The year of 2015 was a successful year for Chinese film industry. It was also a monumental year for the development of Chinese entertainment law. During the past year, we witnessed a substantial increase of cases before the Chinese courts that are of interest to the entertainment industry, including the substantial similarity test in copyright infringement analysis, protection of movie titles and story characters through trademark and anti-unfair competition law, protection of private rights to privacy and reputation, and the treatment of freedom of speech and the public's right to information. Many of the courts' rulings and reasoning began to show characteristics that converge with the U.S. entertainment law practice, and as such, these cases may have far-reaching implications in the future progress of China's entertainment industry. This paper discusses the trends and implications of Chinese entertainment law between 2014-15, with focuses on copyright law, trademark law, anti-unfair competition law and defamation. Each case starts with a brief summary of facts and legal reasoning, then followed by a comparison with its U.S. counterpart in the U.S. entertainment case law. Here, I show a notable trend in Chinese entertainment law — the surprising convergence of its legal reasoning with that of the long-established U.S. case law and practice, albeit with certain exceptions. In the end, the paper proposes that the continued cooperation between Chinese film industry and Hollywood is expected to create more convergence not only in the industry practices but also in the legal practices, thus have significant implications to the development of Chinese jurisprudence in the long run.


Israel's China policy has traditionally been influenced by Washington's explicit and perceived pressure. In the early 2010s, Israel started to explore a more independent path in regard to China. In view of global developments, such a change seemed reasonable. However, prevailing conditions prevent Israel from developing an independent China policy.


Why do so few women hold elected office on local government bodies? The answer to this question encompasses a combination of barriers to running for office. The research discussed in this article involved two surveys conducted in Wisconsin. The findings indicate that in addition to systemic barriers, such as time away from work, many women are hesitant to serve on local governing bodies for other reasons, including concerns related to confidence and potentially inaccurate perceptions. This cautiousness was not as evident in male potential candidates. Understanding the barriers women face may inform how Extension educators work to address skewed compositions of local governing bodies as part of capacity-building efforts.


Textbook of Otolaryngology by DavidD DeWeese MD and William H Saunders MD 3rd ed pp x+457 illustrated 103s 6d Saint Louis: C VMosby 1968 London: Henry Kimpton The first section of the book is devoted to a detailed account of the method of examination of the patient in the clinic, and also of the procedures of endoscopy and mediastinoscopy. As an introduction to each article, there is a useful account of the anatomy and physiology of the part under discussion, stressing the features of diagnostic or operative importance. The photographs and diagrams throughout are of excellent quality, and clearly described. The diagrams explaining the physiology of hearing and showing the site and effect of the various lesions leading to deafness, together with the object of the operative procedures designed to relieve it, are an example of the simple manner in which some of the more complicated aspects of the subject are clarified. Included in the text are articles on plastic surgery, speech defects, tinnitus and vertigo, and a chapter on the facial nerve. The scope and indication for most of the operations in the specialty are discussed. A great deal of ground is covered for a took of this size, and there is meticulous attention to practical details, such as the instructions given to patients after tonsillectomy and tracheostomy. The book is well printed and easily read. It is of great practical help to house officers and junior registrars, and those reading for higher degrees will gain a sound basic knowledge of the subject.


Summary
Newcastle disease virus (NDV) production by individual chick embryo cells was determined after infection of monolayer cultures, trypsinization and distribution of the cells into a large number of test tubes so that each tube would contain an average of one cell (or in some experiments 10 cells). The content of each tube was assayed for p.f.u. 18 h later. The statistical analysis of the results indicates the presence of at least three distinct populations of cells with regard to NDV production: one non-producing population (50 to 90% of the cells); one low-producing population (80% of the producing cells) and one high-producing (20% of the producing cells).
The relative proportions of these cell populations was the same whether primary, secondary or tertiary cultures were used, and also when the cell-cultures were obtained from different tissues of the chick embryo.


The choice of fixation in revising failed femoral components remain controversial. The early to mid-term re-revision rates for aseptic loosening of the revised femoral components ranged from 2% to 14% with early cementing techniques. They dreopped to 0% to 7% with improved cementing techniques, but the re-revision rates increased with time, and the rates of radiological loosening were still high. Early to mid-term re-revision rates ranged from 0% to 16% with proximally porous-coated femoral components, which also carried a significant intraoperative fracture risk that ranged from 12% to 46%. The most reliable option in femoral revision is probably the extensively porouscoated femoral component, the re-revision rates for which ranged from 0 to 6% after an average follow-up of 4 to 13 years. (Hong Kong Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery 2002;6(1):47-56)


Memory T cells exhibit a high degree of heterogeneity in terms of their phenotype and functional characteristics. It has been proposed that the CCR7 chemokine receptor divides memory T cell populations into central memory T cells and effector memory T cells with distinct functions in secondary immune responses. We were interested whether this hypothesis holds true in experiments performed on Ag-specific CD8+ T cells. To identify CCR7+ cells, we engineered a fluorescent ligand for CCR7; results with the new CC chemokine ligand 19 chemotetramer were verified by staining with a CCR7 mAb. Staining with the CC chemokine ligand 19 chemotetramer reveals two subsets within CCR7+ cells: a CCR7int population containing memory cells and a CCR7high population containing naive T cells. Phenotypic analysis of MHC class I/peptide tetramer-positive cells revealed that HLA-A2-restricted CMV-specific CD8 T cells exhibit the lowest percentage of CCR7+ cells (0.5–5%), while HLA-A2-restricted flu- and HLA-B8-restricted EBV-specific CD8 T cells showed the highest (45–70%). Intracellular staining of unstimulated cells revealed that both CCR7int- and CCR7−-specific CD8 T cells exhibit a detectable level of perforin. Both CCR7int and CCR7− Ag-specific CD8+ T cells produced IFN-γ and TNF-α following short-term peptide stimulation. Therefore, our finding that CCR7+CD8+ T cells are able to exert immediate effector functions requires a substantial revision to the central and effector memory hypothesis.


An important aspect of multidimensional wellbeing distributions is the correlation between different dimensions. We propose two indices for measuring multidimensional inequality, derived from two underlying social evaluation functions. These functions aggregate both across dimensions and across individuals. The social evaluation functions differ only with respect to the sequencing of aggregation. Aggregating first across dimensions is more attractive since it allows the inequality index to depend on the correlation between dimensions. We illustrate both indices, and the impact of correlation sensitivity, using Russian household data between 1995 and 2005 for four dimensions of wellbeing: expenditure, health, schooling and housing quality.


Mullite interlayer of the carbon fiber reinforced Si-C-N matrix composite (C/Si-C-N) was fabricated by liquid precursor impregnation and pyrolysis (PIP). The mixture of aluminium secbutoxide (A1OBu) and tetraethoxysilicate (TEOS) were used as starting materials. The monophase polymer gel used as mullite precursor could be formed from the mixture in the semi-closed air. A mullite interlayer with a thickness about 500nm is obtained at 850°C- 1200°C. The fiber/interlayer bonds are tight. The carbon fibers are not damaged in the fabrication procedure.


Recently, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) community has witnessed an application focus shift. Although, monitoring was the initial application of wireless sensor networks, in-network data processing and (near) real-time actuation capability have made wireless sensor networks suitable candidate for event detection and alarming applications as well. Unreliability and dynamic (e.g. in terms of deployment area, network resources, and topology) are normal practices in the field of WSN. Therefore, effective and trustworthy event detection techniques for the WSN require robust and intelligent methods of mining hidden patterns in the sensor data, while supporting various kinds of dynamicity. Due to the fact that events are often functions of more than one attribute, data fusion and use of more features can help increasing event detection rate and reducing false alarm rate. In addition, sensor fusion can lead to more accurate and robust event detection by eliminating outliers and erroneous readings of individual sensor nodes and combining individual event detection decisions. In this paper, we propose a two-level sensor fusion-based event detection technique for the WSN. The first level of event detection in our proposed approach is conducted locally inside the sensor nodes, while the second level is carried out in a level higher (e.g., in a cluster head or gateway) and incorporates a fusion algorithm to reach a consensus among individual detection decisions made by sensor nodes. By considering fire as an event, we evaluate our approach through several experiments and illustrate impact of sensor fusion on achieving better results.


Abstract : The long-term goal is to develop and implement a fully coupled global atmosphere/wave/ocean/land/ice prediction system capable of providing daily predictions out to 10 days and weekly predictions out to 30 days. Initial Operational Capability is targeted as 2018. Predictions will provide environmental information to meet Navy and DoD operations and planning needs throughout the globe from undersea to the upper atmosphere and from the tropics to the poles. The system will be implemented on Navy operational computer systems, and the necessary processing infrastructure will be put in place to provide products for Navy fleet user consumption.


A major role of local acidosis in long lasting excitation and sensitization of cutaneous nociceptors has recently been demonstrated. In inflamed tissue, acid pH meets with a mixture of inflammatory mediators which, by themselves, stimulate nociceptors though being subject to profound tachyphylaxis. We have mimicked this condition in a rat skin-saphenous nerve preparation in vitro which allows direct application of chemicals to the isolated receptive fields at the corium side. Stimulant solutions used were CO2-saturated "synthetic interstitial fluid" (CO2-SIF, pH 6.1), and "inflammatory soup" (IS) in submaximal concentration containing bradykinin, 5-HT, histamine, prostaglandin E2 (all 10(-6) M in SIF at 38.5 degrees C and pH 7.0), and a combination made of CO2-saturated IS (CO2-IS, pH 6.1). Identified mechano-heat sensitive ("polymodal") C-fiber terminals (n = 36) were treated with these solutions for 5 min at 10 min intervals or for 30 min of sustained stimulation: 20 units responded to CO2-SIF, 12 to IS, whereas 27 units (75%) were excited by CO2-IS. Thus, 6 out of 15 units insensitive to either of the two basic solutions were stimulated by their combination. This enhanced effect of CO2-IS was also expressed in shorter latencies (than with CO2-SIF) and in a significantly larger mean response magnitude of the fiber population: 152 spikes with the combination versus 45 spikes evoked by IS and 93 spikes by CO2-SIF (n = 25; p < 0.002 and < 0.02, respectively, Wilcoxon test).


