Volunteer experience gained in separate 1-month rotations in three African countries is outlined. Each rotation was unique yet each shared much in common. The latter two rotations were sponsored by Orthopaedics Overseas and as such were more structured than the Liberia experience. Various patients were seen including those with congenital, tumor, traumatic, and developmental conditions. The opportunity to have a cultural exchange at the patient and peer level and to provide a needed service made volunteering a professionally rewarding experience.


We used X-ray fluorescence (XRF) to compare the heavy metal chemistry of sediments in caves in rural and urban areas to the chemistry of sediments from a control cave in a relatively undisturbed watershed in the Springfield (MO) Plateau. Sediment from Smallin Cave near Ozark, MO, the control cave, has the smallest peak sizes for Zn and Mn and a moderately-sized Pb peak. Sediment from the rural cave exhibited larger peaks of Zn and Mn and a smaller Pb peak. Sediment from the urban cave had the largest Zn, Mn and Pb peaks. Interestingly, smaller peak sizes appear to correlate to the presence of aquatic troglobites. The control cave hosts the most diverse troglobitic fauna and has sediment with smaller peak sizes. Ruark caves are rural caves, and are barren of troglobites and have sediment with larger peak sizes. Giboney Cave, an urban cave in Doling Park in Springfield, MO, provides the most interesting evidence. Giboney Cave splits into two branches, each of which has a unique chemical fingerprint. One channel is barren of cave life and has sediment that exhibits large metal peaks. The second channel hosts aquatic troglobites and has sediment that has small metal peaks. These findings are of particular importance because the caves of the Springfield Plateau host abundant troglobitic species, including the endangered Ozarks cavefish (Amblyopsis rosae). Sediment metal concentrations may indicate which cave systems are capable of supporting life, with XRF analysis providing a non-destructive, rapid way to identify such systems.


In this paper, a new fast encoding algorithm based on an efficient motion estimation (ME) process is proposed to accelerate the encoding speed of the scalable video coding standard. Through analysis of the ME process performed in the enhancement layer, we discovered that there are redundant MEs and some MEs can simply be unified at the fully overlapped search range (FOSR). In order to make the unified ME more efficient, we theoretically derive a skip criterion to determine whether the computation of rate-distortion cost can be omitted. In the proposed algorithm, the unnecessary MEs are removed and a unified ME with the skip criterion is applied in the FOSR. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm achieves computational savings of approximately 46% without coding performance degradation when compared with the original SVC encoder.


The Caregiver Well-Being Scale measures caregiver well-being from a strengths-based perspective by assessing caregivers' human needs and satisfaction with activities of daily living. This article revisits the scale to examine further the scale's psychometric properties using a caregiver-only sample. Reliability is determined through internal consistency. Construct validity is supported through factorial validity with factor analysis. Criterion-related validity is established by examining the concurrent validity of the WellBeing Scale with a measure of depression. Using a sample of family caregivers, results suggest that the Well-Being Scale is a valid and reliable measure.


Background. The aim of the present study was to give voice to elite athletes exploring their perceptions of cheating in sport.Methods. Utilizing a purposeful sampling technique, 11 athletes were interviewed – one woman and 10 men from football (F, n = 6), rugby league (R, n = 2), and three from athletics (A). Athletes' perceptions related to cheating in sport were explored by individual semi-structured interviews. Interpretive thematic data analysis was conducted in several stages, beginning with the exploration of the recorded materials. Credibility of the results was established by member checking. For data transferability and repeatability, we described the process of data collection, processing and analysis in detail.Results. Analysis of interview data allows to distinguish the following broad themes: the perceived forms of cheating in sport, causes of cheating, initiators of cheating, and ath-letes' views on the evaluation of cheating, and as a separate theme – athletes' insights on cheating in children's sport.Conclusions. The findings offer insights of adult athletes on cheating in sport. Athletes are aware of the prevalence of cheating in all sports, emphasizing that it is an illegal phenomenon and associate it with the potential financial benefits, corruption, match fixing, and the use of doing. The study highlights financial insecurity of athletes as a reason for cheating. When evaluating cheating, athletes are not categorical or tend to cheat themselves, but they would justify it more if it helped a team. As to cheating in children's sport, adult athletes noted the role of a coach and especially the parents in cheating in order to gain an advantage for their child. Also, the focus on the protective factor of children against cheating was emphasized. Keywords: cheating, athletes' perceptions, adult sport, children sport.


PURPOSE
To compare radiofrequency ablation (RFA) with or without transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS
A randomized controlled trial was conducted on 189 patients with HCC less than 7 cm at a single tertiary referral center between October 2006 and June 2009. Patients were randomly asssigned to receive TACE combined with RFA (TACE-RFA; n = 94) or RFA alone (n = 95). The primary end point was overall survival. The secondary end point was recurrence-free survival, and the tertiary end point was adverse effects.

RESULTS
At a follow-up of 7 to 62 months, 34 patients in the TACE-RFA group and 48 patients in the RFA group had died. Thirty-three patients and 52 patients had developed recurrence in the TACE-RFA group and RFA group, respectively. The 1-, 3-, and 4-year overall survivals for the TACE-RFA group and the RFA group were 92.6%, 66.6%, and 61.8% and 85.3%, 59%, and 45.0%, respectively. The corresponding recurrence-free survivals were 79.4%, 60.6%, and 54.8% and 66.7%, 44.2%, and 38.9%, respectively. Patients in the TACE-RFA group had better overall survival and recurrence-free survival than patients in the RFA group (hazard ratio, 0.525; 95% CI, 0.335 to 0.822; P = .002; hazard ratio, 0.575; 95% CI, 0.374 to 0.897; P = .009, respectively). There were no treatment-related deaths. On logistic regression analyses, treatment allocation, tumor size, and tumor number were significant prognostic factors for overall survival, whereas treatment allocation and tumor number were significant prognostic factors for recurrence-free survival.

CONCLUSION
TACE-RFA was superior to RFA alone in improving survival for patients with HCC less than 7 cm.


This paper contributes to theory building for successful Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations with special focus on the role of Business Process Reengineering (BPR). To achieve this objective, the method of stylized facts is transferred to Information Systems Research. The theoretical background of the method will be provided and its application on the subject will be demonstrated. Furthermore, it will be observed, if stylized facts can support to validate two established economic theories, the Resource-Based View of the Firm (RBV) and the Market-Based View of the Firm (MBV) by applying stylized facts for ERP and BPR. In this paper, it is verified that the method of stylized facts delivers relevant results for ERP implementation success. This includes recommendations for actions, the right use of BPR and the proper consideration and integration of critical success factors. Furthermore, stylized facts support to link RBV, MBV, ERP, and BPR into an integrated concept.


ABSTRACT The present paper concerns an experimental study of externally generated turbulence and its impact on the bed load sediment transport in an open channel flow. The external turbulence was generated by vertically oscillating a submerged grid, hereafter referred to as turbulence generator, in the flume with a clearance of 11 cm from the bed. Two kinds of experiments were performed: rigid flat-bed and plane sand-bed. One two-dimensional (2-D) LDA was set up to measure the velocity profiles for different values of flow discharge, amplitude and period of oscillations of the turbulence generator. The mean velocities, turbulence intensities, Reynolds shear stress, and their impacts on the rate of sediment transport have been analyzed. The fractional contributions of burst-sweep cycles to the Reynolds shear stress have also been studied. The turbulence generated due to a vertically oscillating-submerged grid is an analogous to the production of turbulence beneath the roller located on the front of broken wave, and the impact thus lies on the sediment transport. The Shields parameter was found to be correlated with the sediment transport rate, and the transport rate as a function of turbulence level is found to increase with turbulence level.


Abstract In recent years, the world has been rocked repeatedly by terrorist attacks. Arguably, the most remarkable were: the series of four coordinated suicide plane attacks on September 11, 2001 on buildings in New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, USA; and the recent series of two coordinated attacks in Brussels (Belgium), on March 22, 2016, involving two bombings at the departure hall of Brussels International Airport and a bombing at Maalbeek Metro Station located near the European Commission headquarters in the center of Brussels. This statement paper deals with different aspects of hospital policy and disaster response planning that interface with terrorism. Research shows that the availability of necessary equipment and facilities (eg, personal protective clothing, decontamination rooms, antidotes, and anti-viral drugs) in hospitals clearly is insufficient. Emergency teams are insufficiently prepared: adequate and repetitive training remain necessary. Unfortunately, there are many examples of health care workers and physicians or hospitals being targeted in both political or religious conflicts and wars. Many health workers were kidnapped and/or killed by insurgents of various ideology. Attacks on hospitals also could cause long-term effects: hospital units could be unavailable for a long time and replacing staff could take several months, further compounding hospital operations. Both physical and psychological (eg, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]) after-effects of a terrorist attack can be detrimental to health care services. On the other hand, physicians and other hospital employees have shown to be involved in terrorism. As data show that some offenders had a previous history with the location of the terror incident, the possibility of hospitals or other health care services being targeted by insiders is discussed. The purpose of this report was to consider how past terrorist incidents can inform current hospital preparedness and disaster response planning. De CauwerH, SomvilleF, SabbeM, MortelmansLJ. Hospitals: soft target for terrorism? Prehosp Disaster Med. 2017;32(1):94–100.


The policy of the Medical Officers serving in HMS Ark Royal between January 1988 and June 1989 with regard to surgery and anaesthesia at sea is described. The skills and equipment available, techniques used, operations performed and complications that resulted are outlined. The advantages and disadvantages of an active operating policy are discussed and the postulate ventured that in order to achieve maximum efficiency within the medical department of an aircraft carrier such a policy is justified. Finally, in the light of present day litigious trends, the question of the propriety of the policy is posed.


