Many monoculture forests (dominated by a single tree species) have been converted to mixed-species forests (dominated by more than one tree species) in Europe over the last decades. The main reason for this conversion was to increase productivity, including timber production, and enhance other ecosystem services, such as conservation of biodiversity and other nature values. In addition, it has been suggested that mixed-species forests are more resistant, resilient and stable to disturbances. In line with the niche complementarity hypothesis, inter-specific differences in crown architecture, leaf phenology, shade tolerance and root distribution may allow tree species to partition resources in mixed forests. Such mechanisms may lead to a higher productivity of mixed forests versus monoculture forests, a phenomenon often referred to as overyielding. Interestingly, the stress-gradient hypothesis and the resource-ratio hypothesis suggests that such inter-specific interactions vary along a soil fertility gradient, but in different ways. The stress-gradient hypothesis emphasizes that more efficient partitioning increases overyielding at low fertility soils, whereas the resource ratio hypothesis considers that the denser packing of crowns on fertile soils allows for partitioning of light and overyielding on high fertility soils. Several studies have been carried out about species mixing effects on forest productivity, but so far their findings are ambiguous. Probably, this ambiguity comes from the sites that they studied, which differ in species, age, management history, and/or environmental conditions. This thesis analyses the mixing effect on productivity in relation to the combination of species, stand age and soil fertility, and discusses possible consequences of forest management, for five two-species mixtures in the Netherlands: Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco)–beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), pine (Pinus sylvestris L.)–oak (Quercus robur L.), oak–beech, oak–birch (Betula pendula Roth) and pine–birch. These mixtures and their corresponding monoculture stands were studied using long-term permanent forest plots over multiple decades, but also using two inventories (around 2003 and 2013) across the entire Netherlands. These forest plots data were used together with empirical models at total stand level (chapter 2), species level (chapter 3) and tree level (chapter 4) to evaluate the mixing effect on forest productivity. In chapter 2, four two-species mixtures and their corresponding monospecific stands were compared for productivity (volume stem wood in m3 ha-1 year-1). It was explored whether mixing species differing in leaf phenology and shade tolerance would lead to overyielding of mixed forest stands, and whether overyielding changes with stand development. In line with the niche complementarity hypothesis, the two evergreen–deciduous species mixtures (Douglas-fir–beech and pine–oak) showed overyielding whereas deciduous–deciduous species mixtures (oak–beech and oak–birch) did not. The overyielding was strongest for the Douglas-fir–beech mixture than the pine–oak mixture, which can be attributed to the greater difference in shade tolerance in the former mixture. Overyielding did not significantly change with stand development. It is argued that the regular thinning maintained the ability of species to partition resources, i.e. the complementary resource use in those mixed stands over all stand ages. In chapter 3, it was analysed which of the two species in these four mixtures contributed to overyielding, and whether this overyielding changed along a soil fertility gradient. It was discovered that both the fast-growing and the slow-growing species could contribute to overyielding. Yet, it was mainly the fast-growing Douglas-fir that contributed to higher productivity in the Douglas-fir–beech mixtures, and the slow-growing oak that did so in the pine–oak mixtures. For both mixtures, the greatest relative productivity gain was achieved by mixtures on the poorer soils. At first sight, these results seem in line with the stress-gradient hypothesis and not the resource-ratio hypothesis. Yet, it was argued that not only complementary use of soil resources, but also use of light, may contribute to the higher productivity of mixed stands on the poorer soils. In chapter 4, it was assessed how the growth of individual trees in mixtures was influenced by inter- and intra-specific competition, and whether this competition was mainly size-symmetric for soil resources or size-asymmetric for light on soils differing in fertility. This chapter focussed on three mixtures, i.e. oak–birch, pine–oak and pine–birch, which were available at sufficient numbers in the Dutch national forest inventory data. It was concluded that intra-specific competition was not necessarily stronger than inter-specific competition and this competitive reduction was less seen at lower soil fertility and dependent on species mixtures, which is not in line with the stress-gradient hypothesis. Moreover, size-asymmetric competition for light was more associated with tree basal area growth than size-symmetric competition for soil resources, suggesting that light is the most limiting resource. Competition for light was generally much stronger at high fertility soils, supporting the resource-ratio hypothesis. These results suggest that light is the most limiting resource for tree basal area growth and that reduced competition for light can be explained to some degree by complementarity in light use to increase tree growth in mixed forests. This thesis thus described the productivity patterns when mixing tree species and explored possible mechanisms of higher productivity in mixed stands compared with monoculture stands in the Netherlands. Complementary use of aboveground and belowground resources probably contributes to the higher productivity in mixed stands, but other factors including pathogens, nutrient cycling and litter decomposition were not addressed but cannot be excluded. Overyielding in Douglas-fir–beech and pine–oak mixtures was maintained over time, probably owing to the intensive thinning in Dutch forests. The results shed new light on the stress-gradient and resource-ratio hypotheses. For mixtures in Dutch forest, the greatest productivity gain in Douglas-fir–beech and pine–oak mixtures was achieved on the poorer soils, and it was argued that this is at least partially driven by complementary use of light, while the role of complementarity in use of soil resources is more obscure. Overall, this thesis suggest a substantial potential of species mixing for increasing productivity, which may run in parallel with enhancing other ecosystem services such as conservation of diversity and other nature values. Yet, more experimental studies on productivity in mixed stands are required to better unravel alternative mechanisms. Such understanding is required to manage the forests effectively in a century of unpreceded human driven changes in environmental conditions.


definitions of genetic engineering and a common regulatory approach. They are also trying to develop an exchange of information among these various agencies. The OECD published a similar paper for OECD countries. The trend is certainly toward a coordination among national agencies, a coordination in Europe, and a greater exchange of information. This is a very positive development. It is something that the industry very much supports. We are working now with various regulators on how to define "environmental release." This is a significant issue, and there is as yet no consensus. We also are attempting to define a "pathogen." This is also an area of some controversy. But we all are talking actively with each other. I am involved actively with this through the Industrial Biotechnology Association. It is exciting to work with regulators and to try to develop regulations that serve the public and do not hamper the industry unduly. I would like to see these developments in more areas. Mr. FINE: On that positive note I very much would like to thank the panel, the Reporter, and the audience for its participation in this practitioner's workshop on Current Issues Involving Multinational Enterprises.


On the basis of psychological research, a group of philosophers known as 'situationists' argue that the evidence belies the existence of broad and stable (or 'global') character traits. They argue that this condemns as psychologically unrealistic those traditions in moral theory in which global virtues are upheld as ideals. After a survey of the debate to date, this article argues that the thesis of situationism is ill-supported by the available evidence. Situationists overlook the explanatory potential of a large class of global character traits, namely, vices that do not involve other-directed malevolence, such as laziness, cowardice, and selfishness. A detailed discussion of the relevant empirical studies bearing on moral psychology shows that the behavioral patterns observed in these studies are consistent with the widespread possession of such non-malicious vices. This means, contrary to the situationist thesis, that the empirical record is fully compatible with the common existence of global character traits.


: A general analysis of data on survival of patients with inoperable lung cancer obtained from 59 publications was undertaken by the linear regression method. It is suggested that the parameters reflecting the kinetics of survival of these patients be used as a "historical control" for assessment of the efficacy of new methods and treatment of lung cancer. It was shown with the aid of this control that antitumor chemotherapy increases the 6-month survival rate of patients with an immediate positive effect after chemotherapy.


In this study heat transfer and fluid flow characteristics of Al2O3/water nanofluid in a serpentine microchannel is numerically investigated. A constant heat flux is applied on microchannel wall and a single-phase model has been adopted using temperature-dependent properties. The effects of pertinent factors such as Reynolds number (Re=10, 20, 50 and 100), particle volume fraction (𝛷=0(distilled water), 2, 4 and 8%) and heat flux (q=5, 10 and 15 W/cm2), on the velocity and temperature field, average heat transfer coefficient (havg), pressure drop (Δp), and thermal-hydraulic performance (η) are evaluated. The results show that the use of nanofluid causes increased velocity gradient near the wall which is more remarkable for φ = 8%. The results also reveal that the heat transfer rate increases as nanoparticle volume fraction and Reynold number increase and a maximum value 51% in the average heat transfer coefficient is detected among all the considered cases when compared to basefluid (i.e., water). It is found that a higher heat flux leads to heat transfer enhancement and reduction in pressure drop. Finally, thermal-hydraulic performance is calculated and it is seen that the best performance occurs for Re =10 and φ = 4%.


ABSTRACT Transport network criticality analysis aims at ranking transport infrastructure elements based on their contribution to the performance of the overall infrastructure network. Despite the wide variety of transport network criticality metrics, little guidance is available on selecting metrics that are fit for the specific purpose of a study. To address this gap, this study reviews, evaluates and compares seventeen criticality metrics. First, we conceptually evaluate these metrics in terms of the functionality of the transport system that the metrics try to represent (either maintaining connectivity, reducing travel cost, or improving accessibility), the underlying ethical principles (either utilitarianism or egalitarianism), and the spatial aggregation considered by the metrics (either network-wide or localised). Next, we empirically compare the metrics by calculating them for eight transport networks. We define the empirical similarity between two metrics as the degree to which they yield similar rankings of infrastructure elements. Pairs of metrics that have high empirical similarity highlight the same set of transport infrastructure elements as critical. We find that empirical similarity is partly dependent on the network's topology. We also observe that metrics that are conceptually similar do not necessarily have high empirical similarity. Based on the insights from the conceptual and empirical comparison, we propose a five-step guideline for transport authorities and analysts to identify the set of criticality metrics to use which best aligns with the nature of their policy questions.