Parallel computing techniques have become more important especially now that we have effectively reached the limit on individual processor speeds due to unacceptable levels of heat generation. Multi-core processors are already the norm and will continue to rise in terms of number of cores in the near future. However clusters of machines remain the next major step up in system performance effectively allowing vast numbers of cores to be devoted to any given problem.
It is in that context that this Professional Doctorate thesis and Portfolio exists. Most parallel or cluster based software is custom built for an application using
techniques such as OpenMP or MPI. But what if the capability of writing such software does not exist,
what if the very act of writing a new piece of software compromises the integrity of an industry standard piece of software currently being used in a research project?
The first outcome was to explore how grid/cluster computing teaching and learning facilities could be made accessible to students and teaching staff alike within the Department of Computing, Engineering & Technology in order to enhance the student experience. This was achieved through the development of VCNet, a virtual technology cluster solution, based on the design of the University of Sunderland Cluster Computer (USCC) and capable of running behind a dual boot arrangement on standard teaching machines. The second outcome of this Professional Doctorate was to produce a framework for
efficient cluster computing services in a collaborative university environment. Although small by national and international standards, the USCC, with its forty machines and 160 cores, packs a mighty punch in computing terms. Through the work of this doctorate, 'supercomputer class' performance has been successfully used in cross-
disciplinary research through the development and use of the Application Framework for Computational Chemistry (AFCC). In addition, I will also discuss the contribution this doctorate has made within the context of my community of practice by enhancing both my teaching and learning contribution as well as cross-disciplinary research and application.


Sustained growth occurs through innovations in markets and organizations. Developing an innovative idea requires capital. Combining ideas and capital poses a problem of trust: the investor must trust the innovator not to steal his capital, and the innovator must trust the investor not to steal his ideas. Overcoming distrust between innovator and investor determines whether an economy grows and a country becomes rich, or an economy stagnates and a country remains poor. When property is secure from thieves, people will invest in the future. If contract law is ineffective, investors only trust family and friends to develop businesses. Finance is personal. When contract law is effective, contracts can provide sufficient trust for investors to choose business partners who are not friends or family. If corporate law is ineffective, however, investors must actively participate in the business to protect their interests. Finance is private. For passive investors to put their funds under the control of strangers, corporate law (or, more broadly, business law) must protect their interests. Finance is public. Thus three types of law underpin three types of finance: Property law underpins relational finance, contract law underpins private finance, and business law underpins public finance. Widening the scope of finance removes constraints on sustained growth. Most poor countries have good law on the books and bad law in practice. The main obstacle to sustained growth in poor countries today is ineffective civil and business law. Effective laws require reliable and timely sanctions for lawbreakers, which depend on state institutions and social


A Dissertation submitted to Makerere University School of Public Health in partial fulfillment for the award of the Degree of Master of Public Health


Cloud Computing refers to the use of the computing capabilities of remote computers, where the user has considerable computing power without having powerful units. Scientific applications, usually represented as Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs), are an important class of applications that lead to challenging problems for resource management in distributed computing. With the advent of Cloud Computing, particularly the IaaS offers for on demand virtual machines leasing, multiple jobs execution, consisting of a large number of DAGs, needs an elaborated scheduling and resource provisioning policies, for efficient use of resources. Only few works exists that consider this problem in the context of clouds environment. In goal of optimization and fault tolerance, DAGs applications are generally partitioned into multiple parallel DAGs using clustering algorithm and assigned to VM (Virtual Machine) resources independently. In this work, we investigate through simulation, the impact of clustering for both provisioning and scheduling policies in the total makespan and financial costs for execution of user's application. We implemented four scheduling policies well-known in grid computing systems, and adapted clustering algorithm to our resource management policy that leases and destroys dynamically VMs. We show that dynamic policies can achieve equal or even better performance than static management policies.


Abstract:Managing the influx of personal computers (pc) presents a significant dilemma for most management information systems (mis) executives. On the one hand, too tight control will limit the creative use of pcs and may in fact force users "underground" (where formal standards, methodologies, and controls have little effect). A laissez-faire approach, on the other hand, can often lead to inappropriate, ineffective applications being developed by users on their pcs.This article presents the results of a field study of how eight firms are striking this balance, and it suggests two frameworks for understanding how firms must change their pc management practices in different circumstances.


UNIBRAL is a program of cooperation between Germany and Brazil sponsored by CAPES Foundation, a body of the Brazilian Ministry of Education, jointly with DAAD - Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst, a German academic cooperation body. Many Brazilian and German Universities are currently participating in this program. This paper describes a successful experience under the UNIBRAL program between the University of Amazonas in Manaus-Brazil and the University of Stuttgart in Germany. This program provides an opportunity to increase cooperation between these two universities aiming at introducing new curriculum guidelines and new courses, on the one hand, and increasing and renewing practical experiments, on the other. In this specific case, the expertise of the German University was useful in bringing about a successful educational transfer to the Brazilian University


Scholars have surveyed the Beaumont and Fletcher canon and related the plays' plots, themes, and dramatic strategies to Elizabethan, Jacobean, Caroline, and Carolean dramatic practices, and recently critics have addressed the psychologically compelling effects of the tragicomic genre on characters' sexual dilemmas and the plays' symbolic relation to James I's court and his absolutist politics.(1) However, the later effects of conflicted social and political relations on Restoration productions of such plays as A King and No King and the cultural significance of interdependent relations among sexual desire, gender, and politics in the plays have gone largely unremarked. Among the most popular of over thirty plays from the Beaumont and Fletcher canon revived during the Carolean period (1660-1685), A King and No King appealed in fascinating ways to playgoers' preoccupation with shifts in the political order and challenges to their cultural identities under the restored monarchy of Charles II. The play ascribes conflicts among the elite to excessive passions, particularly the sexual and social aspirations of King Arbaces and his family. I shall argue that as Beaumont and Fletcher strive to regulate their characters' transgressive desires, they also show how such desires proceed from the patriarchal and absolutist inclinations of the court. Gradually and fitfully, the play destabilizes conventional and coercive oppositions between reason and passion, virtue and vice, and king and subject, suggesting finally the political construction of such polarities, and hence the possibility that one's identity, desires, and cultural position may be changed and negotiated. A King and No King's appeal to early Carolean audiences is intimately related to the way the play represents issues that were less negotiable for their Jacobean predecessors: the challenges of redefining and reclaiming their positions and privileges under a monarch whose authority was under debate and not absolute. The play was first produced in 1611, less than a year after the breaking of the Great Contract between James I and Parliament over his illegal impositions. Jacobean society's dismay over James's absolutist practices resembles the concerns of many after Charles II's restoration, when the memory of Charles I's rule and the rebellion against it was painful, and the hopes that reciprocity between king and subject had been miraculously restored were anxiously high and soon disappointed. I suggest, then, that the attention to A King and No King issues not only from its generic qualities but largely from playgoers' heightened unease over restoring and refiguring their own compromised positions and identities. The successful revival of A King and No King occurred during a period of acutely contested social, political, religious, and economic entitlements and obligations, a time when the elite were particularly anxious over the effects of social mobility and political preferment. The responses of the king's subjects to dramatic transformations both on and offstage were conditioned by their experience of Charles I's regicide, the civil wars, the stunning restoration of Charles II, his subsequent notoriety for licentious sexual relations, and his struggles to negotiate political settlements and royal prerogatives with the Cavalier Parliament. Such an audience, led by the elite classes yet socially and politically heterogeneous, may have found A King and No King even more pressing and topical than their Caroline and Jacobean precursors. After all, the play depicts a passionate and arrogant ruler who is fortunately redeemed from sin, virtually deposed from and restored to kingship, and educated in the limits of his absolutist designs. It is likely that Carolean playgoers responded readily to Arbaces's conflated roles as subject and king because of Charles II's constrained political prerogatives and because of his well-known sexual penchant for women at court and playhouse. …


The pupunha (Guilielma speciosa) is the fruit of a palm tree typical of the Brazilian Northern region, whose stem is used as a source of heart of palm. The fruit, which is about 65% pulp, is a source of oil and carotenes. In the present work, an analysis of the kinetics of supercritical extraction of oil from the pupunha pulp is presented. Carbon dioxide was used as solvent. The extractions were carried out at 25 MPa and 323 K and 30 MPa and 318 K. The chemical composition of the extracts in terms of fatty acids was determined by gas chromatography. The amount of oleic acid, a saturated fatty acid, in the CO2 extracts was larger than that in the extract obtained with hexane. The overall extraction curves were modeled using the single-parameter model proposed in the literature to describe the desorption of toluene from activated coal.


