This thesis compiles five papers that independently cover issues on multifunctional forest, migration and climate change. Paper I addresses these questions: What is the effect of site quality on forest growth rate and variability in forest growth? How does site quality impact on ecosystem services, that is, timber production and carbon sequestration? Site quality indicator was found to positively affect forest growth and growth rate, and decreases uncertainty in the productivity. Using dynamic optimization model, Paper II estimates the economic value of site quality taking into account its interaction with timber value and carbon sequestration in Swedish forest. Analytical results showed that net present value when considering ecosystem services provided by the forest and its interaction with site quality is higher than in the case without site quality interaction. Paper III links educational attainment to internal migration decisions with much on rural-urban perspective using Ghana as a case study. The effect of educational attainment on migration decisions in 2005/2006 for urban in-migrant was found to be higher than the effect for rural in-migrant, with its significance varying for the different stages of educational attainment. In absolute terms, whereas the effect of secondary educational attainment on migration decisions for urban in-migrant is higher than for rural in-migrant, the reverse holds for higher educational attainment during the period 2012/2013. Paper IV examines the effect of climate element on internal migration decisions using similar methods and data as for Paper III. Whereas temperature positively affects the probability to migrate, aridity index negatively affects migration decisions. Individuals tend to move to the rural areas relative to urban areas with an increase in precipitation and or a decrease in aridity. Paper V explores the effect of climate variability and socio-economic factors on the number of infectious disease patients in Sweden. Temperature showed a linear negative effect on the number of patients, but a non-linear relationship when winter temperature is used. Conversely, a positive effect of precipitation on the number of patients is found, with modest heterogeneity in the effect of climate variables on the number of patients across disease classifications observed. Socio-economic factors were found to correlate with number of patients. We found significant persistence in the number of infectious disease patients but found only temperature and income as dominant drivers in a dynamic model.


Background: The association between cell phone use and the development of parotid tumors is controversial. Because there is unequivocal evidence that the microenvironment is important for tumor formation, we investigated in the parotid glands whether cell phone use alters the expression of gene products related to cellular stress. Methods: We used the saliva produced by the parotid glands of 62 individuals to assess molecular alterations compatible with cellular stress, comparing the saliva from the gland exposed to cell phone radiation (ipsilateral) to the saliva from the opposite, unexposed parotid gland (contralateral) of each individual. We compared salivary flow, total protein concentration, p53, p21, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and salivary levels of glutathione (GSH), heat shock proteins 27 and 70, and IgA between the ipsilateral and contralateral parotids. Results: No difference was found for any of these parameters, even when grouping individuals by period of cell phone use in years or by monthly average calls in minutes. Conclusion and Impact: We provide molecular evidence that the exposure of parotid glands to cell phone use does not alter parotid salivary flow, protein concentration, or levels of proteins of genes that are directly or indirectly affected by heat-induced cellular stress. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 23(7); 1428–31. ©2014 AACR.


Unsupervised domain adaptation has been proved to be a promising approach to solve the problem of dataset bias. To employ source labels in the target domain, it is required to align the joint distributions of source and target data. To do this, the key research problem is to align conditional distributions across domains without target labels. In this paper, we propose a new criterion of domain-shared group-sparsity that is an equivalent condition for conditional distribution alignment. To solve the problem in joint distribution alignment, a domain-shared group-sparse dictionary learning method is developed towards joint alignment of conditional and marginal distributions. A classifier for target domain is trained using the domain-shared group-sparse coefficients and the target-specific information from the target data. Experimental results on cross-domain face and object recognition show that the proposed method outperforms eight state-of-the-art unsupervised domain adaptation algorithms.


We present a general wavelet-based denoising scheme for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data and compare it to Gaussian smoothing, the traditional denoising method used in fMRI analysis. One-dimensional WaveLab thresholding routines were adapted to two-dimensional images, and applied to 2D wavelet coefficients. To test the effect of these methods on the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), we compared the SNR of 2D fMRI images before and after denoising, using both Gaussian smoothing and wavelet-based methods. We simulated a fMRI series with a time signal in an active spot, and tested the methods on noisy copies of it. The denoising methods were evaluated in two ways: by the average temporal SNR inside the original activated spot, and by the shape of the spot detected by thresholding the temporal SNR maps. Denoising methods that introduce much smoothness are better suited for low SNRs, but for images of reasonable quality they are not preferable, because they introduce heavy deformations. Wavelet-based denoising methods that introduce less smoothing preserve the sharpness of the images and retain the original shapes of active regions. We also performed statistical parametric mapping (SPM) on the denoised simulated time series, as well as on a real fMRI data set. False discovery rate control was used to correct for multiple comparisons. The results show that the methods that produce smooth images introduce more false positives. The less smoothing wavelet-based methods, although generating more false negatives, produce a smaller total number of errors than Gaussian smoothing or wavelet-based methods with a large smoothing effect.