Chinese students are the largest international student cohort in the higher education institutions of English-speaking developed countries. The paper explores strategies to enhance the Chinese students' learning efficacy in overseas institutions. This research differs from other research focusing on international students already in English-speaking institutions; it explores the readiness of potential Chinese international students before departure from China, their anticipated challenges for study abroad and expected support from host institutions and staff. Besides the insights of anticipated challenges and expected support, the key findings include: the majority of the sample students are financially ready for overseas study, however they are not fully ready on English language; students from the public institute in the study have a higher
level of readiness for subject knowledge than their private institute's peers. The findings offer a guide, to both the English-speaking institutions and their Chinese partners, on facilitating, teaching and preparing the Chinese students for a fruitful learning experience abroad and enhanced academic performance.


Fractal image coding has been used successfully to encode digital grey level images. Especially at very low bitrates fractal coders perform better than cosine-transform-based JPEG coders. A block-based fractal image coder is able to exploit the redundancy of grey level images by describing image blocks through contractively transformed blocks of the same image. Previous fractal coders used affine linear transformations in combination with 1st order luminance transformations that change the brightness and scale the luminance values of image blocks. We propose an extension to high order luminance transformations that operate in the frequency domain. With this transformation and an adaptive coding scheme a better approximation of image blocks can be achieved. Bitrate reductions are higher than those achieved by "spatial-domain" fractal coding schemes. An additional effect of this new transformation is a better convergence at the decoder.


Introduction: Arachnoid cysts in children are incidental or symptomatic findings which can have associated neurological pathologies in children. Epileptic seizures and headache are by far the most common symptoms associated to arachnoid cysts but they can also associate cerebral palsy or facial dwarfism. Objectives: In the era of globalisation we want to highlight the importance of modern diagnostic procedures and long term strategic management of children with arachnoid cysts in order to rise their social competence and have a better quality of life. Material and methods: We searched the most important theories in the literature and the new methods in the management of the arachnoid cysts. Results: Even if surgical is necessary just in few cases, medication is needed for epileptic seizures. Many children receive neuroprotective agents while other receive antiepileptic drugs for the concomitant or associated epilepsy. For speech difficulties and movement disorders speech therapy, physical therapy and other further support is needed. Discussions and conclusions: The EEG patterns are not mandatory identic to the site of the cyst. Facial dwarfism and other genetic hallmarks need to be further investigated for rare syndromes associated to cerebral arachnoid cysts. The arachnoid cyst could be a hallmark that children brain can be more sensitive to seizures.


Writing is an important literacy skill that K-12 students must develop for academic success. For young ESL students, developing writing skills entails both learning English and developing writing as a literacy skill. The need for this dual skill development underlines the challenges of teaching K-12 ESL writing, as teachers must strike a balance between teaching writing as a tool for students' English language development and literacy skill. This paper reports on findings related to pedagogical approaches and classroom techniques that are prevalent in K-12 ESL writing instruction. Our research is based on a systematic review of 49 studies published between 2010 and 2019. Using content analysis, three pedagogical approaches were identified: (a) approaches centered on teacher perspectives, (b) approaches centered on student perspectives, and (c) approaches centered on emerging research and theories of ESL writing instruction. As well, the analysis yielded four classroom techniques: (a) adopting SFL-oriented and genre-based activities, (b) utilizing ESL-bilingual student writers' language learning traits, (c) incorporating digital technology, and (d) adapting instructional practices in response to student needs. Critically reflecting on these pedagogical approaches and classroom techniques, the paper discusses the advantages and challenges of implementing them in the classroom. The paper provides a taxonomy of instructional practices that K-12 ESL writing teachers may find useful.


Calls for standardized and validated measures of computational thinking have been made repeatedly in recent years. Still, few such tests have been created and even fewer have undergone rigorous psychometric evaluation and been made available to researchers. The purpose of this study is to report our work in developing and validating a test of computational thinking concepts and skills and to compare different scoring methods for the test. This computational thinking exam is intended to be used in computing education research as a common measure of computational thinking so that the research community will be able to make more meaningful comparisons across samples and studies. The Computational Thinking Concepts and Skills Test (CTCAST) was administered to students in several courses, evaluated and revised, and then administered to another group of students. Part of the revision included changing half of the items to a multiple-select format. The test scores using the three scoring methods were compared to each other and to scores on a different test of core computer science knowledge. Results indicate the CTCAST and the test of core computer science knowledge measure similar, but not identical, aspects of students' knowledge and skills, and that item-level statistics vary according to the scoring method that is used. Recommendations for using and scoring the test are presented.


Objective: The purpose was to determine if Soldier rucksack load, marching distance, and average heart rate (HR) during shooting affect the probability of hitting the target. Background: Infantry Soldiers routinely carry heavy rucksack loads and are expected to engage enemy targets should a threat arise. Method: Twelve male Soldiers performed two 11.8 km marches in forested terrain at 4.3 km/hour on separate days (randomized, counterbalanced design). The Rifleman load consisted of protective armor (26.1 kg); the Rucksack load included the Rifleman load plus a weighted rucksack (48.5 kg). Soldiers performed a live-fire shooting task (48 targets) prior to the march, in the middle of the march, and at the end of the march. HR was collected during the shooting task. Data were assessed with multilevel logistic regression controlling for the multiple observations on each subject and shooting target distance. Predicted probabilities for hitting the target were calculated. Results: There was a three-way interaction effect between rucksack load, average HR, and march (p = .02). Graphical assessment of predicted probabilities indicated that regardless of load, marching increases shooting performance. Increases in shooting HR after marching result in lower probability of hitting the target, and rucksack load has inconsistent effects on marksmanship. Conclusion: Early evidence suggests that rucksack load and marching may not uniformly decrease marksmanship but that an inverted-U phenomenon may govern changes in marksmanship. Application: The effects of load and marching on marksmanship are not linear; the abilities of Soldiers should be continuously monitored to understand their capabilities in a given scenario.


We investigated the production and perception of paralinguistic cues to deception in a two-person, interactive game. Speakers tried to mislead their partner by lying some of the time, while listeners tried to catch speakers out by guessing when they were lying. Our results show that listeners were more likely to associate disfluencies with deception, despite the fact that speakers were in fact more disfluent when telling the truth. We interpret this pattern of behavior within the attempted control approach to deception, whereby liars manipulate their language to conceal the fact that they are lying.


: NAD dependent malate dehydrogenases of three trematode species, Notocotylus attenuatus, N. ephemera and N. imbricatus, have been investigated by electrophoresis. Seven different zones with 15 isoenzymes in N. attenuatus, 16 isoenzymes in N. ephemera and 11 isoenzymes in N. imbricatus have been found in MDH spectra. Isoenzymes of MDH are controlled by seven polymorphic loci. The activity of isoenzymes of three slowly migrating zones is 10 and more times higher than that of fast zones (4-7). The genotypes of adults in one strain are genetically identical, independent ot the development in different definitive hosts. The spectra of MDH of the investigated Notocotylus species are different in slowly migrating isoenzymes (1-3 zones).


Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has long been recognised to affect the pulmonary system. However, a growing body of evidence is now emerging, which indicates that skeletal muscle dysfunction (SMD) is becoming a key feature of COPD.1 SMD is related to the loss of muscle mass and strength, which are significant predictors of poor healthrelated quality of life (HRQoL), mortality and subsequent increased healthcare costs in COPD patients.2,–,4 SMD usually affects the muscles of ambulation by altering their structure and biochemical function.1 Tissue biopsies taken from the quadriceps muscles have shown a greater predominance towards fatiguable Type IIb muscle fibres and a reduction in Type I muscle fibres, along with lower oxidative enzyme concentrations, mitochondria and lower muscle fibre-to-capillary ratios.1 5,–,7 The shift in Type IIb muscle fibres along with lower oxidative enzyme concentrations cause early lactic acid production at lower exercise levels due to anaerobic metabolism.8

Despite the greater predominance of Type IIb muscle fibres, there also appears to be a deficit in muscle strength in COPD patients. An observational study has demonstrated that respiratory disease patients have on average a 19% overall lower muscle strength score on four resistance exercises (knee extensions, leg curls, chest press and seated row) when compared with healthy subjects.9

Traditionally, most …


New Zealand's State Highway Organisations (SHOs) need to work and make decisions in a coordinated and efficient manner to minimize disruptions during emergency events. The aim of this paper is to present a conceptual framework to support decision-making during emergency events based on the available information. The Dynamic Response Recovery Model (DRRM) combines practical emergency management knowledge observed from simulated emergency exercises, response procedures and an Expert System (ES) set of rules. SHOs will use the framework to improve the allocation of both personnel and physical resources during response and recovery operations. Basic premises to apply DRRM in New Zealand's context are introduced and discussed.


