Human body tissues are relatively translucent to penetrating light what makes possible to perform the effective transillumination for noninvasive measurements os some biophysical quantities by utilization of tissue optics. However, light is strongly attenuated by different tissue components and only proper processing of the transmitted fraction of light at the wavelengths included in the transillumination window, allows us to acquire measurable electrical signals. Volumes of living body parts are cyclically modulated according to the individual arterial pulsations. As a result, making transillumination of a sufficiently thin layer enables to observe rhythmical changes in light intensity transmitted by such an object. Optical density of blood and other tissues is very high, and so, values of light intensity components which are very low, cause many problems with reliability, sensitivity, and range of the detected selective changes. In order to choose a particular device and serve it properly, end-users of medical monitors should always know their advantages and limitations which can be of biophysical as well as technical nature. A lot of artifacts, noises, and disturbances affect the processing procedures and cause the decrease in useful output signals to be converted. On the other hand, there are many problems with empirical verification on human subjects. It is important to solve such complex questions because all the erroneous responses are potentially dangerous. One of the significant diagnostic problems is to detect global as well as local changes in tissue oxygenation which can appear for a lot of reasons. Basing on some novel light on use of the pulse oximetry idea, a model of the living object exposed to noninvasive transillumination can be considered in order to do technical recommendations useful in practice. Such an approach has been presented in the paper from the metrological point of view.


This study used data from the Seattle Social Development Project to examine factors in adolescence that affect the probability of violent behavior at age 18 among youths who received high teacher ratings of aggression at age 10. The study found a lower probability of violence among youths at age 18 was associated with attendance at religious services, good family management by parents, and bonding to school at age 15. A higher probability of later violence was associated with living in a disorganized neighborhood and having the opportunity for and involvement with antisocial peers at age 15. The likelihood of violence at age 18 among aggressive youths was reduced when they were exposed to multiple protective factors at age 15, even for those simultaneously exposed to risk factors. Implications of these findings for the development of preventive interventions during adolescence are discussed. Key words: aggression; protective factors; violence; youths ********** Studies consistently have shown that aggressive children are at high risk of later serious and chronic violent behavior (Hawkins et al., 1998). The relation between early aggression and later violence holds whether violence is measured with self-reports from youths or with data from official arrest and conviction records (Farrington, 1978, 1989). For example, Farrington (1978) found that teachers' ratings of boys' aggression at ages eight to 10 predicted later convictions for assault and robbery at ages 17 to 18. Farrington (1989) found that teacher ratings of aggression also predicted self-reports of violence in adolescence and adulthood and convictions for violent offenses up to age 32. Similarly, McCord and Ensminger (1995) found that teacher ratings of aggression for boys and girls in first grade predicted violent crime arrests to the age of 33. Nearly one-half of the aggressive boys they studied were later arrested, whereas one-third of boys without a history of aggression were arrested by that age. Although in that study fewer girls than boys were initially identified as having been aggressive in elementary school, among those who were, 17 percent later committed a violent crime compared with 7 percent of those without such ratings. More recently, Nagin and Tremblay (1999) found that trajectories of aggressive behavior beginning at age six predicted self-reports of violence and serious delinquency during adolescence among boys. Their study is important because it differentiates among forms of early conduct problems--aggression, hyperactivity, and oppositionality--as predictors of later violence. Nagin and Tremblay found that aggression predicted later violence after hyperactivity and oppositionality were controlled. Furthermore, hyperactivity and oppositionalit3, had no unique predictive effects on later violence. Their findings suggest that serious violence extends from a developmental pathway that is predominantly characterized by earlier, less serious forms of violence. Loeber and colleagues have drawn a similar conclusion (Loeber, Farrington, Stouthamer-Loeber, & Van Kammen, 1998; Loeber & Stouthamer, 1998). One explanation for the strong relation between childhood aggression and later violence points to individual traits that underlie and drive antisocial behavior. According to Moffitt's (1993) theory of life course, persistent offending, chronic patterns of antisocial behavior stem from neuropsychological impairments that affect children's acquisition of skills and development of social competencies from a young age. Without skills to regulate emotions and negotiate interpersonal conflict, individuals are prone to violence across the life span. Another explanation emphasizes processes of socialization that promote and reinforce violence as children develop. According to a social developmental perspective on the etiology of violence offered by Catalano and Hawkins (1996), behaviors formed in childhood set a foundation for future socializing experiences, which, in turn, promote (or, likewise, work against) the continuation of antisocial behavior into adolescence. …


This paper briefly describes a context sensitive recorder and replay system that supports retrospective episodic memory. The concept has been explored by implementing a prototype system, which utilizes simple context information based on infrared beacons to store and retrieve images taken with a wearable camera. Presenting visual content about a user's life, in mobile use, should help memory to recall other facts about the user's context.


Summary form only given. Constructing fast, accurate classifiers for large data sets is an important task in data mining and knowledge discovery. In this research paper, a new classification method called multi-class classification based on association rules (MCAR) is presented. MCAR uses an efficient technique for discovering frequent items and employs a rule ranking method which ensures detailed rules with high confidence are part of the classifier. After experimentation with fifteen different data sets, the results indicated that the proposed method is an accurate and efficient classification technique. Furthermore, the classifiers produced are highly competitive with regards to error rate and efficiency, if compared with those generated by popular methods like decision trees, RIPPER and CBA.


This paper seeks to determine the degree to which bilinguals and monolinguals use the semantic information available to them to activate semantically related lexical associates and facilitate processing. We conduct a visual word masked priming task with 300 pairs of words that differed in forward strength of association in English-dominant early-acquiring and late bilinguals and monolinguals. We measured the reaction time for participants who completed a semantic judgment. Reaction times from 34 college-aged bilinguals and 28 monolinguals were analyzed with a series of analyses of variance (ANOVAs). The coefficient of variation (CV), a measure of efficiency, was calculated and used to compare speaker groups. Results indicated bilinguals were generally slower than monolinguals and did not display a benefit of additional semantic context on reaction time speed. The increase of semantic information in highly associated word pairs compared to unassociated word pairs did not increase reaction time in bilinguals to the same degree as it did in monolinguals. Comparing CV values indicate that the speaker groups were processing semantic information with approximately equal efficiency, although both groups were processing at different speeds. This study expands on previous research exploring the effect of semantic relations across three word strengths conditions and using visual pairs in a masked priming paradigm using predominantly English-dominant bilinguals. The findings indicate that even early-acquiring bilinguals may not be using meaning-related information to activate semantic associates in the same way as monolinguals. Such differences with word-level processing and activation may contribute to bilinguals' differences and delays in sentence processing tasks.


Despite the fact that on average less children are being born and calming messages that the population issue has basically solved itself, the world population is continuously growing. Around mid century it is estimated that approximately 70 per cent of the world's population will be living in urban environments. This translates to an absolute increase of roughly 3.6 billion urban citizen today, to nearly 8 billion urban citizen by mid century. This unprecedented growth is going to have major impact on today's urban societies and administrative boundaries. Especially coastal cities will feel an increased pressure while the urbanization takes another upsurge.The geographical limitations and scarcity of land in these coastal areas pushes the extension of administrative city boundaries sea inward, making land reclamation a popular tool for these governments. Nevertheless, this expected growth and the increased popularity of land reclamation seriously endangers the remaining natural wetlands. Alternative solutions of creating artificial "human made" land by reclaiming, could be a possible direct solution for modern urbanism. As a result of the unprecedented growth, natural resources are getting rapidly depleted and sustainability is being compromised. Over the total run of history, approximately 65 per cent of the world's wetlands have been in fractioned, polluted, destroyed, altered or lost by human activities.This master's thesis consists out of a deep, qualitative, integrative and contextual literature review. The literature review is focused on population forecasts, urbanization and growth trends, followed by an analyses of various land reclamation cases around the world. Though, the research will include a quantitative data overview this research is a qualitative research. The collection of the quantitative data regarding urbanization and growth trends will be done by using the database of United Nations, World Bank and Gapminder.Land reclamation, as a proposed solution, sets off a certain type of trade off mechanism. Large reclamation projects on one hand serve as great boosters for the economy and urban development, while on the other hand, these projects have severe implications on natural habitat from both marine and land species. Social benefits can both be realized through economic gains by land reclamation or social benefits from natural preservation. This implies land reclamation has basically two dimensions: a socioeconomic dimension and a socio-environmental dimension. A tradeoff between these two dimensions determine whether or not a land reclamation project for a specific geographical location could be economically, socially and environmentally feasible. With proper integrated and inter related governmental land planning processes, strong environmental considerations and increased public involvement, land reclamation could be sustainably feasible.


The purpose of this conceptual paper is to address the importance of examining the link between corporate governance and foreign equity investment through the right theoretical lens. The paper focuses on the discussion of corporate governance reformation in Malaysia that gradually converged towards Anglo-American model at the pinnacle of Asian financial crisis 1997/1998. By embracing institutional theory, the actions taken by majority of organizations in Malaysia in the aftermath of the crisis are justified and the reactions of foreign investors towards the corporate governance recuperation in Malaysia's institutional corporate setting are explained. This paper also provides in depth explanation of the applied theory, which under the scope of neo-institutional theory that accentuated on legitimacy. Besides, this paper claims the relevant use of this theory with the subject discussed, thus argues the significant importance of theoretical aspects of the institutional context to the study of governance change and institutional dynamic setting in emerging country like Malaysia. In summary, the use of apt lens of theory to justify the reactions and actions taken by the actors is imperative as an essence to convey a period of momentous changes in the storyline of the governance change from the perspective of the foreign investors.