Historical relative stock biomass abundance trends for a selected group of demersal species were analyzed considering the technological development of the fishing industry. Official records on landings from the Greek bottom trawl fishery during the past five decades were used as an example. A number of demersal stocks were found to decline at a faster pace than previously believed, while others giving the impression of rapid growth should be considered at a stable status. Using available research survey biomass indices, for the most recent period, a more realistic level of increasing fishing power for the commercial bottom trawl fishery was estimated. The present findings suggest that measuring "nominal'' effort in conventional terms (days at sea, engine capacity, gross tonnage) may yield estimates far from the "effective'' effort exerted by the fleet, which may further be unnoticeably escalating. Since fisheries management in the Mediterranean is predominantly effort-based, accounting for changes in fishing effort seems more decisive than in marine regions, where fisheries are managed by means of landing quotas.


A second study of 38 subjects, ages 22-62, was conducted to study the difference between Gunnar Optiks computer spectacles 5 and control glasses with small changes in base curve or tint. The two control pairs of eyeglasses were in similar frames, and both sets of lenses were made of similar resin with antireflective coating. One control pair had gray-tinted lenses were made with the same optical power as the Gunnar Optiks design. The other had the same yellow tint, but a flatter base curve and face form than the Gunnar design. Under stressful conditions of glare and dry air induced by a fan, electromyography of the eyelid to quantify squinting and blinking, tear volume measurement using Zone Quick phenol red thread, and subjective symptoms 10 experienced with each type of glasses were made. Statistical analysis revealed no significant difference between the Gunnar Optiks design and the control glasses under these conditions.


Ba0.6Sr0.4TiO3 powder was synthesized by a citrate method. The powder with a pure pervoskite phase and superfine particle morphology was produced at low calcining temperature of 550°C by controlling heating rate during the calcination. Microstructure and nonlinear dielectric properties of the ceramic specimens were investigated with respect to sintering temperature. It was found that the superfine morphology of the powder effectively reduced the sintering temperature of the ceramic specimens. The ceramic specimen sintered at 1260 °C attained about 95% of the theoretical density. At room temperature, the ceramic specimen showed a dielectric constant of 3010 and a dielectric loss of 0.48% at 10 kHz together with a tunability of 32.4% at 10 kHz and 20 kV/cm.


Long-term results of the surgery of 61 children with ureterohydronephrosis of one of doubling kidneys have been estimated. The authors believe that inter-pelvic and ureteropelvic anastomoses are most physiological in ureterohydronephrosis of doubling kidneys in children. In case of absence of vesicoureteral reflux there is no reason to remove the distal part of the ureter.


Despite the US unemployment rate being close to estimates of the non-accelerating-inflation rate of unemployment (NAIRU), measures of underemployment remain elevated, which could be an indication of remaining labour market slack. The shares of involuntary part-time workers and long-term unemployment are high relative to the current stage of the business cycle, suggesting available labour inputs are being underutilized.


In this study we propose to explain the discrepancy between classical models and the observational data of early type stars in eclipsing binaries by the existence of a rapidly rotating core in the primary, rather than by invoking a low metal abundance. Our claim is based on the analysis of the double lined eclipsing binary EK Cep, on which a strong constraint is put by its apsidal motion. We constructed models both with and without rotation for the components of the system. If the stars do not rotate, then, considering (i) that both components have the same chemical composition and age, and (ii) that the primary star is exactly at the zero-age main-sequence point, we derive $X=0.614$ and $Z=0.04$ for respectively the hydrogen and heavy element abundances, with a mixing-length parameter $\alpha=1.30$, somewhat lower than that calibrated on the Sun. These values satisfy all the observational constraints at the single age of 26 Myr, except the luminosity and radius of the primary , and they are also in good agreement with the observed chemical evolution in the solar neighborhood. Since the observed luminosity and radius of EK Cep A are less than those predicted by a non-rotating model, we deduce that this star must have a rapidly rotating core, while its envelope is synchronized with the orbital motion due to tidal interaction. To achieve perfect agreement between the rotating model of this star and the observations, the requirement is that the central region rotates about 65 times faster than the synchronized envelope, which contains $48\%$ of the star's total mass. We describe the effect of such differential rotation on the location of the star in the HR diagram, and compare it with that of rotation caused by contraction alone. We confirm also that such rapid rotation may account for the spread which is observed in the isochrones of open clusters.