Optimal lot sizing is the primary tool applied by lean practitioners to reduce inconsistency in the manufacturing system to cut down inventories, which are often considered as a type of waste in the lean culture. Managers attempt to consider environmental impacts of the manufacturing system and find ways to reduce these effects while making efforts to achieve environmental protection. From a sustainability standpoint, carbon emissions are the major source of environmental contamination and degradation. In this context, this research provides an economic production quantity model with uncertain demand and process information in a multistage manufacturing process. This imperfect manufacturing process produces defective products at an uncertain rate, and is reworked to convert them into perfect quality products and reduce wastages. To control this uncertainty in the manufacturing process, the decomposition principle and the signed distance method of fuzzy theory are applied. The manufacturing process is analyzed with regard to environmental concerns, and a sustainable lot size is obtained through an interactive Weighted Fuzzy Goal Programming (WFGP) approach for the simultaneous achievement of economic and environmental sustainability. An experimental study is performed to verify the practical implication of the model, and results are evaluated through a sensitivity analysis. Important managerial insights and graphical illustrations are provided to elaborate the model.


This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with U.S. Geological Survey editorial standards or with the North American Stratigraphic Code. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. The digital database is not meant to be used or displayed at any scale larger than 1:24,000 (for example, 1:12,000).


One of the major reasons for introducing High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) inclusion in bread is to reduce its cost of production. The study thus evaluated baker's willingness to utilize HQCF for bread production in Ogun State. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to elicit information from 187 selected bakers. Results showed that 79.6% of the bakers were male, with a mean age of 39.5 years. The average year of bakery establishment was 10.7 years, with an average bread production period of 5 days per week, mean bread production of 361.0 loaves. Majority, 96.1% of the bakers were willing to utilize HQCF in bread production. In addition, 79.0% of the bakers would accept HQCF if it is readily available and 72.6% were willing to utilize readily mixed HQCF with wheat flour. Pearson Product Moment Correlation revealed a significant relationships (p<0.05) between willingness to utilize and quantity of bread loaves produced per day (r = 0.280); year of bakery establishment (r = 0.253); awareness of cassava inclusion policy (r = -0.273); awareness of potential value of HQCF inclusion in bread production (r = -0.340) and the bakers' willingness to utilize HQCF. The study concluded that bakers were willing to utilize HQCF for bread production in the study area.


Efficient analysis techniques for complex switched-capacitor (SC) converters are essential design tools for the development of practical SC converters. Techniques that use state-space equations based on conventional circuit analysis methods have proven effective in modeling the practical performance of SC converters. Iterative methods of design based on these analysis techniques require the formulation of many Kirchhoff voltage and current equations, which is time consuming if derived manually. Here, an algorithm is introduced to automate the creating of the matrices required for state-space-based modeling of SC converters. The state equations are generated algorithmically, given a standard node incidence matrix generated from a user-defined netlist. The algorithm enables a designer to quickly iterate SC converter design solutions based on their predicted performance. The resulting models are compared against manually generated models, simulations, and experimental results.


We show how to adapt the ideas of local energy and momentum con servation in order to derive modifications to the Gross-Pitaevskii equ ation which can be used phenomenologically to describe irreversible effects in a B ose-Einstein condensate. Our approach involves the derivation of a simplified quantum kin etic theory, in which all processes are treated locally. It is shown that this kinetic theory can then be transformed into a number of phase-space representations, of which the Wigner function description, although approximate, is shown to be the most advantageous. In this description, th e quantum kinetic master equation takes the form of a Gross-Pitaevskii equation with noise and damping added according to a well-defined prescription—an equation we call the stochastic Gross-Pitaevskii equation . From this, a very simplified description we call the phenomenological growth equation can be derived. We use this equation to study i) the nucleation an d growth of vortex lattices, and ii) nonlinear losses in a hydrogen condensate, which it is shown can lead to a curious instability phenomenon. School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, Victoria Univers ty, Wellington, New Zealand Center for Ultracold Atoms, MIT 26-251, 77 Massachusetts Av e., Cambridge, MA 02139 Wilton Research Institute, Wilton, Wellington, New Zealan d


Optimizing performance of Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) is nowadays an active trend of research in cryptography. One way of improvement is to use a hybrid construction with a classical symmetric encryption scheme to transfer encrypted data to the Cloud. This allows to reduce the bandwidth since the expansion factor of symmetric schemes (the ratio between the ciphertext and the plaintext length) is close to one, whereas for FHE schemes it is in the order of 1,000 to 1,000,000. However, such a construction requires the decryption circuit of the symmetric scheme to be easy to evaluate homomorphically. Several works have studied the cost of homomorphically evaluating classical block ciphers, and some recent works have suggested new homomorphic oriented constructions of block ciphers or stream ciphers. Since the multiplication gate of FHE schemes significantly increases the noise of the ciphertext, we cannot afford too many multiplication stages in the decryption circuit. Consequently, FHE-friendly symmetric encryption schemes have a decryption circuit with small multiplication depth. We aim at minimizing the cost of the homomorphic evaluation of the decryption of symmetric encryption schemes. To do so, we focus on schemes based on learning problems: Learning With Errors (LWE), Learning Parity with Noise (LPN) and Learning With Rounding (LWR). We show that they have lower multiplicative depth than usual block ciphers, and hence allow more FHE operations before a heavy bootstrapping becomes necessary. Moreover, some of them come with a security proof. Finally, we implement our schemes in HElib. Experimental evidence shows that they achieve lower amortized and total running time than previous performance from the literature: our schemes are from 10 to 10,000 more efficient for the time per bit and the total running time is also reduced by a factor between 20 to 10,000. Of independent interest, the security of our LWR-based scheme is related to LWE and we provide an efficient security proof that allows to take smaller parameters.


Abstract Carbonate rocks of the Pekisko Formation make up an important reservoir in west-central Alberta, especially in fields along the Pekisko subcrop edge. They represent a transgressive-regressive carbonate platform sequence comprised of upward shallowing facies, which subsequently underwent extreme erosion leading to the development of karst topography. As a result, diagenetic alteration, mainly through dolomitization and karstification, has affected reservoir characterization for most of the carbonate facies. Several generations of calcite cementation and dolomite are the result of complex diagenetic changes. Calcite cements include isopachous fibrous, equant drusy mosaic, pendant/meniscus, blocky spar, syntaxial, fibrous, and bladed. These cements formed during early and late diagenetic events; pre- syn- and post exposure in shallow and deeper burial realms. There are five types of dolomite identified in the Pekisko Formation, based on petrographic and geochemical analyses: 1) pervasive, fine to coarse crystalline, subhedral to anhedral replacive dolomite;2) void-filling, coarse crystalline, euhedral dolomite cement;3) selective, fine to coarse crystalline, euhedral to anhedral dolomite; 4) dissolution seam-associated, fine crystalline, euhedral dolomite; and 5) saddle dolomite. Dolomite types 1), 3) and 4) are interpreted to have formed early in the diagenetic history and subsequently recrystallized, whereas void-filling, coarse crystalline, euhedral dolomite and saddle dolomite formed later in deeper burial setting. Petrographic evidence for recrystallization of dolomite types, excluding void-filling and saddle dolomite, includes: etching, displayed mainly on euhedral crystals; dissolved cores on many crystals of varying shapes; non-planar crystal boundaries, exclusively in pervasive dolomites; and coarsening crystal size, evident in both pervasive and selective dolomite types. Geochemical evidence, such as pronounced negative shift in oxygen isotopes (by up to 8‰ VPDB) and enrichment of radiogenic Sr isotopes further support this interpretation. There is a definite negative trend whereby wells closest to the subcrop edge have the most negative isotopic values and those farthest away show the least depletion. This trend in δ18O isotope values points to recrystallization of the earlier formed dolomites.


This study aims to determine the reality of the creative demolition management in Jordanian business organizations and to detect on the level of improvement of the quality of services in the business organizations in the Kingdom. The study also sought to identify the role of the creative demolition management in improving the performance level in the business organizations, and whether there are differences in views of the sample about the impact of the creative demolition management in improving the performance of the business organizations according to the personal and functional variables. The scientific approach, which combines among descriptive and analytic methods were used, A sample of (500) respondents was selected from the total study population of (4320) employees from various works and activities, whether technical or operational or mining, engineering and administrative works. The number of questionnaires approved for analysis (420) questionnaire representing (10%) of the total study population. The results showed that the creative demolition management in its three axes combined as a whole has a significant impact on improving the performance. The results indicated that these axes are responsible for interpreting 46% of the changes. At the end of the study, the researcher presented a number of recommendations to the concerned authorities to increase the importance of developing its procedures and productivity processes through the practice of the creative demolition management, since there is a close relationship between these practices and improving the performance level, and conducting further studies in this field. JEL classification numbers: P27 Key words: Creative Demolition, Performance, Business Organizations, Jordanian Phosphate Mines Company.


The calorimeter array of the JAXA Astro-H (renamed Hitomi) Soft X-ray Spectrometer (SXS) was designed to provide unprecedented spectral resolution of spatially extended cosmic x-ray sources and of all cosmic x-ray sources in the Fe-K band around 6 keV, enabling essential plasma diagnostics. The SXS has a square array of 36 microcalorimeters at the focal plane. These calorimeters consist of ion-implanted silicon thermistors and HgTe thermalizing x-ray absorbers. These devices have demonstrated a resolution of better than 4.5 eV at 6 keV when operated at a heat-sink temperature of 50 mK. We will discuss the basic physical parameters of this array, including the array layout, thermal conductance of the link to the heat sink, resistance function, absorber details, and means of attaching the absorber to the thermistorbearing element. We will also present the thermal characterization of the whole array, including thermal conductance and crosstalk measurements and the results of pulsing the frame temperature via alpha particles, heat pulses, and the environmental background. A silicon ionization detector is located behind the calorimeter array and serves to reject events due to cosmic rays. We will briefly describe this anti-coincidence detector and its performance.


