2), mean square prediction errors (MSPE) and Durbin Watson (DW) statistics. The R2 values of the models ranged from 0.96 to 0.99 for females and from 0.96 to 0.99 for males. The Cubic model gave the best R2 value of 0.99 in females, while the Logistic model gave the lowest R2 value of 0.96 in females. The results indicated that the Quadratic and Gompertz models showed the best fit to growth of Konya Merino ewe lambs by having higher R2 values, lower MSPE and non autocorrelation. By using these models live weights at later ages could be predicted from early partial live weight data. Further studies should be carried out on growth curve characteristics at later ages including adult age.


Classification schemes undergo revision. However, in a networked environment revisions can be used to add dimensionality to classification. This dimensionality can be used to help explain conceptual warrant, explain the shift from disciplinary to multidisciplinary knowledge production, and as a component method of domain analysis. Further, subject ontogeny might be used in cooperative networked projects like digital preservation, online access tools, and interoperability frameworks.


Despite a steady progress in introducing knowledge management (KM) processes into organizations, literature reveals increasing failures in many of these KM initiatives due to lack of commitment from employees and conflicting objectives. Implementation of KM processes can be a challenging and complex initiative, often resulting in changing conditions, procedures and processes, which affect the conventional ways of accomplishing jobs in the organizations. In order to enhance understanding on how organizations and people cope with changes resulting from the processes implementation, there is a growing interest in assessment of KM implementation from a change lens. This study proposes assessment of KM processes implementation with a specific focus from a change readiness perspective. On the basis of the extant literature, change readiness in this study is portrayed as a multidimensional construct with both hard and soft dimensions. The hard dimension includes contextual factors, which refer to capabilities to implement the processes. The soft dimension is the psychological aspect, representing an understanding about KM implementation that moulds beliefs and willingness to change, thus motivating staff members' participation in the processes. It is proposed that both dimensions of readiness for KM should be examined in order to develop an extensive understanding about readiness for KM processes implementation. Findings from a multiple case study involving New Zealand professional service firms revealed various KM processes implemented in these firms. Nevertheless, the focus of this paper is to highlight readiness for knowledge documentation process, which from the case studies represents a complex process shaped by KM understanding, individual differences and organizational KM change context. Additionally, diverse firm sizes and the extent of information technology (IT) utilization also affect the linkages between change readiness and the knowledge documentation process. Keywords:  Knowledge Management Process, Knowledge Documentation, Change Management, Change Readiness, Service Firms


Abstract Longidorus azarbaijanensis n. sp. is described and illustrated using morphological and molecular data. It was recovered in West Azarbaijan province, northwestern Iran, from the rhizospheric soil of foxtail weed. The new species is characterized by having 5.4 to 6.8 mm long females, offset, anteriorly flat lip region and separated from the rest of the body by a shallow constriction, funnel-shaped amphidial pouches, the guiding ring at 23 to 27 µm from the anterior end, 73 to 81 and 44 to 50 µm long odontostyle and odontophore, respectively, 95.0 to 113.5 µm long pharyngeal bulb, didelphic-amphidelphic reproductive system with long tubular uteri lacking sperm cells, vulva located at 52.0% to 56.4%, conical tail dorsally convex, ventrally flat, with bluntly rounded wide tip, for juvenile developmental stages and absence of males. The general body shape of the new species is similar to that of five known species of the genus namely L. euonymus, L. perangustus, L. persicus, L. protae and L. sturhani. The morphological differences of the new species with the aforementioned species are discussed. For all the aforementioned species (except L. protae, currently lacking molecular data) the differences of the new species was also confirmed with differences in molecular sequences of D2-D3 expansion domains of 28S rDNA and the corresponding phylogenetic analyses. The partial sequence of the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) of the new species was also used in phylogenetic analyses. In partial 28S tree, the clade including the new species and six other species (L. attenuatus, Longidorus sp. and four above-mentioned species having molecular data for this fragment) was well supported in Bayesian inference. In the ITS1 tree, the new species formed a clade with L. euonymus, L. perangustus and L. persicus, as in 28S tree. This is one of the cases from which the morphologically similar species are separated using molecular sequences.