It is shown that acyl-CoA binding protein (ACBP), in contrast with fatty acid binding protein (FABP), stimulates the synthesis of long-chain acyl-CoA esters by mitochondria. ACBP effectively opposes the product feedback inhibition of the long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase by sequestration of the synthesized acyl-CoA esters. Feedback inhibition of microsomal long-chain acyl-CoA synthesis could not be observed, due to the formation of small acyl-CoA binding vesicles during preparation and/or incubation. Microsomal membrane preparations are therefore unsuitable for studying feedback inhibition of long-chain acyl-CoA synthesis. ACBP was found to have a strong attenuating effect on the long-chain acyl-CoA inhibition of both acetyl-CoA carboxylase and mitochondrial adenine nucleotide translocase. Both processes were unaffected by the presence of long-chain acyl-CoA esters when the ratio of long-chain acyl-CoA to ACBP was below 1, independent of the acyl-CoA concentration used. It is therefore not the acyl-CoA concentration as such which is important from a regulatory point of view, but the ratio of acyl-CoA to ACBP. The cytosolic ratio of long-chain acyl-CoA to ACBP was shown to be well below 1 in the liver of fed rats. ACBP could compete with the triacylglycerol-synthesizing pathway, but not with the phospholipid-synthesizing enzymes, for acyl-CoA esters. Furthermore, in contrast with FABP, ACBP was able to protect long-chain acyl-CoA esters against hydrolysis by microsomal acyl-CoA hydrolases. The results suggest that long-chain acyl-CoA esters synthesized for either triacylglycerol synthesis or beta-oxidation have to pass through the acyl-CoA/ACBP pool before utilization. This means that acyl-CoA synthesized by microsomal or mitochondrial synthetases is uniformly available in the cell. It is suggested that ACBP has a duel function in (1) creating a cytosolic pool of acyl-CoA protected against acyl-CoA hydrolases, and (2) protecting vital cellular processes from being affected by long-chain acyl-CoA esters.


The long period velocity pulse is recognized as one of the characteristics of near-fault ground motions, and hence the response of vibration modes with lower frequencies will be amplified owing to the resonant effect. In general, the sloshing frequency of storage liquid is low and the period is similar to the pulse period of near-fault ground motions. Compared to the far-field ground motions, the induced sloshing height will be amplified by the near-fault ground motions. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to the resonant effect of near-fault ground motions on the sloshing mode of storage liquid in tanks.
 An experiment was implemented to study the resonant response of sloshing mode. The purpose of this experiment is to estimate the slosh height and the associated total volume of water splashing out of the tank under near-fault ground motions, and also to determine the relationship between the resonant response and the input velocity pulse. This paper aims to describe the test plan in detail, and it consists of (1) design of the scaled storage tank and water depth, (2) selection and processing of the input motions including the original near-fault ground motions, extracted velocity pulse or extracted bandpass signals for resonance analysis, and also impulse motion for free vibration, (3) setup of measure instrument, and (4) the experimental procedures as well. Preliminary analysis results are compared with the code-specified values that is determined by the industrial standards and guidelines for general seismic conditions. It is noted that the proposed prediction equation can be applied to the seismic design and evaluation of spent fuel pool in nuclear power plants.


Train rescheduling during disrupted service is a substantially significant task for urban railway operators. This task typically depends on the experiences and personal decisions of the professional operators. The operators use neither systematic methodologies for modifying train schedules nor quantitative criteria for measuring the quality of the rescheduled plans. Thus, operators have requested assistance in the form of a computer-aided train-rescheduling program. The authors have created a computer-aided train rescheduling system that seeks to minimize passenger inconvenience. The rescheduling algorithm calculates a value for the amount of inconvenience experienced by the passenger. In addition to a conventional passenger flow analysis, the authors' algorithm considers passenger overflow, which is defined as waiting time experienced by a passenger while queuing on a platform. The proposed rescheduling method also introduces the idea that the time required to create, broadcast, and implement a new plan of train operation is itself a delay which must be accounted for in order to render a realistic passenger flow analysis during disordered operation. The causality of train system events after the initial event that caused the disruption of service is discussed for a realistic analysis of passenger flow.


This paper presents COMET, a Common Object Management Environment, that investigates basic problems associated with distributed computing in an internet environment with mobile objects. COMET offers a uniform invocation model, based on dialogues, that integrates both communication and execution aspects. On the communication side, dialogues support asynchronous invocation with preservation of causal relationships. Applications can thus take advantage of the increased parallelism that is possible in a distributed environment. Furthermore COMET's invocation model supports multiple object flavors, offering high-level functionality, s.a. persistence, replication and atomicity. This is realized by modeling invocations as flavor-specific actions, that manipulate typed memory. Reflective techniques are used to dynamically adjust dialogue algorithms according to object flavor.<<ETX>>


Reconstruction of a short nerve gap by a nerve graft produces donor-site scarring, loss of donor nerve function, and neuroma formation. This study compared the regeneration achieved after 1 year in 16 monkeys across a 3-cm upper arm ulnar nerve gap with a bioabsorbable polyglycolic acid nerve conduit with the regeneration achieved with a classical interfascicular interpositional sural nerve graft. The results demonstrated electrophysiologic and histologie evidence of neural regeneration across the gaps in all experimental groups. The bioabsorbable nerve conduit groups and the sural nerve graft group had mean fiber diameters, amplitudes, and conduction velocities each significantly less than those of normal control ulnar nerves. There was, however, no significant difference between any of the experimental groups. Electromyography demonstrated recovery of 19 of the 28 (68 percent) intrinsic muscles studied. These results demonstrate that the primate peripheral nerve can regenerate across short nerve gaps when guided by an appropriate nerve conduit, suggesting that a single-stage biodegradable polyglycolic acid conduit may be used as an alternative to a short interfascicular nerve graft.