Objective: Hypertension is a chronic disease which impacts about half of the US population, increasing their risk of death from heart disease and stroke. Although there is no cure hypertension can be controlled with diet and exercise. Nitric oxide and the inflammatory response are thought to play a critical role in the onset and progression of this disease. We herein hypothesize that due to the high phenolic content of breadfruits, the extracts will display anti-inflammatory, vasodilatory as well as antihypertensive activity.
Materials and Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were used; the rats were anesthetized with a single injection of thiobutabarbital sodium and a tracheal tube was inserted. Following the surgical procedures, rats were allowed to stabilize for 45 minutes. After this initial stabilization period, a 15-minute baseline was collected, and animals treated with vehicle, angiotensin II or angiotensin II + breadfruit extract. The extracts were administered at a concentration of 0.5, 1, 2, and 2.5 mg/ml and an infusion rate of 1 ml/hr and mean arterial pressure (MAP) was recorded. The anti-inflammatory activities of the whole fruit extract were determined using a LPS-treated macrophage cells model at concentrations of 1 and 10 mg/ml.
Results: The whole fruit extracts produced significant attenuation (20-30 mmHg) of the angiotensin II mediated hypertension in Sprague-Dawley rats and displayed a dosedependent decrease in LPS-induced TNF-α and Il-1β. The whole fruits also caused an increase in nitric oxide (NO) production in endothelial cells.
Conclusion: The consumption of breadfruits as a part of a healthy diet may help to prevent the onset and progression of hypertension.


This letter presents a novel composite semisupervised support vector machine (SVM) for the spectral-spatial classification of hyperspectral images. In particular, the proposed technique exploits the following: 1) unlabeled data for increasing the reliability of the training phase when few training samples are available and 2) composite kernel functions for simultaneously taking into account spectral and spatial information included in the considered image. Experiments carried out on a hyperspectral image pointed out the effectiveness of the presented technique, which resulted in a significant increase of the classification accuracy with respect to both supervised SVMs and progressive semisupervised SVMs with single kernels, as well as supervised SVMs with composite kernels.


Society for Vascular Surgery clinical practice guidelines evaluate the evidence in the scientific literature, assess the likely benefits and harms of a particular treatment, and enable healthcare providers to select the best care for a unique patient based on his or her preferences. The Society develops guidelines to aid its members and their patients in the decision-making process. SVS guideline writing groups draw upon systematic reviews of the available evidence to inform key recommendations. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are performed by the Mayo Clinic Evidence-based Practice Center, in Rochester, Minnesota. The methodology used for SVS clinical practice guidelines has been published in the Journal of Vas??cular Surgery. SVS members are invited to propose guideline topics, using the request form .


For many years studies tried to predict the progress of Alzheimer's disease (AD), but until finishing this work no examination techniques have reached the clinical stage. The preprogression rate (PPR) was first mentioned by Doody in 2001. Only two more studies mentioned the PPR, one published by Doody in 2010 and another one by Rountree in 2012, with Doody as a coauthor. This work picks up the PPR and applies it to different cognitive and functional scales. The biggest difference between this work and the aforementioned studies is the non-adjustment for covariables, while Doody adjusted for covariables. This work postulates the distinctive connection between the PPR and the covariables. Thus the adjustment for covariables would diminish the effect of the PPR itself. PPR for different scales have been calculated: MMSE, iADL, bADL, GDS, UPDRS and a few selected CERAD-PLUS categories. 107 patients with AD were analyzed, 59 women and 48 men. Patients above 25 MMSE points were classified as AD according to the newest diagnostic criteria proposed by the IWG, which were used as inclusion criteria for the study. Due to multivariate analysis two different groups could be distinguished. Group 0 (MMSE: 0 – 20) progressed contrary to the calculated PPR and group 1 (MMSE: 21 – 30) progressed equivalent to the calculated PPR. PPR for the different scales (iADL, bADL, GDS, UPDRS and a few selected CERAD-PLUS) could not be determined properly and did not have any remarkable correlation.


The paper discusses the nature of values in general and the nature and utility of the values of librarianship.  Delineates the changes that have occurred and are occurring in the wider world and the nature of change; also the importance of values in providing a framework for dealing with present and future change.  Stresses the centrality of the human record to societal progress, the place of the human record in cultural heritage, and the central purpose of libraries in facilitating interaction with the human record and furthering the transmission of cultural heritage.  Urges a turning away from the alien value systems of information technology, consumerism, materialism, and corporate management, and a consequent set of alliances between libraries and a wide range of cultural institutions and associations.


Objective: To evaluate nutrient intakes and dietary assessment of the children with cerebral palsy (CP) in our region, and to investigate the effects of various factors specific to this condition. Method: Forty-three children (24 males 19 females; mean age 8.1±4.2 years) with CP admitting to an outpatient center were included in the study. In addition, a control group of 27 children were recruited from the siblings of the children with CP. All caretakers were interviewed and a three-day dietary record of the children with CP and controls were obtained. Results: Overall, 32.6% of the children were quadriplegic, 44.2% diplegic and 14.0% hemiplegic. The mean percent of the Recommended Dietary Allowances for energy intake was lower in the children with CP than that in the controls (p<0.05), while no differences were detected between the groups according to protein, calcium, iron and vitamin C intakes. We also observed that there were differences in the amount of daily nutrients in the CP group according to some characteristic like gender and age. Conclusion: These results showed that daily nutrient intakes of the children with CP in Isparta province are insufficient. Key words:  Cerebral palsy, children, nutritional intake, dietary assessment.


While some research on entrepreneurship in family businesses has focused on transgenerational value creation, a gap exists in understanding how such value is generated across generations. The present research offers insights through the lens of dynamic capabilities, which are created by knowledge and in turn generate entrepreneurial performance and value creation. A model is built based on literature and case research. The crucial role of the organizational culture emerges through the empirical study. Family inertia is considered to be a factor preventing the creation of dynamic capabilities. We find that family inertia depends on characteristics of the family business culture, where paternalism and entrepreneurial orientation influence family inertia positively and negatively, respectively. Family firms from Switzerland and Italy active in the beverage industry represent the empirical context. Theoretical and practical implications are offered.


With support from the NSF's "Improving Undergraduate STEM Education" program, we developed an artificial intelligence based cognitive assistant, called sInvestigator (science Investigator) that helps students develop critical thinking skills for addressing scientific problems, through an easy to employ inquiry-based approach. The instructor formulates an inquiry and the students hypothesize possible answers. Then they use sInvestigator to determine the hypothesized answer that is best supported by evidence. They form teams, each team developing an evidence-based argumentation for assessing the probability of their selected hypothesized answer. Using sInvestigator, they decompose their hypothesis into simpler and simpler hypotheses, until the top hypothesis is reduced to very simple (elementary) hypotheses, each showing clearly what evidence may favor or disfavor it. This guides the students to search for this evidence on the Internet, and assess its relevance and credibility by using fuzzy qualifiers, such as "likely" or "almost certain". Based on these student assessments, sInvestigator determines the probabilities of the elementary hypotheses, and combines them to obtain the probability of the hypothesized answer. The students may be asked to perform deeper credibility analyses of the Internet articles found, by assessing lower-level credentials, such as author's competence, conflicts of interest, and publication reputation. They may also be asked to justify their assessments. Once an analysis is complete, sInvestigator generates an analysis report that is finalized by the students and debated in class. sInvestigator was experimentally used in several GMU undergraduate science classes. Case studies for middle school and high school science classes have also been developed.


Today, theoretical and practical advancements in information and communication technologies (ICT) have proven to be indispensable towards achieving the goals of modern educational institutions including the underlying process models. There is evidence that existing technologies such as learning analytics (LA) can not only be used to understand the users (e.g. learners) and the context in which learning takes place, but also can take educators further in achieving different learning goals and innovation. On the one hand, there is a need for educators to adopt digital technologies in support of different activities that constitute educational processes; ranging from the changing higher institutional labour market to the rapid renovation of information systems and tools used to support learners. Moreover, such a requirement also relates to an educational community that is expected to include more proactive and creative learning strategies and experiences for the said stakeholders (e.g. teachers and students). On the other hand, this study shows that to meet those needs, learning analytics which implies measurement, collection, analysis, and reporting of data about the progress of stakeholders and learning contexts; is of importance. To this end, this paper conducts a systematic mapping study of current literature to determine trends in learning analytical methods and its application over the past decade. We look at how learning analytics has been used to support improved process monitoring and management (e.g. educational process innovation) within different organizational settings and case studies application. Consequently, this paper proposes a Learning Analytics Educational Process Innovation (LAEPI) model that leverages the ever-increasing amount of data that are recorded and stored about different learning activities or digital footprints of users within the educational domain to provide a method that proves to be useful towards maintaining continuous improvement and monitoring of different educational platforms. Thus, the notion of learning analytics for Educational Process Innovation in this paper. Technically, this work illustrates the implication of the method using dataset about online learning activities of university students for its experimentations and analysis.