This paper presents Themis, an end-to-end static analysis tool for finding resource-usage side-channel vulnerabilities in Java applications. We introduce the notion of epsilon-bounded non-interference, a variant and relaxation of Goguen and Meseguer's well-known non-interference principle. We then present Quantitative Cartesian Hoare Logic (QCHL), a program logic for verifying epsilon-bounded non-interference. Our tool, Themis, combines automated reasoning in CHL with lightweight static taint analysis to improve scalability. We evaluate Themis on well known Java applications and demonstrate that Themis can find unknown side-channel vulnerabilities in widely-used programs. We also show that Themis can verify the absence of vulnerabilities in repaired versions of vulnerable programs and that Themis compares favorably against Blazer, a state-of-the-art static analysis tool for finding timing side channels in Java applications.


Due to the prevalence of social media websites, one challenge facing computer vision researchers is to devise methods to process and search for persons of interest among the billions of shared photos on these websites. Facebook revealed in a 2013 white paper that its users have uploaded more than 250 billion photos, and are uploading 350 million new photos each day. Due to this humongous amount of data, large-scale face search for mining web images is both important and challenging. Despite significant progress in face recognition, searching a large collection of unconstrained face images has not been adequately addressed. To address this challenge, we propose a face search system which combines a fast search procedure, coupled with a state-of-the-art commercial off the shelf (COTS) matcher, in a cascaded framework. Given a probe face, we first filter the large gallery of photos to find the top-k most similar faces using deep features generated from a convolutional neural network. The k candidates are re-ranked by combining similarities from deep features and the COTS matcher. We evaluate the proposed face search system on a gallery containing 80 million web-downloaded face images. Experimental results demonstrate that the deep features are competitive with state-of-the-art methods on unconstrained face recognition benchmarks (LFW and IJB-A). Further, the proposed face search system offers an excellent trade-off between accuracy and scalability on datasets consisting of millions of images. Additionally, in an experiment involving searching for face images of the Tsarnaev brothers, convicted of the Boston Marathon bombing, the proposed face search system could find the younger brother's (Dzhokhar Tsarnaev) photo at rank 1 in 1 second on a 5M gallery and at rank 8 in 7 seconds on an 80M gallery.


An international initiative to stop and reverse the population and range expansion of the naturalised North American Ruddy Duck in the Western Palearctic, in order to safeguard populations of the globally threatened White-headed Duck from hybridisation, began in earnest in 1993. As part of this initiative, a census of North American Ruddy Duck in captivity in Europe was conducted in 39 European countries in 1995. A total of 741 birds was reported, distributed amongst 80 private collections and zoos in nine countries, entirely within western Europe. However, it was estimated that the true number of Ruddy Ducks in captivity was in excess of 3,300 birds and thought to be increasing. Observed levels of duckling production suggest that the captive Ruddy Duck population has a high capacity for growth. Belgium, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, France and Germany held the largest captive populations. A general reluctance of aviculturists to respond to the questionnaire was attributed to a) adverse publicity associated with the current threat to the White-headed Duck, b) the growing call in some European countries for the outlawing of pinioning and c) speculation over legislation restricting the keeping of Ruddy Ducks. A major report published by the Council of Europe in 1996 suggested strict and legally-enforceable regulation of the keeping of potentially harmful exotic species. A preferable option for aviculturalists may be the establishment of a self-regulatory system. Given the threat to the White-headed Duck from Ruddy Ducks escaping from captive collections, persons dealing with Ruddy Ducks should consider whether free trade is justifiable.


We present a simple and fast technique for the design of ring resonator-based optical filters. The technique is based on tapering the ring scattering parameters to achieve the optimal filter response. A perturbation method is developed for the linearization of the resulting design problem. The design problem is then formulated as an optimization problem. The optimal filter design is achieved by solving a constrained linear least square problem. This optimization problem can be solved efficiently to get the global optimal design. Our technique has been verified using different proposed targeted filter responses.


Introduction Silicosis is one of the major occupational health diseases in Chile. 5.4% (347.662) of chilean workers have been estimated to be exposed to silica dust, nevertheless recent national reports suggest that the surveillance silicosis program coverage is suboptimal. The surveillance program includes both medical and environmental interventions. The aim of this research is to determine if an increase in the coverage of the silicosis surveillance program is cost effective and at what level of coverage is cost-effective. Methods A cost effectiveness model was constructed using Tree Age Pro Healthcare 2011 program. Silica exposure was updated from previous studies. Actual levels of surveillance coverage were estimated on 20–35%. Disease Model (DisMod) software was used to estimate the prevalence (0.9) and incidence (0.06) of silicosis in Chile. Mortality rates were estimated based on national rates. Then, Disability Adjusted Lost Years (DALY) for workers exposed to silica dust was estimated. Effectiveness parameters were gathered from international studies. DALYs avoided were estimated using TreeAge Pro. Costs of medical and environmental interventions were estimated with data from workers insurance and assuming 3 stage of silicosis disease. Finally, a cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated for different levels of surveillance coverage. Main results Higher cost-effectiveness ratios were obtained at higher coverage level. Increase in coverage from 35% to 95% of surveillance silicosis program, reduced DALY in 30.7% (2,377 of a total number of the actual 5,456 AVISA), and avoided 62.2% of death due to silicosis. To obtain these results, high levels of employer's compliance and worker's adherence to preventive measures was assumed (85%). Important lowering costs are estimated due to early diagnosis. Conclusion Extending the surveillance coverage of silicosis program is increasingly cost effective and represents an opportunity to diminish this preventable disease.


Computer role-playing games (CRPGs) are a special genre of computer games that bring the tabletop role-playing experience of games such as Dungeons & Dragons to the computer screen. This genre includes classics such as Ultima and The Bard's Tale as well as more modern games such as World of Warcraft and Guild Wars. Written in an engaging style for both the computer game enthusiast and the more casual computer game player, this book explores the history of the genre by telling the stories of the developers, games, and gamers who created it.


This paper provides empirical evidence on the leading factors affecting the prices of new pharmaceuticals, both at introduction and after 4, 6, and 8 years. Most important is the extent of therapeutic advance embodied in a new product. For drugs which represent important therapeutic gains, launch prices can be two or three times those of existing drugs used for the same purposes, while drugs that largely duplicate the actions of currently available products are typically priced at comparable levels. In addition, the number of branded substitutes has a substantial negative effect on launch prices, which reflects the importance of competitive pressures. Duplicate products thereby play an important economic role in pharmaceutical markets.


In this article we present a critique of a series of public policy documents that aim at improvement in health for the general population, particularly families, but fail to recognize or appreciate the implications of gender for the everyday and the long-term experiences of family members. Drawing upon considerations of gender, families, health, time and space, and previous theoretical work (McKie et al., 2002), we propose the concept of 'healthscapes' to aid the analysis and development of public policies. A healthscapes approach allows analysis of health policy within the diverse and multi-dimensional notions of time, space and gender that infuse the lifecourse. We assert that consideration of the gendered and generational project of caring, particularly in relation to the (re)production of health, should involve a reflective inter-play between theory, research and policy.


A constrained minimum mean square error (CMMSE)-RAKE receiver for multipath fading channels is developed by extending the CMMSE receiver for flat fading channels. Based on the observation that interpath interference causes a bias of the channel estimator in , a receiver that can remove such a bias is proposed, plus a closed-form expression of the bit-error rate of the receiver is derived. Computer simulation is used to demonstrate that the proposed receiver can outperform existing RAKE receivers.


In the task of generating music, the art factor plays a big role and is a great challenge for AI. Previous work involving adversarial training to produce new music pieces and modeling the compatibility of variety in music (beats, tempo, musical stems) demonstrated great examples of learning this task. Though this was limited to generating mashups or learning features from tempo and key distributions to produce similar patterns. Compound Word Transformer was able to represent music generation task as a sequence generation challenge involving musical events defined by compound words. These musical events give a more accurate description of notes progression, chord change, harmony and the art factor. The objective of the project is to implement a Multi-Genre Transformer which learns to produce music pieces through more adaptive learning process involving more challenging task where genres or form of the composition is also considered. We built a multi-genre compound word dataset, implemented a linear transformer which was trained on this dataset. We call this Multi-Genre Transformer, which was able to generate full length new musical pieces which is diverse and comparable to original tracks. The model trains 2-5 times faster than other models discussed.


: A stochastic behaviour can be exhibited by dynamic systems with a simple organisation and in which the sources of uncontrolled noises are absent. This is the case of the system Zk+1 = (1 + exp (V-HZk))-1(mod I) which differs from Amari system suggested for description of macroscopic activity of neuron nets by addition of the term mod I with I less than 1. We have found that the sequence Z1, Z2, ..., Zk, ... corresponds to the oscillations of the postsynaptic potential of excitatory neurones and operation mod I is due to regulation functions of the inhibitory ones.