The evaluation of the radio frequency (RF) environment for electronic systems in the field has often been a time consuming and burdensome task, especially for mobile systems. This paper discusses a methodology for determining the RF environment for such systems using common office spreadsheet software. The model developed has been validated and used successfully to evaluate the RF environment on the ground and during ascent for several launch vehicles, launch sites, and payloads.


The NKG2 family of genes (HGMW-approved symbol KLRC) contains at least four members (NKG2-A, -C, -E, and -F) which are localized to human chromosome 12p12.3-p13.2. This region, called the natural killer (NK) complex, encodes for lectin-like genes preferentially expressed on NK cells. One of them, the human CD94 gene (HGMW-approved symbol KLRD1), encodes for a protein that has been shown to be covalently associated with the NKG2-A molecule. In this report, we showed that the NKG2 and CD94 genes are localized in a small region (< 350 kb) and we mapped them in the following order: (NKG2-C/NKG2-A)/NKG2-E/NKG2-F/NKG2-D/CD 94. Sequence analysis of 62 kb spanning the NKG2-A, -E, -F, and -D loci allowed the identification of two LINE elements that could have been involved in the duplication of the NKG2 genes. Presence of one MIR and one L1ME2 element at homologous positions in the NKG2-A and NKG2-F genes is consistent with the existence of rodent NKG2 gene(s). Finally, we mapped the 5'-ends of the NKG2-A transcripts into two separate regions showing the existence of two separate transcriptional control regions upstream of the NKG2-A locus and defining putative promoter elements for these genes.


Root hairs are tip-growing cells that emerge from the root epidermis and play a role in water and nutrient uptake. One of the key signaling steps for polar cell elongation is the formation of Rho-GTP by accelerating the intrinsic exchange activity of the Rho-of-plant (ROP) or the Rac GTPase protein; this step is activated through the interaction with the plant Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor (RopGEFs). The molecular players involved in root hair growth in rice are largely unknown. Here, we performed the functional analysis of OsRopGEF3, which is highly expressed in the root hair tissues among the OsRopGEF family genes in rice. To reveal the role of OsRopGEF3, we analyzed the phenotype of loss-of-function mutants of OsRopGEF3, which were generated using the CRISPR-Cas9 system. The mutants had reduced root hair length and increased root hair width. In addition, we confirmed that reactive oxygen species (ROS) were highly reduced in the root hairs of the osropgef3 mutant. The pairwise yeast two-hybrid experiments between OsRopGEF3 and OsROP/Rac proteins in rice revealed that the OsRopGEF3 protein interacts with OsRac3. This interaction and colocalization at the same subcellular organelles were again verified in tobacco leaf cells and rice root protoplasts via bimolecular functional complementation (BiFC) assay. Furthermore, among the three respiratory burst oxidase homolog (OsRBOH) genes that are highly expressed in rice root hair cells, we found that OsRBOH5 can interact with OsRac3. Our results demonstrate an interaction network model wherein OsRopGEF3 converts the GDP of OsRac3 into GTP, and OsRac3-GTP then interacts with the N-terminal of OsRBOH5 to produce ROS, thereby suggesting OsRopGEF3 as a key regulating factor in rice root hair growth.


As the conjugated polymers are doped with some electron donor or acceptor dopants, their electrical conductivity increased thoroughly to about 10 Ω.cm. The doping of the polymers may give an n or p semiconductor characteristic according to the types of the dopants that are used. Within the frame of this work, four types of conjugated polymers with benzothiazole as a major moiety in their backbone have been prepared. The prepared monomers and polymers have been characterized by FTIR spectroscopy. Elemental analysis of the polymers (CHN) demonstrates their chemical structure while the DSC thermal analysis illustrates its Tg. The polymers were doped with two types of dopants, iodine and sodium iodide. The electrical conductivity of the doped polymers was measured with three probe cell. The results show increasing in the electrical conductivity with dopant concentration to some levels. The activation energy of the electrical conductivity process was also studied by measuring the electrical conductivity in different temperature. According to the magnitude of the activation energy, we can conclude that the chain flexibility is the dominate factor that influenced on electrical conductivity. Hall Effect and hot probe measurements reveal that the polymer can be considered as n or p type according to the type of the doping. It was concluded that the doping with iodine produced an n-type while the doping with sodium iodide produced the ptype.