One version of the desire satisfaction theory of well-being (i.e., welfare, or what is good for one) holds that only the satisfaction of one's present desires for present states of affairs can affect one's well-being. So if I desire fame today and become famous tomorrow, my well-being is positively affected onlyif tomorrow, when I am famous, I still desire to be famous. Call this the present desire satisfaction theory of well-being. I argue, contrary to this theory, that the satisfaction of past desires that are no longer held does indeed affect one's well-being. The satisfaction of past desires is good for one in that the present satisfaction of past desires positively affects one's past well-being. I argue for this view in stages, starting with the recognition that many of our desires are satisfied not at an instant but over an interval of time, and that it is during this interval of time that our well-being is positively affected. Once we get our foot in the door with some temporal thickness to desire satisfaction and the associated well-being, I argue, the door must open more widely to allow for greater temporal distance between present desire satisfaction and past well-being. I defend my thesis that present satisfaction of past desires increases one's past welfare against objections, including the claim that it involves backward causation and Velleman's claim that the view is highly counterintuitive whether or not it involves backward causation. I argue that some of the objections rely on hedonistic intuitions, intuitions that most desire satisfaction theories of welfare aim to correct. Once properly understood and applied, my counterintuitive and controversial thesis is really quite innocuous.


ABSTRACT This study examines the US experience during the Iraq war, from the planning phase that began in 2001 to the withdrawal of US forces in 2011. It reveals a dearth of planning and intelligence leading up to the invasion; reluctance by conventional coalition military forces to conduct reconstruction, political and security capacity-building; and, later, full spectrum counterinsurgency operations. These forces took on some missions traditionally reserved for special operations forces, and they increasingly assumed diplomatic roles as they interfaced with the Iraqi leadership and local kingpins. Although these efforts yielded some impressive organizational learning and limited operational successes, they were hampered by lack of adequate preparation, a poor understanding of the human terrain, shortsighted strategies, and ultimately a dearth of political will to stay the course. The outcome was far from the model Middle East democracy envisioned by the invasion's architects, and the American experience in Iraq instead became a cautionary tale for military intervention.


The emergence of smart phones has had a positive impact on society as the range of features and automation has allowed people to become more productive while they are on the move. On the contrary, the use of these devices has also become a distraction and hindrance, especially for pedestrians who use their phones whilst walking on the streets. This is reinforced by the fact that pedestrian injuries due to the use of mobile phones has now exceeded mobile phone related driver injuries. This paper describes an approach that measures the different levels of distraction encountered by pedestrians whilst they are walking. To distinguish between the distractions within the brain the proposed work analyses data collected from mobile sensors (accelerometers for movement, mobile EEG for electroencephalogram signals from the brain). The long-term motivation of the proposed work is to provide pedestrians with notifications as they approach potential hazards while they walk on the street conducting multiple tasks such as using a smart phone. c © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Peer-review under responsibility of the Conference Program Chairs.


In order to study the sludge microstructure and dewatering performance, the sludge was treated using different conditioners, the same conditioner in a different dosage, the same formula in a different proportion and different order of adding conditioners. The microstructure of dehydrated sludge was observed by scanning electron microscopy. The relationship between the sludge dewatering properties and microstructure characteristics was discussed. It was proven that the different dehydration performance correspond to the different morphology. The better dewatering performance shows more pore at the surface of sludge cake.Contractly, the sludge cake with poor dewatering perform a dense surface, even membranous. Therefore, there is a certain of relationship between the microstructure of sludge cake and its dehydration performance.


In the management of greenhouse nurseries the grower has to deal with complex dynamic optimisation problems. In many of these problems the behaviour of crops is an important issue. Crop models, that formalise our knowledge about the crop, could thus be an important element of management tools in horticultural practice, but their role has been quite limited up till now. Yet, it is likely that such tools will become more important and that their implementation in future management tools will become more feasible than before. An important role for such model based support systems will be in the design, evaluation and adaptation of cultivation schedules (blueprints). Models that are able to deal with such complex problems are built of many sub-models, because they have to cover the full problem domain, to provide useful answers. Relevant sub-models could be arranged in a parallel structure, where they sub run basically independent of each other, using the same inputs. Alternatively, output of (photosynthesis based) sub-models could provide input to other sub-models. For many applications it is in fact irrelevant what the source of information provided to a decision maker or an automated control system is, as long as the information is


Abstract Public hospitals face challenging infection control problems that differ from those in other hospitals. This article reviews some of the unique aspects of infection control in public hospitals, including governance, physical plant, patient mix, communicable diseases, and employee issues, and suggests management strategies.


