Author(s): Hsu, Shou-Jen | Advisor(s): Lee, Chin C. | Abstract: This research starts with developing fluxless bonding process using electroplated Sn solder between Si chip and Al substrate. The joint thickness was controlled either by bonding pressure or by incorporating Cu spacers. Cu6Sn5 and Cu3Sn IMCs are observed at Sn/Cu interface. A new two-step anodization process is also introduced to grow high quality alumina on Al boards and coat thick Cu layer over the alumina to produce a Cu/alumina/Al insulated metal substrate (IMS) structure. The measured resistance and breakdown voltage of the as-formed 50 µm anodic alumina layer is larger than 40 MΩ and 600 VDC, respectively. To test the reliability of the boards, they were put through 500 cycles of thermal cycling test and high temperature storage test. To ensure its compatibility with soldering operations, Cu substrates were bonded to the Al boards using a fluxless tin process. The fluxless bonding process is also applied to bond Si chips to low carbon steel substrates electroplated with Ni with desired thickness. Ni3Sn4 is the only IMC formed at the Sn/Ni interface. In order to compare the result to the case without using underbump metallurgy. Sn was electroplated over low carbon steel directly and then Si was bonded to the low carbon steel substrate. Sn solder layer was bonded to Fe substrate by forming FeSn2 at the Sn/Fe boundary. These results suggest that Sn-Fe reaction system should be another promising bonding pair candidate that could mitigate excessive IMC thickness. The liquid Sn/solid Fe reaction couples were fabricated and annealed at different temperatures. The growth kinetics of FeSn2 was modeled by parabolic law and empirical power law.We finally move to develop a fluxless bonding process with suppressed IMC formation. According to Cr-Sn phase diagram, there is no IMC formation in Cr/Sn system. Cr is thus selected as the barrier metal. Several bonding experiments have been performed and the preliminary results show that high quality Sn joints could be produced with little IMC formation before high temperature aging.


As today's competitiveness is highly rising in the global maritime sector paralleled with an increased concern on the sustainability of operations and the environment, the purpose of this research is to propose a performance measurement system to evaluate and improve ports' green performance. The proposed system would support ports' authorities in assessing their green performance, defining the areas that would need improvement and ultimately allocating the necessary fund to develop and improve its green performance. The literature is reviewed and a survey is conducted to identify the key green port performance indicators. This survey targeted subject matter experts (SMEs) and academics in the maritime sector in Egypt, the United Kingdom and Singapore. A fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) questionnaire is then carried to determine the relative importance weight (W) of the key selected indicators among the major container ports in Egypt namely; Alexandria, East Port Said and Sokhna. The indicators would then be quantified and a performance rate (R) would be assigned for each indicator based on a performance rating scale. Finally, a green port performance index would be designed using a weighted averaging aggregation method in order to aggregate the indicators' weighted rates (WR) into a single index of overall performance from which a port can compare its performance with other competitive ports.


Within the framework of the development of a wearable communications system for a sportsman, a textile antenna has been realised. The required antenna needed to be low profile, washable, insensitive to the proximity of the human skin and relatively insensitive to deformation. To overcome the human operator coupling effects on the antenna input impedance, i.e. a shift in resonance frequency and an increase of return loss level, a practical approach has been chosen. This approach consists of designing an antenna in free space, well matched over a wide frequency band. Because of the requirements and design methodology, chosen was for a (Log Periodic) Folded Dipole Array ((LP)FDA) antenna. Design equations for the antenna are discussed, measurement results of prototype antennas are shown and additional measures to tune the input impedance of the antenna are discussed.


Abstract : In development of the aviation stress protocol--simulation (ASPS), the following conclusions were reached: (1) In experiments using the ASPS, cardiovascular testing will be conducted in parallel, but separately; (2) The time of exposure to altitude will be limited to 2 h; and (3) Measurements such as visual accommodation, internal body temperature, blood glucose, blood drug or alcohol level, and others will be included in the ASPS only when appropriate. Cardiovascular and pulmonary parameters were assessed under simulated +Gz and exercise conditions in normal males after exposure to the ASPS. Some parameters were displaced to a statistically significant degree, but such displacements are of doubtful physiological significance because of the unavoidable time lapse between altitude exposure and assessment. These preliminary experiments served to demonstrate that meaningful physiological assessments can only be made during exposure to the altitudes specified in the ASPS. Thirty-six controller subjects from previous stress studies were identified who subsequently suffered medical conditions severe enough to require waiver or retirement. These subjects' stress indices were compared with those of subjects who had no known pathology to see if any of the stress indicators were predictive of pathological conditions. The data showed that controllers who developed gastrointestinal pathology had significantly (p < 0.01) higher (c(st) than did their normal counterparts. At Miami ARTCC, c(ne) was significantly elevated (p < 0.05) in the cardiovascular group.


Stem cell therapy for myocardial repair after myocardial infarction is a new and promising treatment modality. Currently, bone marrow derived stem cells are used in clinical studies to evaluate its beneficial effect on repair of infarcted/hibernating myocardium in the subacute phase after myocardial infarction. Whereas skeletal myoblasts are nowadays under investigation in the setting of scar repair in chronic congestive heart failure patients. The mechanism of bone marrow derived stem cells is probably mainly related to induction and stimulation of angiogenesis, whereas skeletal myoblasts are more likely to contribute to recovery of left ventricular function by the direct engraftment of contractile cells and hypothetically indirect by stimulation of native and circulation stem cells to home into the scarred tissue. This review will focus on the use of skeletal myoblasts in all clinical studies presented sofar and will discuss several issues like: different transplantation methods, potential mechanism of effect, potential risks like arrhythmia and future concepts. As the target population of skeletal myoblast transplantation is chronic post myocardial infarction heart failure patients, ventricular arrhythmias are very likely to occur. This review will specially address the presence of ventricular arrhythmias observed in some clinical studies and the pre-clinical data on the electrophysiology of skeletal myotubes and its relationship to the surrounding myocardium.


The semantics of most logics of time and probability is given via a probability distribution over threads, where a thread is a structure specifying what will be true at different points in time (in the future). When assessing the probabilities of statements such as "Event a will occur within 5 units of time of event b," there are many different semantics possible, even when assessing the truth of this statement within a single thread. We introduce the syntax of annotated probabilistic temporal (APT) logic programs and axiomatically introduce the key notion of a frequency function (for the first time) to capture different types of intrathread reasoning, and then provide a semantics for intrathread and interthread reasoning in APT logic programs parameterized by such frequency functions. We develop a comprehensive set of complexity results for consistency checking and entailment in APT logic programs, together with sound and complete algorithms to check consistency and entailment. The basic algorithms use linear programming, but we then show how to substantially and correctly reduce the sizes of these linear programs to yield better computational properties. We describe a real world application we are developing using APT logic programs.


As the use of fossil fuel has increased, not only in construction, but also in agriculture due to the drastic industrial development in recent times, the problems of heating costs and global warming are getting worse. Therefore, introduction of more reliable and environmentally-friendly alternative energy sources has become urgent and the same trend is found in large-scale horticulture facilities. In this study, among many alternative energy sources, we investigated the reserves and the potential of various different unused energy sources which have infinite potential, but are nowadays wasted due to limitations in their utilization. In addition, we utilized available unused energy as a heat source for a heat pump in a large-scale horticulture facility and analyzed its feasibility through EnergyPlus simulation modeling. Accordingly, the discharge flow rate from the Fan Coil Unit (FCU) in the horticulture facility, the discharge air temperature, and the return temperature were analyzed. The performance and heat consumption of each heat source were compared with those of conventional boilers. The result showed that the power load of the heat pump was decreased and thus the heat efficiency was increased as the temperature of the heat source was increased. Among the analyzed heat sources, power plant waste heat which had the highest heat source temperature consumed the least electric energy and showed the highest efficiency.


The International Labour Organization (ILO) has demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt to changing conditions throughout its long history. At its centenary, the ILO must once again respond to evolving circumstances and find new ways to engage state and private actors participating in an interconnected global economy where labour standards continue to be violated and where work itself is undergoing significant transformations. This chapter explores recent efforts by the ILO's leadership to reassert the organisation's role in broader global policy contexts. Part one presents the concept of institutional layering in order to understand better the agents of change and the structures in which they operate. The three sections that follow demonstrate institutional layering across three core dimensions of global governance—actors, rules, and mechanisms—in the period since 1998. The chapter concludes that the ILO's current governance practices have mixed prospects for the organisation's role in a changing governance landscape. New layers of soft law rules and flexible governance mechanisms can potentially augment the ILO's global standing moving forward. Its lack of representativeness and its continuing engagement of new actors, however, demand further formal changes to the ILO's institutional apparatus.


The complexities and costs of deploying Ubicomp applications seriously compromise our ability to evaluate such systems in the real world. To simplify Ubicomp deployment we introduce the robotic pseudopod (P.Pod), an actuator that acts on mechanical switches originally designed for human control only. P.Pods enable computational control of devices by hijacking their mechanical switches -- a term we refer to as mechanical hijacking. P.Pods offer simple, low-cost, non-destructive computational access to installed hardware, enabling functional, real world Ubicomp deployments. In this paper, we illustrate how three P.Pod primitives, built with the Lego MindStorm NXT toolkit, can implement mechanical hijacking, facilitating real world Ubicomp deployments which otherwise require extensive changes to existing hardware or infrastructure. Lastly, we demonstrate the simplicity of P.Pods by observing two middle school classes build working smart home applications in 4 hours.


We present a method for detecting word sense changes by utilizing automatically induced word senses. Our method works on the level of individual senses and allows a word to have e.g. one stable sense and then add a novel sense that later experiences change. Senses are grouped based on polysemy to find linguistic concepts and we can find broadening and narrowing as well as novel (polysemous and homonymic) senses. We evaluate on a testset, present recall and estimates of the time between expected and found change.