Previous gene function analyses have indicated that HOXA9, DEK, CBL and CSF1R are aberrantly expressed in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). We analyzed the expression of these genes in a series of 41 adult patients with AML using quantitative real-time RT-PCR, and tested the association of the expression with the following hematologic and clinical parameters: age, FAB, immunophenotype and karyotype aberrations. A high proportion of the patients showed over- or underexpression of the analyzed genes. DEK was overexpressed in 98% of the cases, whereas CBL, CSF1R and HOXA9 were either overexpressed in 20%, 17% and 78% or underexpressed in 20%, 42% and 15% of the cases, respectively. Patients whose karyotype contained t(8;21)(q22;q22), showed lower relative expression of HOXA9 at a statistically significant level <formula>(<italic>p</italic><0.05).</formula> Bone marrow samples without expression of CD34 antigen were associated with either overexpression of DEK or HOXA9. Furthermore, an association was found between the AML-M2 subtype and lower expression of CBL, CSF1R or HOXA9, and between the AML-M5 subtype and CBL or CSF1R overexpression.


Background: Uterine sarcomas, cancers that arise from connective tissue in the uterus, are extremely rare, which has limited their epidemiologic assessment. Their relatively poor prognosis, early age at diagnosis, and higher incidence among Black compared with White women, supports the need for identifying risk predictors. Accordingly, we performed a pooled analysis of data collected in the Epidemiology of Endometrial Cancer Consortium (E2C2). Methods: Data from five case-control and ten cohort studies were pooled, resulting in 229 uterine sarcoma cases, 7,623 endometrioid endometrial carcinoma cases (the most common form of uterine cancer), and 28,829 controls. Using multivariable polytomous logistic regression, we estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for risk factors associated with uterine sarcoma and endometrioid endometrial carcinoma compared to controls. Risk factors examined included body mass index (BMI), age at menarche, parity, menopausal status, menopausal hormone use, oral contraceptive (OC) use, smoking status, and history of diabetes. Similarly, we examined associations between these epidemiological factors and the two most common histological subtypes of uterine sarcoma, endometrial stromal sarcoma and leiomyosarcoma. Results: Compared with controls, significant risk factors for uterine sarcoma included obesity [BMI ≥ 30 vs. BMI < 25 kg/m2, OR (95% CI): 1.73 (1.22-2.46)] and a history of diabetes [2.31 (1.40-3.80)], while older age at menarche was inversely associated with risk [OR for age at menarche ≥ 15 years vs. < 11 years: 0.71, (0.34-1.45), p-trend: 0.0414]. Being postmenopausal, a menopausal estrogen-alone or estrogen plus progestin user, an OC user, or a current or former smoker were inversely but not significantly associated with uterine sarcoma risk. BMI was much more strongly related to endometrioid endometrial carcinomas than to uterine sarcomas (p-heterogeneity=0.0069), with a 3-fold increased risk (95% CI 2.82-3.26) found for the heaviest compared to the leanest women. Risk factor associations for histological subtypes of uterine sarcoma, endometrial stromal sarcoma (n=98) and leioyomyosarcoma (n=82), were similar to patterns observed for uterine sarcomas overall. Conclusions: In the largest epidemiological study to date of uterine sarcomas, associations between menstrual, hormonal, and anthropometric risk factors and uterine sarcoma were similar to those identified for endometrioid endometrial carcinomas. Our results are consistent with previous reports suggesting a role for hormonal imbalances in the etiology of uterine sarcoma. Future studies with larger numbers of cases should explore additional risk factors by histological subtypes of uterine sarcoma to explain differences in age- and race-specific incidence rates. Citation Format: Ashley S. Felix, Linda S. Cook, Mia M. Gaudet, Thomas E. Rohan, Leo J. Schouten, Veronica W. Setiawan, Lauren A. Wise, Louise A. Brinton. The etiology of uterine sarcomas: A pooled analysis of the epidemiology of endometrial cancer consortium (E2C2). [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eleventh Annual AACR International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research; 2012 Oct 16-19; Anaheim, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Prev Res 2012;5(11 Suppl):Abstract nr A114.


Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) make a significant contribution to national economies. They have distinct characteristics and challenges which need to be addressed differently compared to large organisations. These characteristics may lead SMEs to different practices in many areas of business. Knowledge management (KM) is one of these areas in which SMEs' practices could be different to large organisations. The aim of this paper is to present a developed framework which identifies SMEs' KM strategic orientations. Based on a wide range of literature, four main dimensions: knowledge source (external, internal), knowledge type (codification, personalisation), knowledge focus (exploration, exploitation) and knowledge breadth (narrow, broad), are identified as bases on which KM strategic orientation can be investigated. Three main strategic orientations: aggressive, conservative and balanced have also been identified based on these dimensions. These three orientations have been found related and linked to Miles and Snow's (1978) typology which classifies organisations into three strategies: prospectors, defenders and analysers.


There is an increasing need for sharing data that contains personal information from distributed database. The data is collected from multiple providers. The sharing of data can be used for research in different fields. While sharing a data first, personal information must be hidden from user. There are different techniques used for encryption of personal information. The process of removing personally identifiable information from data sets is called Anonymization. The techniques are k-anonymity, bucketization and slicing. Privacy for data and verification against privacy is very important and challenging task. Best utility must be preserved for collaborative data and loss of data must be avoided. Secure Multi Party (SMP) and Trusted Third Party (TTP) protocols create anonymized data. There may be a problem of insider and outsider attacker's for collaborative data. The proposed work will be the implementation of Slicing algorithm which gives more security to the database.


Reactive systems are, generally, highly successful for dynamic uncertain domains. Analysing why this should be so indicates the main criterion for success is that information apprehended about a given situation can render it certain enough to reliably inform action. A case is made for informing action by dynamic world modelling for domains where this does not hold. When the issue of attending selectively to situational information is introduced, the case for dynamic world modelling is enhanced. A system incorporating selective perception which dynamically models its domain is described.


The launch of American Health & Drug Benefits™ brings with it the sentinel question: How shall we frame the healthcare debate? The answer we propose involves a vision of how healthcare standards change; who is involved in the process of care; what are their systems, needs, agendas, and incentives; and what are the evidentiary methods proper for determining success or failure.

All the forces involved in healthcare delivery come to bear at the point of formulary and benefit design coverage, ie, the only real healthcare intervention is that which is covered. The managerial competency needed to make good coverage decisions entails a new type, and a blending, of clinical, financial, and regulatory best practices. This journal seeks to provide a forum for understanding the intersection of these forces and how they form the governing dynamics of health and drug benefits coverage. What's more, we will examine these forces from the different viewpoints of the key stakeholder groups—patients, providers, payors, purchasers, manufacturers, evaluators, distributors, regulators, academia, and investors—with the idea that they are seated at a round table where the idea of hierarchy is subordinate to the pursuit of consensus. The ideas and resources for healthcare progress have never been more sanguine. However, they require a new perspective to master them, a new spirit of cooperation, and a new willingness to try new systems and dispense with traditional prerogatives.

That this new and urgent pursuit of excellence was precipitated principally by cost rather than quality concerns does not detract from its value to the practice of medicine. What has become evident is that healthcare cannot tolerate inefficiency on any level: not clinical, not business systems, not regulations.

There is yet another new shift in the winds that attends this quest for consensus around best practices: reconciling the responsibilities of the disparate stakeholders toward one another. Could this mean inter-stakeholder cooperation and transparency? The only answer the healthcare system can tolerate—it is increasingly clear—is yes, though it will take years for the adversarial tone of the healthcare debate to be replaced by a sane, professional discourse. This will occur when they share one another's realities. In short, good communications will make not only good neighbors, but also a system that is not fighting against itself. The healthcare debate need not—indeed should not—take on the characteristics of a series of power plays, any more than the human body's own organs would compete with one another for "mastery" over the body.

The confluence of stakeholder interests and demands on healthcare delivery constitute a composite picture of the ever-changing healthcare debate. The vast scope of activity may make the prospect of aligning activities seem daunting, but there are few fundamental structural pillars to the process of care, and these form the scope of inquiry of American Health & Drug Benefits™.

The first is value, as reckoned by a balance of Cost, Quality, and Access. The second is the triad of Clinical, Business, and Regulatory forces that determine health and drug benefits. The third is the "college of stakeholders," each with its own incentives, data, and agendas. The fourth is Culture—healthcare coverage models are products of the culture in which medicine, and the ancillary business and regulatory pillars supporting it, is practiced. The fifth is Evidence—what do we know, what can we measure, about the Clinical, Business, and Regulatory actions we undertake in the name of healthcare?

There are 2 central questions asked by American Health & Drug Benefits™: (1) Will we conduct the healthcare debate among stakeholder groups as adversaries or as colleagues? (2) Is healthcare on the verge of profound success or imminent collapse? The editorial philosophy of American Health & Drug Benefits™ is collegial, positive, and professionally optimistic, ie, the healthcare system paradigm is undergoing its transformation, not its demise. All parties to the process of care hold immense resources and answers for the quest for better healthcare; hence, American Health & Drug Benefits™ gives all full respect and invites them to share their needs, data, systems, and ideas for change. The positive outlook of American Health & Drug Benefits™ is predicated on the notion that challenges to healthcare are as fixable now as they were when scrubbing before surgery was a new idea. Right now, the looming question is financing for the many healthcare interventions that have been devised. This is not a cause for pessimism but for innovation: It means only that our ability to discover cures has lately outpaced our systems for paying for them. It would be infinitely more disturbing if the problem were the reverse.