This article draws on recently declassified documents from the Belgian archives to assess the division within the Belgian diplomatic service about Soviet intentions at the start of the Cold War. The diplomatic corps was divided between those who viewed the Soviet Union favorably and believed that continued close cooperation after the war was both feasible and essential, and those who were wary of Soviet intentions in Eastern Europe and believed that Western democracies would have to be united in opposing Soviet encroachments. Paul-Henri Spaak, the long-time Belgian foreign minister, was initially in the former camp, but events at the close of the war and soon thereafter brought him and Belgian foreign policy much closer to the latter's position.


This article focuses on the inequality of incomes between the very
rich and the rest of society. Accordingly, it measures inequality as the
ratio of the share of national income of the top five percent of households
over the share of the rest of society. It shows that this measure
of inequality increases when productivity grows in the manufacturing
sector and decreases when productivity grows in the nonmanufacturing
sector. These results suggest the rich earn relatively more when productivity
lags in the nonmanufacturing sector. A model is presented
that provides an explanation for these results. With complete markets,
risk-averse individuals will hold a portfolio of assets that effectively
produces the goods they intend to consume in order to insure they get
the consumption mix they want. Since the rich spend relatively more
on superior goods, they will hold relatively more assets in the superior
good sector. When productivity grows in the necessity sector, the relative
price of superior goods increases and the rich, holding relatively
more of the assets producing superior goods, will become richer. The
opposite occurs when productivity grows in the superior-good sector.
Evidence suggests that nonmanufactured goods are superior goods.


A three-dimensional mathematical ecosystem model has been combined with a circulation and a sea-ice models of the Barents Sea. The ecosystem model describes the interaction of phytoplankton, zooplankton, dissolved inorganic nitrogen, total inorganic carbon, alkalinity, organic and inorganic parts of detritus. The paper presents the results of calculations of the chlorophyll-a concentration in the period of maximum spring phytoplankton bloom in the Barents Sea, as well as the results of calculations of CO2 flux between the atmosphere and the sea under various conditions. The correspondence between the zones of the intensive growth of phytoplankton during the bloom period and the position of the Polar Front has been demonstrated. The estimation of the ocean-atmosphere CO2 exchange intensity in the presence and absence of the biological CO2 pump has been carried out. For the case without taking into account the oceanic biological uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide it was found that the maximum values of CO2 flux can be observed in the areas of the ice edge. Taking into account the oceanic biological uptake of atmospheric CO2 leads to the spatial correspondence of the zones of maximal CO2 flux from the atmosphere and the zones of high primary production in the ocean surface layer. The results of the present study show that the spatial variability of the carbon dioxide flux from the atmosphere to the ocean is determined by the spatial variability of the primary production to a much greater extent than by the variations in the sea surface temperature.


There is a growing interest on the impact of comorbid obsessive compulsive symptoms on the course and severity of Schizophrenia in recent years. However, to date, there is no study on the prevalence of obsessive compulsive symptoms in Schizophrenia in Malaysia, and no study was done on their impacts. Existing literatures elsewhere showed conflicting evidences on the clinical outcomes of this comorbidity. In line with holistic care for people with chronic mental illness, recognition of the impacts of OCS on Schizophrenia would help to reduce the devastating burden on the sufferer and the family.

Objectives

This study is to determine the prevalence of obsessive compulsive symptoms in Schizophrenia patients receiving their treatment in University Malaya Medical Centre and the clinical outcomes of the comorbidity.

Methodology

This is a cross sectional study conducted in Psychiatric Clinic, UMMC from August 2014 until July 2015. A total of 220 participants were recruited for this study. Participants' demographic data were obtained and completed Structured Clinical Interview for Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (SCI-PANSS), Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale Symptoms Checklist (YBOCS-CL), (Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale) YBOCS, Calgary Depression Scale Schizophrenia (CDSS), Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) and World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief Version (Malay) (WHOQOL BREF Malay Version). Participants were further divided into Schizophrenia with obsessive compulsive symptoms and without obsessive compulsive symptoms. Comparison on their demographic data and clinical outcomes were analysed using statistical analysis methods in Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 22.0.

Results

The prevalence of obsessive compulsive symptoms in the participants was 21.8% (N = 48) when YBOCS score cut off point of 8 and above were taken as clinically significant OCS. There were no significant difference in age, gender, race, marital status, education level, employment, family history of any mental illness, duration of illness, class of antipsychotics prescribed and other other prescribed psychotropics. However, significantly higher number of patients with obsessive compulsive symptoms were taking Clozapine (p = 0.023) and antidepressants (p = 0.013). In term of clinical variables, Schizophrenia patients with OCS showed more severe positive (p < 0.001) and general symptoms (P = 0.001) of Schizophrenia, higher depressive symptoms (p = 0.013), higher suicidality (p < 0.001) and more hospitalization (p = 0.044) after adjusting for duration of illness and used of clozapine. No significant difference in term of negative symptoms and quality of life. Correlation analysis showed small positive correlation between obsession and compulsion with delusion, hallucinatory behaviours, suspiciousness and stereotypies behaviours.

Discussion

From this study, the prevalence of Obsessive Compulsive Symptoms in Schizophrenia was lower compared with that was found in meta analysis. Various methodological differences may be explained this discrepancy. Clozapine was consistently found to be associated with presence of obsessive compulsive symptoms in Schizophrenia. Comorbid Schizophrenia with obsessive compulsive symptoms were associated with more severe psychopathology, higher depressive symptoms and higher suicidality after adjusting for confounders which highlight the worse clinical course of the illness according to double jeapordy effects of comorbidity and the possible existence of Schizo-obsessive disorder.

Conclusion

High prevalence of obsessive compulsive symptoms in Schizophrenia was found in this study in line with previous research findings. The comorbid was shown to have more severe psychopathology and higher suicidality. Recognition of obsessive compulsive symptoms in Schizophrenia and early initiation of effective treatment may be able to reduce the burden for people with chronic mental illness. Future research may be recommended to focused on the treatment strategies for this comorbidity and the standardized criteria for obsessive compulsive symptoms should be made available.


Non-linear Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is a novel technique for non-invasive and cost-effective imaging, which makes it an optimal candidate for medical applications. The basic principles of EIT can be derived from Maxwell's Equations. These need to be solved numerically within the object under investigation using, for example, a finite element mesh. To solve the ill-conditioned inverse problem on this finite discretization, additional constraints have to be applied. In addition, the speed of reconstruction plays an important role and limits number and size of the used elements. The developed self-adaptive mesh refinement algorithm reduces - based on an a posteriori energy error estimate - the number of elements required for an accurate solution compared to conventional uniform meshing techniques. The gained speed-up in the image formation process enhances the potential use of EIT in medical real-time imaging.


: Background: Acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) result in increased morbidity, mortality and tremendous socioeconomic burden. Predicting in hospital mortality may aid prognostication, planning for the site of care, i.e., ward versus intensive care units, and better individualization of treatment. Aim of Study: This study aims in predicting in hospital mortality in patients of AECOPD based on the parameters measured at the time of admission. Methods: Known COPD patients in acute exacerbations admitted in a tertiary care hospital were interrogated for clinical history and examination. All relevant laboratory tests including arterial blood gas analysis, complete blood count, liver and renal function tests, and random blood sugar were done. Based on outcome, patients were grouped into survivors and no survivors. Parameters recorded were then subjected for univariate analysis to get their statistical significance. All significant variables on univariate analysis were then analysed further with multivariate analysis. Results: Out of the total 140 patients included in the study, 24 (17%) died during their hospital stay. Of the various acute‑phase parameters recorded at the time of the admission, only five qualified to be predictors of in hospital mortality based on univariate and multivariate analyses. These were partial pressure of carbon dioxide in arterial blood (PaCO 2 ) (odds ratio [OR], 95% confidence interval [CI] =1.067, 0.993–1.146), pH (OR, 95% CI = 0.001, 0.001–0.584), serum glutamic pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) (OR, 95% CI = 1.032, 1.006–1.059), sodium (OR, 95% CI = 0.779, 0.689–0.881), and random blood sugar (OR, 95% CI = 1.018, 1.007–1.029). With these five factors combined, area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.9684, sensitivity 79.18%, specificity 96.55%, positive predictive value 82.61%, negative predictive value 95.73%, and correctly classify acute exacerbation in 93.57%. Good survival can be expected if these parameters are within normal limits. Conclusion: pH, PaCO 2 , SGPT, serum sodium, and random blood sugar at the time of admission are independent predictors of mortality in patients of AECOPD. These can be helpful in developing a prediction tool of in hospital mortality in such patients.