It has long been speculated that deep neural networks function by discovering a hierarchical set of domain-specific core concepts or patterns, which are further combined to recognize even more elaborate concepts for the classification or other machine learning tasks. Meanwhile disentangling the actual core concepts engrained in the word embeddings (like word2vec or BERT) or deep convolutional image recognition neural networks (like PG-GAN) is difficult and some success there has been achieved only recently. In this paper we propose a novel neural network nonlinearity named Differentiable Disentanglement Filter (DDF) which can be transparently inserted into any existing neural network layer to automatically disentangle the core concepts used by that layer. The DDF probe is inspired by the obscure properties of the hyper-dimensional computing theory. The DDF proof-of-concept implementation is shown to disentangle concepts within the neural 3D scene representation - a task vital for visual grounding of natural language narratives.


In developing countries the use of wastewater for irrigation can cause considerable harm to public health and the environment. This paper uses contingent valuation to estimate the economic value of safe use of wastewater for crop production on farms within and around Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We estimate a surprisingly large welfare gain from policies for safe use of wastewater for irrigation. Our study highlights the potential and the possible pitfalls of using nonmarket valuation techniques as an input into public decision making where traditional resource use interacts with public health and environmental concerns in complex ways.


The European Commission's White Paper on Youth in 2001 invites the Member States to ensure an effective planning and implementation of national youth policies. Since then, there has been an increased attention on youth in the national political agenda and many discourses regarding their social integration. Based on a comparative analysis of policies and discourses on youth and youth participation that we conducted in eight European countries (PARTISPACE Project, Horizon 2020), the aim of this article is to start a pedagogical reflection on youth participation and the way to promote it: both in term of young people's engagement for individual identity building, self-realization and in term of community development. After presenting what images of youth are proposed in the national policies and discourses, which youth issues are prioritized and measures suggested to promote youth participation, we propose some reflections about the connection of pedagogy and policy and the way in which education could foster a real youth participatory attitude, especially for what concerns 'disadvantaged' young people.


Epitaxial Ni(Pt)Si2-y (y < 1) films readily grow upon thermal treatment of 2 nm thick Ni and Ni0.96Pt0.04 films deposited on Si(001). For annealing at 500 degrees C, the films are 5.4-5.6 nm thick with 61-70 mu cm in resistivity. At 750 degrees C, the epitaxial Ni(Pt)Si2-y films become 6.1-6.2 nm thick with a resistivity of 42-44 mu cm. Structural analysis reveals twins, facet wedges, and thickness inhomogeneities in the films grown at 500 degrees C. For higher temperature, an almost defect-free NiSi2-y film with a flat and sharp interface is formed. The presence of Pt makes the aforementioned imperfections more persistent.


This study focuses on the coexistence between 5G networks and Fixed Services (FS), where fixed links (FL) is one application. 5G is expected to require spectrum in high frequency ranges and fixed services is a highly probable candidate to share spectrum with. Most of the spectrum is co-primary allocated to both mobile and fixed. This study gives assessment on the inference to/from the fixed link, and identifies areas for further study. The results indicate that the interference that 5G radiates to the fixed link is higher than the requirement in the co- channel case. However a low traffic load at 5G together with beamforming is the best scenario with a 30\% probability of interference. One possibility to reduce the probability of interference to 6\% is to increase antenna directivity of the fixed link's. This can be a valid solution to be applied for operators owning both fixed and 5G networks. The interference from fixed link to 5G downlink is below the allowed limit and it is found that at 5G downlink the main contributor to the aggregated interference is the intra network interference. The interference scenario can be improved by utilizing coordination protocols with beam- steering, and advanced antennas. Operators can also consider to deploy in a coordinated manner, or even using other deployments type like micro or indoor.


There is convincing evidence that euthyroid male American tree sparrows are already programmed for seasonal reproduction and postnuptial molt by Week 4 of photostimulation. To explore more precisely when, during early photostimulation, thyroid-dependent programming of seasonal events occurs, photosensitive male tree sparrows were radiothyroidectomized or sham thyroidectomized on the first day of photostimulation (Week 0) or at Weeks 1 or 3 thereafter. Birds were monitored for testicular growth and regression over 8 or 12 weeks and then tested for photosensitivity or photorefractoriness by exposing them to constant light and exogenous L-thyroxine for 4 weeks. Molt of the primary flight feathers was scored periodically, and at the end of the experiment, hypothalami were saved for cGnRH-I (chicken gonadotropin-releasing hormone I) assay. Because (1) the thyroid is already dysfunctional by Day 4 after radiothyroidectomy, (2) thyroid-dependent photoinduced gonadal growth is programmed growth, and as demonstrated here, (3) testis length at Week 6 on long days (i.e., maximum or near-maximum testis size) is independent of the time of thyroidectomy at or after the onset of photostimulation, we conclude that male American tree sparrows were programmed for photoperiodic testicular growth during the first week of photostimulation. Based on measurements of testis length and hypothalamic cGnRH-I content, only 2 of 11 birds thyroidectomized at Week 1 were already programmed for photorefractoriness by Week 1, whereas all birds thyroidectomized at Week 3 were so programmed by Week 3. Marked differences in molt scores between photorefractory (thyroidectomized and euthyroid) and photosensitive (thyroidectomized) birds argue that postnuptial molt also was programmed roughly between Weeks 1 and 3. To explain these results, we ascribe organizational-like actions directly or indirectly to endogenous thyroid hormones and argue that the onset of photostimulation opens a window, during which time euthyroid male American tree sparrows are programmed for seasonality. A clear dissociation of photorefractoriness from photoperiodic testicular growth in birds thyroidectomized at Week 1 suggests that separate control circuits mediate these two annually periodic events.


Australia has a history of fragmented and politically contested climate policy, and current climate policy is both piecemeal and limited in scope and ambition. Ample opportunities exist to reduce emissions through the more broad-based application of policy. This paper outlines six areas where climate policy in Australia could achieve emissions reductions at low cost: pricing emissions in industry through a modification and broadening of the existing Safeguards Mechanism; investment in assisting the transformation of the electricity grid to very high shares of renewables; a mixture of innovation support, and targeted incentives and regulatory standards in specific sectors and activities; an effective green infrastructure program to stimulate demand and raise productivity in the medium term; a community focussed structural adjustment fund that would enable disproportionately impacted communities to adapt reality of the global transition to net-zero emissions by 2050; and removing impediments to the emergence of new renewable energy-based export industries to take the place of coal and gas exports.


: The effect of pregnancy on the activity of SLE and that of SLE on the product of conception was analyzed from data reported in nine series of 20 or more pregnancies published between 1956 and 1981. Although pregnancy has an adverse effect on SLE activity, an established diagnosis of SLE does not preclude an outlook for a successful pregnancy even in patients with previous signs of severe multisystem involvement and lupus nephropathy. Complete clinical remission for 6 mo or more prior to conception indicates a favorable prognosis for an uncomplicated course during pregnancy and a live birth. Continued signs of disease activity or renal disease reduce, however, the likelihood for an uncomplicated course and decreases the live birth rate by 25% - 30%. Since there is no evidence that glycocorticoids or cytotoxic agents affect fetal development or induce congenital abnormalities treatment during pregnancy should be directed towards suppression of disease activity and controlling hypertension.


A 150-day pot experiment was conducted with graminaceous plants grown in natural soil contaminated with petroleum. The relationships among microbial activity, dehydrogenase activity, catalase activity, soil moisture, and the petroleum degradation rate were analyzed. All three plants accelerated the degradation of petroleum compared with unplanted soil. Plant roots improved the soil moisture by about 5% (from 15% in unplanted soil to 20% in soil containing plant roots), and the number of microorganisms in the rhizosphere increased by more than three orders of magnitude. The induction of the rhizosphere environment and the intimidation of the petroleum changed the abundance and activity of the microorganisms. Dehydrogenase activity in the rhizosphere was 1.54 to 1.87 times the value in the unplanted soil, but catalase activity was 0.90 to 0.93 times the value in unplanted soil. The petroleum degradation rates in the rhizosphere were 2.33 to 3.19 times higher than in the unplanted soil. The effect of rhizosphere degradation clearly changed the hydrocarbon composition, increasing the degradation of alkane hydrocarbons with low and moderate carbon contents. The rhizosphere environment promoted degradation of the high-carbon-content hydrocarbons into low-carbon-content hydrocarbons. At the same time, the Pr/nC(17), Ph/nC(18), and Pr/Ph values increased by 0.99 and 2.69 units, and decreased by 1.25 units, respectively, compared with the undegraded oil. The plants also accelerated the isomerization of alkane hydrocarbons.


The possible impact of immigration on the widening gap in unemployment rates for black and white teenagers in the United States is examined. The author concludes that although immigration has been good for the long-run economic growth of the United States as a whole, "to the extent that immigrants are better substitutes for black youth than they are for white youth, short term displacement effects are more pronounced among the blacks. This proposition is supported by data for the period 1951-1980."


Identifying material parameters affecting properties of ferromagnets is key to optimize materials better suited for spintronics. Magnetic anisotropy is of particular importance in van der Waals magnets, since it not only influences magnetic and spin transport properties, but also is essential to stabilizing magnetic order in the two dimensional limit. Here, we report that hole doping effectively modulates the magnetic anisotropy of a van der Waals ferromagnet, and explore the physical origin of this effect. Fe3-xGeTe2 nanoflakes show a significant suppression of the magnetic anisotropy with hole doping. Electronic structure measurements and calculations reveal that the chemical potential shift associated with hole doping is responsible for the reduced magnetic anisotropy by decreasing the energy gain from the spin-orbit induced band splitting. Our findings provide an understanding of the intricate connection between electronic structures and magnetic properties in two-dimensional magnets and propose a method to engineer magnetic properties through doping.