Thus, American Health & Drug Benefits™ offers a fresh look at the forces of change to healthcare benefits and their downstream effects on Cost, Quality, and Access. What will be the impact of value-based benefit designs? What, in fact, does this new term even mean in practical terms? How much regulation is for the good of healthcare innovation, and how can government contribute to an environment wholesome to R&D? How can payor models balance the needs of patients and investors alike? How can quality control standards provide doctors helpful guidelines without taking from them the professional latitude they require to avoid devolving into "healthcare vendors"?

The answer is that there are no simple answers, only lots of them, and they require a healthy, informed, 3-dimensional perspective on the part of all parties. Ultimately, the Great Healthcare Transformation is under way, and the system of care is going to require adept management of overall resource allocation, the Holy Grail of today's value-based healthcare system. In the following pages and issues of American Health & Drug Benefits™, you will encounter practical solutions and experiences advanced by different sectors. We are providing a repository of ideas for wresting healthcare improvement out of the countless forces and players driving benefits decisions. And we invite you here and now to contribute your articles and bring your vision and its outcomes to the table where all can assess them.

The editorial approach to achieving a managerial perspective in American Health & Drug Benefits™ follows, therefore, a paradox that begins with the Roman Empire's "divide and conquer" tactic—identify the forces and players and their systems and the measurable effects of same—and then turns on its heel to align these forces and systems. The goal: a realistic unity among stakeholders based on taking the high road in every facet affecting the process of care. This amounts to "divide and reunite," always keeping the interventions under the magnifying glass to see how adequately they really serve Cost, Quality, and Access to care.

So let the debate continue, in the spirit of good will and common interest: the patient, the patient, the patient. American Health & Drug Benefits™ will endeavor to help chronicle it. By balancing the Clinical, Business, and Regulatory forces in each benefits decision, by respecting and accommodating valid needs of every stakeholder group, we will continue groping forward in the search of the humane treatment of those who are ill or injured. And that is not a cause for alarm, but for unceasing, united action.


There is an urgent need to solve the problems of secure storage, reliable sharing, access control and privacy protection in medical industry. In this paper, we propose EHRChain, a blockchain-based EHR system using attribute-based and homomorphic cryptosystem to solve the above problems. First, we design a medical record storage scheme to realize secure high capacity medical data storage and reliable sharing based on blockchain technology and IPFS. Second, we propose an improved cryptographic primitive called SHDPCPC-CP-ABE. Our SHDPCPC-CP-ABE realizes the functions of semi-policy hiding and dynamic permission changing based on partial ciphertext simultaneously. Furthermore, our program achieves the neutrality of the subject of judicial identification in medical disputes and fine-grained access control of medical data. Third, our system applies an additive homomorphic cryptosystem, Paillier cryptosystem with optimized parameters on patients' privacy protection during the process of the medical insurance claim. After analysis and experiment, we have proved that the SHDPCPC-CP-ABE is indistinguishable under chosen plaintext attack and takes one third of the time of CP-ABE when changing access policy. Our system has higher performance than other EHR systems based on blockchain.


Abstract Raman spectroscopy is widely used to identify mineral and fluid inclusions in host crystals, as well as to calculate pressure-temperature (P-T) conditions with mineral inclusion elastic thermobarometry, for example quartz-in-garnet barometry (QuiG) and zircon-in-garnet thermometry (ZiG). For thermobarometric applications, P-T precision and accuracy depend crucially on the reproducibility of Raman peak position measurements. In this study, we monitored long-term instrument stability and varied analytical parameters to quantify peak position reproducibility for Raman spectra from quartz and zircon inclusions and reference crystals. Our ultimate goal was to determine the reproducibility of calculated inclusion pressures ("Pinc") and entrapment pressures ("Ptrap") or temperatures ("Ttrap") by quantifying diverse analytical errors, as well as to identify optimal measurement conditions and provide a baseline for interlaboratory comparisons. Most tests emphasized 442 nm (blue) and 532 nm (green) laser sources, although repeated analysis of a quartz inclusion in garnet additionally used a 632.8 nm (red) laser. Power density was varied from <1 to >100 mW and acquisition time from 3 to 270s. A correction is proposed to suppress interference on the ~206 cm–1 peak in quartz spectra by a broad nearby (~220 cm–1) peak in garnet spectra. Rapid peak drift up to 1 cm–1/h occurred after powering the laser source, followed by minimal drift (<0.2 cm–1/h) for several hours thereafter. However, abrupt shifts in peak positions as large as 2–3 cm–1 sometimes occurred within periods of minutes, commonly either positively or negatively correlated to changes in room temperature. An external Hg-emission line (fluorescent light) can be observed in spectra collected with the green laser and shows highly correlated but attenuated directional shifts compared to quartz and zircon peaks. Varying power density and acquisition time did not affect Raman peak positions of either quartz or zircon grains, possibly because power densities at the levels of inclusions were low. However, some zircon inclusions were damaged at higher power levels of the blue laser source, likely because of laser-induced heating. Using a combination of 1, 2, or 3 peak positions for the ~128, ~206, and ~464 cm–1 peaks in quartz to calculate Pinc and Ptrap showed that use of the blue laser source results in the most reproducible Ptrap values for all methods (0.59 to 0.68 GPa at an assumed temperature of 450 °C), with precisions for a single method as small as ±0.03 GPa (2σ). Using the green and red lasers, some methods of calculating Ptrap produce nearly identical estimates as the blue laser with similarly good precision (±0.02 GPa for green laser, ±0.03 GPa for red laser). However, using 1- and 2-peak methods to calculate Ptrap can yield values that range from 0.52 ± 0.06 to 0.93 ± 0.16 GPa for the green laser, and 0.53 ± 0.08 GPa to 1.00 ± 0.45 GPa for the red laser. Semiquantitative calculations for zircon, assuming a typical error of ±0.25 cm–1 in the position of the ~1008 cm–1 peak, imply reproducibility in temperature (at an assumed pressure) of approximately ±65 °C. For optimal applications to elastic thermobarometry, analysts should: (1) delay data collection approximately one hour after laser startup, or leave lasers on; (2) collect a Hg-emission line simultaneously with Raman spectra when using a green laser to correct for externally induced shifts in peak positions; (3) correct for garnet interference on the quartz 206 cm–1 peak; and either (4a) use a short wavelength (blue) laser for quartz and zircon crystals for P-T calculations, but use very low-laser power (<12 mW) to avoid overheating and damage or (4b) use either the intermediate wavelength (green; quartz and zircon) or long wavelength (red; zircon) laser for P-T calculations, but restrict calculations to specific methods. Implementation of our recommendations should optimize reproducibility for elastic geothermobarometry, especially QuiG barometry and ZiG thermometry.


This paper aims to present the successes and failures of a supply-oriented drug policy through the
case of Mexico. It examines the Merida Initiative's goals and achievements since its adoption.
Special attention is devoted to the Initiative after 2010, when the Obama Administration sought to
shift the focus of the assistance towards strengthening rule of law, enhancing the capacities of
democratic institutions, primarily the justice sector, and also improving the human rights status of
the country. To assess the achievements and failures, David Baldwin's (2001) guidelines are
adopted: effectiveness, cost to user and target, stakes for user and target. The assessment might
provide valuable insights for future policy implications. In either case (before and after the shift),
however, it seems that the supply-oriented drug policy is associated with too high of a cost to be
labeled as successful.


Abstract Aim Preclinical work indicates that low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) not only drives atherosclerosis by directing the innate immune response at plaque level but also augments proinflammatory monocyte production in the bone marrow (BM) compartment. In this study, we aim to unravel the impact of LDL-C on monocyte production in the BM compartment in human subjects. Methods and results A multivariable linear regression analysis in 12 304 individuals of the EPIC-Norfolk prospective population study showed that LDL-C is associated with monocyte percentage (β = 0.131 [95% CI: 0.036–0.225]; P = 0.007), at the expense of granulocytes (β = −0.876 [95% CI: −1.046 to −0.705]; P < 0.001). Next, we investigated whether altered haematopoiesis could explain this monocytic skewing by characterizing CD34+ BM haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) of patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) and healthy normocholesterolaemic controls. The HSPC transcriptomic profile of untreated FH patients showed increased gene expression in pathways involved in HSPC migration and, in agreement with our epidemiological findings, myelomonocytic skewing. Twelve weeks of cholesterol-lowering treatment reverted the myelomonocytic skewing, but transcriptomic enrichment of monocyte-associated inflammatory and migratory pathways persisted in HSPCs post-treatment. Lastly, we link hypercholesterolaemia to perturbed lipid homeostasis in HSPCs, characterized by lipid droplet formation and transcriptomic changes compatible with increased intracellular cholesterol availability. Conclusions Collectively, these data highlight that LDL-C impacts haematopoiesis, promoting both the number and the proinflammatory activation of circulating monocytes. Furthermore, this study reveals a potential contributory role of HSPC transcriptomic reprogramming to residual inflammatory risk in FH patients despite cholesterol-lowering therapy.


Despite the prominence of cognitively oriented research in interpersonal communication, relatively little is known about the interplay of cognitive and communicative processes during conversation. For interpersonal communication scholars or at least those interested in interaction, the study of cognition is most useful if it reveals how interactants produce, monitor, modify, and process messages while engaged in conversation. The failure to collect data about in-process conversational cognition is partially due to excessive reliance on what have been identified as "implementation level" cognitive theories and models. Such theories are primarily concerned with specifying cognitive "architectures" and provide little guidance about how cognition is adapted to conversational tasks. However, a dearth of methodological creativity is also partially to blame for the lack of data about in-process conversational cognition. On encountering the admittedly formidable methodological difficulties of collecting data about conversational cognition, researchers have tended to rely on traditional but inadequate methods, or worse, have simply ignored theoretical questions pertinent to cognition in-process. This article suggests that claims about cognition can be made at four levels—biological, implementation, algorithmic, and rational—but that theoretical claims about conversational cognition can most usefully be pursued at the rational and algorithmic levels. In an effort to promote more research at these levels, criteria for studying conversational cognition are proposed, and promising methods are reviewed.