Long-term care can be vexing on a personal as well as social level, and it will only grow more so as individuals continue to live longer and the population of aged persons increases in the United States and around the world. This volume explores the ethical issues surrounding elder care from an ecological perspective to propose a new theory of global justice for long-term care. Care work is organized not just nationally, as much current debate suggests, but also transnationally, through economic, labor, immigration, and health policies established by governments, international lending bodies, and for-profit entities. Taking an epistemological approach termed "ecological knowing", Lisa A. Eckenwiler examines this organizational structure to show how it creates and sustains injustice against the dependent elderly and those who care for them, including a growing number of migrant care workers, and how it weakens the capacities of so-called source countries and their health care systems. By focusing on the fact that a range of policies, people, and places are interrelated and mutually dependent, Eckenwiler is able not only to provide a holistic understanding of the way long-term care works to generate injustice but also to find ethical and practicable policy solutions for caring for aging populations in the United States and in less well-off parts of the world. Deeply considered and empirically informed, this examination of the troubles in transnational long-term care is the first to probe the issue from a perspective that reckons with the interdependence of policies, people, and places, and the first to recommend ways policymakers, planners, and families can together develop cohesive, coherent long-term care policies around the ideal of justice.


A method was developed to study simultaneously 1) release of ACh from nerve varicosities and terminals in and 2) motility of the myenteric plexus-free circular muscle of the canine ileum. Tissues were incubated with 3H-choline. Release of 3H was analyzed before and during electrical field stimulation of nerves in the presence and absence of choline oxidase. The major components released into the superfusate during field stimulation were (in the absence of choline oxidase) 3H-ACh and 3H-choline as determined by column chromatography and (in the presence of choline oxidase) the choline metabolite 3H-betaine as isolated by tetraphenylboronbutyronitrile extraction. Addition of tetrodotoxin (1 x 10(-6)M) or superfusion with Ca(++)-free Krebs reduced motor activity and the release of 3H-ACh, which confirmed that release was mediated from nerve varicosities. Addition of Nw-nitro L-arginine methyl ester or Nw-nitro L-arginine increased field-stimulated 3H-ACh release. This effect was reduced in the presence of L-arginine but not D-arginine. Motility was also increased by the addition of Nw-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester and Nw-nitro L-arginine. In contrast, the addition of L-arginine did not restore motor activity to control levels, and D-arginine had no effect. Our findings that inhibition of nitric oxide synthesis amplifies ACh release during field stimulation suggest that field stimulation releases both ACh and nitric oxide from nerve terminals of the deep muscular plexus and that this nitric oxide inhibits field-stimulated ACh release and circular muscle contractility.


The CONSER Program has been a leader in developing standards for cataloging electronic resources. Members for several CONSER institutions will discuss their experiences with the Program's interim guidelines for cataloging remote access versions of print serials which allow the option of creating separate records for online and print versions or, alternately, of identifying the online version on the print record. Here is the experience of University of Michigan's University Library


For more than a century, geomorphologists have sought a mechanistic explanation for the formation of alpine cirques, the theater-shaped basins at the heads of valleys and carved into the flanks of mountains like the Matterhorn. It is understood that glaciers in cirques scour their beds and sap their headwalls, but evidence to constrain models has been elusive. Here I present field measurements and numerical analyses of a small alpine cirque glacier that advance our understanding of the formation of cirques. My field site, West Washmawapta Glacier, sits within a cirque carved in Helmet Mountain, and is approximately 1 km long and 1 km wide, with a maximum depth of ~185 m. The glacier and surrounding cirque walls resemble a reclined armchair, with steep head and toe sections connected by a flatter central expanse. I demonstrate that the prevailing view of cirque glaciers - in which the ice mass rotates rigidly above an arcuate bed - is not applicable. Instead, the glacier behaves much like larger temperate glacier systems, with basal stresses that tend toward 105 Pa everywhere. Partitioning between internal deformation and basal sliding is a function of the spatial variation of ice flux and basin geometry. Basal sliding rates are minimum beneath the glacier center, in the deepest part of the cirque bowl. Along the northern margin and above the stoss side of the riegel, however, basal sliding accounts for more than 50% of the surface velocity. The `classic' cirque form found at Helmet Mountain is maintained by erosion of the glacier bed and transport of loose debris away from the headwall by the glacier. Using a sediment budget approach, we show that over the past few centuries, the cirque has elongated and deepened at roughly equivalent rates of order 1 mm/yr. In 2007, we measured a proglacial stream sediment flux between 70 and 1840 tons per year at the basin outlet, a third of which left the cirque in a period of two days early in the meltseason. Using a combination of remotely-sensed and on-site measurements, I estimate that subaerial headward retreat of the headwall occurred at ~1.3 mm/yr (0.2 - 5 mm/yr). I propose that the steep bedrock slopes characteristic of the headwall, which encourage rockfall and snow avalanches, result from undermining by rock fracture and glacial plucking in the bergschrund. A suite of environmental measurements taken in the bergschrund for nearly two years demonstrate subfreezing temperatures, rather than diurnal fluctuations above and below zero, are the norm. I use my temperature measurements, coupled with a numerical description of rock fracture by ice segregation, to show that the bergschrund is a favorable environment for shattering of rock. Only within the bergschrund can periglacial weathering and glacial entrainment conspire to undermine the headwall and thereby play a pivotal role in cirque development.


Author(s): Seddighzadeh Yazdi, Hossein | Advisor(s): Tromberg, Bruce J. | Abstract: Abnormal tissue metabolism has been documented in a wide variety of diseases including cancer, arterial disease and neurodegenerative disorders. A common underlying factor of these diseases is the down-regulation of tissue oxygen metabolism (tMRO_2) during tissue hypoxia. tMRO_2 has been quantified and used for both diagnosing and monitoring various diseases. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) provides a non-invasive and comparatively inexpensive modality for quantifying sub-surface tissue metabolism. Diffuse optical spectroscopic imaging (DOSI) and diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) are model-based NIRS methods. DOSI and DCS are capable of measuring tissue oxygenation and blood flow, respectively. In this study, we developed and validated a spatially co-registered DOSI/DCS metabolic imaging system. We documented that quantitative DOSI/DCS metabolic imaging provides an enhanced view and thereby, better understanding of breast cancer tumor composition and metabolism. In addition, tMRO_2 and composition are critical to quantify during surgery to help identify sub-surface tissue viability invisible to the naked eye. The integrated DOSI/DCS laparoscopic probe was developed to demonstrate measurement capabilities in non-survival preclinical model.Next, we optimized data acquisition frequency and enabled data collection of both DOSI and DCS concurrently. Relying on an improved high-speed DOSI/DCS system enabled us to extract real-time pulsatile information pertaining to vascular dynamics. Then, we quantified tMRO_2 at two tissue sites, as well as the abdomen and forearm. We observed lower metabolic activity in tissues with higher subcutaneous adipose compared to tissues with leaner muscle. In conclusion, we developed a high-speed DOSI/DCS system and illustrated its effectiveness in a variety of clinical applications.


BACKGROUND
Alcohol intoxication may confound the initial assessment of trauma patients, resulting in increased use of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, thereby increasing hospital costs. The Uniform Policy Provision Law (UPPL) exists in many states and allows insurance companies to deny payment for medical treatment for alcohol-related injuries. If intoxication increases resource utilization, these denials compound the financial burden of alcohol use on trauma centers. We hypothesized that patients injured while under the influence of alcohol require more diagnostic tests, procedures, and hospital admissions, leading to higher hospital charges.

METHODS
The National Trauma Databank (2000-2004) was analyzed to identify adult trauma patients (age > or = 16 years) who were discharged alive, had a length of stay < or = 1 day and minor injuries (Injury Severity Score < 9), and were tested for blood alcohol. The study was confined to minimally injured patients to facilitate identification of unexpected resource use most likely attributable to alcohol use. Resource utilization was compared among patients who tested positive or negative for alcohol use. Results are presented as odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI).

RESULTS
Sixty-eight thousand eight patients met study criteria, of which 31,020 were positive for alcohol. Despite similar baseline characteristics, alcohol-positive patients required significantly more invasive procedures, including intubation (OR 4.16, 95% CI = 3.56-4.85) and Foley catheter insertion (OR 1.52, 95% CI = 1.39-1.67) as well as diagnostic tests (CT scan OR 1.16, 95% CI = 1.12-1.20). They were also less likely to be discharged from the emergency department (OR 0.61, 95% CI = 0.58-0.64), and more frequently required hospital (OR 1.64, 95% CI = 1.57-1.73) or intensive care unit admission (OR 1.82, 95% CI = 1.71-1.94). Mean hospital charges were $1,833 greater ($10,405 +/- 225 vs. 8,572 +/- 68).

CONCLUSIONS
A significant amount of trauma center costs are primarily attributable to alcohol use rather than injury severity or outcome. The financial costs associated with alcohol use and UPPL-related cost-shifting to trauma centers is a significant burden to trauma centers. UPPL laws that penalize trauma centers for identifying intoxicated patients should be repealed in states where they exist.


This volume develops a theoretical and critical foundation for understanding "maladministration"—the phenomena of harmful administrative and organisational behaviours in educational systems. Chapter authors provide theoretical and practice-based perspectives across international contexts regarding common destructive practices that occur in educational organisations, such as negligence and mistreatment of people, professional dishonesty, fraud and embezzlement, abuse of power, and corrupt organisational cultures. International Perspectives on Maladministration in Education shines a light on this complex topic by examining various practices at individual, group, organisational, and system levels; the contexts and influences that give rise to them; and potential remedies to ensure more accountable, just, and safe institutions.