Background: This article examines the possibility of building a capable state within an appropriate ethical framework and the required human capital spectrum available to a government. South Africa currently faces shortcomings in capability and systemic stasis because of weak political management. The existing research has pointed out the state's capacity deficit as a major factor that undermines the social and economic progress of South Africa. Aim: The aim of this article was to look at government's capability of building a capable, ethical and developmental state which is a crucial facilitator for the successful execution of government's goals of achieving the targets of the 2030 National Development Plan. A developmental state that is going to develop the economy, create jobs and improve the conditions of society standard of living through proper human resource management. Methods: As the main tool for doing this research, this article relied heavily on secondary qualitative and quantitative data analysis. Secondary analysis is a study technique that uses pre-existing quantitative data or pre-existing qualitative research data to analyse or validate previous studies on new issues. Results: The findings point that capacity building is crucial. Fixing political control at the core should be the starting point. Conclusion: There seems to be a complete failure of a build-up towards a capable state in South Africa as the public service shows unevenness with local, provincial and national government capability challenges. A capable state can exist only when an affordable, effective and development-orientated public service can only grow and have a transformative function in order to correct past failures, where government is making drastic changes, enhance and have the requisite effect on society on its bad results.


Cognitive radio (CR) is a novel concept for improving spectrum utilization in wireless communication systems by permitting secondary (unlicensed) users to access those frequency bands which are not currently being used by primary (licensed) users. A CR user has the ability to change its transmit parameters rapidly according to the environment it senses. Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) modulation is a good candidate for CR systems due to its flexibility in allocating resources among secondary users. In this paper, the design of a fast and efficient method for dynamically allocating subcarriers, transmit powers and bits to secondary users in a multiuser (MU) OFDM-based CR system is considered. A memetic algorithm (MA) combined with multi-local-search methods (MLS-MA) is proposed and shown to provide an improved performance over previously reported algorithms.


The goal of this project was to assist health system managers and policy makers develop policies and strategies to recruit and retain human resources in the homecare sector and have a satisfied, healthy workforce. The overall research question was: How do the work characteristics of homecare workers and the work environment in homecare contribute to job satisfaction, stress, physical health, and retention? The research is designed as a mixed-method approach with both qualitative and quantitative data. Results showed that restructuring and organizational change in the homecare sector has contributed to both mental and physical health problems (including job stress and musculoskeletal disorders), job dissatisfaction, and retention problems. Factors that contribute to higher levels of satisfaction and the propensity to stay with the organization include organizational and peer support, working one-on-one with clients, doing emotional labour (that is, the work involved in dealing with other people's feelings), and satisfaction with schedules, pay, and benefits. This study also examined the association between job flexibility and job insecurity and self-reported musculoskeletal disorders and found no relationship between these variables and musculoskeletal disorders.


Background: Glidescope video-laryngoscope (GVL) is an invaluable equipment for patients with anticipated difficult intubations that aids in visualizing the vocal cords out of line-of-sight. However, despite the ease in the visualization and shortening of the time taken to visualise the cords, the intubation time is often prolonged and is associated with trauma. This study aims at identifying incidence of trauma with glidescope in anticipated difficult airway scenario and whether correct practice by experienced anesthesiologist can reduce trauma. Methodology: Eighty-nine adult patients with anticipated difficult airway who were intubated using GVL by experienced anesthesiologists in a tertiary care setting were studied. The time to visualize, the time to intubate, the difficulties encountered at intubation were documented, the incidence of trauma was reported. The factors associated with trauma were analyzed using PSPP software (psppire. exe 0.8.4-g012d99). Results: The incidence of airway trauma was 11.2%. It was higher in the group with technical difficulties (Gtd) (P < 0.001) and was less in the hands of an experienced anesthesiologist (P = 0.02). Conclusion: GVL intubation in anticipated difficult airway cases by experienced anesthesiologists using the right technique has lesser incidence of trauma, lesser than that is seen with Macintosh intubations in anticipated difficult airway scenario. Knowledge on techniques to troubleshoot technical difficulties with GVL may reduce the incidence of trauma further and needs to be studied more.


Blood coagulation at the place of complete severing of a vessel or puncturing of a vessel sidewall is usually a beneficial reaction, by protecting the body from bleeding and maintaining hemostasis, while the formation of a blood clot inside the blood vessel is a pathological phenomenon, highly dangerous, sometimes leading to serious complications. In this paper the two scales of modeling blood thrombosis will be introduced using numerical methods and fluid dynamics. The meso-scale model of the flow is described by Navier-Stokes equations and the blood thrombosis model is based on equations of transport and diffusion. The equations describing levels of concentrations of factors responsible for blood coagulation can be implemented into a solver solving Navier-Stokes equations, what will enable simulation of blood flow and estimation the risk of thrombus formation related to flow conditions. The proposed micro-scale model is using molecular dynamics to simulate interactions between blood cells and vascular walls. Effective combination of both models is possible thanks to the introduction of the Multiple-Time Stepping algorithm, which enables a full visualization of blood flow, coupling molecular interaction with the fluid mechanics equation. The goal of the paper is to present the latest literature review on the possibilities of blood coagulation modelling in two scales and the main achievements in blood thrombosis research: key role of transport and experimental background.