PURPOSE
Because the Ling six-sound test is based on American English phonemes, it can yield unreliable results when administered to non-English speakers. In this study, we aimed to improve specifically the diagnostic palette for Mandarin Chinese users by developing an adapted version of the Ling six-sound test.

METHOD
To determine the set of testing sounds, we performed an exhaustive acoustic and statistical analysis in which we considered not only the general acoustic properties but also the order of acquisition and the inter- and intraspeaker variability.

RESULTS
Six phonemes (/u, ə, a, i, tɕh, s/) were selected as the testing items for the Mandarin Chinese sound test because these sounds exhibit a highly compartmentalized frequency specificity, spanning the entire Chinese speech spectrum, as well as a relatively low articulatory variability and can be acquired fairly early.

CONCLUSION
Through adopting language-dependent modifications, caregivers and professionals should have a more adequate tool to monitor children's auditory access to the full range of Mandarin speech sounds.


The focus of this thesis is on the classification methods of time series, including clustering and discriminating techniques. The study in this thesis involves the examination of a number of existing approaches to time series classification, as well as the proposal of some new methodologies.
An introduction to time series classification, the motivations, and an overview of the thesis are given in Chapter 1. In Chapter 2, two variable selection procedures are proposed in the context of feature-based time series clustering. First, five commonly used time series features are discussed and evaluated, and the evaluation is implemented by using two non-hierarchical methods (k-means and k-medoids algorithms) and four hierarchical methods (single linkage, complete linkage, average linkage and Ward's technique). Then two variable selecting procedures are proposed, namely, the forward selection and backward elimination. The aim of these two procedures is to select those features that maximize the quality of the partitioning structure, which is measured by a specific criterion. Therefore, the intent is to select those variables that maximize the specified criterion.
In Chapter 3, a new test of hypotheses for classifying stationary time series based on bias-adjusted estimators of fitted autoregressive model is proposed. In the literature, many of the existing classification methods may achieve poor performance when dealing with relatively short time series, and the aim of this proposal is to provide a reliable approach to classifying time series when the sample size is not sufficiently large. Simulation results show that when the time series is short, the size and power of the proposed test are reasonably good, and thus this test is reliable in discriminating between short-length time series from different data generating processes. In addition, the application results demonstrate that the proposed test achieves reasonably good performance in classifying relatively short series.
In Chapter 4, an approach to time series classification is proposed based on the polarization of full forecast densities of the observed series. First, the bootstrap forecast replicates incorporating bias-correction and stationarity-correction are obtained for each time series, and based on these replicates a non-parametric kernel density estimation technique is implemented to approximate the forecast densities. Then the discrepancies of the forecast densities of pairs of series are estimated by a polarization measure, which captures the overlap between two distributions. Following the asymptotic distribution theory of the polarization measure, a hypothesis test is constructed to determine whether two forecast densities are significantly different. This approach to classifying univariate time series is extended in Chapter 5, where an innovative methodology for classifying multivariate time series is developed. Besides, some of the existing classification algorithms where multivariate time series are classified in either a supervised or an unsupervised manner are discussed. Conclusions of this thesis are drawn in Chapter 6.
The main recommendations of this thesis are as follows:
• In order to detect a more distinct clustering structure, it is worth considering variable selection in cluster analyses to eliminate the non-informative variables, especially in the context of feature-based time series clustering. As a result, the two variable selection procedures proposed in Chapter 2 are recommended.
• Most of the existing approaches to time series classification cannot produce desirable results when dealing with small samples. If the lengths of time series are not sufficiently large, it is necessary to consider those methodologies that can achieve reasonably good small sample properties. In such cases, the test of hypotheses proposed in Chapter 3 is recommended, as it tends to achieve favourable performance even when the sample size is small.
• If the research interest of classification analysis is on a specified future time period, one should seek for the methodologies that directly relate to the forecasts. In such cases, the polarization-based classification methods proposed in Chapters 4 and 5 are feasible, as the time series are classified according to the discrepancy of their forecast densities. It is worth noting that these methods also appear to produce reasonably good results when dealing with small samples, as the bias-correction has also been taken into consideration.


Abstract. In Mexico, 16 rivers directly discharge into the Gulf of Mexico. The Mexican rivers and those coming from the United States generate large regions in which phytoplanktonic primary production possesses a seasonal component that is linked to these nutrient-rich freshwater inputs. In the present study, new flow and daily nutrient data were obtained for the largest Mexican rivers. These data were integrated as forcing factors in a configuration of the hydrodynamic Coastal and Regional Ocean COmmunity model coupled to an N2PZD2 biogeochemical model. To correctly represent biological processes in coastal regions, a biological bottom condition was implemented in the biogeochemical model. With this condition, it was possible to represent remineralization on the continental shelf of the Gulf of Mexico. We present a 21 year simulation using two different configurations. The first included river forcing, and the second did not consider their influence. The results were validated with satellite images of the surface concentration of chlorophyll and compared with data from previous studies. The coupled model was able to realistically reproduce the seasonal dynamics of primary production in the Gulf of Mexico based on the concentration and distribution of chlorophyll, both at the surface and in the water column. Finally, the physical processes that influence the dynamics of primary production in the deep region and continental shelf of the gulf were defined. In the deep region, primary production was dominated by vertical mixing induced by the passage of cold fronts during winter and mesoscale structures. On the continental shelf, such dynamics were dominated by coastal upwelling and fluvial nutrient contributions.


ABSTRACT The existing literature on early childhood education (ECE) quality is predominantly from the US or other developed countries. In low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs), systematic research on ECE quality, however, is very limited. In the present study, we explore variation in structural and process indicators of ECE quality in two Eastern European LMICs, Kosovo and Ukraine, using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System Pre-K (CLASS) as a measure of process quality for the first time in these countries. We also include Finland because governments in Kosovo and Ukraine show a particular interest in the Finnish education model to inform policy reforms. Participants were kindergarten teachers (n=177) from these three countries who were observed in their classrooms and asked to complete questionnaires. Results indicated variability in ECE quality at various levels, both within and across the three countries. Directions for future research and implications for practice and policy development in LMICs are discussed.


Twenty-seven male and 12 female healthy volunteers were tested twice with 2-7 days separation. Hoffman (H) reflexes and muscle (M) activation waves were obtained from the posterior tibial nerves bilaterally. Results were compared to those obtained from patients presenting with a complaint of low back and/or leg pain, without compressive neuropathy. M, F, H latencies and H/Mmax ratio were recorded. H/M ratio and latency comparisons were not significantly different in the control group left to right or test to test. For the low back pain group, 10-14 days following the initial evaluation, each subject returned for a follow-up test. During the interim, the patient was followed conservatively using manipulation and home care. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) testing of ratio values demonstrated a difference in overall mean values (p greater than 0.001) for comparisons between the control (mean = 0.367), pretest (mean = 0.695), and posttest (mean = 0.558) values. Sensitivity in discriminating acute low back pain subjects from healthy controls was tested by determining the distance between mean H/M values for the probability curves of each population, with an arbitrary cutoff value of 0.6 as the upper limit normal. Sensitivity distance was 2.29 with a likelihood ratio of 3.04. This suggests that an H/Mmax ratio greater than or equal to 0.6 will correctly identify two of three patients with idiopathic low back pain.


There are millions of "subsistence" entrepreneurs around the world, located primarily in developing countries, engaging in micro enterprise to eke out a survival living when other labor market options become unavailable. However, the vast majority of them are trapped in a "survival and maintenance" cycle. This article focuses on a phenomenon involving a subset of subsistence entrepreneurs who do manage to thrive and grow their enterprise. We label the phenomenon "transformative subsistence entrepreneurship," reflecting (1) significant positive change in their personal, social and economic well-being, and (2) significant positive influence on their immediate communities. Drawing on 18 in-depth qualitative interviews, we show how the phenomenon plays out and how transformative subsistence entrepreneurs carry out vital marketing activities in their local exchange contexts, rising above substantial life challenges and end up improving the economic capacities of their communities as well. We contend that the contributions of a network of such transformative subsistence entrepreneurs, each seen at a micro enterprise level of analysis, can accumulate and coalesce to emerge as the backbone of the informal economy at a macroeconomic level.