This study set out to explore the nature of deaf children's lexical representations and how these may be updated as new speech skills are acquired, through an investigation of speech processing skills and responses to intervention in three deaf children. A computer-based psycholinguistic profiling procedure was developed to examine the relationships between input skills, lexical representations and output skills for a range of consonant contrasts, with the expectation that input skills were important in determining output skills. Using this procedure, consonants or consonant clusters that were not accurately realised by the participants were classified according to responses to real word and nonword input testing in audio-visual and audio-alone conditions. By comparing how the differently classified consonants responded to intervention, the role of input skills in the updating of lexical representations was discovered to be less important than other sources of information, including phonological awareness and knowledge of orthography and grapheme-phoneme links. There was some evidence that articulatory knowledge, acquired through phonetic instruction and tactile feedback, was enriching segments of input representations so that the corresponding segments became easier to detect in input tasks. This questions the assumption that output representations depend on input representations for their specification. Further intervention involving repeated practice of new motor patterns and use of feedback from the therapist to encourage motor planning facilitated generalisation of the acquired speech skills to a wide range of speaking tasks. There was evidence that one of the participants was accessing the orthography of what he was about to say in order to generalise his speech skills and that he could eventually do this, even when conversing at an acceptable rate of speech. The implications for combining the teaching of phonics with speech production training for deaf children are discussed.


The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of implementing the Icelandic model for Primary Substance Use Prevention (IPM) in rural Central Appalachia. Guided by the IPM's theoretical framework, 26 stakeholders from a single county in West Virginia were purposefully recruited during the spring of 2019 and divided into four focus groups. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim and analyzed into themes based on IPM premises. Focus group material produced seven themes: Drug use overall, Drug treatment and other service needs, Poverty, Parenting/Caregiver practices, Transportation, Downtime/Leisure time activities, and Opportunities for solutions. General support was found for the potential of the IPM in the region. Preferably, the implementation of the model should coincide with attention to the adult population as drug use was reported to be plaguing the whole community. Treatment options were few and mostly far away. General poverty and lack of public transportation further stifled progress and potential for change. Organized leisure time activities and programs for youth were scarce and mostly seasonal. Suggested solutions for the adult community included workforce and skill training, coupled with increased opportunities for organized leisure activities for youth, and access to healthy role models via schools and faith-based organizations. We conclude that implementation of the IPM would be feasible to prevent substance use initiation and progression among youth in the rural Central Appalachia. We present several specific recommendations for policy and practice that address factors unique to this environment to initiate the IPM implementation development and suggest initial model application strategies.


In this thesis we described a new approach to design, fabricate, package and test three silicon based porous vertical structures for nanoparticle separations. These vertical structures stand in between two microfluidic channels. In these walls nano channels that connect the two adjacent microchannels are embedded. Fluid and small particles can penetrate the walls through the embedded nano channels while particles larger than the nano channels size will be stopped. This configuration allows particle separation with in-plane fluid flow. For a uniform and repeatable pore size, conventional silicon micromachining technology is employed to realize these structures. We use the thickness of precisely dimensioned sacrificial layers to accurately define the nanometer thick size of the pores or channels which are later formed by removing the sacrificial material by isotropic etching. Three particle separation devices are designed, fabricated and tested. The first design, based on a surface micromachining process, is more suitable for devices aimed at small flow rates. The process is simple and also suitable for non-silicon substrates. The major limitation of this design is the difficulty encountered in adapting it to high flow rate applications. The second design, based on a bulk micromachining process, overcomes the limitations experienced with the first one. It is in fact more suitable for silicon based lab-on-a-chip particle separation devices with the need for higher flow rates. The major limitation found in this design is the nanochannels may deform under high fluid pressure due to the cantilever-shape of the beams separating two nanochannels. The last design, buried bulk micromachined design, is more suitable for lab-on-a-chip devices with sensors integrated in the particle separation devices. With a membrane covering the microchannels, sensors can be directly placed above the separation devices before encapsulation. Moreover, this design is more robust as the beams are doubly supported beam structures and can withstand a significantly higher flow pressure. The nanochannels are formed by wet chemical etch and the nanofluidic devices operates under wet conditions. A drying step is therefore necessary for conventional encapsulation processes, such as wafer bonding or CVD thin film encapsulation. This drying step will likely cause stiction and air bubble entrapment problems. To avoid those problems, a new encapsulation process based on low temperature lamination of TMMF S2030 Dry Film Resist, is developed. This process allows the encapsulation of nanofluidic devices while water can be kept inside the etched nanochannels. By eliminating the final drying step, stiction or air bubbles formation can be avoided.