UNLABELLED
From 1978 to 1992, 276 patients (pts) with MGCT were treated in our institution. Forty-three of the pts were female (15.5%). Median age at diagnosis was 20 years (newborn-70). Histology was dysgerminoma (D) in 14 pts (including 2 anaplastic D), endodermal sinus tumor (EST) in 9 pts, immature teratoma in 10 pts and mixed tumors in 10 pts. Primary locations were as follows: ovary (O) 33 pts and extragonadal (EG) 10 pts (pineal in 4 cases, mediastinum in 3, sacrum in 2 and pharynx in 1). Stage: I in 20 (16 O, 4 EG), II in 7 (5 O, 2 EG), III in 12 (10 O, 2 EG) and IV in 4 (2 O, 2 EG). Serum AFP was elevated in 20/22 non-dysgerminoma pts, HCG in only 5 pts and LDH in 15/36 pts.

TREATMENT RESULTS
Ovarian tumors: all but one pt (biopsy only) underwent surgery: unilateral oophorectomy was performed in 15 pts and bilateral oophorectomy (+/- hysterectomy, +/- others) in 17 pts. Fourteen pts were rendered disease-free, 8 pts had residual tumor (RT) < 2 cm and 11 RT > 2 cm. Chemotherapy (PVB or BEP) was given to 28 pts, radiotherapy to 2 pts and no additional treatment to 3. Finally, 30 pts achieved complete response (CR) and none have relapsed at a median follow-up of 43 months. EG tumors: None of the pts underwent radical surgery. Radiotherapy was applied to 4 pineal tumors and BEP or PVB were given to all 10 pts. To date 6 pts are disease-free, 1 is alive with mature teratoma, 2 are alive with disease and 1 died of toxic effects. The projected overall survival of the series as a whole is 89% at 10 years, and it is significantly higher for pts without EST (p < 0.02) and for pts with AFP < 1000 (P < 0.01) and age < 22 years at diagnosis (p < 0.01). The projected event-free survival at 10 years is 80.4% (87.7% for ovarian tumors vs. 54% for extragonadal, p = 0.05). No events were recorded after 28 months.

CONCLUSIONS
The present results reflect the dramatic effectiveness of cisplatin-based chemotherapy for ovarian MGCT and confirm that unilateral oophorectomy can preserve fertility without compromising cure. Age > 22 years, histology (EST) and serum AFP > 1000 ng/ml are possible prognostic factors (univariate analysis) to be tested in an independent body of data on cisplatin-treated patients.


Ocean Breeze Energy GmbH & Co. KG is owner and operator of the windfarm, BARD Offshore 1 (BO1), approx. 100 km off the German North Sea Coast. This windfarm is made up of 80 wind energy generators from the 5 megawatt class, which reaches a rated power capacity of 400 megawatts. NDT inspections were performed and shall be performed on cross welded beams of the BARD1 Offshore wind park. These inspections are achieved with the Total Focusing Method ultrasonic measurement (TFM) using a Gekko system (developed by M2M Company). Consequently, an amount of acquisition files representing approximately 7 Km of measurements must be analyzed in a very short time, which is quite challenging. In this framework, specific improvements in the CIVA Analysis software were performed in order to automate this work as much as possible to classify the indications in weld seams and auto-generate a table of indications t presenting all the relevant information according to the inspection procedure. This article aims at presenting the specific developments that were achieved on CIVA UT Analysis software and the results of the automatic analysis and weld indications classification.


The absorption and excretion of NS-49 ((R)-(-)-3'-(2-amino-1-hydroxyethyl)-4'-fluoromethanesulfonanilide hydrochloride, CAS 137431-04-0), a phenethylamine class alpha 1A-adrenoceptor agonist, were studied in male rabbits, dogs, and monkeys after intravenous or oral administration of 14C-NS-49. After single oral administration of 14C-NS-49 (1 mg/kg) to rabbits and dogs, the plasma concentrations of radioactivity and NS-49 reached maximums at about 2 h, then decreased triexponentially. In monkeys, both maximums were reached 3 h after administration, and both concentrations decreased biexponentially. Most of the plasma radioactivity was due to unchanged NS-49 in the rabbits and dogs, indicating poor metabolism of this drug. In the monkeys, however, the percentage of unchanged NS-49 in the plasma radioactivity was low, about 20%, during a 24-h period after oral administration. After intravenous and oral administrations of 14C-NS-49, radioactivity was primarily excreted in the urine in all the species tested. The absorption rates found by comparing the urinary excretions of radioactivity after both routes of administration were 71% for rabbits, 92% for dogs, and 95% for monkeys. The percentages of NS-49 in the radioactivity excreted in the urine after intravenous and oral administrations, respectively, were 77% and 68% for rabbits, 96% and 96% for dogs, and 57% and 29% for monkeys. The systemic availability calculated from the unchanged drug excreted in the urine was similar to the absorption rates for rabbits and dogs. This indicates that first-pass metabolism of this drug is very limited in both species. The systemic availability for monkeys, however, was about half the absorption rate due to the first-pass effect. Renal clearance accounted for most of the total clearance for rabbits and dogs, but only about half that for monkeys.