Estimates of soil hydraulic parameters are essential for predicting and describing water movement in unsaturated soils. Inverse approaches to estimating soil hydraulic parameters have gained great favor. However, limited effort has been placed on obtaining estimates using observed experimental data. Moreover, little has been advanced in applying these approaches to larger scale, multidimensional systems. In this research, several transient laboratory experiments were conducted using both repacked and intact soil cores, and larger scale 1 and 3-dimensional repacked soil columns. Measurements of soil water matric potential and water content were used to obtain parameter estimates for the closed form van Genuchten soil water relations. For the soil cores, measurements were obtained using pressure outflow, upward infiltration and evaporation procedures. For the 1-dimensional soil columns, these same data were obtained using upward and downward infiltration procedures. For the 3-dimensional soil columns, a point source application of water was used. Optimizations were carried out With HYDRUS-1D and HYDRUS-2D using observed matric potential and water content data to define the objective function. For the repacked and intact soil cores, parameters were also estimated by nonlinear least squares fit to retention data obtained from the pressure outflow and evaporation procedures. Parameter estimates obtained by nonlinear least squares fits to the pressure outflow and evaporation retention data were seen to be similar to those obtained by optimization. However, parameter estimates based on data obtained from the upward infiltration experiments were considerably different than those obtained from the evaporation experiments. These differences are attributable to hysteresis. Parameter estimates obtained for the repacked soil cores were seen to be inadequate in terms of predicting matric potential responses in larger scale soil columns. This was also true when parameter estimates obtained from the larger scale repacked soil columns were used to predict matric responses during 3-dimensional flow in the largest scale soil columns. The results of this work show that inverse methods when used in conjunction with upward infiltration and evaporation procedures can provide accurate estimates of unsaturated hydraulic parameters. When used together, these experimental methods can be used to obtain data and hydraulic parameters describing both the imbibition and drying branches of the soil water retention response. These results further show that estimated parameter values based on measurements made at one scale tend to be inappropriate in terms of adequately describing systems at larger scales.


This work presents the synthesis of a hybrid core–shell structured Fe(0)@Fe oxide and Mn(0)@Mn oxide (ZVIM) nanocomposite by an ultrasonically assisted hydrothermal process for decontamination of arsenic in groundwater. Our material possesses a unique core–shell structure with zero-valent Fe and Mn in the core encapsulated by a thin layer of their respective oxides. Herein, the synthesized material utilizes the synergetic effect of Mn-oxide layers of zero-valent manganese (ZVM) to oxidize As(III) to As(V) and iron oxide layers of zero-valent iron (ZVI) for sequestration of total arsenic. The maximum adsorption capacity of ZVIM is calculated to be 58.9 mg g−1 and 101.95 mg g−1 for As(III) and As(V), respectively, which is greater than that of the individual zero-valent manganese and zero-valent iron. The uptake kinetics of both As(III) and As(V) show >80% removal within a reaction time of 20 minutes. The adsorption kinetics follow a pseudo-second order model, suggesting the chemisorption nature of the adsorption process. FTIR and XPS analyses reveal the mechanism of surface interaction of the adsorbent with arsenic species. Furthermore, the effectiveness of our adsorbent is revealed by groundwater tests where the final arsenic concentrations in samples were reduced below the WHO limit for drinking water.


Polymeric biointerfaces are already being used extensively in a wide set of biomedical devices and systems. The possibility of controlling cell populations on biointerfaces may be essential for connecting biological systems to synthetic materials and for researching relevant interactions between life and matter. In this study, we present and analyze synergies between an innovative approach for surface microstructuring and a molecular nanopatterning procedure of recent development. The combined set of techniques used may be instrumental for the development of a new generation of functional polymeric biointerfaces. Eukaryotic cell cultures placed upon the biointerfaces developed, both before and after molecular patterning, help to validate the proposal and to discuss the synergies between the surface microstructuring and molecular nanopatterning techniques described in the study. Their potential role in the production of versatile polymeric biointerfaces for lab- and organ-on-a-chip biodevices and towards more complex and biomimetic co-culture systems and cell cultivation set-ups are also examined.


Wireless sensor networks (WSN) have been considered as a promising method for reliably monitoring both civil and mili-tary environments under hazardous or dangerous conditions. Due to such environments, the power supplies for sensors in the network are not usually rechargeable or replaceable. There-fore, the energy efficiency is critical for the lifetime and cost of WSN. Numerous mechanisms have been proposed to reduce the impact of communication protocols on the overall energy dissipation of WSN. The low-energy adaptive clustering hierarchy (LEACH) deploys randomized rotation of cluster-heads to evenly distribute the energy load among all sensors in a WSN. This paper proposes an improved LEACH algorithm called partition-based LEACH (pLEACH), which firstly parti-tions the network into optimal number of sectors, and then selects the node with the highest energy as the head for each sector, using the centralized calculations. The simulation re¬sults and analysis show that pLEACH could achieve much better performance of WSN in terms of the energy dissipation and network lifetime.


U-Pb zircon data (secondary ion mass spectrometry [SIMS] and thermal ionization mass spectrometry [TIMS] analyses) from igneous rocks with differing structural fabrics in the Sierra Norte de Cordoba, western Argentina, suggest that the sedimentary, tectonic, and magmatic history in this part of the Eastern Sierras Pampeanas spans the late Neoproterozoic–Early Cambrian. A deformed metarhyolite layer in metaclastic sedimentary rocks gives a crystallization age of 535 ± 5 Ma, providing a limit on the timing of the onset of D 1 deformation and metamorphism. The new data coupled with published Neoproterozoic zircon dates from a rhyolite beneath the metaclastic section and detrital zircon ages from the section indicate a late Neoproterozoic to Early Cambrian depositional age, making this section time equivalent with the Puncoviscana Formation (sensu lato) of northwest Argentina. A synkinematic granite porphyry gives a crystallization age of 534 ± 5 Ma, providing a limit on the age of dextral mylonitization in the Sierra Norte area (D 2 event). The new age is consistent with ages of 533 ± 4 Ma from a mylonitic granite with dextral sense-of-shear fabrics and 531 ± 4 Ma from a late-synkinematic dacitic porphyry, which broadly indicates the final age of dextral deformation. A crystallization age of zircons from the postkinematic, high-level El Tio granite (530 ± 4 Ma) suggests that both stages of Pampean deformation and regional metamorphism, accompanied by synkinematic intrusions, were followed by uplift and took place during a very short time span in the Early Cambrian. This is supported by zircon dates of 523 ± 5 Ma from a rhyolite to dacite in the western part of the Rodeito area and dates from the undeformed El Escondido rhyolite and granite of 519 ± 4 Ma and 521 ± 4 Ma, respectively. These three crystallization ages also indicate that ductile dextral shearing and mylonitization associated with the Pampean D 2 event terminated in the Early Cambrian. Both stages of Pampean deformation in this segment of the western pre-Andean Gondwana margin seem to represent a continuous event that can be related to oblique dextral convergence between the overriding plate in the east and the subducting and finally colliding plate in the west. The postkinematic intrusions and extrusions are related to the late stage of the Pampean magmatic history, which terminated before Early Ordovician (Famatinian) time.


Few mystery aficionados would quarrel with Stephen F. Soitos's ranking of Walter Mosley as that genre's preeminent African American writer ("Black Detective" 1003). Mosley's reputation derives mainly from five L. A. novels that appeared between 1990 and 1996. (1) These popular works, all featuring colors in their titles, arguably established Easy Rawlins, an unlicensed Watts troubleshooter, as the most fascinating detective to debut in the nineties and made President Bill Clinton Mosley's number one fan. Emphatically Mosley has acknowledged his effort to construct a hero with biracial appeal, one who resembles traditional white detectives in "trying to live in a world where there is no law ... trying to impose some sense of justice in a world that has no sense of justice" (Coale 203). Furthermore, Mosley freely acknowledges his attempt to use not only Rawlins but a larger black community to give a "racial-political bent" to his mysteries (203). Thus, Mosley asserts, he uses "a wide range of black characters ... to reflect ... black life as if it were human life in America, [to take] the point of view that black people are insiders rather than standing on the outside looking in" (McCullough 67). By situating his hero in a "labyrinthine and loyalty bound black community" (Coale 179), Mosley follows earlier black mystery writers. Moreover, according to Stephen Soitos, he uses standard detective conventions to critique mainstream attitudes towards race, class, and blacks (Blues 52). In his Rawlins series in particular, Mosley revives an African American literary strategy of adapting popular cultural forms to critique racial hypocrisy. Conspicuous in his artistic development and typical of his retrospective approach, Mosley's second Rawlins novel, A Red Death (1991), views the Red witch hunt of the early 1950s from the perspective of a black man who is "one-third street-wise survivor, one-third unwitting private investigator, and one-third Robin Hood" (Mitgang C16). (2) In A Red Death Mosley nuances conventions of the hard-boiled private eye genre to the milieu of an urban black protagonist and adheres to the genre's tradition of inner-directed honor-bound heroism. Of the conventions Mosley tailored to Easy Rawlins, perhaps none is more prevalent in the genre than the hero's arsenal of ruses, a reflection of the self-reliant ingenuity of lone agents of natural justice in corrupt cities. John Cawelti and George Grella, whose commentaries constitute a virtual poetics of the genre, provide background for other conventions tapped by Mosley in A Red Death. For example, the hero's willingness to break laws for a just cause manifests what Cawelti identifies as the detective/hero's defining "his own concept of morality and justice, frequently in conflict with the social authority of the police" (143). Another genre staple, the hero's rapport with oppressed or otherwise marginalized figures, grows out of his replacing "the subtleties of the deductive method with a sure knowledge of his world and a keen moral sense" (Grella 414). Also, resourcefulness in holding authorities at bay stems from the hero's conventional self-control and physical toughness: Unlike the hero of the classic whodunit, he usually has to withstand intimidation (Cawelti 142). Not infrequently his physical sturdiness is tested, sometimes by pre-Miranda police officers, who are, as Grella notes, "incompetent, brutal, or corrupt" (414). And almost invariably he demonstrates a capacity for administering poetic justice, an aspect of his meting out what Cawelti calls "the just punishment that the law is too mechanical, unwieldy, or corrupt to achieve" (143). To appreciate how rapidly Mosley mastered--and surpassed--his chosen genre, we have only to compare his ensemble use of the foregoing conventions in A Red Death to their respective individual deployment in later novels by genre maestros John D. MacDonald, Robert B. Parker, Raymond Chandler, and Dashiell Hammett. …