The principles of cancer treatment has for years been radical resection of the primary tumor. In the oncologic surgeries where the affected cancer site is close to the lymphatic system, it is as important to detect the draining lymph nodes for metastasis (lymph node mapping). As a replacement for conventional radioactive labeling, indocyanine green (ICG) has shown successful results in lymph node mapping; however, most of the ICG fluorescence detection techniques developed are based on camera imaging. In this work, fluorescence spectroscopy using a fiber-optical probe was evaluated on a tissue-like ICG phantom with ICG concentrations of 6-64 μM and on breast tissue from five patients. Fiber-optical based spectroscopy was able to detect ICG fluorescence at low intensities; therefore, it is expected to increase the detection threshold of the conventional imaging systems when used intraoperatively. The probe allows spectral characterization of the fluorescence and navigation in the tissue as opposed to camera imaging which is limited to the view on the surface of the tissue.


Labisia pumila, LP (Myrsinaceae), is a popular herb among the women in Malaysia known locally as ''Kacip Fatimah. It has been claimed by the traditional medicinal practitioner as a pain reliever, treat inflammatory disorders, such as rheumatism and fever. This study was aimed to investigate the partially purified crude extracts of Labisia pumila (DELP) for its antiinflammatory, antinociceptive and antipyretic effects. Acetic acid-induced abdominal writhing and carrageenan-induced paw oedema was used to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity whereas hot plate test and formalin test was used for the antinocicpetive activity. Antipyretic activity was determined by yeast induced pyrexia method. Partial purification of DELP extract resulted in 5 different fractions (A-E). All the fractions of DELP showed significant anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive and antipyretic activity in the entire test used. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of flavonoids, steroids, saponin, alkaloids and tannins. HPLC analysis revealed the presence of catechin, The present study confirmed that the extracts exhibited anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive and antipyretic activity, supporting its folk use and is in consonances with our earlier report.


Many aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase and amino acid biosynthesis genes in Gram-positive bacteria are regulated by an unusual transcription termination control system, designated the T box system. This mechanism operates by controlling the activity of an intrinsic terminator located in the leader region of the mRNA, upstream of the start of the coding sequence; interaction of the leader RNA with the cognate uncharged tRNA stabilizes the formation of an antiterminator conformation of the leader RNA, which prevents formation of the competing terminator stem±loop, thereby driving readthrough transcription (Grundy and Henkin, 1993, Cell 74: 475±482; Henkin, 1994, Mol Microbiol 13: 381±387). The T box system can be recognized on the basis of a complex set of primary sequence and secondary structural elements conserved in the leader regions of the target genes, the most prominent of which is the T box itself, a 14 bp highly conserved sequence. There are 19 transcriptional units with these features in the Bacillus subtilis genome, and many others in a variety of Gram-positive organisms. To date, no example of a T box gene has been reported in a Gram-negative organism. This raises interesting questions about the evolutionary origin of this regulatory mechanism. We have now uncovered an example of an apparent T box gene in a very unusual Gram-negative organism, Symbiobacterium thermophilum. S. thermophilum was isolated as a producer of a thermostable tryptophanase (Suzuki et al. 1988, J Gen Microbiol 134: 2353±2362). A surprising observation was that the organism could be grown only in co-culture with a speci®c strain of Bacillus, which appeared to be related to B. stearothermophilus and B. coagulans. Neither cell-free extracts nor killed cells of the Bacillus strain could support independent growth of S. thermophilum. Co-culture was optimal under low aeration at 608C; under these conditions, the Bacillus strain grew ®rst, then began to lyse in late exponential phase, concomitant with growth of S. thermophilum. While the Bacillus strain could be grown in pure culture, S. thermophilum appears to be an obligate symbiont, but the requirements of the symbiosis are mysterious. The two strains could be separated by differential centrifugation, permitting isolation of S. thermophilum DNA and cloning of the tryptophanase genes (Hirahara et al. 1992, Appl Environ Microbiol 58: 2633±2642). Recent data deposited in GenBank (accession number AB010832) by K. Ueda and T. Beppu include additional sequence information covering the region downstream of the tryptophanase genes. This region includes a coding sequence with high similarity to leucyl-tRNA synthetases, and we found that the region upstream of the coding sequence includes the elements characteristic of members of the T box family. The putative S. thermophilum leuS leader region is shown in Fig. 1. This leader region contains all of the primary sequence and secondary structural features normally conserved in T box leaders (Rollins et al. 1997, Mol Microbiol 25: 411±421), including an appropriately placed CUC speci®er sequence, corresponding to the leucine codon used as the regulatory signal in the B. subtilis leuS and ilv-leu genes. The S. thermophilum leuS leader also contains a putative intrinsic transcriptional terminator, with the capacity to fold into an alternative antiterminator structure, as found in other T box genes. The terminator precedes the translation initiation region, and the leader region is preceded by a standard housekeeping-type promoter (TTGACT±17 bp spacer±GATAAT). Although the function of these putative regulatory elements has not yet been demonstrated, it appears likely that S. thermophilum leuS is in fact a member of the T box family, the ®rst to be uncovered in a Gram-negative organism. As S. thermophilum lives in such close proximity to a Bacillus strain and its lifestyle includes immersion in Bacillus cell lysate, it is possible that the leuS gene may have been acquired by horizontal gene transfer. The leuS coding region, although incomplete, exhibits highest similarity to leuS from Synechocystis (64% amino acid identity), followed by Aquifex (57%), Haemophilus (56%), Escherichia coli (54%), Rickettsia (53%), Borrelia (51%), human mitochondria (50%), Chlamydia (51%) and B. subtilis (47%). The relatively low similarity to the Bacillus gene suggests that the leuS coding region was unlikely to have been acquired recently from the Bacillus strain with which S. thermophilum lives. The G ‡C content of the leuS coding region is 65%, which matches that of S. thermophilum, while the G‡C content of the Bacillus strain is 53% (Suzuki et al. 1988, J Gen Microbiol 134: 2353±2362). It remains possible that the regulatory region alone was, in fact, passed from the Bacillus strain to the S. thermophilum genome. Alternatively, another T box gene located elsewhere in the genome may have been transferred, with the Molecular Microbiology (1999) 33(3), 667±672


An ecotourism product should, among other things, offer a quality experience for the visitor and improve the quality of life of the one who is visited. This study evaluated the quality of community-based ecotourism at the Uakari Floating Lodge, and analyzed the economic and financial performance of the enterprise, generating reflections regarding the economic impact achieved and the intangible benefits associated with initiatives of this nature. The timeframe for the analysis was nine years (2002 to 2010). The evaluation of product quality was based upon the perceptions of the visitor and generally revealed high levels of quality. Moreover, a comparison with the competition yielded satisfactory results, indicating that the product can compete internationally on quality. From the perspective of financial return on investment, after a promising start, performance was not satisfactory over the nine-year period. An analysis has been conducted on the impact of two external factors and one internal factor, which have negatively impacted performance: the closure of the municipal airport for nine months, large exchange rate fluctuations and a pricing policy that could have been more conservative. Enterprises like the Uakari Lodge (located in remote areas with a differentiated management model) have certain vulnerabilities and this study reinforces the necessity of these initiatives to be better prepared for the risks inherent in this activity. Using simulations, it is possible to show that, if the municipal airport had not been closed or the Dollar had not suffered such a steep devaluation, financial viability would have been reached. Equally, the study shows that inappropriate adjustments in daily rates played a part in contributing to inadequate financial performance. On the other hand, when analyzing the initiative from a macro-economic point of view, it becomes evident that the activity established itself as an important economic alternative for the local communities and that the financial resources generated by the project had a strong multiplier effect. The analysis found that, for each R$1.00 contributed by investors, R$4.72 was generated in the regional economy. Equally, the wide variety of intangible environmental, social and economic benefits, validate the socio-environmental focus of the project and its contribution as a tool for the conservation of natural resources. Another point that merits attention relates to the existence of a consolidated system for monitoring results, which allows for the initiative to socialize lessons learned with academia, not-for-profit organizations and government. The findings of the study will contribute to more efficient planning for the transfer of management of the enterprise to the local communities.


In their natural environment, rodents use their whiskers to locate and distinguish between objects of different textures and shapes. They do so by moving their whiskers actively as well as passively, through body and head movements. To determine the mechanisms by which surface coarseness is translated into neuronal discharges through passive whisker movements, we monitored head movements of awake behaving rats while approaching objects. We then replayed these movements in anesthetized rats, monitored the whiskers' movements across various surfaces, and concurrently recorded the activity of first-order sensory neurons. We found that whiskers, being the first stage of sensory information translation, shape transduction by amplifying small-amplitude high-frequency signals. Thus, surface coarseness is transmitted through high-velocity micromotions. Consistent with this, we find that during surface contact, discrete high-velocity movements, or stick-slip events, evoke first-order neuronal discharge. Transient ringing in whiskers, which primarily represents resonance vibrations, follows these events, but seldom causes neurons to discharge. These sensory transformations are influenced by the whiskers' biomechanical properties. To determine the resemblance of these tactile transformations during passive whisker movements and active whisking, we induced artificial whisking across various surface textures. We found that the processes by which tactile information becomes available to the animal are similar for these different modes of behavior. Together, these findings indicate that the temporal bandpass properties for spike generation in first-order neurons are matched by the biomechanical characteristics of whiskers, which translate surface coarseness into high-frequency whisker micromotions. These properties enable rodents to acquire tactile information through passive and active movements of their whiskers.


This resource was originally created by The Higher Education Academy Engineering Subject Centre. Authored by Roger Penlington and Simon Steiner, the Guide has been updated and is now released by the Centre for Engineering and Design Education at Loughborough University [http://cede.lboro.ac.uk] as an online resource with a companion resource compendium. This guide is intended to stimulate thought and consideration amongst those who: as members of teaching staff, may wish to introduce EngSD into their teaching; as leaders of Engineering programmes, may wish to consider the broader ethos of their curriculum, The guide looks at why and how EngSD is included in the Engineering curriculum and considers embedded versus discrete approaches. It discusses approaches to teaching and learning for EngSD, including examples of EngSD within the curriculum and a 'what next?' section, which points the reader towards further areas of study and practice. As an introduction to EngSD within engineering programmes, this guide does not seek to prescribe courses of action but rather aims to outline the main opportunities, sources of guidance and educational resources which may enable informed debate and decision making.