Land cover maps are used widely to parameterize the biophysical properties of plant canopies in models that describe terrestrial biogeochemical processes. In this paper, we describe the use of supervised classification algorithms to generate land cover maps that characterize the vegetation types required for Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Fraction of Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FPAR) retrievals from MODIS and MISR. As part of this analysis, we examine the sensitivity of remote sensing-based retrievals of LAI and FPAR to land cover information used to parameterize vegetation canopy radiative transfer models. Specifically, a decision tree classification algorithm is used to generate a land cover map of North America from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data with 1 km spatial resolution using a six-biome classification scheme. To do this, a time series of normalized difference vegetation index data from the AVHRR is used in association with extensive site-based training data compiled using Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and ancillary map sources. Accuracy assessment of the map produced via decision tree classification yields a cross-validated map accuracy of 73%. Results comparing LAI and FPAR retrievals using maps from different sources show that disagreement in land cover labels generally do not translate into strong disagreement in LAI and FPAR maps. Further, the main source of disagreement in LAI and FPAR maps can be attributed to specific biome classes that are characterized by a continuum of fractional cover and canopy structure.


Several contemporary philosophers have charged that there is a conceptual tension between nondualistic types of mystical awareness - an awareness of some particular conception of the divine as an all-pervasive unity within which there are no distinct substances - and the social character of morality. However, some nondualistic mystics have conceptualized enlightenment not only as being compatible with moral virtue - specifically, compassion and care - but as providing a foundation for it. I here offer a conceptual model for this grounding, at least according to Dogen Zenji and Meister Eckhart. Briefly, the model suggests that some forms of nondualistic mystical awareness are accompanied by the mystics' prudential concerns extending to include the well-being of "others" under their scope. Finally, utilizing this model, I suggest possible responses to two common arguments for the claim that nondualistic mysticism is essentially amoral.


According to figures published by the World Health Organization in 1994, approximately 156 million people, or 3% of the world's population, have mental retardation. Mental retardation is defined based on three criteria: IQ below 70–75; the presence of significant limitations in two or more 'adaptive skill areas' (for instance communication, self-care, social skills); and onset before the age of 18. The effects of mental retardation vary considerably, with approximately 87% of people being only mildly affected and merely a little slower than average in learning new information and skills. Mental retardation has both genetic and acquired causes, examples of the latter including problems during pregnancy or birth (especially as a result of the use of alcohol or drugs by pregnant mothers), malnutrition and childhood infections such as whooping cough, chicken pox and measles. The genetic causes of mental retardation are predictably multiple and complex, and over 700 syndromes have been documented in which multiple congenital anomalies are associated with mental retardation (Multiple Congenital Anomaly/Mental Retardation Syndromes database). Of these, more than 100 are caused by mutations in genes on the X chromosome, leading to what is termed X-linked mental retardation (XLMR).


Tuberculosis infection is common in patients on maintenance hemodialysis, and the extrapulmonary presentations, which is usually asymptomatic, and only mild clinical presentation, are not uncommon. These hemodialysis patients were always prescribed multiple antituberculosis agents, including isoniazid, rifampin, ethambutol, and pyrazinamide, alongside their usual medication. Conscious disturbance was also frequently observed in these patients, with different paramount etiologies in the preand post-hemodialysis phases. We report a case undergoing maintenance hemodialysis, showing disturbed consciousness ten days following antituberculosis treatment for his established extrapulmonary tuberculosis infection. Consciousness was regained seven days later, after discontinuation of isoniazid.