The developmental mechanisms involved in the formation of stable arrays of postsynaptic neurotransmitter receptors near sites of neurotransmitter release are essentially unknown. However, several recent studies have shown that cells or tissues of neural origin produce macromolecular factors which induce an increase in the number of acetylcholine (ACh) receptors or the number of receptor aggregates on cultured embryonic myotubes. We have tested primary cultures of embryonic neurons and other cell types for the release of an ACh receptor aggregation factor. Conditioned medium from the cultures was applied to cultures of embryonic rat myotubes for 1 day; ACh receptors on the myotubes were stained with tetramethylrhodamine-labeled alpha- bungarotoxin and ACh receptor aggregation activity, defined as the change in the number of receptor aggregates per myotube, was assayed. Aggregation activity with a molecular weight greater than or equal to 50,000 was released by cultures of neurons from sympathetic ganglia, dorsal root ganglia, spinal cord, and cerebellum. Little or no activity was released by glial or other non-neuronal cultures. Release of aggregation activity by different neuronal cell types varied by up to an order of magnitude; however, this variation was not well correlated with the differences in ACh synthesis. The factor(s) in neuronal cell conditioned medium induced a rearrangement of pre-existing receptors at the cell surface, and its action was not dependent on new protein synthesis. The results of this study are consistent with the idea that one or more receptor aggregation factors secreted by neurons are involved in the organization of neurotransmitter receptors during synapse formation in vivo.


Localization is an important topic in wireless sensor networks because sensor nodes are randomly scattered over a region and they get connected into network on their own. Many localization algorithms have been proposed. These localization protocols can be divided into two categories: range-based and range-free. The range-based techniques use distance estimates or angle estimates to achieve fine accuracy with expensive specific hardware. In the other hand, the range-free mechanisms depend on the contents of received message to support coarse accuracy. In this paper, we present a lightweight range-free localization scheme using mobile anchor nodes. The anchor node equipped with GPS broadcasts its coordinates to the sensor nodes as it moves through the network. As the sensor nodes collect enough beacons, they are able to calculate their locations locally. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme achieves best performance in percentage of localized sensor nodes without many mobile anchors..


OBJECT
The goal of this study was to investigate the impact of mild or moderate degrees of degenerative or ischemic encephalopathy on predicting clinical outcome following unilateral posteroventral medial pallidotomy for treatment of advanced Parkinson's disease (PD).

METHODS
Thirty-five patients with PD were studied prospectively. The presence and degree of cortical atrophy, ventriculomegaly, deep white matter lesions (DWML), periventricular lucencies (PVL), and the presence of lacunes and status cribriformis (multiple and bilateral enlarged Virchow-Robin spaces) were determined by magnetic resonance (MR) imaging before the patients underwent stereotactic pallidotomy performed according to a standard protocol. Clinical outcome was measured using a standard battery of tests including application of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS). The preoperative MR imaging features were correlated with UPDRS subscores such as motor "off' score, the activities of daily living (ADL) off score, the off subscore for bradykinesia, the percentage of "on" time dyskinesias, and a global outcome rating. The MR findings were also correlated with the occurrence of side effects. Global outcome was rated as markedly improved in 22 patients (63%) and as moderately improved in 12 patients (34%) 6 months postoperatively. At the 1-year follow-up examination, global outcome in 31 patients was rated as markedly improved in 14 patients (45%), as moderately improved in another 14 (45%), as slightly improved in two (6%), and as worse in one patient (3%). The mean UPDRS motor off score changed from 58.7 preoperatively to 33.2 at 6 months and 33.4 at 1 year (p < 0.0001), the ADL off score from 31.8 to 18.2 at 6 months and 18.6 at 1 year (p < 0.0001), the off score from contralateral bradykinesia from 11.6 to 5.6 at 6 months and 4.1 at 1 year (p < 0.0001), and the percentage of awake time with dyskinesias from 37.4 to 17.4% at 6 months and 21.1% at 1 year (p < 0.0001). The presence of mild or moderate degrees of cortical atrophy, PVL, and DWML had no effect on clinical outcome. Patients with status cribriformis and those with lacunes tended to show comparatively less improvement in the UPDRS ADL off score (p = 0.014 and p = 0.016, respectively) at 6 months. This tendency was also present in patients with status cribriformis 1 year postoperatively (p = 0.046). Patients with both status cribriformis and lacunes had a higher incidence of transient altered mental status immediately postoperatively (p = 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS
Mild-to-moderate degrees of cortical atrophy, ventriculomegaly, and ischemic encephalopathy do not predispose patients to less favorable outcomes following unilateral pallidotomy. Patients with both status cribriformis and lacunes have a higher risk of transient side effects; however, with regard to clinical outcome, these patients should not be denied surgical treatment.