Today's workforce is more complex and demanding than ever before. In order to compete in today's job market, students need to be equipped with complex problem solving skills and hands-on experience before graduation. While the formal classroom provides knowledge in basic skills and in some cases hands-on learning, this may not be enough to be competitive in industry. Students need to be engaged in practical situations in order to improve communication, acquire leadership abilities, and learn to work with others to solve problems and apply critical thinking skills. These skillsets are required by industry to be a productive employee in today's market. While it is possible for students to successfully enter the job market without participation in academic collegiate student clubs and organizations, research suggests that those that do engage in extracurricular student clubs and organizations have an advantage when it comes to entry level employment. In order to develop communication, leadership, critical thinking and problem solving skillsets, students must be engaged in activities outside the classroom. Academic collegiate student organizations provide opportunities for students to explore activities outside the traditional classroom. Students participate in situations where they work with others to complete a common goal or task that may help them to develop skills desired by industry. By participation in academic student competitions, students are given opportunities to learn and apply leadership skills, problem solving, communication and critical thinking by applying classroom knowledge to situations and problems that they are likely to encounter in the workforce. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived occupational benefits of participating in technical collegiate competitions, with an emphasis on the Collegiate Design Series, Baja SAE.


The porpuse of the study was to examine the experiences, feelings and expectation of mothers of high risk newborns. The population was a group of 20 mothers of high risk newborns of three hospitals in the City of Sao Paulo. Interview with the mothers was the method of data colletion containing opened and structured questions . It was verified that most of the mothers had none or only a little interaction with the newborn after delivery; the eye contact was the most referred during the staying of the newborn in the Intensive Care Unity; all of them demonstrated interest in participating in the care of the newborn and expressed the need of information concerning to the health status of the newborn, the Intensive Care Unity environment and the hospital team. Several were the feelings expressed and the motives that indicated the needs of the mothers.


This paper reports the research on the successful development of a new remote laboratory (RL) system through some innovative ideas and methods for practising technology-enhanced learning of science education. The Internet-based RL system enables learners to control and observe the server-side laboratory equipment as well as perform real-time scientific investigation activities at distant places. As a pilot implementation study, a set of newly developed remote experiments were first tried out by a total of 64 undergraduate students in a tertiary institution mainly for teacher education. The evaluation used a mixed research method which included a questionnaire survey, open-ended questions and interviews as specifically developed by us to collect data on students' perceptions, views and implementation issues related to the use of the RL system. The survey findings show that the participants agreed with the appropriateness of various educational merits of the RL system and the ways of conducting those innovative experiments. Furthermore, negative comments and suggestions for improvement were identified. Based upon these, we have refined our RL system and the RL design principles through an iteration of design-based research.


Leaky-wave radiation of strongly truncated periodic structures is investigated. Starting with the analysis of an infinite structure with one-dimensional periodicity, the implications of a truncation on the far-field radiation characteristic are pointed out. In particular, the influence on the half-power beamwidth and the direction of maximum radiation is examined. The theoretical results are verified by the design of a transmission-line based leaky-wave antenna. The antenna consists of a microstrip line loaded periodically by inductive short-circuited stubs. The direction of maximum radiation and the half-power beamwidth are determined by the dispersion of the infinite structure and the total length of the antenna, respectively, both parameters representing degrees of freedom for the design. It is also shown how the total efficiency of strongly truncated antennas can be enhanced considerably.


Nb3Sn growth following the bronze technique, (i.e. by interdiffusion between Cu(Sn) alloy (bronze) and Nb) is one of the important methodologies to produce this superconductor. In this study, we have addressed the confusion over the growth rate of the Nb3Sn phase. Furthermore, a possible explanation for the corrugated layer in the multifilamentary structure is discussed. Kirkendall marker experiments were conducted to study the relative mobilities of the species, which also explained the reason for finding pores in the product phase layer. Based on the parabolic growth constant at different temperatures, the activation energy for the growth is determined. We have further explained the dramatic increase in the growth rate of the product phase by changing just one atomic percentage of Sn in the Cu-Sn bronze alloy.


With ever increasing demand of electricity, the conventional centralized power system have been steadily replaced by distributed power system (DPS). There are several advantages
of DPS such as modularity, better thermal management, and higher efficiency. DPS finds widespread applications in transportation, distributed generation, consumer electronics and data centers. This dissertation investigates the topological, modeling and controller design aspects of DC-DC converter for an off-grid operated fuel cell power system. In distributed generation system, a renewable energy source is used to harvest utility power. To connect the renewable energy source with a stand-alone load or grid, a power conditioning unit (PCU)is used. A comprehensive review of different DC-DC converter used in PCU has been carried out. Furthermore the classification of DC-DC converters according to the conversion ratio has been carried out. For controller design, an accurate model of DC-DC converter is required. The classical modeling techniques such as state-space averaging modelling and generalized state-space averaging modelling of DC-DC converter provide averaged model
which is suitable only for small-signal analysis. Therefore, parametric system identification technique is used to determine the dynamics of DC-DC converter during the closed-loop operation of the converter. Different linear and block-oriented models and Prediction Error Method are used to estimate the parameters of DC-DC converter in closed-loop. Estimated models are validated using different model validation criteria. Some DC-DC converter exhibits non-minimum phase behavior in their mathematical model. Different methods of mitigating the negative aspect of non-minimum phase behavior has been outlined in this
dissertation. Conventional Type-II and Type-III controller are designed for DC-DC boost converter, but the linear controllers is unable to provide satisfactory performance during large changes in source or load profile due to the fixed-gain nature of the controller. Due to the nonlinear nature of the converter dynamics, nonlinear controller are preferred. One of the most widely used nonlinear controller is sliding mode controller. The classical sliding mode controller has some limitations such as variable switching frequency, steady-state error and chattering effect. Variable switching frequency and chattering effect hampers the practical implementation of the control law. The controller also gives steady-state error which is undesired. To overcome such limitations, fixed-frequency sliding mode current controller and double-integral fixed-frequency sliding mode current controller are designed. In fixed-frequency sliding mode current controller and double-integral fixed frequency sliding mode current controller, the controller provides fixed frequency and removes the unwanted steady state error in output voltage. A multi-staged PCU is developed for fuel cell based stand-alone application which acts as a case study of distributed generation scheme. In fuel cell based stand-alone application, different design constraints such as input
ripple current, decoupling of power stages and power quality have been considered. An active-clamp current-fed isolated full-bridge converter is used as the front-end converter
and single-phase voltage source inverter is used for inverter application. Dual-loop control is used for control of front-end converter whereas fixed-frequency sliding mode controller is used to control the inverter. Simulation results have been provided to validate the design
requirements. From the simulation results it is found out that the said controller gives satisfactory results both in steady-state as well as transient state. The harmonics of the load current also obeys the regulation standard (IEEE standard 519 and IEEE standard 1547). This dissertation provides detailed discussion of topological aspect, modeling and system identification aspect and controller design aspect of DC-DC converter for an off-grid fuel cell power system. A large number of DC-DC converter has been studied and comparative analysis has been provided. Due to the said limitations of state-space averaged modeling scheme, a closed-loop system identification based scheme has been developed. In controller design section, both linear as well as nonlinear controller has been studied and their
performance has been investigated. In the end, an off-grid fuel cell based power system has been designed which can provide power during grid-blackout.


The Macquarie Island ophiolite is an uplifted block of oceanic crust formed at the Australia-Pacific spreading center between 12 and 9 Ma. The sense of motion and geological processes across this plate boundary reflect an evolution from orthogonal spreading through progressively more oblique spreading to the present-day transpressional regime. The crust that makes up the island was formed during an interval of oblique spreading along east-trending spreading segments punctuated by a series of northwest-trending discontinuities. The discontinuities are accommodation zones marked by oblique-slip dextral-normal faults, localized dikes and lava flows, and extensive hydrothermal alteration, indicating that these zones were active near the spreading axis. These features provide a window into the internal structure of oceanic crust generated by oblique spreading.


Distributed Electric Propulsion Conceptual Design Applied to Traditional Aircraft Takeoff Distance Through Multidisciplinary Optimization Kevin Ray Moore Department of Mechanical Engineering, BYU Master of Science While vertical takeoff and landing aircraft show promise for urban air transport, distributed electric propulsion on existing aircraft may offer an immediately implementable alternative. Distributed electric propulsion has the potential of increasing the aircraft thrust-to-weight ratio and lift coefficient high enough to enable takeoff distances of less than 100 meters. While fuel based propulsion technologies generally increase in specific power with increasing size, electric propulsion typically can be decreased in size without a decrease in specific power. The smaller but highly power-dense propulsion units enable alternative designs including many small units, optionally powered units, and vectored thrust from the propulsion units, which can all contribute to better runway performance, decreased noise, adequate cruise speed, and adequate range. This conceptual study explores a retrofit of continuously powered, invariant along the wingspan, open bladed electric propulsion units. To model and explore the design space we used a set of validated models including a blade element momentum method, a vortex lattice method, linear beam finite element analysis, classical laminate theory, composite failure, empirically-based blade noise modeling, motor mass and motor controller empirical mass models, and nonlinear gradient-based optimization. We found that while satisfying aerodynamic, aerostructural, noise, and system constraints, a fully blown wing with 16 propellers could reduce the takeoff distance by over 50% when compared to the optimal 2 propeller case. This resulted in a conceptual minimum takeoff distance of 20.5 meters to clear a 50 ft (15.24 m) obstacle. We also found that when decreasing the allowable noise to 60 dBa, the fully blown 8 propeller case performed the best with a 43% reduction in takeoff distance compared to the optimal 2 propeller case. This resulted in a noise-restricted conceptual minimum takeoff distance of 95 meters.Takeoff distances of this length could open up thousands of potential urban runway locations to make a retrofit distributed electric aircraft an immediately implementable solution to the urban air transport challenge.