In his provocatively entitled Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture, anthropologist Marvin Harris suggests a one-dimensional explanation for the witch-hunts of early modern Europe, an all-encompassing theory of class warfare manipulated by elite culture, in effect, 'the magic bullet of society's privileged and powerful classes'. Of course, the case for the marriage of anthropology and history as a means of unravelling such mysteries as the European witch-hunts has been – and was already being in the early 1970s – made by a number of scholars, and usually, although not always, brought to this question a measure of subtle and helpful insights. Confidence was high that the lessons derived from fieldwork in living traditions of witchcraft might shed light on the seemingly irretrievable historical situation of early modern Europe. Throughout much of this century, functionalist interpretations of witchcraft in non-western contexts, for example, held that concepts of witchcraft are also theories of causation – and if there is causation, then there are agents of causation, and if there are agents of causation, then such agents can be identified. This view of witchcraft as a logical cultural construct was classically formulated by Evans-Pritchard in his study of Zande witchcraft,1 in a conscious refutation of the views promoted by Lévy-Bruhl that regarded magic as unintelligible to logical thought.2 Following Evans-Pritchard's monograph, several main trends in the anthropological interpretation of witchcraft accusations evolved, neatly categorized by Max Marwick as: (1) an outlet for repressed hostility, frustration, and anxiety; (2) the means for reaffirming social norms; (3) an index of social tension in society; and (4) a measure of tense personal relationships between accuser and accused.3 While helpful, these four categories can and have been expanded and altered depending on the type of approach taken.4 Following decades of study at the structural level of society, a more dynamic, incident-specific interpretive framework emerged in the 1960s. This approach is most closely associated with Victor Turner and did much to refine, and even revolutionize the anthropologist's understanding of witchcraft,5 although not without criticism.6


Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the predominant cause of nonA-nonB and post transfusion hepatitis. This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of third generation Recombinant Immunoblot Assay (RIBA-3) especially structural and non-structural bands compared with Reverse Transcripatase Polymerase Chain Reactions (RT-PCR) for the diagnosis of hepatitis C infection. Materials and Methods: Sera of 80 patients with ELIAS-3 positive were analyzed by RIBA-3 and RT-PCR. Results: Forty-eight out of 80 patients were positive in RIBA-3. Of them 92% was RT-PCR positive and only 4 patients were RN negative. Among 20 samples with 4 bands, 18 (90%) were RNA positive. Among the 18, 3-bands positive, 16(88%) were RNA positive, whereas all of 11(100%) of RIBA-3 positive with anti-capsid and anti-NS3 reactivity are RNA positive. Among the RIBA-3 indeterminate cases (13 patients), HCV-RNA was positive only in 31 % (4 patients). Sera of these four patients were reactive with the core (C22) region in RIBA-3. All samples reacted to NS-4 regions were RT-PCR negative. So samples with indeterminate results in RIBA-3 should be evaluated by RT-PCR for HCV RNA. All samples without any reaction in RIBA-3 were RT-PCR negative. Conclusion: There were not absolute correlations between the results of RIBA-3 and PCR but all of RIBA-3 positvie with anti-capsid and anti-NS3 reactivity were PCR positive, but other profiles were associated with HCV viremia in about 88%-90% of cases.


Ultrasound-guided biopsy is a good and feasible technique in dogs. Although we have only used it for biopsy of liver and kidney, it can have further uses. In our use of ultrasound-guided biopsy of kidney and liver, we have found that we can achieve adequate biopsy samples using the Franklin modified Vim-Silverman and Tru Cut biopsy of kidney and liver. The fine-needle biopsies of the liver were adequate for examination of hepatocytes but inadequate to evaluate structure owing to small size of the sample. In contrast, the renal fine-needle samples were both poor in quality and quantity. This technique has the advantages of being noninvasive, quick, and easy, and it can be performed with the patient under local anesthesia. It has an advantage over blind percutaneous biopsy because the needle can be visualized in the organ and the organ scanned after biopsy for possible complications. Another advantage is that, unlike other radiographic biopsy procedures, ionizing radiation is not used for imaging.


This paper describes a Sociology Internship course in which college students were required to serve as mentors to 50 high school students. The course is an elective for undergraduate Sociology, Child & Family Studies, and Anthropology students who have been exposed to traditional classroom learning platforms. The course incorporates, service learning, in the form of mentoring to guide college students toward learning sociological concepts from a community based, hands on experience and interactive perspective. Expected internship outcomes included experiences that create awareness in three areas: student expectations (range of ideas, attitudes and perceptions about persons, group dynamics that function to create and maintain social institutions and community); student purpose (ability to examine ideas about community participants and interest and intelligence in social problems); and student reflections and connections (ability to realize a personal role and to connect to situations that are real).


To address the hazards to civilians, recent landmine systems have incorporated command detonation by remote operator and self-destruct capabilities. To improve military performance and prevent civilian casualties, the US military is integrating wireless networking and autonomous sensing into next-generation landmines. These new systems increase target discernment, enhance battle-shaping capabilities, and facilitate disposal or self-destruction of next-generation minefields when they're no longer needed.


The IEEE and ANSI have recently approved "Standard Test Procedures for High-Purity Germanium Crystals for Radiation Detectors" proposed by the IEEE/NPSS/Nuclear Instruments and Detectors Committee. The standard addresses three aspects of the characterisation of high-purity germanium: (i) the determination by the van der Pauw method of the net carrier concentration and type; (ii) the measurement by capacitance transient techniques of the concentration of trapping levels; (iii) the description of the crystallographic properties revealed by preferential etching. In addition to describing the contents of this standard, the purpose of this work is also to place the issues faced in the context of professional consensus: points of agreement, points of disagreement, and subjects poorly understood. >


me a physical portrayal and externalization of the sense of shame-producing self-surveil lance that has accompanied me all my life. It was, as it were, 'his critical gaze ... within me that epitomised my sense of shame, defilement and inadequacy' (pp. 310-311 ). His story illustrates the inadequacy of Christian responses to shame. As a cradle-Christian who experienced chronic dysfunctional shame, Pattison is aware of the damage done by classic images of God. The Old Testament God is 'a kind of all-too-human oriental despot who overtly exploits shame in the interests of bolstering his own power and control' (p. 236). The pure, holy and bodiless God turns his face away from the human realities of excretion and menstruation. 'Humility' has often been taught to children via rituals of humiliation exemplified in the classic school story, 'Frost in May'. In his final chapter, 'Towards more adequate approaches to shame', Pattison makes a number of suggestions that should challenge pastors, lay people and theologians. Some may prefer, however, to continue to rely on classic shame-exploiting practices in their ministry. EMMA SHACKLE, PLATER COLLEGE, OXFORD POVERTYAND THEOLOGY


Herein, we report the synthesis of a metal-free coal-char supported polymeric g-C3N4/RGO (RPC) nano-photocatalyst for the efficient solar powered degradation of the noxious emerging pollutants ciprofloxacin (CIF) & β-estradiol (ESD) and conversion of CO2 into CH4, CO & O2. RPC shows good photocatalytic and adsorption activity owing to its high surface area and reduced charge recombination rate. The photodegradation results of the treated water sample were investigated in terms of reaction kinetics, active species trapping experiments, high resolution mass spectrometry (HR-MS) and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) analysis. The higher solar photoactivity is attributed to the higher surface area, higher visible absorption, charge transfer, and reduced recombination. The superoxide radical anions were found to be the major active species in photodegradation, which is also supported by the band structure analysis. The catalytic activity is highly enhanced by the addition of H2O2, O2 and O3 as they facilitate the formation of radicals. The possible degradation pathways for the degradation of CIF and ESD have been proposed. This work shows promising solar-active metal-free photocatalysts for efficient environmental remediation and CO2 conversion to fuels.


This book chapter discusses different media texts targeted at a different audience, magazines written for an audience of teenaged girls, which also work to naturalize male sexuality as aggressive and predatory. The authors study advice columns and articles in these magazines that depict teenaged boys as sexually forceful and emotionally stunted, and that encourage girl readers to expect and enable such behaviors.


Abstract Inherited wealth creates a second distinguishing characteristic of individuals, in addition to earning abilities. We incorporate this fact into a model of optimal labor-income taxation, with bequests motivated by joy of giving. We find that taxes on bequests or on inheritances allow further redistribution if, in the parent generation, initial wealth and earning abilities are positively related. However, these taxes distort the bequest decision and thus, the overall effect on social welfare is ambiguous. On the other hand, a tax on all expenditures of a generation (a uniform tax on consumption plus bequests) has the same redistributive effect as an inheritance tax but does not distort the bequest decision.


The purpose of this paper was to report the development and preliminary validation of tactical assessment system in Soccer and highlight its advantages. The validation process followed five perspectives of the concept of validity that consider the value of heuristic methods and the importance of the description of behavior performed in playing situations. Thus, the process of validation was focused on four points: i) acceptability and reasonableness of the test perceived by players; ii) analysis of content of assessment tool through a panel of experts; iii) potential of the assessment tool to discriminate the quality of the performance of players; iv) observation reliability. The results displayed values higher than 0.63 for correlation between the evaluations of coaches and the system. It shows the potential of this system to distinguish the performances of players based on the evaluations of coaches. The players who performed the field test agreed with its physical demands and spatial and normative configurations. All experts endorsed the categories and variables of this system. The reliabilities showed values higher than 0.79 for intra and inter-observers. Therefore, it is possible to conclude that the system is valid and reliable for the assessment of the tactical behavior of soccer players.


Objective: To assess the acceptability and the feasibility of urine based Chlamydia trachomatis screening in asymptomatic young people aged 16–35 years attending an inner city accident and emergency (A&E) department. Design: Cross sectional study. Setting: A&E department in a teaching hospital, in south London, UK. Method: From July to November 2001 a urine based chlamydia screening test was offered to 719 consecutive A&E attendees aged 16–35 years and their companions. Participants were given an information sheet and were asked to complete a demographic and sexual health questionnaire. Following informed consent, eligible participants provided first pass urine specimens. Specimens were tested for C trachomatis using nucleic acid amplification. Results: Of the A&E attendees asked, 76.5% (550/719) agreed to participate. Prevalence of genital chlamydial infection was 4.2% (18/432; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.5 to 6.6). 12 of the positive participants (66.7%; 95% CI 40.99 to 86.65) were women, of whom seven were Afro-Caribbean. Nine of the chlamydia positive participants (50%; 95% CI 26.0 to 73.9) were aged 25 years. Three of the positive urine specimens were from companions, of whom a total of 143 were screened. All the positive participants were contactable, and were offered treatment. Conclusion: Urine based screening for undiagnosed genital chlamydial infection in the A&E department was acceptable and feasible. The department provides a unique site for screening young patients and companions, men and women.