This thesis considers the making and circulation of drawn and printed imagery in Britain
over the period 1610-1750 with a particular emphasis on the observation and record of
place. It takes as its focus the contested position of the visual image in Britain over this
period, considering the place of the record of the land, past, present and future, in the
making and re-making of the country.
It is particularly concerned to elucidate links between different forms of depictive practice:
'pictorial' and 'mathematical', evident at the time of their making, if often lost in their
interpretation in the modern literature. These depictive traditions are explored in order to
examine the value of the categories of 'real' and 'ideal' that have tended to dominate
narratives of landscape history. Throughout, drawings and prints are considered as forms
of knowledge that combined a number of traditions and practices, aged along with those
more recent. Tensions between theories and practices of image-making are central rather than incidental
to the study, discovered through an examination of manuals and treatises as well as
drawings and prints. There is also a recognition of the importance of collecting practices
and patronage over this period, explored through the extended legacies of Lord Thomas
Howard, Earl of Arundel. A focus on collections and the legacies of landscape imagery
has necessitated that images be brought together from a wide range of regional and
metropolitan libraries, archives and art galleries, and reconnected with the wider cultural,
political and religious worlds through which they were circulated and enacted at the time
of their making. Drawing on a number of disciplinary traditions, this approach offers a new perspective on topographically-informed imagery over this extended period, seeking
to expand the parameters of the interpretation of such works.


This paper describes the development and continuous improvement of Flight Handling Qualities (FHQ) from a student's perspective. FHQ is a Problem-Based-Learning (PBL) core module for 4th year Aerospace Engineering Master of Engineering (MEng) undergraduates at the University of Liverpool (UoL). The module is now in its fourth year of operation and has continually evolved to its present form with the aid of feedback from the participating students and others experienced with PBL activities. The authors of this paper have all graduated from the UoL MEng Aerospace Engineering programme and have completed the FHQ module through each of the three previous years of the course's evolution. Consequently, the authors can offer a unique first-hand perspective of their experiences and the progression and development of the CDIO module. In addition, one of the authors now acts as an FHQ group mentor and can offer an interesting insight into the module's current form. The aim of the module is to equip students with the skills and knowledge required to tackle aircraft handling qualities (HQs) and related 'whole aircraft' problems. The students are presented with the theory of handling qualities engineering in a series of interactive lectures and work in teams of 4 or 5 to undertake a number of team-building exercises throughout the first semester. The teams are presented with the idea that the aircraft, with its handling qualities deficiencies, is the focus for knowledge acquisition and skills development. Each team is given the task of assessing and quantifying the HQs of a particular aircraft in a particular role, and then developing fixes to any handling deficiencies identified. Significant changes in the evolution of the module include; an increase in the duration of the module and the introduction of group mentors who provide additional support and guidance to the students. The contents of the paper will consist of a detailed description of the module and intends to give a unique student perspective on the experiences gained and continuous improvement of an established CDIO module.


Aim: The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of supportive periodontal therapy (i.e., scaling and root planning [SRP]) alone versus Aquolab ® ozone therapy used in association with SRP in the treatment of chronic periodontitis in adult patients. Materials and Methods: A total of 20 patients with a diagnosis of chronic periodontitis (40 localized chronic periodontitis sites) were enrolled. None of these patients have previously received any surgical or nonsurgical periodontal therapy and demonstrated radiographic evidence of moderate bone loss. Two nonadjacent sites in separate quadrants were selected in each patient to verify treatment efficacy (split-mouth design). Microbial analysis was analyzed at baseline and the 7 th day after treatment. SPSS program and paired simple statistic t-test were used to detect statistically significant differences. Results: There was a statistically significant reduction of Tannerella forsythia loading in sites treated with ozone therapy respect to those treated with SPR alone. A similar trend was obtained also for additional 5 species and for total bacterial loading (CBT). These results were obtained with a single local application of ozone therapy just after SPR and with a molecular control 7 th day after treatment. Conclusion : Aquolab ® ozone therapy in is effective in reducing the CBT in pockets of patients affected by periodontitis. It is an efficacy medical device to be used as adjuvant therapy to be added to SRP in the management of moderate to severe chronic periodontitis.


The paper estimates banks' total factor efficiency (TFE) as well as TFE of each production factor by incorporating banks' overall risk endogenously into bank's production process as undesirable by-product in a Global-SMB Model. Our results show that, compared with a model incorporated with banks' overall risk, a model considering only on-balance-sheet risk may over-estimate the integrated TFE (TFIE) and under-estimate TFE volatility. Significant heterogeneities of bank TFIE and TFE of each production factor exist among banks of different types and regions, as a result of still prominent unbalanced development of Chinese commercial banks. Based on the estimated TFIE, the paper further investigates the determinants of bank efficiency, and finds that shadow banking, bank size, NPL ratio, loan to deposit ratio, fiscal surplus to GDP ratio and banking sector concentration are significant determinants of bank efficiency. Besides, a model with risk-weighted assets as undesirable outputs can better capture the impact of shadow banking involvement.


Refugee, asylum seekers, and migrant (displaced) children are at protracted vulnerability levels, and COVID-19 has exacerbated the situation. Zimbabwe accepts refugees but enforces an encampment policy, and displaced populations are encamped at Tongogara Refugee Camp (TRC).  The research gap is that there is very little literature on refugees in Zimbabwe. The research objectives for the study were to explore the challenges that refugees, asylum seekers, and displaced children at TRC face, ascertain how COVID-19 has affected children at TRC, and propose solutions to these challenges. This research relied upon a mixed method of quantitative and qualitative approach considering the immediacy of the COVID-19 pandemic. Secondary data is referred from published articles and organizational reports. The population size of 2,304 children aged 12 to 17 was obtained through the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR)'s January 2021 population statistics for TRC. A 10% sample of 230 respondents was selected. Non-probability sampling techniques were used in administering a questionnaire through individual and focus group interviews, which were fed into KoBo Toolbox. Data cleaning and analysis were conducted, with SPSS and NViVo for quantitative and qualitative data analysis, respectively.  Ethical considerations of consent, confidentiality, do no harm, and statements to withdraw from the study were employed. The process involved strict observance of World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines on COVID-19. The research was conducted between April 2020 and February 2021. Results showed that displaced children suffered a spectrum of challenges before COVID-19. During the COVID-19 period, respondents had limited access to child protection services, experienced increased conflicts at home, and limited access to formal learning and entertainment: their already dire situation was exacerbated by COVID-19. The study recommends the upgrade of the local secondary school to advanced level status, adoption of educational innovations in lieu of the COVID-19 pandemic, including radio, television, and virtual learning platforms; improved child protection mechanisms; accommodation; dietary diversity; access to water and sanitation hygiene; provision of electricity; adequate street lighting; activities for entertainment; and increasing awareness against child abuse and gender-based violence (GBV).


Many undergraduate engineering students choose a natural, seamless progression to a master's degree while others turn from the post-bachelor's collegiate path to enter the workforce, join the military, or raise a family. It can be difficult to transition back into a master's program when the years have passed and personal or professional responsibilities have multiplied. However, as the Chinese say, "A sly rabbit will have three openings to its den," and for these "nontraditional" students, online master's programs are proving more popular entrances in which to hop back into academia.


Techniques were developed for continuous microscopic observation of mycoplasmata growing in vitro in Rose chambers by using an inverted phase microscope. The methods permitted direct microscopic observation of undisturbed growth of mycoplasmata in liquid medium. Inocula of mycoplasmata were passed through 0.22-mum filters before culture to provide a suspension of discrete particles. The sequential growth of Mycoplasma pneumoniae was followed from points or single straight lines, with development of branching, a net-like confluence of filaments, large bodies occurring in the center of developing colonies, and finally coccoid forms. Other species of Mycoplasma which did not attach as readily to glass could be observed also by inverted phase microscopy. Umbonation of colonies (a "friedegg" appearance) occurred in liquid medium, indicating that this appearance was not due simply to interaction with the agar medium, but may reflect a qualitative difference in growth patterns between center and periphery. For growth on solid medium, direct observation of colonies in uncovered plates of agar medium was made by using inverted phase microscopy. This was found helpful in detecting small colonies and in observing relationships between colonies.


The present study explores students' primary concerns, perceptions, difficulties and attitudes characterized by a sheer lack of motivation towards reading. It also demonstrates how a language teacher can prosper in his/her own undertaking to bring about a community of readers with a want to read. This study covers an important comparison between students of three different levels, namely Common Core, First and Second year Baccalaureate. Likewise, it tries to explore the extent to which unmotivated readers are prone to meet the challenges all along the assigned reading tasks. A questionnaire was designed for analyzing the barriers towards attaining reading proficiency. It was also geared to determine the things that should be done to overcome the obstacles towards achieving the aspired reading competence. The results from this study imply that there is reason to suggest the need to develop a want in students to read via breathing life into comprehension texts presented to students. This can be done through integrating more illustrations and key vocabulary rubrics. Equally important, reading texts in students' textbooks need to be given due importance, and dedicated efforts are to be considered on the part of textbook designers to help students attain and boost their reading skills. Reading, if done extensively, helps develop the reader's reading competence and ultimately becomes an essential tool for academic success.


We show that electrowetting (EW) with structured electrodes significantly modifies the distribution of drops condensing onto flat hydrophobic surfaces by aligning the drops and by enhancing coalescence. Numerical calculations demonstrate that drop alignment and coalescence are governed by the drop-size-dependent electrostatic energy landscape that is imposed by the electrode pattern and the applied voltage. Such EW-controlled migration and coalescence of condensate drops significantly alter the statistical characteristics of the ensemble of droplets. The evolution of the drop size distribution displays self-similar characteristics that significantly deviate from classical breath figures on homogeneous surfaces once the electrically induced coalescence cascades set in beyond a certain critical drop size. The resulting reduced surface coverage, coupled with earlier drop shedding under EW, enhances the net heat transfer.