ABSTRACT The areal extent and distribution of individual beds in flysch are a matter of vigorous debate. The writers studied these problems by detailed investigation of lithologic variations in a stratigraphic interval between two tuffs in the lower Stanley Group of the Ouachita Mountains. A few key beds were recognized and compared in four stratigraphic sections; most individual layers are too discontinuous to be correlated over the area of approximately 20 by 40 km. The theoretical horizontal extent of sandstone and siltstone beds calculated from changes in their total and individual thickness between sections is limited to 20 to 60 km toward the north and east. A general northward decrease in the number and thickness of sandstone beds, in the sandstone to shale ratio, and in grain size in addition to the distribution of internal sedimentary structures and extent of tuff beds in the area studied indicate a southern, lateral source of sediment. The flysch beds probably were deposited in the form of a large fan. In addition to this regional pattern the vertical variation of "proximal" sandy facies and "distal" shaly facies was observed in each section. It is suggested that the sandy facies with granule conglomerate laminae, ripped-up pieces of shale, and plant debris was deposited in or near submarine channels, whereas the shaly facies with burrowed siltstone beds originated in a more quiet environment between channels. The migration of channels on a submarine fan may have been one factor influencing the distribution of these facies.


During three years of LHC data taking, the ATLAS collaboration completed three petascale data reprocessing campaigns on the Grid, with up to 2 PB of data being reprocessed every year. In reprocessing on the Grid, failures can occur for a variety of reasons, while Grid heterogeneity makes failures hard to diagnose and repair quickly. As a result, Big Data processing on the Grid must tolerate a continuous stream of failures, errors and faults. While ATLAS fault-tolerance mechanisms improve the reliability of Big Data processing in the Grid, their benefits come at costs and result in delays making the performance prediction difficult. Reliability Engineering provides a framework for fundamental understanding of the Big Data processing on the Grid, which is not a desirable enhancement but a necessary requirement. In ATLAS, cost monitoring and performance prediction became critical for the success of the reprocessing campaigns conducted in preparation for the major physics conferences. In addition, our Reliability Engineering approach supported continuous improvements in data reprocessing throughput during LHC data taking. The throughput doubled in 2011 vs. 2010 reprocessing, then quadrupled in 2012 vs. 2011 reprocessing. We present the Reliability Engineering analysis of ATLAS data reprocessing campaigns providing the foundation needed to scale up the Big Data processing technologies beyond the petascale.


Sugar mills produce a range of by-products during the process of sugar extraction. Mill mud is one of the by-products produced in significant volume. The practice of spreading mill mud over nearby cane fields has been the primary means of disposing of mill mud for many years. The continued application of mill mud at high rates, without appropriate recognition of its nutrient content, the soil condition, crop nutrient requirements, slope and proximity of application sites to environmentally sensitive areas has raised a number of concerns in recent years, including over-fertilization, heavy metal contamination, leaching, and offsite impacts from drainage to waterways. This study develops a regional mathematical programming model to determine optimal rates of mill mud application for various soil types and distances from the mill in Mackay region in central Queensland.


Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) results from a generalized deficiency of mitochondrial iron-sulfur protein activity ascribed to mitochondrial iron overload. However, iron overload appears to be a late event in the disease. Here we show that neither superoxide dismutases nor the import iron machinery was induced by an endogenous oxidative stress in FRDA patients' fibroblasts in contrast to control cells. Superoxide dismutase activity was not induced in the heart of conditional frataxin-KO mice either. This suggests that continuous oxidative damage to iron-sulfur clusters, resulting from hampered superoxide dismutase signaling, is causative of the mitochondrial deficiency and long term mitochondrial iron overload occurring in FRDA.


Purpose: The purpose of this article is to analyse methods and factors that describe reliability in modern GNSS systems. Design/Methodology/Approach: This analysis was conducted for several branches of human activity that rely on technical systems for assuring safe and reliable operations. Transportation, logistics, geodetical measurements, or development are just few professional activities dependent on satellite positioning. The reliability of the whole transport or technological chain is often combined with the singular reliability of satellite monitoring systems. Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) are present where human activity must be backed with precise positioning and timing information. Findings: This paper will provide a review of researches in the field of GNSS on the side of the multi-constellation receiver concerning reliability issues. Practical Implications: A combination of technical criteria to mention safety, maintainability, quality, cost, risk, or availability will be addressed as a comparative analysis. Originality/Value: The results of the study reflect the applicability and effectiveness of used indicators that can contribute to many human activites. Consequently, the fundamental strength of proposed factors can contribute to many business branches where accuracy and standard measures of reliability used in single constellation (like GPS) receivers differ then multi-constellation ones where more complex reliability measures must be provided.


they have used only their own clinical or experimental recordings, which are well produced. The extensive references given with each chapter make the book of great value to all persons interested in the structure and function of the heart. The discussions of the relationships between the several centres of impulse formation in the heart, their separate blood supplies and the conduction of impulses throughout the myocardium provide much food for thought, and provide a basis for the interpretation of some of the rarer abnormalities of cardiac rhythm. This is a well-produced book, which can be strongly recommended as a reference text to cardiologists and to physiologists interested in the rhythmic activity of the heart.


This paper presents an algorithm to determine the fault location on transmission line based on wavelet transformation analysis. The algorithm is developed by analyzing the three phase currents (Ia, Ib and Ic) using Wavelet Transformation, and then start to study the faulted phase(s) at different location (each 5% of the transmission line (TL) length). Fault simulation is carried out by EMTDC/PSCAD program. Two seconds window of waveform covering pre-fault and post-fault is used. The discrete wavelet transforms (DWTs) are used for data pre-processing and these data are used for interpolation to get equation determine fault distance. Four types of mother wavelet are used for signal processing to identify the effective wavelet family that is most suitable to be used in estimating fault location.


Rice is known as substantial main foodstuffs of Indonesian people. According to the Report from Indonesia Centrer of statistic (BPS), of- West Java Province 2018, Bogor Region is one of lower-rice productions which was shown by decreasing value approximately 26,307 ton between 2014 and 2015. The increasing efforts of rice productivity is required to estimate and observe a rice-grain supplying in the market, especially in Cariu and Tanjungsari as the primary and specific city of rice production in Bogor Region. To gain an accurate data, remote sensing method is applied. The using of sentinel-2A image processing which has 10 m of spatial resolution is recommended to see the rice planting phase based on the age of planting. The study aims to analyze the spatial studying of rice production using Sentinel-2A image processing with Normalize Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) method for to determine the age of rice plants starting from the beginning of planting to the end of the harvest and also help estimate the productivity of rice paddies. The results show that rice production estimation which is planted in the altitude of under 100 masl (mean sea level) have value 5,52 ton/ha, to the optimum altitude on the range of 100-500 masl the productivity increase become 6,31 ton/ha, and back down on the altitude more than 500 masl equal to 5,34 ton/ha.


Current problems, constrains, goals, and approaches in developing architecture of information enterprises are reviewed. Research directions for solving the main problems of information enterprise architecture field are proposed.


The digital equity issue has been called the 'civil right' issue of our time. A recent Australian report considers lack of internet access is a socioeconomic factor, along with unemployment, lack of social engagement of young adults, low Year 9 reading levels, disability support, prison admissions, and domestic violence (Newman & Gurstein, 2016). This report raises the issue of 'the myth of choice'. "Do those proposing that everything move online genuinely believe that there are no longer people who aren't online?" (Newman & Gurstein, 2016). The authors advocate going the 'extra mile' to bridge a digital divide characterised by variation of internet use along lines of educational level, reading and writing ability, rural-urban location, ethnic group, and gender.


In this study, we demonstrate that Dermatophagoides farinae (Der f), a major source of airborne allergens, but not OVA, could rapidly activate mast cells in mice. This was indicated by an elevation of serum mouse mast cell protease 1, a mast cell-specific proteinase, as early as 30 min after intratracheal challenge. Administration of sodium cromoglycate (40 mg/kg, i.p., 1 h before Der f instillation), a mast cell stabilizer, not only suppressed acute mouse mast cell protease 1 production but also attenuated the allergic airway inflammation provoked by repetitive Der f challenge in mice (five times at 1-wk interval). Der f induced the expression of mRNA for TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-9, and IL-13 in mastocytoma P815 cells and stimulated both P815 cells and bone marrow-derived mast cells to produce IL-4, IL-6, and TNF-α in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Cycloheximide as well as sodium cromoglycate blocked the Der f-induced IL-4 production, indicating a de novo protein synthesis process. Supernatants of Der f-stimulated mast cells chemoattracted monocytes and T lymphocytes; they up-regulated the expression of costimulatory B7 molecules, eotaxin, RANTES, monocyte chemoattractant protein 1, and IFN-inducible protein 10 mRNA of alveolar macrophages; they supported PHA-induced T cell proliferation; and they promoted Th2 cell development. Our data indicate that mast cells may be an important cell type during the initiation of Der f sensitization in the airway by modulating the function of alveolar macrophages and T cells.