The pollution of soils by heavy metals resulting from mining activities is one of the major environmental problems in North Africa. Mycorrhizoremediation using mycorrhizal fungi and adapted plant species is emerging as one of the most innovative methods to remediate heavy metal pollution. This study aims to assess the growth and the nutritional status of ectomycorrhizal Pinus halepensis seedlings subjected to high concentrations of Pb, Zn, and Cd for possible integration in the restoration of heavy metals contaminated sites. Ectomycorrhizal and non-ectomycorrhizal P. halepensis seedlings were grown in uncontaminated (control) and contaminated soils for 12 months. Growth, mineral nutrition, and heavy metal content were assessed. Results showed that ectomycorrhizae significantly improved shoot and roots dry masses of P. halepensis seedlings, as well as nitrogen shoot content. The absorption of Pb, Zn, and Cd was much higher in the roots than in the shoots, and significantly more pronounced in ectomycorrhizal seedlings—especially for Zn and Cd. The presence of ectomycorrhizae significantly reduced the translocation factor of Zn and Cd and bioaccumulation factor of Pb and Cd, which enhanced the phytostabilizing potential of P. halepensis seedlings. These results support the use of ectomycorrhizal P. halepensis in the remediation of heavy metal contaminated sites.


Theft of electricity amounts to 1.5% GDP, of most of the developing nations like India. Hence there is a great need to detect power thefts in developing nations. In this paper, we have proposed a wireless network based infrastructure for power theft detection which caters to other functional requirements of the microgrid such as renewable energy integration, automatic meter reading etc. Algorithm for power theft detection (PTDA) which is proposed in this paper, works in the distributed intelligent devices of the microgrid infrastructure for power theft detection. The coordinated action of intelligent devices with PTDA in the microgrid infrastructure enables not only the detection of power theft, but the localization of power theft in the micro-grid. PTDA increases the 1) cost of communication 2) energy consumption of intelligent devices 3) packet latency, if any critical data is piggy backed with power theft data in micro-grid. To solve these issues, we have proposed EPTDNA (Efficient Power Theft Data Networking Algorithm) which uses the frequency of power theft detection and average power draw for power theft, for the efficient routing of power theft. The performance analysis and results given in this paper shows how EPTDNA solves the major issues with PTDA.


The human contrast sensitivity function (CSF) is the most general way of quantifying what human vision can perceive. It predicts which artifacts will be visible on a display and what changes to hardware will result in noticeable improvements. Contrast sensitivity varies with luminance, and as new technology is producing higher luminance range displays, it is becoming essential to understand how the CSF behaves in this regime. Following this direction, we investigated the effect of adaptation luminance on contrast sensitivity for sine-wave gratings over a large number of CSF measurements in the literature. We examined the validity of the linear to DeVries-Rose to Weber region transition that is usually assumed to predict this relationship. We found a gradual transition among the three regions with steeper/flatter slopes for higher/lower frequencies and lower/higher retinal illuminance. A further decreasing region was located at low to intermediate frequencies, which was consistent across studies. Based on this theoretical construct, we adopted a CSF model consisting of central elements in the human visual signal processing and three limiting internal noise components corresponding to each region. We assessed the model's performance on the measured contrast sensitivities and proposed an eight-parameter form to describe the contrast sensitivity surface in the spatial frequency-luminance domain. Index Terms — adaptation luminance, CSF, DeVries-Rose, sine-wave gratings, spatial resolution, visual system, Weber


Rauvolfia L. is a pantropical genus with 70 species distributed throughout America, Africa and Asia, also being present in several remote islands like Hawaii and French Polynesia. Although having an estimated age of 34 million years, the genus has a wide distribution as a result of its remarkable dispersal capacity, given its distribution associated with water bodies and the fact that its fruits are a food source for many bird species, placing Rauvolfia as a highly interesting group for biogeographical studies. Based on this, we produced distribution maps for the 70 species of the genus from occurrence data obtained from herbarium sheets and revision articles, which were digitalized and georeferenced. Species with similar distribution patterns were grouped and their maps were produced and compared with maps of topography and hydrography. We analyzed this distribution together with the most recent phylogenetic hypothesis for the group to infer the distribution of ancestral nodes and to identify barriers in the distribution among sister groups. The phylogeny used was based on chloroplast markers, while divergence timing was estimated by molecular clock, calculated for the whole tribe Vinceae Duby in a parallel study. Softwares S-DIVA and VIP were used for biogeographical reconstructions, which were interpreted within the context of current biogeographical hypotheses. The genus Rauvolfia is mainly limited by climatic and geographic factors. Moreover, while some vicariance episodes were identified, much of the patterns observed for Rauvolfia present distribution were attributed to long-distance dispersal events, reinforcing the role of dispersal in current discussions about angiosperm biogeography.


Soldiers Without Guns: An untold story of unsung Kiwi heroes, documentary, 92min. Director Will Watson. Narrated by Lucy Lawless.WHILE a gripping film about the apocalyptic Bougainville war, or more accurately the peace that ended the decade-long conflict, opened in cinemas across New Zealand in April 2019, an island roadshow was taking place back in the Pacific. Initiated by the United Nations, the roadshow—featuring Bougainville President Father John Momis, many of his cabinet members and UN Resident Coordinator Gianluca Rampolla—was designed to help prepare Bougainvillean voters to decide on their future. This future is due to be put to the test in a referendum on October 17 in the crucial political outcome of an extraordinary peace process that began in chilly mid-winter talks at Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch in July 1997.


Neurological disorders display a broad spectrum of clinical manifestations. Yet, at the cellular level, virtually all these diseases converge into a common phenotype of dysregulated synaptic connectivity. In dementia, synapse dysfunction precedes neurodegeneration and cognitive impairment by several years, making the synapse a crucial entry point for the development of diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Whereas high-resolution imaging and biochemical fractionations yield detailed insight into the molecular composition of the synapse, standardized assays are required to quickly gauge synaptic connectivity across large populations of cells under a variety of experimental conditions. Such screening capabilities have now become widely accessible with the advent of high-throughput, high-content microscopy. In this review, we discuss how microscopy-based approaches can be used to extract quantitative information about synaptic connectivity in primary neurons with deep coverage. We elaborate on microscopic readouts that may serve as a proxy for morphofunctional connectivity and we critically analyze their merits and limitations. Finally, we allude to the potential of alternative culture paradigms and integrative approaches to enable comprehensive profiling of synaptic connectivity.


The aim of this study is to find out the awareness on oral health among Ayurvedha and Siddha practitioners in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. A cross-sectional survey was performed among a sample of 102 Ayurvedha and Siddha practitioners in Chennai, and data regarding their awareness of oral health were obtained using a closed-ended questionnaire. The SPSS software version 17 was employed to find the frequency distribution among the variables. Among the 102 Ayurvedha and Siddha practitioners approached, 94.1% of the respondents knew the reason for the occurrence of dental caries. Around 76.5% responded that fluoride in toothpaste can prevent dental caries, but only 58.8% of them had advised their patients to use fluoride-containing toothpastes. A total of 89.2% knew that oral health was related to systemic diseases. About 92.2% responded that they informed the patients about the importance of oral hygiene and also about smoking and tobacco-related oral diseases. Majority of them (99%) thought that Ayurvedha/Siddha medicine could cure oral diseases, with halitosis (40.2%) as the most common dental finding. Many of them (94.1%) responded that they had oral health as a part of their syllabus. Around 89.2% referred their patients to the dentists and also most of them (98%) thought that they need further information about prevention of oral diseases. Ayurvedha and Siddha practitioners already have substantial amount of oral health knowledge, and they are keen to expand their knowledge. Patients regularly ask for their advice on both general and oral health care issues, and there is a definitive need for interdisciplinary symposia/lectures/conferences and providing them with access to information on available dental services.


For centuries, zeolites have been used for their utility in binding metals, and they feature in a multitude of agricultural and industrial applications in which the honeycombed zeolite structures form ideal ion exchangers, catalysts and binding agents. Zeolites are currently in a transition period, moving towards implementation in human ailments and diseases. Here, we postulated that zeolites may be able to counter the effects of excess iron and conducted a mouse model trial to gauge the utility of this notion. We used the transgenic mouse strain MexTAg299 for a thirty‐week pilot trial in which iron polymaltose and/or the zeolite clinoptilolite was injected into the peritoneum twice weekly. Mice were sacrificed at the end of the trial period and examined by postmortem and histology for significant physiological differences between mouse subgroups. In this study, we demonstrated that a common zeolite, clinoptilolite, is able to maintain the general health and well‐being of mice and prevent iron‐induced deleterious effects following iron overload. When zeolites are given with iron biweekly as intraperitoneal injections, mice showed far less macroscopic visual organ discoloration, along with near normal histology, under iron overload conditions when compared to mice injected with iron only. The purpose of the present pilot study was to examine potential alternatives to current iron chelation treatments, and the results indicate an advantage to using zeolites in conditions of iron excess. Zeolites may have translational potential for use in cases of human iron overload.


There has been a catastrophic decline in the size of England's SME housebuilding sector. This is not the case in Germany, where the SME sector dominates the housebuilding market. We diagnose a 'toxic triangle' of problems facing English SME builders, with mutually reinforcing problems stemming from the planning system, the land market, and insufficient access to finance. Drawing on experience from Germany, we recommend to government a seven-point plan to give England the greatest prospect of revitalising its SME building sector, thus making a substantially greater contribution to housing output.