The 1876 British Cruelty to Animals Act introduced an unprecedented administrative system to supervise any experiment "calculated to give pain" to a living animal. The act, which was in force for a hundred years, established a tight system of control over animal experimentation, including a small, but vigorous, inspectorate. This article explores the relations between bureaucracy and the production of knowledge through the correspondences, memos, and notes taken by two principal inspectors under the act. The inspectors belonged to the worlds of both law and science. Coming from within the scientific profession, their close ties to medical social circles not only evoked critique but also helped them fulfill their tasks and gain access to research laboratories. Archival records examined here for the first time show that, although the inspectors downplayed animals' pain in physiological laboratories, the inspectorate played an important role in shaping the experimental space and practice, thus facilitating the production of "ethical scientific facts." The inspectors' work modeled the new legal regime of animal experimentation regulation, making them indispensable agents in the act's coproduction of knowledge and public order.


A new method based on a solution graft technique was used to prepare poly (vinylidene fluoride) grafted polystyrene sulfonated acid (PVDF-g-PSSA) proton exchange membrane. Polystyrene is grafted into PVDF modified by plain sodium silicate (Na4SiO4). There is a linear relationship between the degree of grafting and the content of Na4SiO4. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy is used to characterize changes of the membrane's microstructures after grafting and sulfonation. The morphology of the membrane's microstructures after grafting and sulfonation is studied by scanning electrolytic microscope (SEM). The effect of plain sodium silicate (Na4SiO4) concentration and relative humidity on the conductivity of the electrolyte was investigated by the impedance at room temperature. The results show that the styrene has been grafted into PVDF. The conductivity of PVDF-g-PSSA electrolyte doped 10% plain sodium silicate (Na4SiO4) is 0.016 S/cm at room temperature. The conductivity of the electrolyte changes slightly at a relative humidity range of 20%-70%. The weightlessness of PVDF-g-PSSA electrolyte heated to 40°C was less than 2%, which indicated that water capacity was good.


Abstract This study aims at developing a valid and reliable scale to measure information and communication technology (ICT) teachers' self-efficacy related to the Turkish national framework of ICT competencies. For statistical procedures, data were respectively analyzed with exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Furthermore, test-retest procedure was carried out to confirm the time invariance of the scale. EFA results revealed that the scale's seven-factor structure accounts for 65.90 percent of total variance. CFA results produced an acceptable statistical support for model-data fit between the observed item scores and the seven-dimension scale structure (X2/df= 1.98, RMSEA= .073, CFI= .86). The standardized regression weights between the latent and observed variables ranged from .57 to .89 and Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the scale subdimensions ranged from .80 to .88. Besides, the item-scale correlations varied between values of .53 and .79. As a result, the developed scale is a likert questionnaire and composed of 33 five-point items with seven sub-dimensions.


Larry Summers' re-use of the phrase appears justified in the present global economic climate since many factors contribute to comparatively poor OECD economic performance and weakening macroeconomic policy instruments. Some are measurement issues and others might be seen as the downsides of globalisation, which has integrated financial markets and redirected growth from the advanced toward the emerging economies. Yet measurable rates of return on investment do appear to be impaired by rises in perceived investment risks, institutionalised risk aversion, increased ageing and dependency, declining shares of government spending in public investment and R&D with rising shares of these directed to health, the retention of trade distortions, new concentration in industrial structure and a slower rate of human capital accumulation, not to mention an unexpected global abundance of fossil fuels and a slower Chinese economy. The information and literature supporting these concerns is reviewed and implications for global and Australian policy are inferred.


The Mexican peso crisis of December 1994 sent shock waves through the world's financial and policy communities. What is to some extent surprising is not that the Mexican economy faced a major currency crisis, but that so many analysts and observers were shocked by this turn of events. Mexico had a remarkable historical precedent: merely a dozen years earlier Chile suffered a prophetically similar crisis. Like Mexico during the 1980s, Chile during the 1970s undertook major structural reforms characterized by a drastic opening of the economy, a sweeping privatization program and a major deregu- lation effort aimed at creating a modern financial sector. In Chile, as in Mexico more than a decade later, the use of a predetermined exchange rate to eliminate inflation, combined with very large capital inflows that were intermediated by a weak banking system, generated a situation of exchange- rate overvaluation, a vulnerable financial sector and eventually the collapse of the currency. This paper provides a comparative analysis of some macroeconomic aspects of the Chilean and Mexican crises and discusses the extent to which exchange-rate-based stabilization programs are successful in reducing or even eliminating inflationary inertia? The paper provides a brief overview of the Chilean and Mexican reform and stabilization programs started in 1975 and 1985. I develop a theoretical model on the effects of exchange- rate-based stabilization programs on inflationary inertia. The model emphasizes the roles of government preferences and credibility. I use detailed data on Chile and Mexico to assess whether these programs affected the time series properties of inflation; more specifically, I investigate whether they reduced inflationary inertia.