Besides circulating flow, pedestrian flow is another key conflict stream that significantly influences roundabout entry capacity. Due to limited space in Japan, several standard designs such as a physical splitter island cannot always be installed at the roundabout entry/exit. The impact of several influencing factors on entry capacity such as splitter islands was examined by applying a microscopic simulation to our previous research. A regression model was proposed based on the simulation results, which assumed that vehicles yielded to all pedestrians at the beginning of the crosswalk. In this paper, the regression model was validated using field data observed in Japan. The regression model was improved by adding a parameter to reflect drivers' compliance with pedestrians. The validation results indicate that the improved model shows good fitness to the field data and the results imply that roundabout geometry and traffic flow composition significantly influence entry capacity. Language: en


A novel low‐cost friction sliding system for bidirectional excitation is developed to improve the seismic performance of reinforced concrete (RC) bridge piers. The sliding system is a spherical prototype developed by combining a central flat surface with an inclined spherical segment, characterized by stable oscillation and a large reduction in response accelerations on the flat surface. The inclined part provides a restoring force that limits the residual displacements of the system. Conventional steel and concrete are employed to construct a flat‐inclined spherical surface atop an RC pier. The seismic forces are dissipated through the frictions generated during the sliding movements; hence, the seismic resilience of bridges can be ensured with a low‐cost design solution. The proposed system is fabricated utilizing a mold created by a three‐dimensional printer, which facilitates the use of conventional concrete to construct spherical shapes. The concrete surface is lubricated with a resin material to prevent abrasion from multiple input ground motions. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the system, bidirectional shaking table tests are conducted in the longitudinal and transverse directions of a scaled bridge model. The effect of the inclination angle and the flat surface size is investigated. The results demonstrate a large decrease in response acceleration when the system exhibits circular sliding displacement. Furthermore, the inclination angle that generates the smallest residual displacement is identified experimentally.


Abstract To obtain more reliable information about the focal-depth distribution of icequakes, in April 1997 we operated an array of seven portable digital seismographs on Unteraargletscher, central Swiss Alps. Over 5000 events were detected by at least two instruments during the 9 day recording period. P-wave velocities (3770 m f) were determined from several calibration shots detonated at the glacier surface as well as in a 49 m deep borehole, whereas S-wave velocities (1860 ms–1) were derived from a simultaneous inversion for Vp/Vs6 applied to 169 icequakes. So far, hypocentral locations have been calculated for over 300 icequakes. Besides confirming the occurrence of shallow events associated with the opening of crevasses, our results show that a small but significant fraction of the hypocenters are located at or near the glacier bed. One event was found at an intermediate depth of about 120 m. Three-dimensional particle-motion diagrams of both explosions and icequakes clearly demonstrate that all vertical component seismograms from shallow sources are dominated by the Rayleigh wave. On the other hand, for events occurring at depths greater than about 40 m, the Rayleigh wave disappears almost entirely. Therefore, a qualitative analysis of the signal character provides direct information on the focal depth of an event and was used as an independent check of the locations obtained from traditional arrival-time inversions. Thus, our results demonstrate that deep icequakes do occur and that simple rheological models, according to which brittle deformation is restricted to the uppermost part of a glacier, may need revision.


One of the most powerful messages that comes from Jaffray's paper is the impact that ongoing faecal incontinence as a result of severe childhood constipation has on the quality of afflicted young people's lives. This paper is an excellent example of never giving up on patients whose symptom control seems hopeless. However, there is a risk that the very invasive surgery that is described will appear attractive at too early a stage to professionals and parents alike when faced with the frustration of managing this remitting and relapsing condition. It is stressed in Jaffray's paper that this radical surgery is only considered when a programme of medical and more minor surgery has failed and when all the factors are weighed by an independent clinician. The debate on the relative roles of surgery versus psychological management goes back for 50 years. When it became histologically possible to diagnose short segment Hirschsprung disease as a cause of megarectum leading to severe constipation, all the others were considered to be primarily behavioural in origin. However, it became clear that a very high capacity rectum for whatever cause posed considerable physical problems to the child and very easily compounded by pain and fear. This recognition of the vicious cycle of faecal accumulation, overflow faecal incontinence, painful defaecation and fear with active withholding has led to the drive to recognise and treat difficult defaecation early in childhood and with a minimum of stressful treatments. Fortunately, better oral disimpaction regimens have reduced the likelihood of psychologically risky enemas given under duress. However, a number of children cannot be stimulated effectively to empty their rectums even with the most carefully administered laxative regimens. Even with this subset of children, it is essential to check that adequate volumes of laxative are being used and in the correct order. …


In this Thesis, we study the accretion of mass and angular momentum onto the disc of spiral galaxies from a global and a local perspective and comparing theory predictions with several observational data.

First, we propose a method to measure the specific mass and radial growth rates of stellar discs, based on their star formation rate density profiles and we apply it to a sample of nearby spiral galaxies. We find a positive radial growth rate for almost all galaxies in our sample. Our galaxies grow in size, on average, at one third of the rate at which they grow in mass. Our results are in agreement with theoretical expectations if known scaling relations of disc galaxies are not evolving with time.

We also propose a novel method to reconstruct accretion profiles and the local angular momentum of the accreting material from the observed structural and chemical properties of spiral galaxies. Applied to the Milky Way and to one external galaxy, our analysis indicates that accretion occurs at relatively large radii and has a local deficit of angular momentum with respect to the disc.

Finally, we show how structure and kinematics of hot gaseous coronae, which are believed to be the source of mass and angular momentum of massive spiral galaxies, can be reconstructed from their angular momentum and entropy distributions. We find that isothermal models with cosmologically motivated angular momentum distributions are compatible with several independent observational constraints. We also consider more complex baroclinic equilibria: we describe a new parametrization for these states, a new self-similar family of solution and a method for reconstructing structure and kinematics from the joint angular momentum/entropy distribution.


We-evaluated the association between a persistent elevation of C-reactive protein (CRP) level and the presence or severity of ischemic heart disease (IHD) in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) patients. Seventy-three patients, who were over 40 years old, underwent dipyridamole thallium single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and followed-up for more than I year were enrolled. We measured stored plasma for CRP every 3 months. "Elevation" of CRP was defined as greater than or equal to 5 mg/L and "persistent elevation" of CRP as elevated CPR levels that lasted longer than 6 months. Serum albumin, cholesterol, lipoprotein(a), and plasma fibrinogen were measured at 3 months after the start of CAPD. Twenty-six patients showed an elevation of CRP for more than 6 months during the follow-up period. Twenty-eight patients showed positive findings on thallium. SPECT. Coronary angiography showed significant. stenosis (narrowing of the diameter more than 50%) in 23 out of the 25 patients studied. Seventeen (65%) out of 26 patients who had an elevated CRP level for longer than 6 months had positive thallium SPECT. The presence of diabetes, albumin, fibrinogen, and the presence of a persistent elevation of CRP were different between the patients with positive (n=28) or negative thallium SPECT (n=45). A multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that a persistent elevation of CRP is the only predictor of positive thallium SPECT (p=0.002). There was a tendency of association, although it was not statistically significant between the persistence of CRP elevation and the severity of IHD (p=0.066). Three out of 9 patients who had a persistent elevation of CRP and a negative thallium SPECT had a history of cerebral infarction or peripheral vascular disease. Therefore, 77% (20/26) of an elevated CRP level that lasted longer than 6 months can be explained by the presence of IHD or other atherosclerotic vascular disease. In conclusion, a persistent elevation of CRP level in CAPD patients was strongly. associated. with IHD. For patients who have a persistent elevation of CRP without apparent cause of it, we recommend a workup for IHD or other atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.


. In dissipative dynamical systems phase space volumes contract, on average. Therefore, the invariant measure on the attractor is singular with respect to the Lebesgue measure. As noted by Ruelle, a generic perturbation pushes the state out of the attractor, hence the statistical features of the perturbation and, in particular, of the relaxation cannot be understood solely in terms of the unperturbed dynamics on the attractor. This remark seems to seriously limit the applicability of the standard fluctuation-dissipation procedure in the statistical mechanics of nonequilibrium (dissipative) systems. In this letter we show that the singular character of the steady state does not constitute a serious limitation in the case of systems with many degrees of freedom. The reason is that one typically deals with projected dynamics, and these are associated with regular probability distributions in the corresponding lower dimensional spaces.


Examines the possibilities and issues of learning with and about computers in schools and any other learning environment. The author notes that there are several competing points of view about what's important in computer education and that the issues are both psychological and philosophical. In exploring the relationship between people and computers, Solomon focuses on two images of the computer as an interactive textbook in control of the user, and as an expressive medium under the control of the user illustrating each with different approaches. In particular, she looks at how the computer has been used in elementary school mathematics.