We examine the effect of alignment errors on the performance of a frequency-diverse imaging system composed of metamaterial apertures. In a frequency-diverse imaging system, a sequence of distinct radiation patterns, indexed by frequency, provides measurements of the spatial content of a scene. This set of measurements can then be used to obtain a high-fidelity estimate of the scene using computational imaging techniques. As with any computational imaging system, realizing the full potential of the frequency-diverse system requires accurate characterization of the complex radiation patterns. This characterization entails precise knowledge of the locations and orientations of the transmitters and receivers; any discrepancy between the modeled and actual locations will introduce phase error and degrade the quality of image reconstructions. Here, we study the effect of various misalignment errors on the performance of a sparse, bi-static, frequency diverse imaging system and provide an estimate on the levels of error within which the frequency-diverse apertures can reconstruct high quality images. Depending on the misalignment type (i.e., displacement, rotation) and direction the phase error can change significantly. As a result, for instance, we show that the imaging system is significantly less sensitive to cross-range displacement errors than to range displacement errors. We also show that the displacement errors are reduced for larger systems comprising many sub-apertures, due to the reduced averaged phase error. We find the impact of rotational errors is small compared to that of the displacement errors. However, as the sub-aperture size increases, rotational errors become more pronounced, becoming severe for larger sub-apertures with multiple feeds.


I reflect on the role of modern economic history in economics. I document a substantial increase in the percentage of papers devoted to economic history in the top-5 economic journals over the last few decades. I discuss how the study of the past has contributed to economics by providing ground to test economic theory, improve economic policy, understand economic mechanisms, and answer big economic questions. Recent graduates in economic history appear to have roughly similar prospects to those of other economists in the economics job market. I speculate how the increase in availability of high quality micro level historical data, the decline in costs of digitizing data, and the use of computationally intensive methods to convert large-scale qualitative information into quantitative data might transform economic history in the future.


Abstract Hybrid male sterility, hybrid inviability, sexual isolation, and a hybrid male courtship dysfunction reproductively isolate Drosophila pseudoobscura and D. persimilis. Previous studies of the genetic bases of these isolating mechanisms have yielded only limited information about how much and what areas of the genome are susceptible to interspecies introgression. We have examined the genetic basis of these barriers to gene exchange in several thousand backcross hybrid male progeny of these species using 14 codominant molecular genetic markers spanning the five chromosomes of these species, focusing particularly on the autosomes. Hybrid male sterility, hybrid inviability, and the hybrid male courtship dysfunction were all associated with X-autosome interactions involving primarily the inverted regions on the left arm of the X-chromosome and the center of the second chromosome. Sexual isolation from D. pseudoobscura females was primarily associated with the left arm of the X-chromosome, although both the right arm and the center of the second chromosome also contributed to it. Sexual isolation from D. persimilis females was primarily associated with the second chromosome. The absence of isolating mechanisms being associated with many autosomal regions, including some large inverted regions that separate the strains, suggests that these phenotypes may not be caused by genes spread throughout the genome. We suggest that gene flow between these species via hybrid males may be possible at loci spread across much of the autosomes.


Our visual system can link components of contours and segregate contours from complex backgrounds based on geometric grouping rules. This is an important intermediate step in object recognition. The substrate for contour integration may be based on contextual interactions and intrinsic horizontal connections seen in primary visual cortex (V1). We examined the perceptual rules governing contour saliency to determine whether the spatial extents of contextual interactions and horizontal connections match those mediating saliency. To quantify these rules, we used stimuli composed of randomly oriented nonoverlapping line segments. Salient contours within this complex background were formed by colinear alignment of nearby segments. Contour detectability was measured using a 2-interval-forced-choice design. Contour detectability deteriorated with increasing spacing between contour elements and improved as the number of colinear line elements was increased. At short contour spacing, the detectability reached a plateau with alignment of a few line segments that together formed a contour subtending several visual degrees. At intermediate spacing, saliency built up progressively with a greater number of colinear lines, extending up to 30 degrees. When contour spacing was beyond a critical range (about 2 degrees ), however, the detectability dropped to chance levels, regardless of the number of colinear lines. Contour detectability was found to be a function not only of the relative spacing of contour elements with respect to the noise elements but also of the average density of the overall pattern. Furthermore, training significantly improved contour detection, increasing the critical spacing of line elements beyond which contours were no longer detectable. Our data suggest that global contour integration is based on mechanisms of limited spatial extent, comparable to the interactions observed in V1. These interactions can cascade over larger distances provided the spacing of stimulus elements is kept within a limited range.


Introduction: Toxoplasmosis is Zoonoses among humans and animals with cosmopolitan distribution. Acquired form of the disease often has no symptoms or discomfort of swollen lymph nodes and associated Chorioretinitis. The congenital form of the disease is delivered via the placenta from mother to fetus. Congenital infection may cause abortion or damage to the central nervous system and eye disorders. The aim of this study was to determine toxoplasmosis Seroepidemiologyin serum of suspected patients referring to medical lab, in 2013. Materials & Methods: This study was cross- sectional. After physical examination, of the total cases 712 were diagnosed with suspected toxoplasmosis infection, and were referred for evaluation of serological diagnostic laboratories. Serum samples were collected from patients' in the laboratory using kits of anti-Toxoplasma gondii and Chorus Toxoplasma IgG, IgM antibodies were tested by ELISA method. Data on age, sex and time of the visit and laboratory test results were recorded in the Czech list, and then were analyzed using SPSS software. Results: From 712 sera tested, 649 (91.2%) were female while 63 ((8.8% were male. 171 (24.3%) of the antibody IgG and 25 ((3.5% in terms of IgM in serum were positive. In sex -wise distributed groups 159 female (93%)) and 12 male (7%) tested positive for IgG. and, 24 female (96%)) and 1 male (4%) were IgM positive. Most positive tests(9.5%) were observed in the group aged over 50 years. whereas The lowest percentage of positive tests were in the group with age less than 20 years (20%) and the highest was observed in patients above 60 years (8/47 percent). Conclusion: As a general conclusion, it can be stated that the frequency of specific IgM and IgG antibodies in toxoplasmosis, in the suspected-to-have toxoplasmosis and control groups were not statistically significant. Also, we can conclude that abortion is involved in the development of chronic toxoplasmosis.


Multiple physiological systems interact throughout the development of a complex disease. Knowledge of the dynamics and connectivity of interactions across physiological systems could facilitate the prevention or mitigation of organ damage underlying complex diseases, many of which are currently refractory to available therapeutics (e.g., hypertension). We studied the regulatory interactions operating within and across organs throughout disease development by integrating in vivo analysis of gene expression dynamics with a reverse engineering approach to infer data-driven dynamic network models of multi-organ gene regulatory influences. We obtained experimental data on the expression of 22 genes across five organs, over a time span that encompassed the development of autonomic nervous system dysfunction and hypertension. We pursued a unique approach for identification of continuous-time models that jointly described the dynamics and structure of multi-organ networks by estimating a sparse subset of ∼12,000 possible gene regulatory interactions. Our analyses revealed that an autonomic dysfunction-specific multi-organ sequence of gene expression activation patterns was associated with a distinct gene regulatory network. We analyzed the model structures for adaptation motifs, and identified disease-specific network motifs involving genes that exhibited aberrant temporal dynamics. Bioinformatic analyses identified disease-specific single nucleotide variants within or near transcription factor binding sites upstream of key genes implicated in maintaining physiological homeostasis. Our approach illustrates a novel framework for investigating the pathogenesis through model-based analysis of multi-organ system dynamics and network properties. Our results yielded novel candidate molecular targets driving the development of cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and immune dysfunction.


In this paper the authors present a two-step algorithm for predicting the core losses in an electrical machine. As a first step, the flux patterns in the cross section of the machine are calculated by using a time stepped two-dimensional finite element (FE) model, neglecting hysteresis and eddy currents in the laminated core. The second step consists in enforcing the calculated tooth and yoke flux waveforms to a one-dimensional FE lamination model in which the variation along the thickness of the induction and of the induced eddy currents is considered. The hysteretic behavior of the ferromagnetic material is taken into account by, means of a rate-dependent Preisach model. The outlined procedure is applied to a 3 kW squirrel-cage induction motor with either open or closed rotor slots, the former yielding elevated flux harmonics. Computation results and measurements at no-load (phase currents, stator tooth flux, and total iron losses) are compared.


Abstract. The availability of microwave instruments on satellite platforms allows the retrieval of essential water cycle components at high quality for improved understanding and evaluation of water processes in climate modelling. HOAPS-3, the latest version of the satellite climatology "Hamburg Ocean Atmosphere Parameters and Fluxes from Satellite Data" provides fields of turbulent heat fluxes, evaporation, precipitation, freshwater flux and related atmospheric variables over the global ice-free ocean. This paper describes the content, methodology and retrievals of the HOAPS climatology. A sophisticated processing chain, including all available Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I) instruments aboard the satellites of the Defense Meteorological Satellites Program (DMSP) and careful inter-sensor calibration, ensures a homogeneous time-series with dense data sampling and hence detailed information of the underlying weather situations. The completely reprocessed data set with a continuous time series from 1987 to 2005 contains neural network based algorithms for precipitation and wind speed and Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) based SST fields. Additionally, a new 85 GHz synthesis procedure for the defective SSM/I channels on DMSP F08 from 1988 on has been implemented. Freely available monthly and pentad means, twice daily composites and scan-based data make HOAPS-3 a versatile data set for studying ocean-atmosphere interaction on different temporal and spatial scales. HOAPS-3 data products are available via http://www.hoaps.org .


A general perceptual model is proposed for Eldercare Robot implementation that is comprised of audition functionality interconnected with a feedback-driven perceptual reasoning agent, Using multistage signal analysis to feed temporally tiered learning/recognition modules, concurrent access to sound event localization, classification, and context is realized, Patterns leading to the quantification of patient emotion/well being can be inferred using a perceptual reasoning agent, The system is prototyped using a Nao H- 25 humanoid robot with an online processor running the Nao Qi SDK and the Max/MSP environment with the FTM, and GF libraries.