The investigation was limited mainly to NaCl.Mn++ and NaCl.Ca++, and was concerned with colour centres in single crystals of these materials. The crystals were grown by the Kyropoulis technique and optical absorption measurements were made with a grating spectrophotometer. The emphasis of the work was placed on the production of Z-bands in NaCl. Ca++ but the effects of optical and thermal bleaching and of quenching were investigated in all crystals. The results of the work on NaCl.Mn++ confirmed the model of Schneider and Caffyn (1955) in which the Mn++ ions and positive ion vacancies are deposited at dislocations and become more uniformly distributed after quenching. In particular, it was found that quenched crystals were luminescent after being X-rayed, indicating the presence of dispersed Mn++ ions; a similar result was found in NaCl .Ni++. A short study of the distribution of Mn++ in crystals was also made. It was found that Mn++ and Ni++ gave rise tocharacteristic bands in the ultra violet, a weakband at 275 Mµ with Mn++, a strong band at 247 mµ with Ni++. The presence of a band at 255 mµ in NaCl.Cu++ was confirmed. No evidence was obtained for the formation of Z-bands by Mn++, Ni++ or Cu++. Calcium was found to be much more soluble in NaCl than manganese, and enhanced the colourability proportionately less, pointing to a close relationship between solubility, mis-match, and the production of negative ion vacancies. Analysis of the F-band in coloured NaC1.Ca++ crystals indicated that Z- centres were formed by X-rays. Quenching enhanced the number of Z-centres, indicating a deposition at dislocations similar to that found for manganese. Evidence for the formation of both Z(_1)- and Z(_2)- centres by X-irradiation was found. In crystals containing a high proportion of Ca++ a band at 345 mp, which is probably to be associated with Ca++- positive ion vacancy complexes, was prominent. The results of an investigation of the effect of concentration of Ca++ on the growth of the F- and Z-bands indicated that a Ca++ ion introduced about ten negative ion vacancies into the crystal. On the basis of a statistical mechanical model of the formation of Z-centres it was inferred that of the Ca++ ions producing Z-centres no more than 2% were associated with positive ion vacancies, confirming the work of Etzel (l952). It was also inferred that the activation energy associated with the liberation of Ca++ ions from dislocations to form incipient Z-centres was 1.9 eV, a value which agreed well with an estimated value. Factors influencing the width of the F-band are also discussed.


Local government in South Africa (SA) has come a long way from the period when there were over 800 racially segregated municipalities scattered all over the country. Since the new Constitution took effect in October 1996 and the Local Government: Municipal Demarcation Act was promulgated in July 1998, the municipalities have been merged into currently 284 municipalities which now cover the country in a 'wall-to-wall' manner, and are focused on the provision of an increased number of diverse and complex basic municipal services to geographical areas and citizens that were maybe previously neglected. To achieve the last-mentioned, the municipalities' outer boundaries have been re-demarcated, newly merged municipalities with new organisational structures and policies have been established and transformed organisational arrangements have been incorporated for more accessible and transparent citizen participation (Craythorne, D.L. 2006. Municipal administration: The handbook. Cape Town: Juta. p. 51-54). This paper highlights the nature and extent of a transformed local government sphere in South Africa, some important legislation, and some relevant challenges regarding water affairs and municipal governance. Hopefully this research will contribute to the cultivation of an environment conducive to consolidating local governance and water management knowledge creation in the local government sphere of SA.


Several recent detailed chemical kinetic models have been computationally investigated to assess the predictive competency of nitrogen oxides for gaseous low carbon number fuels. The objective is to understand how the recent models perform in predicting nitric oxide (NO) emissions at atmospheric and high-pressure including rich flames. Three different detailed kinetic models are considered for this assessment. For kinetic analysis, we employed one-dimensional laminar premixed flame (LFS) calculations using kinetic tool Cantera (v2.4) against measurements of laminar flame speed and NO speciation. The study is conducted at atmospheric and higher pressure (10, 14.6 atm) for varying equivalence ratios. In general, the kinetic models satisfactorily reproduced the LFS data. For NO prediction, acceptable emulation of measured data is observed at 1 atm for lean to slightly rich flames (Φ = 0.5–1.05), while greater discrepancies emerge at the rich flame conditions. At higher pressure, significant underprediction are also observed across for all three models. We found that prediction discrepancies at the rich mixtures are primarily linked to the prompt-NO pathways. Furthermore, rate of production analysis manifests that a consensus for the main reaction channels for NO at rich flames is yet to be established for these recent models.