Author(s): Romero, Erik Anthony | Advisor(s): Bertrand, Guy | Abstract: Although initially reported in 1844, copper(I)-hydrides were not widely studied until the isolation of "Stryker's reagent" in 1971. Following this development, researchers reported a myriad of chemical transformations employing other transient copper-hydride complexes as highly stereo-, regio-, and enantioselective catalysts. Each of these processes, however, rely on the ability of Cu-H bonds to insert into substrate π-bonds. By focusing on reactions involving this mechanistic step, chemists have limited the potential applications of copper-hydrides to reactions within this niche. The first part of this manuscript discusses the ability of CAAC copper complexes to affect dehydrogenative borylation reactions of terminal acetylenes under mild conditions. Moreover, during this study, we uncovered convincing evidence that points to the surprising involvement of a copper-hydride complex in the key dihydrogen extrusion step of the mechanistic cycle. We further show that more basic anions on copper switch the selectivity of the catalyst to favor formation of traditional anti-Markovnikov hydroboration products. Lastly, the active catalysts for both reactions were shown to tolerate a wide range of synthetically useful functional groups.The second part of this manuscript describes our attempts to utilize extremely sterically encumbering NHC ligands to stabilize and characterize the first monomeric, monoligated copper(I)-hydride complex. Although this species exists as a dimer in the solid state, we confirmed the presence of an equilibrium in solution through variable temperature 1H NMR experiments and extracted the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for this dimerization process. We then applied our synthetic strategy to the isolation and crystallographic characterization of the first neutral monoligated silver(I)-hydride. Preliminary experiments indicate that its reactivity mirrors that of copper-hydrides as opposed to gold-hydrides. Refocusing on copper, we employed borane stabilized copper-hydride complexes as benchtop stable surrogates for their highly reactive LCu-H counterparts in the hydrogenation of CO2 with H2. Excitingly, we found that this process is enhanced by an in situ generated amino-borane co-catalyst, thereby affording a rare example of tandem catalysis involving both a transition-metal complex and a classical Lewis pair. The final chapter discusses the uncatalyzed dehydrogenative coupling of alcohols, amines and thiols with pinacolborane and 9-borabicyclononane, a result which contrasts with literature precedent.


Every year, mainland China sends numerous undergraduate and postgraduate students to study abroad at English-medium universities (Tan & Simpson, 2008), a large number of whom attend Hong Kong universities (Li & Bray, 2007), including the Hong Kong Institute of Education. The Institute is Hong Kong's principle local teacher education institution, with its graduates accounting for around 80% of kindergarten teachers, 84% of primary school teachers and 30% of secondary school teachers in Hong Kong. In the academic year of 2005-2006, 10% of the students admitted to the Institute's English Department were from mainland China; in the following two academic years, mainland students accounted for 18% and 62% of student intake, respectively. Upon graduation, these mainland Chinese prospective student teachers would be eligible for employment in local secondary and primary schools. However, differences between the linguistic and cultural backgrounds of these cross-border prospective student teachers and their local counterparts may make it difficult for the former to become qualified teachers in Hong Kong. Whereas, Putonghua has long been the medium of instruction for all primary and secondary students in mainland China, Hong Kong's unique mix of Cantonese, Putonghua, and English makes for a more complex and diverse linguistic phenomenon (Li, 2009). Most mainland prospective student teachers have Putonghua as their first language and only a small number of them, those from Guangdong province, can speak Cantonese. Furthermore, the cross-border students have no experience of studying in such local schools, which may be considered to be at a disadvantage compared with their local peers. Research indicates that historical and social backgrounds influence individuals' motivation to teach and their commitment to teaching (Gordon, 2000; Su, Hawkins, Huang & Zhao, 2001). This article reports on a comparative study exploring the motivation to teach and the commitment to teaching among non-local prospective student teachers from mainland China and their Hong Kong local counterparts. Motivations to Teach, Commitment to Teaching, and Professional Identities It is individuals' motivation to teach that draws them to become teachers, sustains their commitment to teach, and promotes their professional knowledge (Day, Elliot, & Kington 2005). Research across a variety of participant groups suggests that people entering pre-service teacher education share a number of common motivating factors, including a desire to work with or benefit students, a sense of altruism or a wish to make a difference in their community or society through teaching, the influence of parents, former teachers, peers or relatives, and the perceived benefits of a teaching job such as career security, vacations, and salary (Sinclair, 2008). While research into motivation to teach has tended to focus on pre-service teachers' initial motives for becoming teachers, these can change in response to their educational experience and 'real' teaching experience during teaching practica (Sinclair, 2008). Previous studies on commitment to teaching have mainly focused on qualified teachers. Existent studies have identified various factors that affect in-service teachers' commitment to teaching, such as their teaching achievements, ethnic backgrounds, and gender (Hart & Murphy, 1990; Sinclair, 2008). Research has also suggested a relationship between teachers' entry motivations and their continued commitment to teaching: those who enter teaching because of strong altruistic motives are more likely to be frustrated by a lack of evaluation of their work and guidance with respect to goals, and are thus more likely to leave teaching (Mieth & Elder, 1996). In addition, intrinsically motivated teachers have been found to be more committed to teaching than extrinsically motivated teachers (Martinez-Pons, 1990). An examination of the internal factors that drive pre-service teachers to enter and remain in the teaching profession, as well as situated and social impacts, is important for both pre-service and in-service retention (Sinclair, Dowson, & McInerney, 2006). …


This paper promotes an AI-VCR technology of searching without information. VCR is an extension of FCR(Fixed Carrying Rules) which is also computation rules of FCN(Fixed Carrying Numbers). The FCN are some special examples of VCN(Variable Carrying Numbers). DFS(Depthfirst Search) is a blind searching without information. In AI-VCR technology, AI(Artificial Intelligence) is used in dynamic designing computation rules of VCN. Both FCR and VCR in searching without information are variables of nodes' depth function. Finally, it gives out some examples of problem-solving method, namely problem-solving such as catching fish with casting a net or herdsman picks peaches with his fierce-looking before climbing up a tree.


Leukocytes express multiple chemoattractant receptors that can trigger adhesion and direct their migration. Regulation of such proadhesive and migratory responses must often occur in a complex cytokine milieu in vivo, in which multiple receptors may be engaged simultaneously or sequentially, Here we have examined the interplay between interleukin‐8 (IL‐8) receptor and formyl peptide receptor (fPR) stimulation and its consequences for leukocyte adhesion and chemotactic responses. IL‐8 has no significant effect on fMLP‐stimulated adhesion and migration of human neutrophils, indicating that leukocytes have the potential to respond to sequential proadhesive and chemoattractant stimuli during homing and targeted migration. In contrast, fMLP at ⩾ 10 nM totally abrogated proadhesive and chemoattractant responses to IL‐8, a trans effect to which the fPR itself is relatively resistant. N‐formyl peptides are released by invasive bacteria and lysed cells, and the dominance of the fPR may ensure that signals from these terminal phagocyte targets can override host‐derived recruitment signaling through IL‐8 and other chemokine receptors. Asymmetric inhibition of adhesion‐triggering responses is also observed in lymphoid cells transfected with IL‐8 receptor A and fPR, but in this cellular context chemotactic responses are bidirectionally abrogated, suggesting the potential for downstream desensitization of motility programs as well. Cross talk between chemoattractant receptors and their signaling pathways may help target leukocyte migration in the context of complex chemoattractant arrays in vivo.


Modal characteristics of bent dual-mode planar optical waveguides are obtained. The bending-induced changes in the modal power distribution is found to be quite different for the two modes. Surprisingly, unlike the fundamental mode, bending causes the fractional modal power for the second mode to increase in the inner core-half and to decrease in the outer core-half of the waveguide. Interestingly, this leads to a decrease in effective index of the second mode due to bending at sufficiently high V-values. >


In this paper, I locate Fraser's theory in relation to Rawls' concept of justice as fairness, but particularly to Habermas' shift of focus to the social institutions and practices where deliberation takes place, in a decentered idea of justice. I identify Fraser's key intervention through her feministinspired critique of Habermas in relation to power and its effects upon the structural exclusions from the public sphere. At the same time, I note that Fraser drew attention to power struggles within that sphere; it is contested internally thanks to the deliberations of a plurality of competing publics drawn from among the dominated. I also trace the development of Fraser's theory of justice through the various stages of her familiar double-headed account in terms of recognition and redistribution, to its current form in which, in the post-Westphalian context, the third dimension of the political site of the injustice of misrepresentation has been integrated. I argue that this new prominence given to the political is in part the result of the exchange with Honneth. Finally, I turn to the concept of a nascent global public sphere, developed along the lines of Habermas' decentered notion of authority, using the example of the challenges to the legitimacy of the US and UK decision to declare war against Iraq. Keywords - misrepresentation, recognition, post-Westphalian, public sphere, critical theory


The accuracy of a DEM is critical to its applications, such as spatial analysis. Error in an interpolated DEM is related to two factors: (1) a model error of the applied interpolation algorithm and (2) a propagated error from the error of the original nodes of the network. In this study, we focus on the second type of error in biquadratic and bicubic interpolation algorithms. Representations of a DEM surface by the biquadratic interpolation and bicubic interpolation models from regular grids are derived first. Based on these, the formulae of error propagation in terms of the mean elevation error of DEM constructed by both biquadratic and bicubic interpolations are derived, respectively, according to a mathematical proof. It is found that the single propagation errors of both the biquadratic and bicubic models are identical to each other—as in the bilinear model. Combining the formula and the result of Kidner, who found that both the biquadratic and bicubic model bicubic interpolation reduce the rms error by up to 20% of the bilinear interpolation, it is concluded that the biquadratic and bicubic interpolation algorithms are more accurate than the bilinear interpolation in terms of their total error including both the propagation error and the model error of the generated DEM surface.