Geo-information techniques have proven their usefulness for the purposes of early warning and emergency response. These techniques enable us to generate extensive geo-information to make informed decisions in response to natural disasters that lead to better protection of citizens, reduce damage to property, improve the monitoring of these disasters, and facilitate estimates of the damages and losses resulting from them. The maintenance and accessibility of spatial information has improved enormously with the development of spatial data infrastructures (SDIs), especially with second-generation SDIs, in which the original product-based SDI was improved to a process-based SDI. Through the use of SDIs, geo-information is made available to local, national and international organisations in regions affected by natural disasters as well as to volunteers serving in these areas. Volunteer-based systems for information collection (e.g., Ushahidi) have been created worldwide. However, the use of 3D maps is still limited. This paper discusses the applicability of 3D geo-information to disaster management. We discuss some important aspects of maps for disaster management, such as user-centred maps, the necessary components for 3D maps, symbols, and colour schemas. In addition, digital representations are evaluated with respect to their visual controls, i.e., their usefulness for the navigation and exploration of the information. Our recommendations are based on responses from a variety of users of these technologies, including children, geospecialists and disaster managers from different countries.


This review focuses on recent contributions in the development of the electrochemical sensors based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs). CNTs have unique mechanical and electronic properties, combined with chemical stability, and behave electrically as a metal or semiconductor, depending on their structure. For sensing applications, CNTs have many advantages such as small size with larger surface area, excellent electron transfer promoting ability when used as electrodes modifier in electrochemical reactions, and easy protein immobilization with retention of its activity for potential biosensors. CNTs play an important role in the performance of electrochemical biosensors, immunosensors, and DNA biosensors. Various methods have been developed for the design of sensors using CNTs in recent years. Herein we summarize the applications of CNTs in the construction of electrochemical sensors and biosensors along with other nanomaterials and conducting polymers.


Parents have a very important role in developing the character of early childhood, because the family is the first and foremost educational environment for children. Early childhood is where children are in the age range of zero to six years and during this time the child is experiencing very rapid development. There are several methods that parents can do in instilling character values, one of which is by telling stories. Stories are considered effective because they remember the characteristics of young children who have a great curiosity, like to fantasize and imagine. The main character values according to the Ministry of Education and Culture include integrity, nationalist, mutual cooperation, independent and religious values. The five characters can be taught by parents through learning the story of the Qur'an or Qashash al-Qur'an. Many stories in the Koran can be used as lessons and lessons, including the stories of previous Prophets, stories of people with good personalities not the Prophet's group and stories about events in the time of the Prophet. All the stories contained in the Koran can be used as lessons. Parents as the main and first teacher should tell these stories to children so that good character, personality or character is formed and they always become people who believe in God.


When it comes to LTL shipping, it can be tough for shippers to get the performance that they expect due to the makeup of LTL networks. On-time performance is dependent on many more factors than in full truckload shipping. Performance often comes down to attributes of the shipment such as size and weight and also attributes of the geographical shipment volume. It is critical for shippers to understand these attributes and how they contribute to on-time performance of their own shipments. Through quantitative and qualitative analysis, this capstone details the shipment, shipper, and geographical characteristics that impact on-time performance of LTL shipments. Data from 33 shippers over a period of nearly two years was provided by C.H. Robinson and TMC (a division of CHR). This data was evaluated through a mix of regression and segmentation methods, as well as through qualitative understanding of the industry and economic landscape. The modeling and analysis here within describe the attributes of high performing shipments and provides guidance for shippers as to how to strive for the best performance. We found that shipment size, transit length, and destination shipment volume are among the largest drivers of on-time performance. Although on-time pick up and on-time delivery share some common significant drivers, significant drivers are not all the same for both. This report dives into further detail to help shippers understand the drivers what they can do to manage expectations and performance of their LTL shipments. Capstone Advisor: Dr. Chris Caplice Title: Executive Director, MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics


Embryos of the frog Rana temporaria up to and around the time of hatching show a range of rhythmic and non-rhythmic movements. These may occur spontaneously or in response to lightly touching the skin of the trunk or head. The first response to touching one side is usually on the opposite side. Non-rhythmic movements range from weak twitches centred on the mid trunk to strong flexions along much of one side of the body and part of the tail, which result in the animal becoming tightly coiled. Rhythmic movements range from slow, high-amplitude 'lashing' movements to faster, lower-amplitude 'swimming' movements. During rhythmic movements, a wave of bending passes along the animal from head to tail. The longitudinal phase delay in bending is constant for a range of cycle periods (88-193 ms) but is not uniform along the whole body. Bending is maximal along the body and rostral part of the tail, decreases towards the tip of the tail and is lowest at the head. Lateral displacement during rhythmic movements is lowest 0.2 body lengths from the snout, increases rostral and caudal to this level and is highest at the tip of the tail. In animals immobilised with curare, a range of patterns of motor discharge can be recorded in response to stimulation. Non-rhythmic responses range from single spikes to prolonged bursts, usually on the opposite side to the stimulus. Stronger bursts can alternate briefly between the two sides and are never synchronous on both. Episodes of sustained rhythmic activity can be evoked by touch, electrical stimulation of the skin or, rarely, dimming the lights. Cycle periods within each episode can vary considerably but often shorten as activity proceeds. Discharge on the two sides alternates (phase is approximately 0.5). Motor root burst duration correlates with cycle period, bursts being longer at longer cycle periods. Burst onset is delayed caudally, this delay being longer at longer cycle periods. Stimulating one side of the head evokes a large burst of discharge on the opposite side, often followed by sustained rhythmic discharge. These responses in immobilised animals are judged to constitute centrally generated correlates of the main behavioural responses of R. temporaria embryos.


Image processing, verification, and compression techniques are integrated to construct a telephone customer maintenance subsystem in which a legitimate transaction is carried out after the step of verifying the genuineness of the seal imprint on the request form. The key contents includes a distance or similarity metric, matching algorithm, and seal coding. The distance or similarity measure between seals is based on a generalized Euclidean distance which is insensitive to stroke width, minor spatial deformation, broken lines, etc. A block Huffman coding technique is used to reduce the storage of seal imprints. A reasonably good identification rate and 40% storage reduction of sample seals demonstrate that the proposed approach is effective. A 58% storage reduction can be attained when a flexible arithmetic coding method is used.<<ETX>>


Based on Dual Heuristic Programming (DHP), a real-time implementation of a neurocontroller for excitation and turbine control of a turbogenerator in a multimachine power system is presented. The feedback variables are completely based on local measurements. Simulation and real-time hardware implementation on a three-machine system demonstrate that the DHP neurocontroller is much more effective than conventional PID controllers, the automatic voltage regulator, power system stabilizer and the governor, for improving dynamic performance and stability under small and large disturbances.


Abstract This article contributes to the growing literature on the spatial dynamics of urban violence in the developing world. It highlights the dialectic between urban form, violence and security provision as vernacular in nature, shaped by hyperlocal processes and actors. And yet, this dialectic is dominated by state and military-centred terminology, and continually underpinned by the state's imposition of order to constitute the city as a site for legitimate control. This materialises as the often arbitrary recognition of one area as 'at the margins', and not another, as the recognition of one group of people as 'slum dwellers' or illegal residents, and not others, or as the recognition of some individuals as criminal, and not others. Using detailed case study material from a group of inner-city neighbourhoods in Mumbai, India, the article suggests that urban form in its physical, political and historical characterisations not only influences how vigilante protection operates, but also interacts in a non-benign manner with the mechanics by which the state endeavours to control violence. As such, it shapes who is vulnerable to violence, how vulnerable they are, and why. This speaks directly to the nature of security provision witnessed across the cities of the developing world.


This study investigates patterns of plant diversity following wildfires in fire-prone shrublands of California, seeks to understand those patterns in terms of both local and landscape factors, and considers the implications for fire management. Ninety study sites were established following extensive wildfires in 1993, and 1000-m(2) plots were used to sample a variety of parameters. Data on community responses were collected for five years following fire. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to relate plant species richness to plant abundance, fire severity, abiotic conditions, within-plot heterogeneity, stand age, and position in the landscape. Temporal dynamics of average richness response was also modeled. Richness was highest in the first year following fire, indicating postfire enhancement of diversity. A general decline in richness over time was detected, with year-to-year variation attributable to annual variations in precipitation. Peak richness in the landscape was found where (1) plant abundance was moderately high, (2) within-plot heterogeneity was high, (3) soils were moderately low in nitrogen, high in sand content, and with high rock cover, (4) fire severity was low, and (5) stands were young prior to fire. Many of these characteristics were correlated with position in the landscape and associated conditions. We infer from the SEM results that postfire richness in this system is strongly influenced by local conditions and that these conditions are, in turn, predictably related to landscape-level conditions. For example, we observed that older stands of shrubs were characterized by more severe fires, which were associated with a low recovery of plant cover and low richness. These results may have implications for the use of prescribed fire in this system if these findings extrapolate to prescribed burns as we would expect.


Basic holographic characteristics of a newly developed panchromatic ultra-fine grain silver halide light sensitive material for RGB recording of reflective holographic screen for auto stereoscopic 3D display are presented. The average grain size is less than 10 nm which ensures a large dynamic range and high resolution, diffraction efficiency and signal to noise ratio (more than 100:1) in RGB reflective holographic recording. The decrease of the diffraction efficiency in reflection holographic recording of scattering objects is less than 30% from the maximal values for specular reflection. The analysis of the color characteristics of the reflective holographic screen for the needs of an auto stereoscopic 3D display with single and multiple viewing zones is presented on the basis of so called "sandwich" structure of two layers for separate holographic recording in blue, green and red spectral regions.