We present a system for collecting and analyzing information on street lighting infrastructure. We develop a car-mounted sensor platform that enables collection and logging of data on street lights during night-time drive-bys. We address several signal processing problems that are key to mapping street illumination levels, identifying street lamps, estimating their heights, and geotagging them. Specifically, we highlight an image recognition algorithm to identify street lamps from the video data collected by the sensor platform and its subsequent use in estimating the heights of street lamps. We also outline a framework to improve vehicle location estimates by combining sensor observations in an extended Kalman filter framework. Our eventual goal is to develop a semi-live virtual 3-D street lighting model at urban scale that enables citizens and decision makers to assess and optimize performance of nighttime street lighting.


Wind turbines (WTs) create electricity by utilizing the energy of the wind. As a result, wind turbine control and cost-effective operation were studied. The control system offers a long service life, maximum energy output, and safety. On control methods and control strategies, various ways for limiting and optimizing energy consumption were discussed. Integration of wind power may compromise the stability of the transient system. Asynchronous induction generators cannot handle the quantity of reactive power generated in wind energy applications. WTs are usually constructed to withstand inclement weather but not for high speeds or torque. Strong aerodynamic torques or rotational speeds are capable of destroying WT blades. To prevent this, WTs always have a cutout speed over which the turbine will be stopped by its brakes. When excessive wind speeds endanger the safety of the turbines, the WT employs a range of control techniques. As a result, all WTs are constructed using a power control method. This can regulate pitch and stall. Passive or active stall control can be applied to the WT. Therefore, this study analyzed the associated technologies, the maintenance of wind turbines, the cost, the many types of wind turbine controllers, and the negative effects and roadblocks unique to the wind energy industry.


m-Dihydroxybenzene (mDHB) was used as a potential fluorophore for the first time to develop a new fluorescence ratiometric sensor with carbon dots (CDs) for glucose detection. mDHB itself cannot fluoresce, but its oxide can produce fluorescence and also quench the fluorescence of CDs. Using this characteristic of mDHB, we introduced two tandem enzyme catalytic oxidation reactions (catalysed by glucose oxidase and horseradish peroxidase) to quantitatively form mDHB oxide. Glucose was oxidized by oxygen to form hydrogen peroxide under the catalysis of glucose oxidase, and then hydrogen peroxide was used to quantitatively oxidize mDHB by the catalysis of horseradish peroxidase, so mDHB oxide was quantitatively related to glucose. Furthermore, the resulting mDHB oxide can cause changes in the fluorescence ratios of CDs and mDHB oxides. Therefore, glucose can be detected by the fluorescence ratio. The results showed that glucose content had a good linear relationship with the fluorescence ratio of mDHB oxide and CDs, and the detection limit can reach 0.35 μM. The strategy was simple and cost-effective as no chemical synthesis, modification and separation procedures were involved, which can open up a new avenue for glucose detection.


Manufacturers of drives have put in much effort in recent years to reduce the acoustic noise of their systems by improving the motors and by paying attention to the pulsewidth-modulation schemes that are used. In this paper, the acoustic noise is reduced by inserting an active filter between the inverter and the induction machine, and in this way, the acoustic behavior of an existing drive can be improved without needing to replace components or having to modify the drive. An active notch filter is proposed that uses a switched capacitor. Test results on a 3-kW drive show that the active notch filter works well and that it is possible to achieve a reduction of 15 dB in the line current and stator vibrations. This is a significant reduction and could substantially reduce the radiated noise at a troublesome acoustic frequency


National parks have always been an emotive and iconic symbol, ever since the first parks of the modern era were created in the mid-nineteenth century. This book, based on original research, delves deeply into their character and significance, and the larger context in which they developed. The book celebrates the deserved attractiveness of the parks as wilderness or 'spectacle' to millions of visitors, but also emphasises how there was nothing inevitable, self-sustaining or without cost in their magnificence and accessibility. Those early parks were a powerful unifying force as national 'playgrounds', especially as motor transport democratised their use. However they also provoked bitter conflict in their dispossession of local communities and perhaps deliberate segregation of people from scenery and wildlife. That first century of national parks, which concluded with the significant break of the Second World War and the subsequent development of more international approaches to conservation, left an uncertain legacy. It was a fragile foundation from which to build what became an integral part of today's conservation movement.