Introduction: To investigate the incidence and spectrum of adverse events in unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) or ICI-based combinations.
Methods: The study protocol was prospectively registered on PROSPERO (CRD42022319255). We searched PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library for published clinical trials from database inception to April 22, 2022. Studies that included at least one group of unresectable HCC patients treated with ICIs or ICI-based combinations and reported the incidence or spectrum of treatment-related adverse events (trAEs) or immune-related adverse events (irAEs) were eligible. The incidence and spectra of all-grade and grade ≥3 trAEs were the primary outcomes. The profiles of irAEs, the incidence of trAEs leading to treatment discontinuation, and treatment-related mortalities were additional outcomes. We applied random-effects models to pool the incidence and spectra of adverse events. Subgroup analyses and meta-regression were performed.
Results: The literature search identified 2464 records. Twenty studies (4146 participants with HCC) met the eligibility criteria. The pooled incidences of all-grade trAEs, grade ≥3 trAEs, all-grade irAEs, and grade≥3 irAEs were 80.1% (95% CI 73.8-85.2), 35.4% (95% CI 27.2-44.6), 31.1% (95% CI 21.0-43.5), and 6.6% (95% CI 3.6-11.8), respectively. ICIs plus oral targeted agents (all-grade OR=17.07, 95% CI 6.05-48.16, P<0.001; grade ≥3 OR=9.35, 95% CI 4.53-19.29, P<0.001) and ICIs plus intravenous targeted agents (all-grade OR=4.91, 95% CI 1.80-13.42, P=0.003; grade ≥3 OR=4.21, 95% CI 1.42-12.48, P=0.012) were associated with increased trAEs compared with monotherapy. The all-grade trAEs with the highest pooled incidences were reactive capillary endothelial proliferation (49.2%, 95% CI 26.3-72.3), neutropenia (34.6%, 95% CI 17.1-57.5), and proteinuria (32.8%, 95% CI 19.8-49.2). The grade ≥3 trAEs with highest pooled incidences were hypertension (11.1%, 95% CI 4.0-29.0), neutropenia (10.5%, 95% CI 7.0-15.4), and aspartate aminotransferase increased (7.7%, 95% CI 6.3-9.4). The pooled incidence of trAEs leading to treatment discontinuation was 8.0% (95% CI 6.0-10.5), and the overall incidence of treatment-related mortalities was 1.1%.
Conclusions: This study comprehensively summarized the incidence and spectrum of trAEs in unresectable HCC patients receiving ICIs or ICI-based combinations in clinical trials. The results from this study will provide a useful reference to guide clinical practice.


This dissertation explores the creation, distribution, and use of five personality tests found extensively in corporate America from the mid-1940s to the end of the 20th century. The management techniques in which these tests—the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, California Psychological Inventory, Thematic Apperception Test, Maslach Burnout Inventory, and Stanford Shyness Survey—were embedded helped create a corporate environment that seemed at once more considerate of individual differences in personality and behavior and yet somehow also more constraining in the ways people were encouraged to live and work both inside and outside the office. In light of this tension, the problem my dissertation seeks to answer is: how and why did many come to see self-discovery and self-actualization as best achieved through self-management, selfdiscipline, and, in many cases, the narrowing of the possibilities of the self? This dissertation argues that the use of personality tests and self-assessments—alongside the rise of both humanistic psychology and new forms of neoliberal capitalism—carried with it a very particular rhetoric of personal freedom and individual liberation, one that had in fact been carefully crafted by psychologists and corporate managers in order to predict and control the behavior of the groups under their care. On top of this, self-assessments anchored a sociotechnical system that looked as if it illuminated unique parts of the individual, but which was in fact made up of routinized techniques for creating more efficient, productive, and perhaps more importantly, more profitable workers. By following these five tests from conception to development to their eventual use in corporate management, the power and influence of overlapping networks of researchers, universities, funding sources, publishers, and companies are seen in greater relief, and the outsized influence of Silicon Valley on postwar social scientific knowledge and management practice is made evident. Degree Type Dissertation Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Graduate Group History and Sociology of Science First Advisor John Tresch


This article argues that the Ninth Circuit acknowledged the risk of financial interests influencing decisions to ban certain equipment because of the broad economic scope of the sports industry, governing bodies' unchecked authority over said market, and the sentiment that, in light of each governing body's heavy reliance on sponsorships, complete disregard of financial motives in governance is no longer appropriate.Further, courts should continue to implement the Ninth Circuit's policy of increasing scrutiny of governing body financial interests in rule-making for two reasons. First, shedding light on the complex and competing financial interests among industry players, including fans, athletes, teams, leagues, communities, media, and sponsors, should enhance confidence in the purity of a governing body's decisions. Second, abandoning complete deference in governing bodies could ease manufacturers' fears of investing in technology only to be subsequently banned due to collusion between market competitors and the governing bodies. This in turn would mitigate the stifling effect the latter have had on technological developments in sports equipment.


This appendix presents translation of excerpt from the Impugnatorium Laudatorii in letter of Vincent of Aggsbach to John Schlitpacher, Dec. 19, 1454 that occur in the book Nicolaus Cusanus on Faith and the Intellect. K.M. Ziebart argues convincingly that Cusanus' epistemology was a direct response to late-medieval debates over the relation between faith and reason, one which sought to resolve these debates by introducing a controversially strong integration of philosophy and theology. By examining his works in the context of debates with his peers, Ziebart shows how and why Cusanus came to articulate a theory of knowledge in which faith is posited as inherent to the very structure of mind, as the vis iudiciaria, or power of judgment. This well-grounded study sheds new light on the Cusan philosophy and expands our view of a crucial, liminal period in European intellectual history.Keywords: Cusan philosophy; Impugnatorium Laudatorii; John Schlitpacher; K.M. Ziebart; Nicolaus Cusanus; Vincent of Aggsbach


It is well established that autocrine growth of human prostate cancer cell line DU145 is dependent on TGF (EGF)/EGFR loop. However, the participation of several other growth factors in proliferation of DU145 cells has been also proposed. We employed two selective tyrosine kinase inhibitors (tyrphostins): AG1024 (an IGFIR inhibitor) and SU1498 (a VEGFR2 inhibitor) for growth regulation of DU145 cells, cultured in chemically defined DMEM/F12 medium. Both the tested compounds inhibited autocrine growth of DU145 cells at similar concentration values (IC50 approximately 2.5 microM). The tyrphostins arrested cell growth of DU145 in G1 phase, similarly as inhibitors of EGFR. However, in contrast to selective inhibitors of EGFR, neither AG1024, nor SU1498 (at concentration < or =10 microM) decreased the viability of the investigated cells. These results strongly suggest that autocrine growth of DU145 cells is stimulated by, at least, three autocrine loops: TGFalpha(EGF)/EGFR, IGFII/IGFIr and VEGF/VEGFR2(VEGFR1). These data support the hypothesis of multi-loops growth regulation of metastatic prostate cancer cell lines.


Using deep rest-frame optical spectroscopy from the Large Early Galaxy Astrophysical Census (LEGA-C) survey, conducted using VIMOS on the ESO Very Large Telescope, we search for low-ionization [O ii] λ λ 3726,3729 emission in the spectra of a mass-complete sample of z ≈ 0.85 galaxies. We find that 59% of UVJ-quiescent (i.e., non-star-forming) galaxies in the sample have [O ii] emission detected above our completeness limit of 1.5 Å, and the median-stacked spectrum of the remaining sample also shows [O ii] emission. The overall fraction of sources with [O ii] above our equivalent width limit is comparable to what we find in the low-redshift universe from GAMA and MASSIVE, except perhaps at the highest stellar masses (>1011.5 M ⊙). However, stacked spectra for the individual low-equivalent-width systems uniquely indicates ubiquitous [O ii] emission in the higher-z LEGA-C sample, with typical [O ii] luminosities per unit stellar mass that are a factor of ×3 larger than the lower-z GAMA sample. Star formation at higher-z could play a role in producing the [O ii] emission, although it is unlikely to provide the bulk of the ionizing photons. More work is required to fully quantify the contributions of evolved stellar populations or active galactic nuclei to the observed spectra.


Even among vaccinated cohorts, prevention and control of mumps outbreaks remain a challenge, owing to sub-optimal population immunity. This is especially true in confined settings, where a single case could be the index for an imminent outbreak. Efficacy of post-exposure prophylaxis has not been demonstrated, while early identification of mumps and comprehensive vaccination of populations in confined settings during outbreaks may enable containment of mumps and disrupt further spread. However, we are not aware of official international guidelines concerning vaccination of exposed individuals during an outbreak, especially in a confined setting. In this article we present our experience with mumps containment during outbreaks through vaccination campaigns in the Israeli civilian and military populations and discuss lessons for containment efforts in other settings. Our analysis shows that a comprehensive ring vaccination should be considered in any case of mumps in confined settings.


J. 92(1): 33-39 (1999) ABSTRACT Baseline carbaryl susceptibility and potential resistance mechanisms were identified in U.S. populations of western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, using lethal concentration, diagnostic concentration, and synergism bioassays. Twenty-two adult rootworm populations were examined from the states of Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Virginia. Lethal concentration bioassays, conducted within carbaryl-coated glass vials on 12 populations, identified resistance in only 2 Nebraska populations. A diagnostic concentration of carbaryl was subsequently identified which caused 100 and 40% mortality in standard susceptible and known resistant populations, respectively. In diagnostic concentration bioassays on all 22 populations, substantial decreases in mortality were observed only in 3 populations from outside ofNebraska. Synergism bioassays on standard susceptible and resistant Nebraska populations indicated significant reductions in resistance levels with inhibitors of both cytochrome P450 monooxygenases and esterases, suggesting an involvement in resistance by both these classes of detoxification enzymes. Results are discussed with respect to the validation of diagnostic concentration bioassays as a resistance monitoring tool for existing corn rootworm areawide management programs, and the potential roles of cytochromes P450 and esterases in carbaryl resistance.