The tension between governance and professional discretion is a question of constant interest in public administration research, and studies on street-level bureaucracy thus aim to understand the actions of frontline workers. Largely missing in this literature, however, is research on how tenure affects behavior. To fill in this gap, we analyze how caseworkers with varying degrees of tenure respond to steering signals. We study the nationwide introduction of an assessment support tool to be used to assess clients' needs under the Swedish active labor market policy. We propose that accumulated experiences strengthen frontline workers' confidence. In turn, this makes them less responsive to formal policy signals, such as the assessment tool. Qualitative and quantitative methods are both used in support of the current research. The analysis suggests that as tenure increases, street-level bureaucrats, especially male caseworkers, tend to use the assessment tool less carefully and act in accordance with policy signals to a lesser extent. The qualitative analysis indicates that this pattern can partly be explained by the fact that increasing experience with meeting clients face-to-face increases caseworkers' perceived skills and confidence.


Purchasing power adjusted incomes applied in cross-country comparisons are measured with bias. In this paper, we estimate the purchasing power parity (PPP) bias in Penn World Table incomes and provide corrected incomes. The bias is substantial and systematic: the poorer a country, the more its income tends to be overestimated. Consequently, international income inequality is substantially underestimated. Our methodological contribution is to exploit the analogies between PPP bias and the bias in consumer price index (CPI) numbers. The PPP bias and subsequent corrected incomes are measured by estimating Engel curves for food, which is an established method of measuring CPI bias.


Abstract Background Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor (pNET) is rare and heterogeneous. New biomarkers are needed for better predicting the prognosis and providing individualized treatment. Versican (VCAN) plays an important role in tumorigenesis. Our previous study showed VCAN was specifically expressed in pNET tumor tissue. Therefore, we planned to investigate the role of VCAN in pNET prognosis. Methods Clinical and pathological data of pNET patients who underwent surgery between 2005 and 2010 were followed up and evaluated. VCAN expression was assessed by immunohistochemical (IHC) methods, and the relationship between VCAN and prognostic features of pNET was analyzed. Results Among 161 pNET patients, 118 (73.3%) pNET were VCAN expression positive and 43 (26.7%) VCAN expression negative. Positive expression of VCAN in pNET was significantly associated with longer disease-free survival (DFS) compared with VCAN-negative pNET (p = 0.017, HR 0.399, 95%CI 0.215-0.741). Subgroup analysis showed that VCAN-positive expression was associated with longer DFS in the G1 subgroup (p = 0.030, HR = 0.122, 95%CI: 0.013-1.180), tumor size>2cm subgroup (p = 0.030, HR = 0.427, 95%CI: 0.193-0.944) and NF-pNET subgroup (p = 0.001, HR = 0.251, 95%CI: 0.103-0.617). Multiple analysis showed that VCAN-negative expression, G2 and tumor size>2cm were independent factors for poor prognosis in pNET (p = 0.01, p  Conclusions Our data indicate that VCAN-positive expression may serve as an independent factor for predicting DFS prognosis in pNET. VCAN-positive expression in pNET tissues was correlated with longer DFS. Legal entity responsible for the study The authors. Funding National Natural Science Foundation of China. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.


For an early and definitive diagnosis of acute cerebral infarction by computed tomography (CT), we retrospectively analyzed the initial CT findings of 14 patients with proven acute middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarction within 4 hours after stroke onset. The following results were obtained: (a) abnormal CT findings could be recognized quite early in 13 patients (92.9%), (b) the most common and earliest finding was loss of defination of the gray-white interface at the lateral margins of the insula. This sign was recognized in 12 patients (85.7%) and could be detected as early as 1 hour after stroke onset, (c) the next common finding was narrowing or blurring of the Sylvian fissure in 10 patients (71.4%) and could be detected 1.5 hours after stroke onset, (d) an obscured outline or partial disappearance of the lentiform nucleus was recognized in 7 patients (50%) and could be detected 1.5 hours after stroke onset, (e) effacement of the cerebral sulci was found in 6 patients (42.9%) and could be detected 2.5 hours after stroke onset, (f) increased density in MCA or its major branches was not seen in our patients.


This research explores the link between New Right ideology and the making of public policy. Taking the Thatcher and Mulroney Governments as examples of the New Right in government this research considers the areas of policy convergence and divergence between them using health as a case study. This study concludes that these 1990s variants of Conservativism differed both in terms of their rhetoric and their ability to chart new public policies. This study finds that the Thatcher Government was a more effective agent of change than the Mulroney Government with institutional differences as the main explanatory variable. Other research themes raised in this research include: The applicability of the incremental policy making model to the study of Canadian and British health policies; the role of interest groups in the development of health policies; and the thesis of the irreversibility of the welfare state. It was found that the incremental model could not account for the rapid and large changes in British health policy but could serve as a theoretical framework to explain health policy developments in Canada. Interest groups for their part were found to have reacted in differing ways to the challenges posed to them by New Right government, seeking to form advocacy coalitions in Canada while remaining resolutely independent in Britain. Finally, this research concludes that the irreversibility of the welfare state thesis as presented by Therborn and Roebroek remains valid. that is that the political popUlarity of national health insurance continue to isolate this sector of social policy from dramatic rollback.


Recent authors have suggested that a significant proportion of the worldwide terrigenous sediment budget is trapped landward of the river-ocean boundary in high-load, tectonically active basins. To test this idea, modern flood-plain sediment accumulation rates were determined along a 110 km reach of the Brahmaputra (locally Jamuna) River using 137Cs geochronology of sediment cores and geographic information system (GIS) extrapolation to adjacent areas. 137Cs accumulation rates decrease exponentially away from the channel, from >4 cm/yr on the natural levees to <1 cm/yr within a few tens of kilometers basinward. Important controls on sedimentation in this area include proximity to distributary channels, local topography, and interannual variability of the flood pulse. Model results indicate that an average of 23 m.t./yr of sediment are sequestered in this section of the flood plain. Extrapolated basinwide, as much as 39%–71% of the river sediment budget may be trapped landward of the Ganges-Brahmaputra mouth.


Given that cloud computing brings more advantages than disadvantages in every area that they have been implemented, starting with the cost efficiency, going through flexibility and ending with scalability, we will discuss how cloud technologies could be used in combination with e-learning platforms and what these platforms might gain by implementing and using cloud based technologies.
Many issues related to the limitations and problems that affect e-learning platforms could be solved with the help of cloud technologies, thus we shall discuss problems like technological limitations or service uptime problems that can be solved by cloud technologies. After addressing the matter of cloud computing in e-learning, we also intend to discuss how cloud based e-learning platforms might be able to interact with social networks so as to contribute to lifelong learning.
Our analysis will be based on literature review regarding recent developments in cloud computing in relation to e-learning. E-learning and social networks, in our opinion, will have to work hand in hand so as to enable a faster and more efficient passing of information towards the person that interacts with either the social network, with the e-learning platform or a combination of those two. A efficient e-learning platform, which can be obtained through the implementation of cloud technologies like SaaS (Software as a Service), Iaas (Infrastructure as a Service) or PaaS (Platform as a Service), could be combined with a social network, either well known social networks or more localized and specialized social networks that refer to specific users, for example a social network that can be accessed only by students of a certain college / university.


With the rapid development of sensing, communication, computing technologies, and analytics techniques, today's manufacturing is marching towards a new generation of sustainability, digitalization, and intelligence. Even though the significance of both sustainability and intelligence is well recognized by academia, industry, as well as governments, and substantial efforts are devoted to both areas, the intersection of the two has not been fully exploited. Conventionally, studies in sustainable manufacturing and smart manufacturing have different objectives and employ different tools. Nevertheless, in the design and implementation of smart factories, sustainability, and energy efficiency are supposed to be important goals. Moreover, big data based decision-making techniques that are developed and applied for smart manufacturing have great potential in promoting the sustainability of manufacturing. In this paper, the state-of-the-art of sustainable and smart manufacturing is first reviewed based on the PRISMA framework, with a focus on how they interact and benefit each other. Key problems in both fields are then identified and discussed. Specially, different technologies emerging in the 4th industrial revolution and their dedications on sustainability are discussed. In addition, the impacts of smart manufacturing technologies on sustainable energy industry are analyzed. Finally, opportunities and challenges in the intersection of the two are identified for future investigation. The scope examined in this paper will be interesting to researchers, engineers, business owners, and policymakers in the manufacturing community, and could serve as a fundamental guideline for future studies in these areas.