The objective of this study was to carry out the phytochemical screening of the ethyl acetate extract of Combretum punctatum var. squamosum and to investigate anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activities. The phytochemical investigation indicated the presence of flavonoids and steroids in the extract. Anti-inflammatory activity was studied by in vitro inhibition of albumin denaturation and HRBC membrane stabilization methods; in vivo cotton pellet induced granuloma and carrageenan-induced paw oedema studies. The anti-oxidant activity was studied by lipid peroxidation and DPPH radical scavenging activity assays.The ethyl acetate extract at different concentrations showed a significant percent inhibition of albumin denaturation and percent inhibition of haemolysis when compared with the standard. The extract at 200 and 400 mg/kg b.w. significantly reduced cotton pellet granuloma ( P <0.001) and carrageenan paw oedema ( P <0.05) when compared with the standard in rats.The extract at different concentrations also showed a significant percent inhibition of lipid peroxidation and DPPH when compared with the standard.Thus, the result indicates that the ethyl acetate extract exhibited significantly good anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activities.


Cultural diversity is a characteristic of plural societies, the way we think that cultural diversity makes societies evolve or become tight, make cultural groups remain segregated or integrated. It is important to analyze the management model of cultural diversity guide our interventions because it determines which cultural groups remain isolated, integrated and even annihilated. This paper examines and defends the intercultural model inclusive and cohesive model, establishing principles and guidelines for intervention from this model. The gender has always been a factor of exclusion, being for immigrant women an element of discrimination. From an intercultural model is to guide measures and actions to intervene from a gender perspective, determining the need in society to form an intercultural coexistence to achieve integration of all people (immigrant and native). We are all aware of the importance of the struggle for respect for freedom of ideas and integration of differences as essential elements in human dignity, and culture and gender are elements of this process.


Orientation detection is an important preprocessing step for accurate recognition of text from document images. Many existing orientation detection techniques are based on the fact that in Roman script text ascenders occur more likely than descenders, but this approach is not applicable to document of other scripts like Urdu, Arabic, etc. In this paper, we propose a discriminative learning approach for orientation detection of Urdu documents with varying layouts and fonts. The main advantage of our approach is that it can be applied to documents of other scripts easily and accurately. Our approach is based on classification of individual connected component orientation in the document image, and then the orientation of the page image is determined via majority count. A convolutional neural network is trained as discriminative learning model for the labeled Urdu books dataset with four target orientations: 0, 90, 180 and 270 degrees. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method on dataset of Urdu documents categorized into the layouts of book, novel and poetry. We achieved 100% orientation detection accuracy on a test set of 328 document images.


A Dhrupad vocal concert comprises a composition section that is interspersed with improvised episodes of increased rhythmic activity involving the interaction between the vo-cals and the percussion. Tracking the changing rhythmic density, in relation to the underlying metric tempo of the piece, thus facilitates the detection and labeling of the improvised sections in the concert structure. This work concerns the automatic detection of the musically relevant rhythmic densities as they change in time across the ban-dish (composition) performance. An annotated dataset of Dhrupad bandish concert sections is presented. We investigate a CNN-based system, trained to detect local tempo relationships, and follow it with temporal smoothing. We also employ audio source separation as a pre-processing step to the detection of the individual surface densities of the vocals and the percussion. This helps us obtain the complete musical description of the concert sections in terms of capturing the changing rhythmic interaction of the two performers.


Though the Queensland Department of Public Instruction attempted to deliver a comprehensive school music education through the introduction of a new and revitalised syllabus in 1930, the reality was that the most pervasive and effective music education for children and adults in the 20th century in Cairns, and indeed for most of Australian society, was provided by community music groups often supported by the work of private music teachers and/or significant families. This article documents community groups from the Anglo-Celtic, Aboriginal and Torres Strait cultures in Cairns which had strong senses of self-identity, relied on many donated hours of amateur and professional goodwill, involved cross generational music making activities that was most marked in particularly influential families, provided regular performance opportunities and gathered support and funds to supply instruments, rehearsal venues and ultimately, music education for their members. Bartleet, Dunbar-Hall, Letts and Schippers (2008) have identified similar significant factors including infrastructure, organization, social engagement, dynamic music-making, engaging pedagogy/facilitation and links to schools in the dynamics of successful community music making in contemporary Australia. Community music education was generally delivered through particular cultural methods and procedures. This paper documents the activities of a number of co- existing musical communities in Cairns in a multi-cultural population (where multi- cultural describes different cultural groups co-existing alongside one another rather than interacting with each other), each being largely independent and relatively narrow in its activities. Despite this, there is some evidence that shows that some musical activities tended towards intercultural musical processes and others were culturally imposed, such as Western music being taught in schools and churches to all cultures. The paper offers an insight into community music education practices in a remote country town in Australia as advances in the technologies of wireless, film and gramophone began to play increasingly pervasive and influential roles in formal and informal music education practices.


Social trends or fashions are spontaneous collective decisions made by large portions of a community, often without an apparent good reason. The spontaneous formation of trends provides a well documented mechanism for the spread of information across a population, the creation of culture and the self-regulation of social behavior. Here I introduce an agent based dynamical model that captures the essence of trend formation and collapse. The resulting population dynamics alternates states of great diversity (large configurational entropy) with the dominance by a few trends. This behavior displays a kind of self-organized criticality, measurable through cumulants analogous to those used to study percolation. I also analyze the robustness of trend dynamics subject to external influences, such as population growth or contraction and in the presence of explicit information biases. The resulting population response gives insights about the fragility of public opinion in specific circumstances and suggests how it may be driven to produce social consensus or dissonance.


1. Examination was made of the effects of housing conditions on the preference of mice for dilute ethanol or water in a two-bottle choice. Isolating mice from groups of five after 10 days significantly increased their ethanol preference, compared to mice remaining group- housed or mice accustomed to single housing.2. The effects of sucrose choice, followed by ethanol administration, were examined on behaviour on the plus maze, to determine whether the use of sucrose as a "comparison" solution altered behaviour. It was found that behaviour did not vary significantly with the level of mean daily voluntary sucrose consumption. Ethanol decreased anxiety-related behaviours of mice independent of their level of daily sucrose consumption.3. Dilute nicotine was offered to mice in a two-bottle choice test. The effect of subsequent administration of ethanol was examined on behaviour on the plus maze. Ethanol exerted some behavioural effects indicative of decreased anxiety after nicotine choice, but a wider range of these behaviours were seen in control mice (water drinkers.)4. The effects of offering dilute nicotine, dilute ethanol, or a mixture of the two, in a chronic two-bottle choice paradigm, were measured. The mean daily ethanol intake of mice with and without the addition of nicotine to the drinking solution did not significantly differ. However, the mean daily intake of nicotine alone was significantly lower than the intake of nicotine where ethanol was added to the solution. All mice were exposed to the elevated plus-maze twice: once whilst in withdrawal and once when not in withdrawal. Plus-maze results indicated that withdrawal from both chronic ethanol and nicotine simultaneously showed a wider range of anxiety-indicative behaviours than withdrawing from chronic ethanol alone.5. Alterations were made to the conditioned place preference paradigm but it did not prove possible to obtain conditioned preference to morphine within the time available.


There is a tendency in writing histories of South Africa's past to concentrate on the colour issue. However, doing so often leads to myths and polarisation as sources are not interrogated beyond the superficial. The publication of three books within a short space of time on Malan, Smuts and Verwoerd respectively, men influential in determining white South Africa's identity provides an opportunity to explore the formation of Afrikaner nationalism and the impact it had on the development of South Africa as a nation. In the ninety years under discussion, South Africa was caught up in four major wars, all acting as a catalyst for change, uniting and dividing the people.


Economics matters. Its theories are the mother tongue of public policy, the rationale for multi-billion-dollar investments, and the tools we use to tackle global poverty and manage our planetary home. Pity then or more like disaster that its fundamental ideas are centuries out of date, but still dominate decision-making for the future. Instead of criticising the past, this book takes the long view forwards, identifying seven insights to help the twenty-first-century economist bring humanity into the global sweet spot (shaped like a doughnut) that combines human prosperity with ecological sustainability. Doughnut Economics hand-picks the best emergent ideas ranging from ecological, feminist, behavioural, and institutional economics to complexity thinking, systems dynamics, and Earth-systems science to reveal the insights of eclectic economic rethinkers. It promises that the economic future will be fascinating, but wildly unlike the past, if we equip ourselves with the mindset needed to take it on.


An experimental database containing multiaxial fatigue results for C35 steel with induced defects has been previously published [Billaudeau, T., Nadot, Y., and Bezine, G., "Multiaxial Fatigue Limit for Defective Materials: Mechanisms and Experiments," Acta Mater., Vol. 52, 2004, pp. 3911–3920; Nadot, Y., and Billaudeau, T., "Multiaxial Fatigue Limit Criterion for Defective Materials," Eng. Fract. Mech., Vol. 73, 2006, pp. 112–133; Gadouini, H., Nadot, Y., and Rebours, C., "Influence of Mean Stress on the Multiaxial Fatigue Behaviour of Defective Materials," Int. J. Fatigue, Vol. 30, 2008, pp. 1623–1633]. Artificial defects, in a range of 100–900 μm, are introduced at the surface of fatigue samples. The database contains experimental fatigue results for different defect size and geometry, and multiaxial loading cases with different load ratios. In the present study, five models predicting the fatigue limit of materials with defects are compared. Each model is carefully presented, predictions are compared, and input data are discussed. It is shown that it is necessary to take account for the stress distribution around the defect in order to have a good prediction for a multiaxial case.