To probe the potential for activity in unevolved amino acid sequence space, we created a third generation combinatorial library of de novo four-helix bundle proteins. The "artificial superfamily" of helical bundles was designed using binary patterning of polar and nonpolar residues, and expressed in Escherichia coli from a library of synthetic genes. WA20, picked from the library, is one of the most stable proteins in the superfamily, and has rudimentary activities such as esterase and lipase. Here we report the crystal structure of WA20, determined by the multiwavelength anomalous dispersion method. Unexpectedly, the WA20 crystal structure is not a monomeric four-helix bundle, but a dimeric four-helix bundle. Each monomer comprises two long α-helices that intertwist with the helices of the other monomer. The two monomers together form a 3D domain-swapped four-helix bundle dimer. In addition, there are two hydrophobic pockets, which may potentially provide substrate binding sites. Small-angle X-ray scattering shows that the molecular weight of WA20 is ~25 kDa and the shape is rod-like (the maximum length, D(max) = ~8 nm), indicating that WA20 forms a dimeric four-helix bundle in solution. These results demonstrate that our de novo protein library contains not only simple monomeric proteins, but also stable and functional multimeric proteins.


The present invention provides a compound of formula (I) [Formula 1] (I) A compound represented by the compounds, their compositions, methods for producing the intermediates and derivatives thereof and to methods of treating glucokinase mediated disorder. More particularly, the compounds of the present invention is not limited to, a glucokinase modulators useful in the treatment of disorders, including type 2 diabetes.


Calorimetry is a robust method for online monitoring and controlling bioprocesses in stirred tank reactors. Up to now, reactor calorimeters have not been optimally constructed for pilot scale applications. Thus, the objective of this paper is to compare two different ways for designing reactor calorimeters and validate them. The "heat capacity" method based on the mass flow of the cooling liquid in the jacket was compared with the "heat transfer" method based on the heat transfer coefficient continuously measured in the cultivation of Escherichia coli VH33 in a 50 L stirred tank reactor. It was found that the values of the "heat transfer" method agreed very well with the calculated values from the oxygen consumption. By contrast, the curve of the "heat capacity" method deviated from that of the oxygen consumption calculated with the oxycaloric equivalent. In conclusion, the "heat transfer" method has been proven to have a higher degree of validity than the "heat capacity" method. Thus, it is a better and more robust means to measure heat generation of fermentations in stirred tank bioreactors on a pilot scale. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2013; 110: 180–190. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


CRISPR-Cas9 is a versatile genome editing system widely used since 2013 to introduce site-specific modifications into the genomes of model and non-model species. This technology is used in various applications, from gene knock-outs, knock-ins, and over-expressions to more precise changes, such as the introduction of nucleotides at a targeted locus. CRISPR-Cas9 has been demonstrated to be easy to establish in new species and highly efficient and specific compared to previous gene editing strategies such as Zinc finger nucleases and transcription activator-like effector nucleases. Grand challenges for emerging CRISPR-Cas9 tools in filamentous fungi are developing efficient transformation methods for non-model organisms. In this paper, we have leveraged the establishment of CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing tool that relies on Cas9/sgRNA ribonucleoprotein complexes (RNPs) in the model species Trichoderma reesei and developed the first protocol to efficiently transform the non-model species, Sphaerulina musiva. This fungal pathogen constitutes a real threat to the genus Populus, a foundational bioenergy crop used for biofuel production. Herein, we highlight the general considerations to design sgRNAs and their computational validation. We also describe the use of isolated protoplasts to deliver the CRISPR-Cas9 RNP components in both species and the screening for targeted genome editing events. The development of engineering tools in S. musiva can be used for studying genes involved in diverse processes such as secondary metabolism, establishment, and pathogenicity, among many others, but also for developing genetic mitigation approaches. The approach described here provides guidance for potential development of transformation systems in other non-model spore-bearing ascomycetes.


This is the first book by an author in the UK to take an in-depth look at colourism - the process of discrimination based on skin tone among members of the same ethnic group, whereby lighter skin is more valued than darker complexions. The African Diaspora in Britain is examined as part of a global black community with shared experiences of slavery, colonization and neo-colonialism. The author traces the evolution of colourism within African descendant communities in the USA, Jamaica, Latin America and the UK from a historical and political perspective and examines its present impact on the global African Diaspora. This book is essential reading for educators and students and will appeal to anyone with an interest in the subject of race and identity who wants to understand why colourism - a psychological legacy of slavery still impacts people of African descent in the Diaspora today.


: Quality assurance of medical care is a process designed to improve quality of health care delivery by eliminating deficiencies. Since every quality assurance process starts with the assessment of quality and the recognition of deficiencies, quality assurance is in the first place a problem of information: if one does not know the inadequacy of the own care, one has no idea that it should be improved. Therefore, appropriate quality indicators differentiating between good and bad medical care and functioning information systems with or without computers are basic prerequisites for the assurance of quality. Additionally, external comparisons of the hospital's own data with the data of other hospitals stimulate the efforts of quality assurance committees. Computer based hospital information systems may be valuable tools to support quality assurance processes. However, further research and development of quality monitoring systems, practicable medical and economical quality indicators, and decision supporting techniques will be necessary to meet all requests of the quality assurance professionals.


............................................................................................................... vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................... vii LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................... x LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... xi CHAPTER ONE .........................................................................................................


In 1996, during excavation works in Gorni Dabnik village they found a leather bad with 30 silver coins (25 Ottoman and 5 Western European ones) that means a mixed hoard. The hoard ranks among the most emblematic ones from the period of the 16th – 17th c. known from the Bulgarian territory under the Ottoman domination. Four of the European coins belong to types that have not yet been documented on the territory of today's Bulgaria.
The earliest Western European coin in the hoard is a Saxon one struck in 1539 in the mint yard of the town of Annaberg during the shared government of Dukes Johann Friedrich I and Heinrich (1539-1541). Its nominal value is half a Guldengroschen. The second coin is Guldiner from 1544 of the free imperial town of Kempten. The third coin is Reichsthaler from the joint coinage of the imperial towns of Deventer, Kempten and Zwolle, struck in 1555 under Emperor Charles V (1519-1556). The fourth European coin is Swiss thaler issued in 1561 by the three oldest Cantons of Uri, Schwitz and Unterwalden. The last European coin belongs to the County of Ostfriesland struck in 1564 under the shared rule of Erhard II and his younger brothers Christoph and Johann (1540-1566). The Ottoman coins in the hoard are 25 in number: one of Sultan Selim I (1512-1520); 6 pieces of Sultan Suleiman I (1520-1566); six pieces of Selim II (1566-1574); and 4 pieces of Murat III (1574-1595) (the remaining 8 coins cannot be identified). The coins were issued only by Balkan mints – Kunstantinie (Istanbul, Turkey), Edirne (Turkey), Novo Brdo (Kosovo), Uskup (Skopje, FUR of Macedonia), Beograd (Serbia) and Sirus (Serres, Greece).
The reason and circumstances of concealing the coins remains unknown. It was probably a matter of personal concern.


In recent years we have witnessed the emergence of the FPGA in many high-performance systems. This is due to FPGA's high reconfigurability and improved user-friendly programming environment. OpenCL, supported by major FPGA vendors, is a high-level programming platform that liberates hardware developers from having to deal with the complex and error-prone HDL development. While OpenCL exposes a GPU-like programming model, which is well-suited for compute-intensive tasks, in many state-of-art systems that deploy FPGA, we observe that the workloads are streaming-like, which is communication-intensive. This mismatch leads to low throughput and high end-to-end latency. In this paper, we propose ST-Accel, a new high-level programming platform for streaming applications on FPGA. It has the following advantages: (i) ST-Accel adopts the multiprocessing programming model to capture the inherent pipeline-level parallelism of streaming applications while reducing the end-to-end latency. (ii) A message-passing-based host/FPGA communication model is used to avoid the coherency issue of shared memory, thus enabling host/FPGA communication during kernel execution. (iii) ST-Accel provides a high-level abstraction for I/O devices to support direct I/O device access that eliminates the overhead of host CPU and reduces the I/O latency. (iv) ST-Accel enables the decoupled access/execute architecture to maximize the utilization of I/O devices. (v) The host/FPGA communication interface is redesigned to cater to the demands of both latency-critical and throughput-critical scenarios. The experimental results on the Amazon AWS cloud and local machine show that ST-Accel can achieve 1.6X-166X throughput and 1/3 latency for typical streaming workloads when compared to OpenCL.


Dicode pulse position modulation (DiPPM) has been considered as a solution for the bandwidth consumption issue that other existing pulse position modulation (PPM) formats suffer from. This is because it has a line rate that is twice that of the original data rate. This paper considers for the first time forward error correction (FEC) Reed Solomon (RS) codes to improve the error performance of a DiPPM. The results show that the error performance in the system can be improved by using FEC code when the RS is working at its optimum parameters. The error performance of the uncoded DiPPM system has been compared with a RS coded DiPPM system and one using maximum likelihood sequence detector (MLSD) in terms of the number of photons per pulse, transmission efficiency, and bandwidth expansion. The DiPPM with RS code offers superior performance compared to the uncoded DiPPM and DiPPM using MLSD, requiring only 4.5 × 103 photons per pulse, when operating at a bandwidth equal or above to 0.9 times the original data rate. This is with an optimum code rate of approximately ¾, and a codeword length of 25.