Four fodder tree species were tested in four types of planting pits. A gradual reduction in the survival of different tree species with the advancement of tree age was recorded. The improved pit among the planting methods and Morus alba among the tree species showed higher survival than the remaining treatments. The growth parameters, viz., plant height and crown diameter showed different trends with age of trees. Improved pit recorded significantly (P < 0.05) higher plant height than other planting techniques in the combined analysis. Fodder trees also exhibited variable response to different planting methods in combined analysis. Crown diameter differed significantly, being maximal in case of M. alba. The traditional planting method had significantly (P < 0.05) lower crown diameter among the methods. The biomass production of trees, viz., green biomass, dry fodder, and fuel yield, varied considerably in different years, showing no definite and uniform trend of increase or decrease over the study period. Improved pit produced the highest green biomass (8.51 t ha-1), however, it was similar to trench method. In contrast, the trench method showed the highest fuel yield (6.39 t ha-1), but remained similar to the improved pit. In the pooled analysis of data, it was observed that M. alba had the highest green forage and fuel yield (10.99 and 10.10 t ha-1, respectively), followed by Grewia optiva.


This thesis explores how the climate change-forest policy intersection is constituted in different contexts. Bringing together discourse analysis, feminist political theory and Governmentality studies, the thesis employs a critical governance approach and thus sheds light on indirect and subtle forms of governing. Embedded in the intergovernmental context of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Swedish national forest policy context, the analytical focus is on problematisations of climate change and forests, on (gendered) identity formations and how these overlap and differ in the two contexts. The thesis confirms how climate change entails a narrow conception of forests as carbon sinks, and demonstrates an ongoing categorisation of forests and forestry based on spatial locations that imply conservation of tropical forests, and intensive management of forests in countries like Sweden. In both contexts there is a rural-urban dichotomy that entails an implied difference between distant and immediate forest dependence that approaches a civilised/uncivilised differentiation. The associated steering techniques entail a focus on activating individuals such as female forest owners, on enabling poor forest dependent communities, or establishing global forest carbon trading, which distorts the contestable role of forests in climate change strategies. In the Swedish context, the analysis further demonstrates how climate change has become a forest production issue, how forests are abstracted from local contexts and an important part of the formation of a Swedish national identity. The image of consensus around Swedish forestry distorts domestic conflicts around forests. Finally, by drawing on feminist political theory this thesis bring attention to gendering practices in Swedish forest policy, and reveals deep rooted values in Swedish forest governance that continue to favour intensive forest production and economic revenues above publically defined goals connected to social and environmental concerns.


This paper studies rational bubbles in non-linear dynamic general equilibrium models of the macroeconomy. The term 'Rational bubble' refers to multiple equilibria due to the absence of a transversality condition (TVC) for capital. The lack of TVC can be due to an OLG population structure. If a TVC is imposed, the macro models considered here have a unique solution. Bubbles reflect self-fulfilling fluctuations in agents' expectations about future investment. In contrast to explosive rational bubbles in linearized models (Blanchard (1979)), the rational bubbles in non-linear models here are bounded. Bounded rational bubbles provide a novel perspective on the drivers and mechanisms of business cycles. I construct bubbles (in non-linear models) that feature recurrent boom-bust cycles characterized by persistent investment and output expansions which are followed by abrupt contractions in real activity. Both closed and open economies are analyzed. In a non-linear two-country model with integrated financial markets, bubbles must be perfectly correlated across countries. Global bubbles may, thus, help to explain the synchronization of international business cycles.


Background Difference in spousal education level is an indicator of gendered efficacy of marriage. Researchers have consistently linked spousal education difference, sex refusal and contraceptive use with violence against women and marriage dissolution. This study examines the relationship between these variables which had been barely explored in the literature. Methods The study cross-examined 8,233 and 21,941 married women aged 15-49 and utilized 2008 Nigeria Demographic Health Survey. The dependent variables were Current Use of Modern Contraceptive Method (CMCM) and sex refusal. Chi-square and logistic regression were used for data analysis (α=0.5%). Results Mean age of women was 33.5±9.0 years and about 11% were more educated than their husbands. Women in all the regions in the southern Nigeria were CMCM and can refuse sex than their counterparts in the North. Higher proportions of women who are currently working are CMCM (16.4%) and can refuse sex (66.0%). Women who earn more income than their husbands are CMCM (22.6%) and can refuse sex (72.6%) than those who either earn less or the same income. Wives that were more educated than their husbands were 1.58(C.I=1.284-1.941; p<0.001) and 1.41(C.I=1.268-1.560; p<0.001) more likely to CMCM and can refuse sex respectively than wives whose their husbands were more educated than them. This pattern remains the same when other socio- demographic variables were included in the model. Conclusion Higher CMCM and sex refusal among women, who were more educated, working, earns more than their partners' points to the importance and need of women empowerment in Nigeria.


This paper suggests ways of incorporating parent involvement in the elementary school classroom and at home, and presents the findings of a survey study examining how teachers in a New York City school in the Bronx perceived the influences of parental involvement on the development of children's literacy skills. Following introductory remarks, the paper describes the benefits of early parental involvement for children and discusses how parents may be involved in their child's literacy education as well as barriers to becoming involved. The paper then describes the survey study of 20 kindergarten through second-grade teachers regarding their perceptions of parental involvement and ways to actively involve parents. All respondents felt that parental involvement played a crucial part in a child's literacy development. Teachers felt that parents were the children's first and most important role models. Twenty-five percent of the respondents said that parents in their classrooms were actively involved. The number of parents actively involved out of a class of 25 students was about 10. Sixty percent of the teachers said that at least half of their parents were participating in home literacy activities, with 25 percent saying that close to all their parents were involved in home literacy activities. Thirty-five percent of teachers felt they could incorporate more parents into their classroom through activities such as a newsletter or having a guest storyteller. All the teachers reported using newsletters or phone calls to communicate with parents. All teachers identified strategies they would like parents to implement at home with their children to encourage literacy development. (Contains 14 references.) (KB) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Teacher's Perceptions of Parental Involvement: How It Effects Our Children's Development in Literacy.


High durability, quality control and prediction of deterioration are key issues for the thermal spray coatings applied to fossil fuel and waste burning boilers. Small electrical resistance inspection (SERI) has been developed and applied for boilers to quantitatively evaluate the relationship between the deterioration mechanisms and the coating defects as well as life-times of coatings. Changes in the electrical resistance (ER) of coatings showed a good correlation with the deterioration causes and also with the bonding strength of the coatings. On the other hand, new processes such as thermal spraying and automatic fusing (SFU) process by high frequency induction heating have been developed to manufacture highly durable coatings. These SFU coatings, which are 0.5~3 mm in thickness and contain chemically bonded and dense NiCrSiB alloy layers have been found to have excellent durability which is almost equal to that of 625 weld overlays used in many WTE plants. Applications of these technologies are in progress to realize coatings with high cost performance, high efficiency and easy maintenance.


This paper takes one kind of 3-TPT Hybrid Machine Tools (HMT) as the object to study. It mainly analyzes the influence of the parallelogram mechanism as the restraining chain of machine on the posture error of movable platform. Firstly, on the basis of introducing the structure of HMT, the kinematics of the restraining chain of this machine is analyzed, and the kinematics equation of the restraining chain is established. Secondly, the influence of two kinds of factors including the shape error of parallelogram mechanism and the micro-rotation of Hooker joint around the axis of connecting rod is analyzed respectively, and the theoretical relationship expression is acquired between various errors influencing factor and the posture error of movable platform, thus the foundation for the theoretical error analysis of the HMT is laid.


Thoracic aortic dissection is a disease of great mortality in its initial phase, but in some cases it can assume chronic course. We report a case of a patient with Stanford type A1 aortic dissection, admitted with mental confusion, dyspnea and event of severe hemoptysis. Electrocardiogram showed unspecific change and chest X-ray revealed opacification of the left hemithorax. Transthoracic echocardiogram did not show aortic dissection, but showed image similar to hemithorax leading to the suspicion of aortic rupture. The patient developed cardiovascular collapse and evolved to death. This case describes two unusual presentations of aortic dissection: hemothorax and severe hemoptysis.


Estimating the unknown parameters of a statistical model based on the observations collected by a sensor network is an important problem with application in multiple fields. In this setting, distributed processing, by which computations are carried out within the network in order to avoid raw data transmission to a fusion centre, is a desirable feature resulting in improved robustness and energy savings. In the presence of incomplete data, the expectation-maximisation (EM) algorithm is a popular means to iteratively compute the maximum likelihood (ML) estimate. It has found application in diverse fields such as computational biology, anomaly detection, speech segmentation, reinforcement learning, and motion estimation, among others. In this chapter we will review the formulation of the centralised EM estimation algorithm as a starting point and then discuss distributed versions well suited for implementation in sensor networks. The first class of these distributed versions requires specialised routing through the network in terms of a linear or circular path visiting all nodes, whereas the second class does away with this requirement by using the concept of network consensus to diffuse information through the network. Our focus will be on a relevant sensor network application, in which the parameter of a linear model is to be estimated in the presence of an unknown number of randomly malfunctioning sensors.


We estimate sibling correlations in health status using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. We use Bayesian methods to estimate the covariance structure of a system of latent variable equations. Across a battery of outcomes, we estimate that between 50% and 60% of health status can be attributed to familial or neighborhood characteristics. Taking the principal component across all outcomes, we obtain a slightly lower sibling correlation of about 45%. These estimates, which are larger than previous estimates of sibling correlations in health that rely on linear models, are more in-line with sibling correlations in income and suggest that health status, like other measures of socioeconomic success, is strongly influenced by family background. Therefore, efforts to improve the circumstances of families and communities may potentially lead to improved childhood health today and also reduce future health disparities.