Zinfandel, also known as Zin, is a red skinned variety of wine grape very popular in California. The wines produced from Zinfandel grapes have an intense fruitiness and luscious texture. Production is extremely variable throughout California and is dependent upon, climate, soil fertility, crop level management practices, and irrigation. This study was conducted to determine the on site soil physical and chemical properties as a means to obtain optimal yields and fruit quality. The A & L Western Agriculture Laboratories performed comprehensive fertility analysis to determine the concentrations of the plant essential nutrients, organic matter, electrical conductivity, cation exchange capacity, and pH in the soils. This site has experienced considerable soil disturbance during the rainy seasons due to the erosion of the Salinas River bank bordering the eastern side of the site as well as the non-vegetative ground to the north. Unfortunately, bare soil is highly susceptible to erosive losses. Valuable topsoil can be lost and areas can be deeply cut by gully erosion during the rainy season. The best erosion treatment is to take prevention measures. Therefore, it is recommended that any areas with bare soil be vegetated before next winter's rainy season. Irrigation rates should be adjusted throughout the year in accordance with annual precipitation, average wind speeds, average temperature, and the evapotranspiration rate. Special considerations should be made where irrigation water 4 could run off a steep slope. On these sites vegetation must be established, and measures taken to offset sediment loss due to erosion. Zinfandel vines appear to be sensitive to a variation in soil classifications and the effect of the loss of topsoil. With an improvement in land use management this specific site shows considerable potential to be a long term winemaking site. 5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS


Energy is very vital for socio-economic, human and technological development, yet there is not MDG on increasing access to energy. Africa's electricity consumption remains low, about 8% of global electricity consumption. There is significant variation in energy consumption among the different regions and countries in Africa. The over-reliance and unsustainable use of traditional biomass fuel in Africa leads to a low levels of energy efficiency and ability to mitigate climate change and high levels of deforestation, biodiversity loss, and health hazards due to indoor air pollution. The development of the various renewable energies (wind, solar, geothermal, bioenergy, fuel cells and tidal energy) is panacea to the energy crisis in Africa. Africa has a very attractive solar radiation and the continent has one of the highest levels of average annual solar radiation; 95% of the daily global sunshine above 6.5 kWh/m falls on Africa during winter. This paper discusses the potential for renewable energy in the African continent, the obstacles to the development of renewable energy and energy efficiency and enumerates the strategies to scale up the renewable energy market in Africa.


The increase of power peak and energy demand during the cooling season is becoming a crucial issue; for this reason, in the last decade, new passive solutions for optimizing building summer thermal behavior have been developed. In particular, green surfaces have been regarded as useful tools to provide energy savings in buildings and mitigate the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon, being capable of substantially reducing the roof surface temperature and increasing insulation power of surfaces. Green roof and green living wall thermal performance has been extensively studied, but the specific effect of substrate moisture and insulation deserve attention. This study investigates green surfaces energy savings in Mediterranean climate, related to insulation thickness and substrate moisture. The thermal behavior of a green roof and a living wall located in Brescia and Cosenza, Italy, are assessed through energy dynamic simulations in Energy Plus, to depicts how these passive technologies can improve the energy performance of residential buildings in different localities of Mediterranean; city of Brescia is in fact characterized by a continental climate, while city of Cosenza is warmer. A typical Mediterranean residential family storey house is implemented in Design Builder to simulate the application of green surfaces. The scope of the work is to identify the best roof and envelope configurations, related to insulation thickness and water content, to obtain the maximum building energy saving both in summer period and annual one. Simulations show, both in continental Mediterranean climate and warm one, green roof and green living wall can reduce the cooling energy consumption in buildings and in general the annual energy demand.


A novel thermophilic, anaerobic, hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium, designated strain AM1116T, was isolated from an East Pacific Rise hydrothermal vent sample. The cells were rod-shaped (1.01-5 x 0.5 microm), motile with polar flagella. They grew at temperatures between 50 and 70 degrees C (optimum 60 degrees C; doubling time approximately 1.5 h), at between pH 5.0 and 7.5 (optimum around pH 5.5-6.0) and in between 10 and 40 g NaCl l(-1) (optimum 20-25 g l(-1)). Cells grew chemolithoautotrophically in a H2/CO2 atmosphere (80:20; 200 kPa). Poor heterotrophic growth was observed on complex organic substrates. Elemental sulphur and nitrate served as electron acceptors, respectively yielding hydrogen sulphide and ammonia (doubling times were equal with the two electron acceptors). In contrast, when cystine was used as electron acceptor, growth was poor. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 29 +/- 1 mol %. Phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rRNA gene located the strain within the epsilon-Proteobacteria, in the bacterial domain. On the basis of 16S rDNA sequence comparisons, physiological and biochemical characteristics, it is proposed that the isolate should be described as the type species of a new genus, Caminibacter gen. nov., as Caminibacter hydrogeniphilus sp. nov. The type strain is strain AM1116T (= DSM 14510T = CIP 107140T).


There is an ongoing discussion in the visualization community about the relevant factors that render a visualization effective, expressive, memorable, aesthetically pleasing, etc. These factors lead to a large design space for visualizations. To explore this design space, qualitative research methods based on observations and interviews are often necessary. We describe an interview method that allows us to systematically acquire and assess important factors from subjective answers by interviewees. To this end, we adopt the repertory grid methodology in the context of visualization. It is based on the personal construct theory: each personality interprets a topic based on a set of personal, basic constructs expressed as contrasts. For the individual interpretation of visualizations, this means that these personal terms can be very different, depending on numerous influences, such as the prior experiences of the interviewed person. We present an interviewing process, visual interface, and qualitative and quantitative analysis procedures that are specifically devised to fit the needs of visualization applications. A showcase interview with 15 typical static information visualizations and 10 participants demonstrates that our approach is effective in identifying common constructs as well as individual differences. In particular, we investigate differences between expert and nonexpert interviewees. Finally, we discuss the differences to other qualitative methods and how the repertory grid can be embedded in existing theoretical frameworks of visualization research for the design process.


Global change driven by anthropogenic carbon emissions is altering ecosystems at unprecedented rates, especially coral reefs, whose symbiosis with algal symbionts is particularly vulnerable to increasing ocean temperatures and altered carbonate chemistry. Here, we assess the physiological responses of three Caribbean coral (animal host + algal symbiont) species from an inshore and offshore reef environment after exposure to simulated ocean warming (28, 31°C), acidification (300–3290 μatm), and the combination of stressors for 93 days. We used multidimensional analyses to assess how a variety of coral physiological parameters respond to ocean acidification and warming. Our results demonstrate reductions in coral health in Siderastrea siderea and Porites astreoides in response to projected ocean acidification, while future warming elicited severe declines in Pseudodiploria strigosa. Offshore S. siderea fragments exhibited higher physiological plasticity than inshore counterparts, suggesting that this offshore population was more susceptible to changing conditions. There were no plasticity differences in P. strigosa and P. astreoides between natal reef environments, however, temperature evoked stronger responses in both species. Interestingly, while each species exhibited unique physiological responses to ocean acidification and warming, when data from all three species are modelled together, convergent stress responses to these conditions are observed, highlighting the overall sensitivities of tropical corals to these stressors. Our results demonstrate that while ocean warming is a severe acute stressor that will have dire consequences for coral reefs globally, chronic exposure to acidification may also impact coral physiology to a greater extent in some species than previously assumed. Further, our study identifies S. siderea and P. astreoides as potential 'winners' on future Caribbean coral reefs due to their resilience under projected global change stressors, while P. strigosa will likely be a 'loser' due to their sensitivity to thermal stress events. Together, these species-specific responses to global change we observe will likely manifest in altered Caribbean reef assemblages in the future.


This paper estimates the probability that Peru becomes a new economic miracle. However, since economic theory does not define what exactly an economic miracle is, we must develop a definition based on the top quintile of the distribution of maximum 10-, 15- and 20-year average rates of growth over the period 1961-2002. By using this criterion, we identify 19 "miracle" economies, which will be compared with a similar number of "average" and "disaster" economies. Through a ordered choice model based on a set of initial conditions we determine the probability that Peru lies in the first group over the next 10, 15 and 20 years. The probability that Peru becomes a miracle in the next 10 years is very high; however, the evidence is less conclusive for longer periods.


This survey is an extended version of lectures given at the Cornell Probability Summer School 2013. The fundamental facts about the Abelian sandpile model on a finite graph and its connections to related models are presented. We discuss exactly computable results via Majumdar and Dhar's method. The main ideas of Priezzhev's computation of the height probabilities in 2D are also presented, including explicit error estimates involved in passing to the limit of the infinite lattice. We also discuss various questions arising on infinite graphs, such as convergence to a sandpile measure, and stabilizability of infinite configurations.


The compliance and other nonlinear dynamics of large-scale soft robots makes effective control difficult. This is especially true when working with unknown payloads or when the system dynamics change over time which is likely to happen for soft robots. In this paper, we present a novel method of coupling model reference adaptive control (MRAC) with model predictive control (MPC) for platforms with antagonistic pneumatic actuators. We demonstrate its utility on a fully inflatable, six degree-of-freedom pneumatically actuated soft robot manipulator that is over two meters long. Specifically, we compare control performance with no integral controller, with an integral controller, and with MRAC when running a nominal model predictive controller with significant weight attached to the end effector.