: The simulation of deafness rarely occurs in the course of medical expertise. However, it is a problem that needs to be recognized and demonstrated by proving methods of investigation. For this purpose, a number of subjective and objective hearing tests exist which can provide evidence for the simulation of uni- or bilateral hearing loss. These methods include the measurement of oto-acoustic emissions, brainstem-evoked response audiometry and the determination of the stapedius reflex threshold as well as subjective methods such as Stenger- and Lee-test. Among the expertise carried out in our department during the past few years, we found 5 cases of simulation of deafness. In these cases -- as opposed to simulated traffic accidents -- there was no criminal prosecution regarding insurance fraud.


Etymology is the only linguistic subdiscipline that is uniquely historical in its study of the relevant linguistic data and one of the oldest fields in Romance linguistics.

The concept of etymology as practiced by Romanists has changed over the last 100 years. At the outset, Romance etymologists took as their brief the search for and identification of individual word origins. Starting in the early 20th century, various specialists began to view etymology as the preparation of the complete history of all facets of the evolution over time and space of the words or lexical families being studied. Identification of the underlying base was only the first step in the process. From this perspective, etymology constitutes an essential element of diachronic lexicology, which covers all formal, semantic, and syntactic facets of a word's evolution, including, if appropriate, the circumstances leading to its demise and replacement.


This thesis is an examination of the influence of theological ideas on the development of liberal political philosophy in the seventeenth century. The basis of this account will be a detailed exanlination of the ethical and political ideas in the
published and unpublished writings of the Cambridge Platonist, Ralph Cudworth. As the reputation of the Cambridge Platonists as other-worldly thinkers is well
established in intellectual history, this thesis, in rejecting this common view, will examine how this image of the Cambridge Platonists came to prevail. I will argue that, when the Cambridge Platonists are viewed within their philosophical,
theological and historical context, their thought contains a powerful critique of contemporary theological and political ideas. By a detailed analysis of Cudworth's theology, in particular his Trinitarianism, I will argue that Cudworth creates a sophisticated defence of political society based on the moral self-deternlination and political responsibility of the individual. Cudworth's defence of the political realm is
deflned by his belief in the democratic revelation made to all men, in the form of reason, through the active power of a Neoplatonically understood Trinity. Cudworth allows for a political society (what I term an ethical community, in which
the individual must make the most of his God-given potential, and in which the eternal and immutable truths in the intellect of God, and not the will of the sovereign, underpin the legitimacy and efficacy of that society. Cudworth's thought,
far from being the apolitical system it is often assumed to be, provided ethical and political arguments which were, I argue, very influential on the late-seventeenth century debates for toleration and comprehension, and in particular the role played
by the Latitudinarian divines in those debates. What we find in Cudworth's thought is a defence of the self-determining power of the individual which is defined by, and grows directly out of, a Trinitarian understanding of reality. This thesis will
therefore show the way in which liberal political principles can be identified as growing positively out of the theological debates of tlle late-seventeenth century.


Objectives His bundle pacing (HBP) can potentially correct left bundle branch block (LBBB). We aimed to assess the efficacy of HBP to correct LBBB and long-term clinical outcomes with HBP in patients with heart failure (HF). Methods This is an observational study of patients with HF with typical LBBB who were indicated for pacing therapy and were consecutively enrolled from one centre. Permanent HBP leads were implanted if the LBBB correction threshold was <3.5V/0.5 ms or 3.0 V/1.0 ms. Pacing parameters, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV) and New York Heart Association (NYHA) Class were assessed during follow-up. Results In 74 enrolled patients (69.6±9.2 years and 43 men), LBBB correction was acutely achieved in 72 (97.3%) patients, and 56 (75.7%) patients received permanent HBP (pHBP) while 18 patients did not receive permanent HBP (non-permanent HBP), due to no LBBB correction (n=2), high LBBB correction thresholds (n=10) and fixation failure (n=6). The median follow-up period of pHBP was 37.1 (range 15.0–48.7) months. Thirty patients with pHBP had completed 3-year follow-up, with LVEF increased from baseline 32.4±8.9% to 55.9±10.7% (p<0.001), LVESV decreased from a baseline of 137.9±64.1 mL to 52.4±32.6 mL (p<0.001) and NYHA Class improvement from baseline 2.73±0.58 to 1.03±0.18 (p<0.001). LBBB correction threshold remained stable with acute threshold of 2.13±1.19 V/0.5 ms to 2.29±0.92 V/0.5 ms at 3-year follow-up (p>0.05). Conclusions pHBP improved LVEF, LVESV and NYHA Class in patients with HF with typical LBBB.


Optimal training design and channel estimation for spatially correlated multi-user multi-input multi-output with orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (MIMO-OFDM) systems is still an open research topic of great interest. This paper applies tractable semi-definite programming to obtain the optimal training signal for the general case of spatial channel correlations for multi-user MIMO-OFDM. The optimal solution in closed-form expression is also derived for a special case of transmit correlations. Analytical and simulation results demonstrate the excellent performance of the proposed designs and their performance advantage over the equi-powered training designs.


The presence of vulvar condylomata acuminata shows evidence HPV infection of the vulva. 49 patients with such lesions came to our hospital for laser treatment. At that time, none of the patients were aware of their cervical disease. Colposcopy and biopsy of the cervix revealed in eight (16%) of the 49 patients CIN I and CIN II in one patient (2%). Condylomata or other HPV-associated lesions were found in seven patients (14%) and cervicitis in two (4%). HPV were detected in the cervix in 23 patients (46%). HPV types 16 and 18 were found in seven patients (14%) and HPV types 31, 33 and 35 in four patients (8%). It is concluded, that patients with condylomata acuminata of the vulva have a high risk of developing CIN and should undergo colposcopy.


"A Natural History of Ferns" is an entertaining and informative look at why ferns and their relatives are unique among plants. Ferns live in habitats from the tropics to polar latitudes, and unlike seed plants, which endow each seed with the resources to help their offspring, ferns reproduce by minute spores. There are floating ferns, ferns that climb or live on trees, and ferns that are trees. There are poisonous ferns, iridescent ferns, and resurrection ferns that survive desert heat and drought. The relations of ferns and people are equally varied. Moran sheds light on Robinson Crusoe's ferns, the role of ferns in movies, and how ferns get their names. " A Natural History of Ferns" provides just what is needed for those who wish to grow ferns or observe them in their habitats with greater understanding and appreciation.


Carbon and nitrogen impurity transport coefficients are determined from gas puff experiments carried out during repeat L-mode discharges on the Mega-Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST) and compared against a previous analysis of helium impurity transport on MAST. The impurity density profiles are measured on the low-field side of the plasma, therefore this paper focuses on light impurities where the impact of poloidal asymmetries on impurity transport is predicted to be negligible. A weak screening of carbon and nitrogen is found in the plasma core, whereas the helium density profile is peaked over the entire plasma radius. Both carbon and nitrogen experience a diffusivity of the order of 10 m2s−1 and a strong inward convective velocity of ∼40 m s−1 near the plasma edge, and a region of outward convective velocity at mid-radius. The measured impurity transport coefficients are consistent with neoclassical Banana-Plateau predictions within ρ⩽0.4 ?>. Quasi-linear gyrokinetic predictions of the carbon and helium particle flux at two flux surfaces, ρ=0.6 ?> and ρ=0.7 ?>, suggest that trapped electron modes are responsible for the anomalous impurity transport observed in the outer regions of the plasma. The model, combining neoclassical transport with quasi-linear turbulence, is shown to provide reasonable estimates of the impurity transport coefficients and the impurity charge dependence.


Ammonia borane (AB), NH3BH3, is a promising material for chemical hydrogen storage with 19.6 wt% gravimetric hydrogen capacity of which maximum 16.2 wt% hydrogen can be released via an exothermic thermal decomposition below 200 °C. We have investigated the kinetics of hydrogen release from AB and from an AB-methyl cellulose (AB/MC) composite at temperatures of 160-300 °C using both experiments and modeling. The hydrogen release rate at 300 °C is twice as fast as at 160 °C. The purpose of our study was to show safe hydrogen release without thermal runaway effects and to validate system model kinetics. AB/MC released hydrogen at ∼20 °C lower than neat AB and at a faster release rate in that temperature range. Based on the experimental results, the kinetics equations were revised to better represent the growth and nucleation process during decomposition of AB. We explored two different reactor concepts; auger and fixed bed. The current auger reactor concept turned out to not be appropriate, however, we demonstrated safe self-propagation of the hydrogen release reaction of solid AB/MC in a fixed bed reactor.


Recent research has studied the role of sparsity in high-dimensional regression and signal reconstruction, establishing theoretical limits for recovering sparse models. This line of work shows that lscr1 -regularized least squares regression can accurately estimate a sparse linear model from noisy examples in high dimensions. We study a variant of this problem where the original n input variables are compressed by a random linear transformation to m Lt n examples in p dimensions, and establish conditions under which a sparse linear model can be successfully recovered from the compressed data. A primary motivation for this compression procedure is to anonymize the data and preserve privacy by revealing little information about the original data. We characterize the number of projections that are required for lscr1 -regularized compressed regression to identify the nonzero coefficients in the true model with probability approaching one, a property called ldquosparsistence.rdquo We also show that lscr1 -regularized compressed regression asymptotically predicts as well as an oracle linear model, a property called ldquopersistence.rdquo Finally, we characterize the privacy properties of the compression procedure, establishing upper bounds on the mutual information between the compressed and uncompressed data that decay to zero.