Summary Eight samples of the hake, Merluccius merluccius L., from the Mediterranean basin (370 fishes total) and one from the Atlantic ocean (50 fishes) were analysed in order to assess genetic variability and describe genetic population structure. Five polymorphic protein coding loci were scored (ADH*, PGI-1*, PGI-2*, PGM* and SOD-1*) in eight samples, together with a haplotype variation of four samples, obtained from polymerase chain reaction/restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR–RFLP) analysis on the mitochondrial DNA control region. The average value for observed heterozygosity was typically higher than expected (showing an excess of heterozygotes among the samples) whereas the haplotype diversity at mtDNA was very low. Samples originating from inside the Mediterranean basin appeared genetically homogeneous but the sample originating from the Atlantic was heterogeneous compared with the Mediterranean populations. Nuclear and mitochondrial gene analysis showed similar results supporting that the Strait of Gibraltar may be considered as a breakpoint area to gene flow.


Reaching the sustainable development goal for water and sanitation access will require significant investments. For some utilities, the private sector or blended public–private investments offer opportunities to expand and improve services, but this is not an option for many utilities serving the poorest households. These utilities are often unable to cover their current operations and maintenance costs and have limited capacity to increase tariffs in order to do so. Yet supporting these utilities is crucial to expanding access to safe drinking water for the majority of citizens. We argue that a new solution is needed to provide utilities serving the poorest with sufficient subsidies to cover their operational costs, stabilize service, and make performance improvements to advance towards sustainable operation. This article presents a potential solution which blends funding from global philanthropy, solidarity levies, and local matching funds. Such a fund, if structured to reflect the principles of results-based funding, transparency, sustainability, and performance improvement, can make a meaningful impact on water access.


Previous observations of the middle-aged pulsar Geminga with XMM-Newton and Chandra have shown an unusual pulsar wind nebula (PWN), with a 20″ long central (axial) tail directed opposite to the pulsar's proper motion and two 2′ long, bent lateral (outer) tails. Here, we report on a deeper Chandra observation (78 ks exposure) and a few additional XMM-Newton observations of the Geminga PWN. The new Chandra observation has shown that the axial tail, which includes up to three brighter blobs, extends at least 50″ (i.e., 0.06d250 pc) from the pulsar (d250 is the distance scaled to 250 pc). It also allowed us to image the patchy outer tails and the emission in the immediate vicinity of the pulsar with high resolution. The PWN luminosity, L0.3-8 keV ∼ 3 × 1029d2250 erg s−1, is lower than the pulsar's magnetospheric luminosity by a factor of 10. The spectra of the PWN elements are rather hard (photon index Γ ∼ 1). Comparing the two Chandra images, we found evidence of PWN variability, including possible motion of the blobs along the axial tail. The X-ray PWN is the synchrotron radiation from relativistic particles of the pulsar wind (PW); its morphology is connected with the supersonic motion of Geminga. We speculate that the outer tails are either a sky projection of the limb-brightened boundary of a shell formed in the region of contact discontinuity, where the wind bulk flow is decelerated by shear instability, or polar outflows from the pulsar bent by the ram pressure from the interstellar medium. In the former case, the axial tail may be a jet emanating along the pulsar's spin axis, perhaps aligned with the direction of motion. In the latter case, the axial tail may be the shocked PW collimated by ram pressure.


Chlorotetracycline (CTC) was used as a fluorescence indicator to investigate the intracellular membrane-bound Ca2+ redistribution in the hydrocortisone (HC)-treated rat thymocytes. The effect of HC (0.1-1 microM) on the thymocytes incubated in Ca2+ containing media for 60-120 min increased 1.5-fold the quantity of membrane-bound Ca2+ in the plasma membrane. When thymocytes were incubated in Ca(2+)-free media, no HC-induced changes in the Ca2+ pool of plasma membrane were revealed. In the presence of inhibitors of respiration and oxidative phosphorylation, the CTC fluorescence intensity in the HC-treated cells decreased to a greater extent than in the control, thereby indicating an increase in the mitochondrial Ca2+ pool. Using inhibitors of endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase (vanadate, BHQ). HC was shown to decrease the non-mitochondrial Ca2+ pool. Calmodulin blockers (triphthasine and R24) slightly decreased the CTC fluorescence intensity in the HC-treated cells as compared to the control. HC was found to inhibit the calmodulin-mediated Ca2+ accumulation in the thymocyte membrane. Based on the experiments using AlF4, we concluded that HC stimulates the activity of G-proteins through the receptor-mediated mechanism. A possible role of the observed Ca2+ redistribution between the thymocyte intracellular compartments, specifically between mitochondria and reticulum, is discussed.


Public trust and confidence are vital to the police function. There has been much comment and debate about the apparent decline in confidence in the British police since the 1950s, most frequently evidenced by data from the British Crime Survey (BCS). Yet, there has been relatively little in-depth interrogation of the data at the heart of the discussion. Pooling data from 11 sweeps of the BCS (1984 to 2005/06), this paper shows a homogenization over time in trends in trust and confidence and experiences of encounters with the police. This pattern is found across both age and ethnicity, and can also be identified in other variables. The story that emerges therefore differs from analyses that emphasize the increasingly diffuse and variable nature of public experiences of the police.


Single carrier modulations (SC) combined with frequency domain equalization (FDE) techniques have been shown to be a valuable alternative to the popular OFDM modulations, especially in regard to its robustness to RF implementation impairments. We introduce a class of SC-FDE receivers for a layered space-time architecture (LST). These receivers have a hybrid structure with frequency domain feedforward and time domain feedback filters. The performance of the proposed receivers are evaluated for severe time-dispersive channels.


Cable bacteria represent a newly discovered group of filamentous microorganisms, which are capable of spatially separating the oxidative and reductive half‐reactions of their sulfide‐oxidizing metabolisms over centimeter distances. We investigated three ways that cable bacteria might interact with the nitrogen (N) cycle: (1) by reducing nitrate through denitrification or dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) within their cathodic cells; (2) by nitrifying ammonium within their anodic cells; and (3) by indirectly affecting denitrification and/or DNRA by changing the Fe2+ concentration in the surrounding sediment. We performed 15N labeling laboratory experiments to measure these three processes using cable bacteria containing sediments from the Yarra River, Australia, and from Vilhelmsborg Sø, Denmark. Our results revealed that in the targeted systems, cable bacteria themselves did not perform significant rates of denitrification, DNRA, or nitrification. However, cable bacteria exhibited an important indirect effect, whereby they increased the Fe2+ pool through iron sulfide dissolution. This elevated availability of Fe2+ significantly increased DNRA and in some cases decreased denitrification. Thus, cable bacteria presence may affect the relative importance of DNRA in sediments and thus the extent by which bioavailable nitrogen is lost from the system.


ABSTRACT The less fine motor skills of cerebral palsy children led to their difficulties in doing their daily activities especially in school environment like writing and other activities that require fine motor skills. The purpose of this study to know whether there is influence of quantum learning on the fine motor skills of cerebral palsy children in SDLB-D1 YPAC Surabaya. This study aims to train and develop fine motor skills of cerebral palsy children using quantum learning by applying motor activity. This research used a quantitative approach with pre-experimental research by One Group Pre-test Post-test Design. The subject of this study were 6 students of class 1-3 in SDLB-D1 YPAC Surabaya. The data analysis revealed that the average score for the pre-test was 37,40 and the post-test was 60,73. Using the sign test, it was obtained that Zobserved= 2,05 was higher than crisis values =1,96, meaning that Ho was rejected and Ha was accepted. Thus, it showed that quantum learning fine motor skills of cerebral palsy children  at SDLB-D1 YPAC Surabaya. Keyword: Quantum Learning, Fine Motor Skills, Cerebral Palsy


Again in- the interest of brevity, I will confine the formal presentation to the subject of septic phlebitis, which is really a clinical entity depending upon the degree and extent of clinical manifestations, rather than a pathological entity which under a microscope can be distinguished from phlebothrombosis or thrombophlebitis per se. Septic phlebitis concerns itself with the larger venous trunks leading from an inflammatory area since it is well-established that in any inflammatory process smaller venous channels are obviously involved in the reaction. Usually, appropriate incision and drainage of the area, plus antibiotic therapy will handle adequately the localized phlebitic involvement of the smaller veins. However, septicemia and septic emboli are manifestations which cause septic phlebitis to be considered a distinct ent and a complication of infection. Neuhof * has described four [ill] tic forms: (1) thrombophlebitic with [ill] thrombus; (2) phlegmonous with no sible thrombus; (3) pyophlebitis with little external


AbstractThis study aims to evaluate the feasibility of using natural tuff found in the middle Anatolian region of Turkey for the removal of radioactivity from liquid radioactive wastes. Block samples that were collected from four different tuff deposits were first crushed to obtain particles with various sizes. The samples were then treated with low-level liquid radioactive waste in laboratory conditions. The effect of particle size on the adsorption performance of the tuff samples was studied for four types of radionuclides (241Am, 134Cs, 137Cs, and 60Co). The removal rates of radioactivity by the tuff samples having five different aggregate sizes (diameters of 4, 2.8, 2, 1, and 0.7 mm) were determined by the decrease in radioactivity concentration of the passed liquid discharge. In addition, the specific retention, saturation, and adsorption rates of the samples were also investigated. For most of the radionuclides, up to 50% saturation level and 70% specific retention were observed while the optimum re...