Bamboo handicraft sector is pre-dominant in the Indian handicrafts and there are millions of people who depend on bamboo for part or all of their income. The study was conducted using a descriptive research. 415 samples are collected from farmers and handicraft worker. Mean and standard deviation were analyzed based on the data. It is found that the respondents are having the more level of problem during the selling of bamboo product. There are long market channels, lack of processing unit, increasing cost of transport and lack of storage facilities. The respondents were felt that bamboo cultivation is not considered as low risk and easy selling. However, they are cultivating the bamboo due to less work and suitable for land and natural climatic condition


Background Cigarette smoking is the major risk factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, only 10% -20% of chronic heavy cigarette smokers develop symptomatic disease. COPD is most likely the result of complex interactions between environmental and genetic factors. Genetic susceptibility to COPD might depend on the variations in enzyme activities that detoxify cigarette smoke products, such as microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mEH) and glutathione Stransferase (GST). In this study, we investigated the relationship between polymorphisms in the genes encoding mEH and glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) and COPD in a Chinese population.Methods Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was performed to find mEH polymorphism in exon 3 (Tyr113→His), exon 4 (His139→Arg) and GSTP1 polymorphism in exon 5 (Ile105→Val) in 100 COPD patients and 100 age- and sex-matched healthy controls.Results The proportion of mEH exon 3 heterozygotes was significantly higher in patients with COPD than that in the control subjects (42% vs 32% ). The odds ratio (OR) adjusted by age, sex, body mass index (BMI) and cigarette years was 2.96 (95% CI 1.24 - 7. 09). There was no marked difference in very slow activity genotype versus other genotypes between COPD patients and the controls. When COPD patients were non-smokers, the OR of very slow activity genotype versus other genotypes was more than 1.00; and when COPD patients were smokers ( current smokers and exsmokers), the OR was less than 1.00. There was no significant difference in GSTP1 polymorphism adjusted by age, sex, BMI and smoking between COPD patients and the controls.Conclusions mEH exon 3 heterozygotes might be associated with susceptibility to COPD in China.The interaction might exist between mEH genotype and smoke. The gene polymorphism for GSTP1 might not be associated with susceptibility to COPD in the Chinese population.


Cloud computing has become an attractive target for attackers as the mainstream technologies in the cloud, such as the virtualization and multitenancy, permit multiple users to utilize the same physical resource, thereby posing the so-called problem of internal facing security. Moreover, the traditional network-based intrusion detection systems (IDSs) are ineffective to be deployed in the cloud environments. This is because that such IDSs employ only the network information in their detection engine and this, therefore, makes them ineffective for the cloud-specific vulnerabilities. In this paper, we propose a novel assessment methodology for anomaly-based IDSs for cloud computing which takes into account both network and system-level information for generating the evaluation dataset. In addition, our approach deploys the IDS sensors in each virtual machine in order to develop a cooperative anomaly detection engine. The proposed assessment methodology is then deployed in a testbed cloud environment to generate an IDS dataset which includes both network and system-level features. Finally, we evaluate the performance of several machine learning algorithms over the generated dataset. Our experimental results demonstrate that the proposed IDS assessment approach is effective for attack detection in the cloud as most of the algorithms are able to identify the attacks with a high level of accuracy.


This craniotomy forceps, made by Botschan, of Worship Street, i s much shorter and lighter than the preceding instrument. It comes nearcr to the original forceps figured and described by Conquest, the blades appcaring preciselv similar in shape. It was preserved in a box, once in usc in the-City of London Hospital, presented to the Obstetrical Society of London by the IIospital authorities in 1883~ and now in this collection (No. 338). The box contained the Conquest's obstetric forceps (No. 16). Royal Socie ty of Medicine.


Gas holdup in the column section of bubble columns is determined by a large number of operating-design variables-parameters. In this study the effect of orifice inclination on the gas holdup is investigated at various superficial gas velocities. It is observed that the effect depends largely on the gas velocities. At very low gas velocities such as 0.015-0.076 cm/s where truly dispersed-bubble regime prevails, an inclination of the orifice keeping the size unchanged tends to decrease the gas holdup. However this effect diminishes with increasing gas velocity and no remarkable effect is found at relatively higher gas velocities like 2.20-8.50 cm/s where dispersed-transition-coalesced bubble regimes prevail. Therefore when bubble columns are intended to operate at very low superficial gas velocities, the orifice inclination is also an alternative option to control the gas holdup at the desired level. The experimental results produced in this study would be useful for the development and validation of proper mathematical model. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/cerb.v17i1.22914 Chemical Engineering Research Bulletin 17(2015) 18-24


The unicellular green algal flagellate, Mesostigma viride , possesses an extracellular matrix consisting of three layers of highly distinct scales. This study focused upon the elaborate basket scales. The basket scale is approximately 450–500 nm in height and consists of a solid base, two distinct lattices, two upper rims and various struts and roots. Pure preparations of isolated basket scales were obtained and used for subsequent chemical and immunological analyses. X-ray microanalyses revealed the scale as being mineralized with both calcium and phosphorus. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopic analyses revealed the presence of phosphate, suggesting in turn that the basket scale is complexed with calcium phosphate. SDS-gel electrophoresis of partially digested scales revealed the presence of two protein components, a high M r, non-migrating form and a form with a M r of approximately 48000. Further biochemical analyses of scales showed the presence of two major sugars: glucose and the unusual keto sugar acid, 3-deoxy-lyxo-2-heptulosaric acid, or DHA. Antibodies to scales were raised in rats and used in immunolabeling studies. It is estimated from immunofluorescence studies that a cell of 8 μm contains about 800 basket scales. The scales are in a close-packed arrangement resulting in quasi-crystalline arrays upon the cell surface.


Zinc ion was adsorbed and enriched by nano-barium-strontium titanate immobilized on aluminum oxide(ABST). The adsorption and elution conditions were investigated. The results showed that ABST had strong adsorption ability for zinc ion in water in the medium at pH more than 4.0. The maximum adsorption capability was up to 16.38 mg/g. The adsorbed zinc on ABST could be eluted and reclaimed with 0.5 mol/L of HNO3. Zinc was determined by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry (FAAS). The detection limit of this method for zinc ion was 2.5 μg/L. The method had been applied to the determination of trace zinc in surface water and tap water samples with recovery of 92.5%-98.7%. The results were found to be in agreement with the method of dithizone spectrophotometry.


As Virtual Reality becomes evermore popular, research is needed to find areas this new technology can be used for. As regular computer games have already been tested for educational purposes, some successfully, it is natural to continue this trend in Virtual Reality. As games and Virtual Reality separately provide increased visualisation, together they may greatly improve this for school subjects where this is needed. VRChemist is a Virtual Reality game designed primarily for high school students, and visualises atoms and molecules in a brand new way. VRChemist was tested on 7 teachers and 17 students from two Norwegian high schools to see if students and staff alike agreed that this added visual representation may be of great aid to supplement traditional learning methods in high school to improve the understanding and motivation in the subject. The results were positive, with no nausea or dizziness felt by any participant, no significant differences between the different ages or genders of students, and high interest in what a full version of VRChemist and any other potential software for Virtual Reality.


In this study we (1) mapped the areal extent of current dust sources over Northern Africa between 8°W–31°E and 22°N - Mediterranean coast; and (2) identified and characterized the geomorphic units and soil types that emit dust from these areas. We used the full resolution (3 km) data from the MSG-SEVIRI to map dust sources over a 2-year period between 2005–2006, and examined these regions with remotely sensed images and geomorphic and soil maps. A total of >2600 individual dust emission events were mapped; with frequency up to 34 events in the 2-year study period. The areal extent of dust emission sources exhibited a lognormal distribution with most sources ranging from 20 to 130 km2. Most dust events were singular and related to a variety of specific geomorphic units. Dust events that created hotspots were mostly located over playas and fluvial landforms, and to a lesser extent over sand dunes and anthropogenic affected regions. About 20% of dust hotspots were offset a few kilometers from clear geomorphic units. Quantitative analysis of emissions revealed that dust sourced from various geomorphic units, among them playas (12%) and fluvial systems (10%). The importance of sand dunes as dust-emission sources greatly differs between examined datasets (7% vs. 30%). Our study emphasizes the importance of scattered dust emission events that are not considered as hotspots, as these sources are usually neglected in dust emission modeling.


The confluence between music and literature, long hymned as sister arts, is a newly burgeoning field of critical inquiry. This innovative collection of interdisciplinary essays provides a valuable introduction to the field, mapping the contours of recent research and investigating the mutual aesthetic influence of the two arts and their common historical ground. The examination of literary works using music as an analogy for literary composition and agent of cultural value, and the consideration of musical works whose structure is derived from literary models will excite the interest of both professional scholars and students in the fields of musicology, literary studies and modern European languages.


Abstract. As the accuracy and sensitivity of remote-sensing satellites improve, there is an increasing demand for more accurate and updated base datasets for surveying and monitoring. However, differentiating rock outcrop from snow and ice is a particular problem in Antarctica, where extensive cloud cover and widespread shaded regions lead to classification errors. The existing rock outcrop dataset has significant georeferencing issues as well as overestimation and generalisation of rock exposure areas. The most commonly used method for automated rock and snow differentiation, the normalised difference snow index (NDSI), has difficulty differentiating rock and snow in Antarctica due to misclassification of shaded pixels and is not able to differentiate illuminated rock from clouds. This study presents a new method for identifying rock exposures using Landsat 8 data. This is the first automated methodology for snow and rock differentiation that excludes areas of snow (both illuminated and shaded), clouds and liquid water whilst identifying both sunlit and shaded rock, achieving higher and more consistent accuracies than alternative data and methods such as the NDSI. The new methodology has been applied to the whole Antarctic continent (north of 82°40′ S) using Landsat 8 data to produce a new rock outcrop dataset for Antarctica. The new data (merged with existing data where Landsat 8 tiles are unavailable; most extensively south of 82°40′ S) reveal that exposed rock forms 0.18 % (21 745 km2) of the total land area of Antarctica: half of previous estimates.


The Covid-19 pandemic has seen the marked centralization and exertion of executive power, and, more broadly, a focus on the response of other elected organs. However, the pandemic has also shone a light on the key roles played by unelected independent institutions and international bodies, from public health actors to courts to international organizations and beyond. Constitutional INSIGHTS No. 8 explores the types of independent institutions that have shaped state action to suppress the virus, focusing on four principal functions: sources of expertise; implementation mechanisms; constraints on government action; and linkage actors mediating between the domestic, transnational and international spheres.


This view of the quality of education is now very diverse. Society perceives quality education is a luxury building school have, and school beautiful garden. This research method using descriptive qualitative research. The goal is to analyze and find the concept of academic quality religious culture developed by Principals. The results of the research that the concept of quality culture developed through the habit of behaving in everyday life. The findings of the research that developed the concept of quality culture is a collective agreement that puts the Islamic culture.