The concept of the preferred customer status with key suppliers and the consequential competitive advantage for the buying firm have received an increasing amount of attention from academics in recent years. However, the current literature mainly takes a theoretical stance by referring to the social exchange theory (SET), resource-based view, social capital theory (SCT) and transaction cost economics (TCE). Based on the findings of a multiple case study at X, this study depicts the antecedents and benefits affiliated to the preferred customer status from a more practical view. Moreover, next to presenting practical confirmation of a large number of theoretical concepts, some novel and unexpected findings are also outlined. A commitment to innovation, joint relationship effort and the offer of business opportunities for the supplier were, among others, confirmed as drivers of a preferred customer status, while the study also showed that a firm's reputation, supplier award, reduction of production mistakes, frequency of new developments and innovations, stable financial performance, operating in at least three countries, and strategic pricing, may be relevant motivations for suppliers to award a customer with a preferred customer status. With regard to the benefits of the preferred customer status, the achievement of seemingly impossible objectives, cost reduction initiatives and increased technological input by the suppliers were, among others, confirmed, while the offering of additional services, such as help in order scheduling, on-site analyses and audits, an exclusive cross-site development team, definition of a specific price level and payment terms extension were proposed as preferred customer status benefits. These also constitute elements which have been neglected in the scientific discourse. If additional similar case studies follow, the scientific groundwork of the preferred customer status could genuinely be reinforced and significant and actionable methods for obtaining future preferential treatment from key suppliers could be revealed for managers.


Bile acid malabsorption is a common cause of chronic diarrhoea in people, however it has never previously been investigated in dogs, despite clinical suspicion of its existence. The goal of this study was to assess the feasibility of measuring serum 7α-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one (C4) in dogs, as a potential marker of bile acid malabsorption, and to see whether this is related to clinical disease severity or the presence of hypocobalaminaemia. Serum C4 concentration was measured in 20 clinically healthy control dogs and 17 dogs with chronic diarrhoea. Three of the 17 affected dogs (17.6 per cent) had a C4 concentration significantly above the range of clinically healthy dogs; these dogs were all poorly responsive to conventional therapy. These results suggest that bile acid malabsorption may be a clinically relevant disorder in dogs with chronic diarrhoea and serum C4 may be a useful tool to investigate this further.


Emerging Internet applications create the need for advanced packet classifiers. We propose a novel multifield classification scheme, called P/sup 2/C, which exploits the strengths of state-of-the-art memory technologies to provide wire-speed classification performance for OC-192 and beyond, in combination with very high storage efficiency and the support of fast incremental updates. Key features of the new scheme are its ability to adapt to the complexity of a classification rule set, whereas the storage requirements and update dynamics can be tuned at the granularity of individual rules. This makes P/sup 2/C suitable for a broad spectrum of applications.


The Five Classics associated with Confucius formed the core curriculum in the education of Chinese literati throughout most of the imperial period. In this book Michael Nylan offers a sweeping assessment of these ancient texts and shows how their influence spread across East Asia. Nylan begins by tracing the formation of the Five Classics canon in the pre-Han and Han periods, 206 B.C. to A.D. 220, revising standard views on the topic. She assesses the impact on this canon of the invention of a rival corpus, The Four Books, in the twelfth century. She then analyses each of the Five Classics, discussing when they were written, how they were transmitted and edited in later periods, and what political, historical, and ethical themes were associated with them through the ages. Finally she deliberates on the intertwined fates of Confucius and the Five Classics over the course of the twentieth century and shows how their contents are relevant to much newer concerns.


Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) can be divided into two major classes, namely radio-loud and radio-quiet AGNs. A small subset of the radio-loud AGNs is called blazars, which are believed to be unified with Fanaroff-Riley type I and type II (FRI&II) radio galaxies. Following our previous work, we present a latest sample of 966 sources with measured radio flux densities of the core and extended components. The sample includes 83 BL Lacs, 473 flat spectrum radio quasars, 101 Seyferts, 245 galaxies, 52 FRIs&IIs and 12 unidentified sources. We then calculate the radio core-dominance parameters and spectral indices and study their relationship. Our analysis shows that the core-dominance parameters and spectral indices are quite different for different types of sources. We also confirm that the correlation between core-dominance parameter and radio spectral index extends over all the sources in a large sample presented.


This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows a cluster of hundreds of galaxies located about 7.5 billion light-years from Earth. The brightest galaxy within this cluster, named SDSS J1156+1911, is visible in the lower middle of the frame. It was discovered by the Sloan Giant Arcs Survey, which studied data maps covering huge parts of the sky from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The survey found more than 70 galaxies that look to be significantly affected by a cosmic phenomenon known as gravitational lensing.