Increased international fishery commodity trade flows and domestic  from year to year has large potential. The potential trading opportunities cause the entry and spread of the pests and diseases of fish or Hama dan Penyakit Ikan (HPI) and the fish quarantine pests or Hama dan Penyakit Ikan Karantina (HPIK). Spread of HPI and HPIK as well as a threat that could endanger fish preservation of natural resources in the territory of the inner country. One of the HPI and HPIK disease that causes economic losses is fungal disease group paracite.
Fungus is easily spread in the water and have the potential to spread widely across state lines due to the effects globalization. The purposes of this field practice are to know, understand and practice the process of fungi examination contained on imports and exports of fishery commodities both, conventional slide culture method and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)
Working method used technique of data collection such as primary and secondary data by way of active participation, observation and interviews. Practice Field activity was held on January 14, 2013 until the date of February 14, 2013 BBKIPM-KHP Soekarno Hatta, Tangerang, Banten.
The conventional slides culture method commonly used gel medium to prepare matter into identification process. Fungi examination with conventional Slide Culture method consists of four stages insulating samples in SDA medium, incubating the samples for 4-5 days, staining fungus using Lactophenol blue, mushroom identification under the microscope.
Polymerase Chain Reaction is an enzymatic method that is used to multiply exponentially a specific nucleotide sequence. Examination of fungi using PCR method consists of four stages of nucleic acid extraction, amplification, and electrophoresis and visualization or diagnostic examination result to the UV Transluminator.
Results of examination by using conventional slide culture method in BBKIPM-KHP Soekarno-Hatta on practice field activity obtained Saprolegnia and Aspergillus. Saprolegnia that infect two samples of imported fish commodities and Aspergillus that infect 16 samples of exports fish commodities and 24 samples of imported fish commodities. While the examination of fungi by PCR obtaine all fish sampled negatif Epizootic Ulcerativ Syndrome (EUS) fungi. All fish sampled ekspor comodities can be exported to other countries.


Phased array systems have become paramount to the development of next generation wireless communication networks, with errors on phase shifters contributing to beam pointing error. Oscillation-based built-in self-testing (OBIST) of phase shifters may improve on this accuracy. We propose a single-ended oscillation-based test technique for passive RF phase shifters. The method uses a negative resistance oscillator topology, where the phase shifter is used to capacitively load the active negative resistance circuit resulting in a dependency between relative phase shift and output oscillation frequency. Simulation results indicate an average sensitivity of 0.14 MHz/° of phase shift around a nominal 617 MHz output oscillation when testing an X-band reflection-type phase shifter, while the addition of OBT circuitry increases the phase shifter's mid-band insertion loss by 0.93 dB..


The change of the electrical activity of the heart over time has been recorded by the Electrocardiogram which is called ECG. Electrocardiograms are used to diagnose the condition of patients' hearts by measuring the heartbeat. However, an ECG generates a lot of information and requires a large amount of memory and storage to process and record this data. In this paper, a discrete least square estimation is used to estimate the coefficient of polynomial models for estimating the ECG signals. We propose the use of discrete least square estimation in order to fit all of the ECG data, in various orders, with polynomial models using separate parts of the ECG data. A simulation study has been conducted in order to compare the proposed polynomial models with a model restricted by using a Percentage Root mean square Difference (PRD). The results show that the proposed model gives low PRD.


Traits spontaneously inferred from behaviors bind to actors' faces (spontaneous trait inferences, or STI), and can inappropriately bind to faces of persons deemed irrelevant to the behaviors (spontaneous trait transference, or STT). Experiments 1 and 2 showed that STT effects, while weaker than STI, nevertheless occurred in the face of clear irrelevance instructions. Experiment 3 showed that STT—but not STI—can be eliminated when faces and behaviors are separated perceptually. Experiments 4, 5, and 6 found no STT when a relevant and an irrelevant actor were presented simultaneously, suggesting that inferred traits bind exclusively to faces of relevant targets when these targets are present and bind to irrelevant targets only when relevant targets are absent and irrelevant targets are present. The experiments rule out an attentional account of this phenomenon, demonstrating STT elimination when attention to concomitant face-behavior pairs was ensured. The findings suggest a spontaneous attributional process.


The integration of transition metal dichalcogenide layers into photonic devices is a current challenge in the field of 2D materials. Based on numerical simulations, this work explores the design of devices combining an MoS2 monolayer with planar photonic gratings sustaining localized optical resonances. A special attention is paid to the technological constraints. The optical response of six devices is compared taking into account the limitations imposed by the growth conditions of the MoS2 layer and the processing of the resonant optical gratings. The reported photonic devices composed of grating filters and a backside reflector on silicon and silica substrates exhibit a theoretical absorption by the MoS2 layer between 85 and 99% at 532 nm. The numerical simulations further show that the addition of an Al2O3 encapsulation layer, to protect the MoS2 monolayer, results in an increase of the performance of the devices. These hybrid MoS2 based photonic devices are promising technological platforms for the study of the optical properties of integrated MoS2 monolayers.


Summary We studied somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEPs) in eight Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) patients presenting with subacute progressive dementia, generalized myoclonus, and characteristic periodic sharp wave complexes in EEG. Somatosensory evoked potentials were elicited by median nerve stimulation at the wrist. We compared SSEP findings with EEG and the clinical stage proposed by the Japanese Slow Virus Infection Research Committee (stage 1: early stage to stage 5: terminal stage). Until clinical stage 3, short-latency SSEPs showed normal findings despite the severely abnormal EEG. With the progression to clinical stages 4 and 5, however, the amplitude of N20 began to decrease and finally disappeared without prolongation of the latency of N20, whereas other short-latency components were preserved. We recorded giant SSEPs in two of three patients in stage 4, when the periodic sharp wave complex in EEG began to decrease in amplitude. The giant SSEPs decreased in amplitude with the progression of the illness. These findings suggest that the short-latency SSEP is relatively preserved until the middle phase of the disease but that it is eventually affected in the terminal phase. We conclude that our results are compatible with the CJD pathologic findings and that the amplitude of N20 reflects the extent of cortical damage in CJD patients.


Generally, small and medium scale industries (SMI's) are individual enterprises or a factories which is closed in operating the enterprise by just relying on very limited equity. To sustain the development of the enterprise needs a credit from a bank which is one of the important source funds of the working of capital for the developing investment capital purchasing of goods capital. In general, the aims of the research is to know the requirements to obtain the credit on a special scale (1) Studying internal and external factors which influence the development of the PT AFI enterprise; (2) Analyzing the development enterprise plan and the importance source of the funds from outside in the form of investment credit for increasing the production capacity of PT AFI. Collecting data is conducted by a direct interview with an entrepreneur to look at the process and management policy. In reaching the work of internal factors; (1) general aspects, (2) management aspects, (3) production aspects, (4) marketing aspects, and (5) financial aspects. Where as the analysis methods which are used are: (1) financial analysis: a. liquidity ratio, b. leverage ratio, c. activity ratio, d. rentability ratio, and e. coverage ratio; (2) scoring investment by using the method: a. payback period, b. net present value, c. internal rate of return, and d. profitability index. External data which support the development of the enterprise obtained from the result of the research which covered laws, president instruction, regulation from the government institution that is Bank Indonesia and reading materials, for example, literature, report, internet and the result from scholarly paper. Based on the result of the research showed external factors, for example increasing capacity of people's purchasing because of price increase of oil cost had begun to decrease and the market opportunity still opened because the feed requirement is still big. Internal factors showed positive development. They are: (1) Financial analysis which is based on the result of selling data for the last five years, it obtained financial prediction, they are among other: a. liquidity ratio 2,23 times complied with minimal requirement, b. leverage ratio 2,01 times, complied with maximal requirement, c. activity ratio showed positive trend, d. rentability ratio showed positive trend, and e. coverage ratio showed positive trend; (2) Whereas based on the scoring the result obtained, they are: a. payback period 4 years 3 months, b. net present value > 0, meaning the proper project, c. internal rate of return > rate of return meaning proper project, and d. profitability index > 1, meaning feasible project. Whereas based on the sensitivity analysis assuming that the sale decreased 10%; production decreased 10% and the general sale cost and administration increased 2%, turning out that it hasn't influence the project feasibility sensitivity yet. All this condition will certainly become positive value for a bank which in conducting its enterprise requires a risk management application so that it will operated more prudential, especially avoiding the payment failure risk from counterparty.


Publish-subscribe supports asynchronous interactions among processes in a distributed system. A process can describe its interest in messages by performing an operation called subscribe and will be notified about messages which match the specific interest.
Provision of basic security mechanisms such as authentication of publishers and subscribers and confidentiality of events and subscriptions is difficult in a publish-subscribe system.
Authentication is difficult to achieve due to the decoupled nature of interactions between the publishers and subscribers. Similarly confidentiality conflicts with the content based routing. Moreover, confidentiality is harder to address in broker-less environment, where the subscribers are clustered according to their interest.
In this thesis, new techniques to provide confidentiality and authentication in a brokerless content-based publish-subscribe built on P2P architecture are presented. Identity-basedencryption is used to provide authentication of publisher and subscriber and confidentiality of events. Furthermore, an algorithm is designed to cluster subscribers according to their subscriptions while preserving a weaker notion of confidentiality. Evaluation results show the feasibility of the technique in terms of dissemination latencies and message overhead.