Abstract In the late summer of 1842, Anne Phillips, working under her brother's instructions, found the crucial piece of evidence – known thereafter as Miss Phillips' conglomerate – that disproved Murchison's theories about the intrusive origin of the Malvern Hills. Later she travelled with her brother to examine the volcanics of the Auvergne. But these were not her first, or her only, geological achievements. From 1829 until her death in 1862, Anne served as housekeeper to her bachelor older brother. Orphaned at an early age, both John and Anne were taken in by their uncle, William Smith. Smith arranged for John's schooling and introduced John to the science of geology as a teenager. However, little evidence exists about Anne's upbringing and education. A series of 234 letters written by John to Anne between 1829 and 1841, and preserved in the Phillips archive at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, reveals that Anne was clearly well educated and provided her brother with valuable scientific back-up as well as essential domestic and emotional support during their 33 years together.


The purpose of this study is to pilot a new notification system for children with visual impairment (VI) and describe the initial summary findings. A system of notification of children in Scotland with VI was established. Information concerning this system was distributed to professionals working with visually impaired children to forward to parents. Parents, teachers and health professionals were all encouraged to notify children with VI. 975 families with children with (VI) were notified and received information and support from Visual Impairment Scotland (VIS). For this review, the data from 850 parents were included in the analysis. The provision of a range of support services for parents and children with VI has led to a wide range of children being notified to VIS. The causes of VI can be recorded as well as other useful demographic information. The methods used could be applied across the range of low incidence childhood disabilities.


In this paper, we examine the process of designing robot-performed iconic hand gestures in the context of a long-term study into second language tutoring with children of approximately 5 years old. We explore four factors that may relate to their efficacy in supporting second language tutoring: the age of participating children; differences between gestures for various semantic categories, e.g. measurement words, such as small, versus counting words, such as five; the quality (comprehensibility) of the robot's gestures; and spontaneous reenactment or imitation of the gestures. Age was found to relate to children's learning outcomes, with older children benefiting more from the robot's iconic gestures than younger children, particularly for measurement words. We found no conclusive evidence that the quality of the gestures or spontaneous reenactment of said gestures related to learning outcomes. We further propose several improvements to the process of designing and implementing a robot's iconic gesture repertoire.


In this paper, we present "BIKED," a dataset comprised of 4500 individually designed bicycle models sourced from hundreds of designers. We expect BIKED to enable a variety of data-driven design applications for bicycles and support the development of data-driven design methods. The dataset is comprised of a variety of design information including assembly images, component images, numerical design parameters, and class labels. In this paper, we first discuss the processing of the dataset, then highlight some prominent research questions that BIKED can help address. Of these questions, we further explore the following in detail: 1) Are there prominent gaps in the current bicycle market and design space? We explore the design space using unsupervised dimensionality reduction methods. 2) How does one identify the class of a bicycle and what factors play a key role in defining it? We address the bicycle classification task by training a multitude of classifiers using different forms of design data and identifying parameters of particular significance through permutation-based interpretability analysis. 3) How does one synthesize new bicycles using different representation methods? We consider numerous machine learning methods to generate new bicycle models as well as interpolate between and extrapolate from existing models using Variational Autoencoders. The dataset is available at http://decode.mit.edu/projects/biked/ along with referenced code.


Stable isotope and 40 Ar/ 39 Ar measurements were made on samples associated with a major tectonic discontinuity in the Helvetic Alps, the basal thrust of the Diablerets nappe (external zone of the Alpine Belt) in order to determine both the importance of fluids in this thrust zone and the timing of thrusting. A systematic decrease in the δ 18 O values (up to 6‰) of calcite, quartz, and white mica exists within a 10- to 70-m-wide zone over a distance of 37 km along the thrust, and they become more pronounced toward the root of the nappe. A similar decrease in the δ 13 C values of calcite is observed only in the deepest sections (up to 3‰). The δD SMOW (SMOW = standard mean ocean water) values of white mica are −54‰ ± 8‰ ( n = 22) and are independent of the distance from the thrust. These variations are interpreted to reflect syntectonic solution reprecipitation during fluid passage along the thrust. The calculated δ 18 O and δD values (versus SMOW) for the fluid in equilibrium with the analyzed minerals is 12‰ to 16‰ and −30‰ to +5‰, respectively, for assumed temperatures of 250 to 450 °C. The isotopic and structural data are consistent with fluids derived from the deep-seated roots of the Helvetic nappes where large volumes of Mesozoic sediments were metamorphosed to the amphibolite facies. It is suggested that connate and metamorphic waters, overpressured by rapid tectonic burial in a subductive system escaped by upward infiltration along moderately dipping pathways until they reached the main shear zone at the base of the moving pile, where they were channeled toward the surface. This model also explains the mechanism by which large amounts of fluid were removed from the Mesozoic sediments during Alpine metamorphism. White mica 40 Ar/ 39 Ar ages vary from 27 Ma far from the Diablerets thrust to 15 Ma along the thrust. An older component is observed in micas far from the thrust, interpreted as a detrital signature, and indicates that regional metamorphic temperatures were less than about 350 °C. The plateau and near plateau ages nearest the thrust are consistent with either neocrystallization of white mica or argon loss by recrystallization during thrusting, which may have been enhanced in the zones of highest fluid flow. The 15 Ma 40 Ar/ 39 Ar age plateau measured on white mica sampled exactly on the thrust surface dates the end of both fluid flow and tectonic transport.


Domain-specific reconfigurable arrays have shown to provide an efficient trade-off between flexibility of FPGA and performance of ASIC circuit. Nonetheless, the design of these heterogeneous arrays is a labour intensive process. Furthermore, the manual creation of the array architecture could not have been fully optimised, hence limiting their performance. This paper presents a placement technique for mapping logic elements into heterogeneous reconfigurable arrays. At its core, it implements a genetic algorithm, which was used to reduce the span of all the interconnections as well as critical delay. It therefore minimises the amount of routing resource required in the architecture. The algorithm was tested on two arrays implementing DCT and speech coding. The resulting architecture achieves optimal close to that of an expert designer in a fraction of the time


This article proposes a cooperative energy transaction model for a virtual power plant (VPP) developed as a bilevel optimization program based on the Stackelberg game in the deregulated electricity markets. The VPP integrates multiple renewable energy hubs consisting of electric vehicle charging stations with photovoltaic and battery energy storage systems. The proposed model derives co-optimized strategic decisions for the VPP operator in the day-ahead (joint active power, reserve, and reactive power) markets while considering the balancing market operation. The proposed model is reformulated as a mathematical program with equilibrium constraints (MPECs) using the Karush–Kuhn–Tucker conditions and the strong duality theorem. For an efficient solution, the MPEC is approximated as a mixed-integer linear program by applying the Fortuny-Amat transform on the complementarity and slackness conditions and the binary expansion on the bilinear terms. The uncertainties of the renewables, loads, and prices are modeled using stochastic scenarios. Finally, comparative case studies of a VPP in an IEEE 33 node active distribution network show that the proposed model improves the profit by strategic cooperative energy transactions.


Background: Radiotherapy and chemotherapy are used in breast cancer, but they cause an array of adverse effects including dermatological changes and vomiting. Objective: The objective of the study was to examine whether Usual Care (UC) plus pre-defined homoeopathic remedies can produce different effect beyond UC plus placebo in dermatological adverse effects of radiotherapy and vomiting of chemotherapy in breast carcinoma. Methods: In this double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, parallel-arm trial, 88 females suffering from dermatological adverse effects due to radiotherapy (n = 41) or vomiting due to chemotherapy (n = 47) were randomised to receive either UC + Homoeopathy (verum; n = 44) or UC + Placebo (control; n = 44). The outcome measures were the number of responders showing any reduction of grades of Acute Radiation Morbidity Scoring Criteria (ARMSC) of the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group and Common Toxicity Criteria (CTC) for vomiting, measured at baseline and after 7 and 14 days. Relative Risk (RR) with 95% Confidence Intervals (CIs) was assessed; Chi-square tests were run to report P values. Results: A protocol-compliant sample (n = 80; 8 dropped out, verum: 4, control: 4) was analysed. The number of responders as per the ARMSC score after 7 days (11/18 vs. 1/19, RR = 3.3, 95% CI = 1.7–6.3, P = 0.001) and 14 days (16/18 vs. 1/19, RR = 9.4, 95% CI = 2.5–35.2, P < 0.001) was statistically significant, favouring verum over control. Similar results were obtained according to the CTC scoring after 7 days (15/22 vs. 2/21, RR = 3.3, 95% CI = 1.7–6.3, P < 0.001) and 14 days (21/22 vs. 4/21, RR = 15.1, 95% CI = 2.2–102.4, P < 0.001). Conclusion: Pre-identified homoeopathic medicines appeared superior to placebo, warranting further evaluation.


Precipitation of Fe3O4 from FeSO4 in the presence of NH4OH, amine-terminated poly(propylene glycol) (PPG-NH2) and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) afforded magnetite particles coated with PPG-NH2 and β-CD. The sizes of the particles, as characterized by dynamic light scattering and electron microscopy, depended on the preparation conditions, but the essential magnetite structure and magnetic properties were retained in the presence of the surface coating. The terminal amine of PPG-NH2 was used for the conjugation of folic acid (FA), with the aim of targeting cancer cells overexpressing the FA receptor. Curcumin, a promising chemotherapeutic exhibiting low aqueous solubility and rapid metabolic degradation was encapsulated into the β-CD cavity to enhance its delivery to cancer cells. The loading of curcumin and its release rate was found to depend on the particle size and composition, with sustained curcumin release observed for some systems. The uptake of the particles into MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 human breast cancer cells was compared and the toxicities of the curcumin-loaded particles were compared to the free drug and to particles without curcumin.


This work presents a novel study of the notion of facial attractiveness in a machine learning context. To this end, we collected human beauty ratings for data sets of facial images and used various techniques for learning the attractiveness of a face. The trained predictor achieves a significant correlation of 0.65 with the average human ratings. The results clearly show that facial beauty is a universal concept that a machine can learn. Analysis of the accuracy of the beauty prediction machine as a function of the size of the training data indicates that a machine producing human-like attractiveness rating could be obtained given a moderately larger data set.


PURPOSE: The population undergoing complex abdominal wall reconstructions (CAWR) tends to have significant associated, multiple comorbidities, complicating the recovery of a reconstruction. Undergoing CAWR exposes these patients to a risk for respiratory complications, which is common after CAWR. These complications are associated with an increased surgical morbidity and mortality, prolonged length of hospital stay (LOHS), an additional cost burden, and decrease in health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Improving the physical capacity before CAWR, by preoperative exercise therapy (PexT), is likely to give a better recovery and lower complication rate. In this study, we will survey the feasibility of PexT in patients undergoing a CAWR. Outcome measures will be added to demonstrate a possible effect of PexT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A feasibility study was performed. The intervention consisted of a 3-month lasting exercise program consisting of cardiovascular, strength, and respiratory muscle training under direct supervision of a physiotherapist. The primary outcome was feasibility, defined as the occurrence of adverse events and the possibility to perform more than 80% of the intervention. The secondary outcomes were the physical capacity, HRQoL, the amount of pulmonary complications, and the LOHS. Physical capacity was measured with a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) before and after the intervention and after surgery. RESULTS: Nine males and two females were included with a median age of 59 years [95% confidence interval (CI) 51–71] and a median body mass index of 31.6 kg/m2 (95% CI 28.1–36.7). The median width of the ventral hernia was 16.0 cm (95% CI 15.0–23.0). No adverse events occurred and all patients could complete the intervention. Both physical capacity and HRQoL improved after the intervention. All patients had a successful reconstruction with fascial closure. CONCLUSION: Intensive PExT is feasible in patients waiting for a CAWR. A randomized controlled trial needs to be conducted to objectivate the effect of PExT to prevent pulmonary complications and to reduce LOHS in this population.


Contents: SYMPOSIA: (Organizer: C.E. Hmelo, N.H. Narayanan.) R. Bareiss, J. Kolodner, V. Patel, S. Williams, Anchors, Cases, Problems, and Scenarios as Contexts for Learning. (Organizer: J.R. Anderson.) P.A. Carpenter, B.E. John, M.A. Just, D. Kieras, D.E. Meyer, Production System Models of Complex Cognition. (Organizers: C. Burgess, G.W. Cottrell.) D. Clouse, T. Landauer, K. Lund, H. Schuetze, Using High-Dimensional Semantic Spaces Derived from Large Text Corpora. (Organizer: W. Schneider.) T.S. Braver, C.S. Carter, J.D. Cohen, J. Jonides, R. Koeppe, M. Mintun, E.E. Smith, K.R. Thulborn, M. Worden, Brain Imaging and Its Impact on the Development of Cognitive Science. PAPER PRESENTATIONS: Part I:Language: Word Recognition. M.G. Gaskell, W.D. Marslen-Wilson, Modeling the Perception of Spoken Words. M. Spivey-Knowlton, M. Tanenhaus, K. Eberhard, J. Sedivy, Eye-movements Accompanying Language and Action in a Visual Context: Evidence Against Modularity. R.M. French, C. Ohnesorge, Using Non-Cognate Interlexical Homographs to Study Bilingual Memory Organization. D.C. Plaut, Semantic and Associative Priming in a Distributed Attractor Network. Part II:Vision I. T.J. Simon, . Cabrera, Evidence for Subitizing as a Stimulus-Limited Processing Phenomemon. M.I. Isaak, A Capacity Approach to Kinematic Illusions: The Curtate Cycloid Illusion in the Perception of Rolling Motion. K. Yamada, G.W. Cottrell, A Model of Scan Paths Applied to Face Recognition. J.R. Anderson, M. Matessa, S. Douglass, The ACT-R Theory and Visual Attention. Part III:Case-Based Reasoning. R. Oehlmann, Meta-Cognitive Attention: Reasoning About Strategy Selection. B.M. McLaren, K.D. Ashley, Case-Based Comparative Evaluation in TRUTH-TELLER. M.D. Simina, J.L. Kolodner, Opportunistic Reasoning: A Design Perspective. D.B. Leake, Combining Rules and Cases to Learn Case Adaptation. Part IV:Foundations. . Cabrera, T.J. Simon, Time-Accuracy Data Analysis: Separating Stimulus-limited and Post-stimulus Processes. A. Brook, Cognitive Science and Two Images of the Person. C.D. Schunn, T. Okada, K. Crowley, Is Cognitive Science Truly Interdisciplinary? The Case of Interdisciplinary Collaborations. C.D. Schunn, D. Klahr, A 4-Space Model of Scientific Discovery. Part V:Language: Lexical Semantics. K-P Gapp, Angle, Distance, Shape, and Their Relationship to Projective Relations. I. Pratt, D.S. Br'e, An Approach to the Semantics of Some English Temporal Constructions. A. Merin, Material Object Transfer and Communication of Ideas: Analogy of Naive Theories and Its Linguistic Manifestation. B. Jones, Predicating Nominal Compounds. Part VI:Cognitive Neuroscience & Neuropsychology. V. Gullapalli, J.J. Gelfand, D.L.T. Rohde, A Model of Practice Related Shifts in the Locus of Brain Activity During Verbal Response Selection Tasks. R. Shillcock, P. Cairns, A Connectionist Model of Hemispheric Interaction in Unilateral Visuospatial Neglect. J.B-H. Ho, M. Behrmann, D.C. Plaut, The Interaction of Spatial Reference Frames and Hierarchical Object Representations: A Computational Investigation of Drawing in Hemispatial Neglect. A. Haessly, J. Sirosh, R. Miikkulainen, A Model of Visually Guided Plasticity of the Auditory Spatial Map in the Barn Owl. Part VII:Vision II. A. Oliva, P.G. Schyns, Mandatory Scale Perception Promotes Flexible Scene Categorizations. A.P. Duchon, W.H. Warren, L.P. Kaelbling, Ecological Robotics: Controlling Behavior With Optical Flow. D. Mareschal, K. Plunkett, P. Harris, Developing Object Permanence: A Connectionist Model. Part VIII:Concept Learning I. E. Heit, Belief Revision in Models of Category Learning. . Cabrera, The "Rational" Number e: A Functional Analysis of Categorization. D. Billman, D. D vila, Consistency Is the Hobgoblin of Human Minds: People Care but Concept Learning Models Do Not. J-P Thibaut, The Abstraction of Relevant Features by Children and Adults: The Case of Visual Stimuli. Part IX:Visual, Spatial, and Diagrammatic Reasoning. M. Knauff, R. Rauh, C. Schlieder, Preferred Mental Models in Qualitative Spatial Reasoning: A Cognitive Assessment of Allen's Calculus. N.H. Narayanan, M. Suwa, H. Motoda, Diagram-Based Problem Solving: The Case of an Impossible Problem. D. Kirsh, Complementary Strategies: Why We Use Our Hands When We Think. A.M. Leonardo, H.J. Tabachneck, H.A. Simon, A Computational Model of Diagram Reading and Reasoning. Part X:Language: Acquisition and Change. V.A. Marchman, D.E. Callan, Multiple Determinants of the Productive Use of the Regular Past Tense Suffix. M. Spivey-Knowlton, J.R. Saffran, Inducing a Grammar Without an Explicit Teacher: Incremental Distributed Prediction Feedback. G. Westermann, R. Goebel, Connectionist Rules of Language. W. Tabor, Lexical Change as Nonlinear Interpolation. Part XI:Problem Solving. R. Ploetzner, How Misconceptions Affect Formal Physics Problem Solving: Model-Based Predictions and Empirical Observations. W.A. Sandoval, J.G. Trafton, B.J. Reiser, The Effects of Self-Explanation on Studying Examples and Solving Problems. R. Catrambone, Effects of Background on Subgoal Learning. M.C. Lovett, J.R. Anderson, Making Heads or Tails out of Selecting Problem-Solving Stategies. Part XII:Reasoning: Explanation and Expertise. S. Brem, L.J. Rips, Explanation and Evidence in Informal Reasoning. J. Krems, T.R. Johnson, Integration of Anomalous Data in Multicausal Explanations. J. Wiley, Are Experts Unbiased? Effects of Knowledge and Attitude on Memory for Text. A.W. Kushniruk, V.L. Patel, D.M. Fleiszer, Complex Decision Making in Providing Surgical Intensive Care. Part XIII:Concept Learning II. M. Heydemann, A Connectionist Model for Classification Learning - The IAK Model. A. Cleeremans, Implicit Learning in the Presence of Multiple Cues. S.J. Tetewsky, T.R. Shultz, Y. Takane, Training Regimens and Function Compatibility: Implications for Understanding the Effects of Knowledge on Concept Learning. K.L. Olseth, L.W. Barsalou, The Spontaneous Use of Perceptual Representations During Conceptual Processing. Part XIV:Language: Sentence-level Phenomena I. L. Ardissono, G. Boella, L. Lesmo, Indirect Speech Acts and Politeness: A Computational Approach. I. Zukerman, R. McConachy, Considering Explanation Failure During Content Planning R.J. Stevenson, A.J. Urbanowicz, Structural Focusing, Thematic Role Focusing and the Comprehension of Pronouns. W.B. Baggett, A.C. Graesser, Question Answering in the Context of Illustrated Expository Text. Part XV:Collaborative Problem Solving. T. Okada, H.A. Simon, Collaborative Discovery in a Scientific Domain. C. Chan, Collaborative Processing of Incompatible Information. C.S. Gadd, A Theory of the Multiple Roles of Diagnosis in Collaborative Problem Solving Discourse. Part XVI:Language: Sentence-level Phenomena II. R.F. Hadley, M.B. Hayward, Strong Semantic Systematicity From Unsupervised Connectionist Learning. M. Durrant-Peatfield, W. Marslen-Wilson, Pragmatic Effects in Zero Anaphor Resolution: Implications for Modularity. D.C. Noelle, G.W. Cottrell, A Connectionist Model of Instruction Following. J.C. Sedivy, M.K. Tanenhaus, K. Eberhard, M. Spivey-Knowlton, G.N. Carlson, Using Intonationally-Marked Presuppositional Information in On-Line Language Processing: Evidence From Eye Movement