The ExactlyN problem in the number-on-forehead (NOF) communication setting asks $k$ players, each of whom can see every input but their own, if the $k$ input numbers add up to $N$. Introduced by Chandra, Furst and Lipton in 1983, ExactlyN is important for its role in understanding the strength of randomness in communication complexity with many players. It is also tightly connected to the field of combinatorics: its $k$-party NOF communication complexity is related to the size of the largest corner-free subset in $[N]^{k-1}$. In 2021, Linial and Shraibman gave more efficient protocols for ExactlyN for 3 players. As an immediate consequence, this also gave a new construction of larger corner-free subsets in $[N]^2$. Later that year Green gave a further refinement to their argument. These results represent the first improvements to the highest-order term for $k=3$ since the famous work of Behrend in 1946. In this paper we give a corresponding improvement to the highest-order term for all $k>3$, the first since Rankin in 1961. That is, we give a more efficient protocol for ExactlyN as well as larger corner-free sets in higher dimensions. Nearly all previous results in this line of research approached the problem from the combinatorics perspective, implicitly resulting in non-constructive protocols for ExactlyN. Approaching the problem from the communication complexity point of view and constructing explicit protocols for ExactlyN was key to the improvements in the $k=3$ setting. As a further contribution we provide explicit protocols for ExactlyN for any number of players which serves as a base for our improvement.


An important risk facing agents in a monetary economy arises from inflation uncertainty: in the U.S. for the 1953-84 period, unexpected quarterly inflation had a standard deviation of 2.1%. The costs of such uncertainty are likely to be even higher for multi-year contracts, since we estimate that a 1% unexpected inflation this year implies an upward revision of 0.43% for expected inflation for the forthcoming year and 1% for the years beyond that. The prospect of hedging inflation risk exposure using conventional financial instruments is bleak, as has been widely documented. We develop a theoretical case for Treasury bill futures as a inflation risk hedge by jointly assuming that (1) the Fisher Hypothesis applies to Treasury bill yields, (2) the Unbiased Expectations Hypothesis (UEH) applies to futures prices, and (3) inflation is an autoregressive process. Our empirical analysis shows that Treasury bill futures can reduce single-period inflation risk by about 30-40%. The expected cost of using such futures is close to zero, since we find that the Unbiased Expectations Hypothesis for Treasury bill futures cannot be rejected. Our results provide new indirect support for the Fisher Hypothesis.


In long, stressful operational periods, military personnel face numerous challenges that may compromise their performance, an especially important one being fatigue. Current literature supports the view that behavioral, physiological, and cognitive factors are all predictive of the level of fatigue in individuals. However, much of the work on modeling fatigue has taken a narrow approach, relying only on a handful of modalities to measure fatigue. This paper aims to fill the void by providing an extensive overview of the current literature on both computationally measuring and modeling fatigue. We provide up-to-date and practical advice on which models are best suited for different situations and highlight directions for future work.


This study compares the early life experiences of kindergarteners in 1998 and 2010 using two nationally representative data sets. We find that (a) young children in the later period are exposed to more books and reading in the home, (b) they have more access to educational games on computers, and (c) they engage with their parents more, inside and outside the home. Although these increases occurred among low- and high-income children, in many cases the biggest changes were seen among the lowest-income children. Our results indicate narrowing but still large early childhood parental investment gaps. In addition, socioeconomic gaps in preschool participation grew over this period, despite substantial investments in public preschool. Implications for early socioeconomic achievement gaps are discussed.


We calculate numerically the energy spectrum of the six dimensional problem of two interacting Bosons in a three-well optical lattice. The particles interact via a full Born-Oppenheimer potential, which can be adapted to model the behavior of the s-wave scattering length at Feshbach resonances. By adjusting the parameters of the corresponding Bose-Hubbard (BH) Hamiltonian the deviation between the numerical energy spectrum and the BH spectrum is minimized. This defines the optimal BH parameter set, which we compare to the standard parameters of the BH model. The range of validity of the BH model with these parameter sets is examined, and an analytical prediction of the interaction parameter is introduced. Furthermore, an extended BH model and implications due to the energy dependence of the scattering length and couplings to higher Bloch bands at a Feshbach resonance are discussed.


In this study 3-D numerical simulations on heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics for a typical louver fin-and- double-row tube heat exchanger were carried out. The heat transfer improvement and the corresponding pressure drop amounts were investigated depending on louver angles, fin pitch and Reynolds number, and reported in terms of Colburn j -factor and Fanning friction factor f . The heat transfer improvement and the corresponding pressure drop amounts were investigated depending on louver angles between 20° ≤Ө≤ 30°, louver pitch of Lp =3.8 mm and frontal velocities of U between 1.22 m/s - 3 m/s. In addition, flow visualization of detailed flow features results, such as velocity vectors, streamlines and temperature counters have been shown to understand heat transfer enhancement mechanism. The present results indicated that louver angle and fin pitch noticeably affected the thermal and hydraulic performance of heat exchanger. It has been seen that increasing louver angle, increases thermal performance while decreasing hydraulic performance associated to pressure drop for fin pitches of 3.2 mm and 2.5 mm. Fin pitch determines the flow behaviour that for fin pitch of 2 mm, increasing louver angle decreased heat transfer and pressure drop. Velocity vectors and streamlines give considerable information about the flow whether it is duct directed or louver directed. For all conditions the flow is louver directed.


Koop's warnings against the health risks of marijuana smoking were part of the Reagan administration's increasingly
 aggressive campaign against the use of narcotic drugs.


In the absence of historical income or education data, the change in occupations over time can be used as a measure of mobility. This paper investigates intergenerational occupational mobility using a novel genealogical dataset for settler South Africa, spanning its transition from an agricultural to an early industrialised society (1800-1909). We identify fathers and sons for whom we have complete information on occupational attainment. We follow a two-generation discrete approach to measure changes in both absolute and relative mobility over time. Consistent with qualitative evidence of a shift away from agriculture as the economy's dominant sector, we see the farming class shrinking and the skilled and professional classes growing. Controlling for changes in the structure of the labour market over time, we find increasing mobility, becoming significant after the discovery of minerals in 1868. We find this mobility particularly for semiskilled workers but virtually no improved mobility for sons of farmers. We also test hypotheses related to the mobility prospects for first-born sons and sons of immigrants. (Less)


This paper describes the main results of the EU FP7 project TUMESA - MEMS tuneable metamaterials for smart wireless applications. In this project, we studied several reconfigurable antenna approaches that combine the new technology of MEMS with the new concept of artificial electromagnetic materials and surfaces (metamaterials and metasurfaces) for realisation of millimetre wave phase shifters and beam-steering devices. MEMS technology allows to miniaturise electronic components, reduce their cost in batch production, and effectively compete with semiconductor and ferroelectric based technologies in terms of losses at millimetre wavelengths. Novel tuneable materials and components proposed in this project perform as smart beam steering devices. Fabricated with MEMS technology in batch and on a single chip, proposed tuneable devices allow substituting of larger and more complex sub-system of, e.g., a radar sensor. This substitution provides a dramatic cost reduction on a system level.


A two-span, three-story steel frame with two web and top-seat angle connections was constructed. Then a low-cycled reverse loading experiment with this frame was conducted to obtain elastic-plastic behavior of semi-rigid connections steel frame under cyclic loading. And nonlinear finite element analysis of steel frame with semi-rigid and rigid connection is performed in this paper. At last, comparisons between the analysis results and the testing results are carried out, the behavior and the effects of the two web and top-seat angles connections on steel frame are analyzed.


The aeromagnetic map of Great Britain shows a number of granites associated with magnetic anomalies. One of the largest of these granites, the Cairngorm pluton, has a complex overlying aeromagnetic anomaly, yet measurements show that the surface rocks have a magnetic susceptibility too low to account for this aeromagnetic field.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the likely reasons for this discrepancy employing a range of computer based techniques, and using new land-based data.

Potential field data for the Cairngorm area, together with a region of the Southern Uplands, was subjected to frequency domain reduction and filtering. Hand specimens from the granite and host rock were collected for susceptibility measurements. The results have been integrated with profile models to explain the variations observed in the aeromagnetic and ground based magnetic field.

The Cairngorm granites appear to be zoned at depth, with a variable thickness cap of low density, low magnetic susceptibility granite. The presence of intermediate composition rock in the upper reaches of the granite mass provides evidence for stoping, whilst the presence of intermediate composition rock at deeper levels is thought to be due to multiple magma pulses and/or differentiation.

The Loch Doon granite has a low magnetic susceptibility subsurface core extending off its eastern flank. A number of correlations between the geophysics and geochemistry of the granites investigated were noted. The concept of gravrnag space has been developed and applied as a framework in which to explore the relationships between the granites of Scotland and northern England. Relationships between the background geophysics and the geochemistry of granites in the area of the proposed Iapetus Subduction zone have also been investigated.


Plant health regulations to prevent the introduction and spread of Phytophthora ramorum and P. kernoviae require rapid, cost effective diagnostic methods for screening large numbers of plant samples at the time of inspection. Current on-site techniques require expensive equipment, considerable expertise and are not suited for plant health inspectors. Therefore, an extensive evaluation of a commercially available lateral flow device (LFD) for Phytophthora species was performed involving four separate trials and 634 samples. The assay proved simple to use, provided results in a few minutes and on every occasion a control line reacted positively confirming the validity of the test. LFD results were compared to those from testing a parallel sample, using laboratory methods (isolation and real-time PCR). The diagnostic sensitivity of the LFD (87.6 percent) compared favourably to the standard laboratory methods although the diagnostic specificity was not as stringent (82.9 percent). There were a small number of false negatives, but for statutory purposes where all positive samples must be identified to species level by laboratory testing, verall efficiency was 95.6 percent as compared to visual assessment of symptoms of between 20-30 percent for P. ramorum and P. kernoviae. This work demonstrates the value of the lateral flow device for diagnosing Phytophthora species at the time of inspection and as a useful primary screen for selecting samples for laboratory testing to determine the species identification.