Background Bone mineral density and proteins/peptides determination in blood and urine as markers of bone resorption and formation are currently used to diagnose osteoporosis (OP) and metabolic bone diseases. However, these methods have some disadvantages for bone turnover evaluation. Recent evidence suggests that in RA changes in the secretion of hormones of white adipose tissue can be revealed [1,2]. One of them is Adiponectin possessing anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic and anti-atherogenic properties. Changes in Adiponectin levels may reflect influence of immune inflammation on bone turnover. Objectives To study the clinical and diagnostic value of serum Adiponectin determination in RA patients complicated by OP. Methods We examined 88 women with documented diagnosis of RA and mean disease duration of 6.56±0.88 years. We used EULAR/ARA 2010 criteria to diagnose the patients. Female patients with II degree of disease activity (DAS28), Steinbrocker stage II (erosive), rheumatoid factor- and anti-cyclic-citrullinated peptide antibody-positive were prevalent. We excluded patients who had surgery or developed an infection within the last 8 weeks, pregnant and breast-feeding women, those with severe heart, liver or kidney disease, immune deficiency, leukopenia or chronic infection. A control group of 45 healthy females aged of 25 and 59 years were included in the study. There were no reported findings of joint pain and RA symptoms in the group. The groups were adjusted for age (p>0.05) and showed no statistically significant differences. We measured serum Adiponectin levels (μg/ml) using Human Adiponectin ELISA commercial test systems (BioVendor, Czech Republic, cat No. RD195023100). We used spectrophotometer with wavelength of 450 nm to detect the test results ("Multiskan" immunoenzyme analyzer, Finland). We plotted a curve using computer software. We diagnosed OP using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry with LUNAR DPX PRO (GE, USA). Results Serum adiponectin levels in the control group were 12.5±0.9 μg/ml (M±m). Adiponectin levels in healthy subjects measured as M ±2d, ranged between 0.44 and 24.56 μg/ml. Patients with OP and RA had significantly higher levels of serum Adiponectin (p<0.001). Mean serum Adiponectin levels in RA patients who had normal bone density and had no OP were 35.21±0.6 μg/ml. Mean serum Adiponectin levels in RA/OP patients with low bone mineral density were 52.42±0.69 μg/ml. Adiponectin levels of 44 μg/ml and higher were associated with osteoporosis. Adiponectin levels of 43.9 μg/ml and lower were associated with normal bone density. Conclusions Thus, we revealed that Adiponectin levels depend on osteoporosis presence in RA patients. We suppose that Adiponectin determination may be useful laboratory marker for OP diagnosis. The test may be used to reduce the risk of low-energy fractures and to improve the quality of life in RA. References Eliseev M.S. Revmatoidnyj artrit na Kongresse EULAR-2014 v Parizhe: novye zadachi, novye perspektivy. Revmatologija. 2014;5(16):s.2–5. Polyakova J. V., Simakova E. S., Zavodovsky B. V., Seewordova L. E., Zborovskaya I. A. Serum visfatin determination in rheumatoid arthritis. Ann. Rheum. Dis. 2014; 73 (Suppl2). Disclosure of Interest None declared


QAM is a widely used multilevel modulation technique, with a variety of applications in data radio communication systems. Most existing implementations of QAM-based systems use high levels of modulation in order to meet the high data rate constraints of emerging applications. This work presents the architecture of a highly parallel QAM modulator, using MPSoC-based design flow and design methodology, which offers multirate modulation. The proposed MPSoC architecture is modular and provides dynamic reconfiguration of the QAM utilizing on-chip interconnection networks, offering high data rates (more than 1 Gbps), even at low modulation levels (16-QAM). Furthermore, the proposed QAM implementation integrates a hardware-based resource allocation algorithm that can provide better throughput and fault tolerance, depending on the on-chip interconnection network congestion and run-time faults. Preliminary results from this work have been published in the Proceedings of the 18th IEEE/IFIP International Conference on VLSI and System-on-Chip (VLSI-SoC 2010). The current version of the work includes a detailed description of the proposed system architecture, extends the results significantly using more test cases, and investigates the impact of various design parameters. Furthermore, this work investigates the use of the hardware resource allocation algorithm as a graceful degradation mechanism, providing simulation results about the performance of the QAM in the presence of faulty components.


ABSTRACT:Norman (1982) proposes that dú [inline-graphic 03i] 'calf' is a loanword from Altaic languages, and the hypothesis is often cited by later scholars. Based on the recently unearthed documents and texts, a new phonological analysis of Old Chinese, and the cross-language phonetic corresponding rules, this paper argues that dú is not a loanword but a native Chinese word. Unearthed documents from the pre-Qin period provide earlier uses of dú than those from the Han dynasty mentioned previously. Combining the time of early uses, the xiesheng series and character interchanges related to dú and a new reconstruction of the Old Chinese sources of the Middle Chinese initial *d-, the paper argues that there is no phonetic correspondence between dú and the Altaic t-initial morphemes. The paper also points out that a basic condition of establishing a loanword hypothesis through historical documents is that the cross-language phonetic correspondence should exist at the time reflected by the earliest uses of the word.


Background: Clinical guideline is built to provide consistent, efficient, and high quality of medical care based on recent evidence. This study aimed to investigate the adherence of Indonesian urologists to clinical guidelines for the management of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Materials and methods: This was a cross-sectional study using questionnaire conducted between January and June 2017. Respondents were Indonesian urologists registered as members of Indonesia Urological Association and had already practice in urology for at least 6 months. Questionnaires were sent via e-mail and Google Form. The level of adherence was measured using scoring system decided by authors' agreement. All data were processed using SPSS, version 23, and presented in descriptive fashion. Results: Of 352 urologists who fulfilled inclusion and exclusion criteria, 209 (59.4%) respondents returned the questionnaire. Most of respondents (95.2%) used Indonesia Urological Association BPH guidelines as their clinical practice guidance. Routinely performed recommended examination, such as symptom scoring system, digital rectal examination, urinalysis, uroflowmetry, postvoid residual urine, and prostate imaging were used by 89.9%, 92.5%, 70.4%, 50.8%, 53.3%, and 98.6% respondents, respectively. After patient is diagnosed with BPH, most of respondents considered medical therapy (99%), surgical therapy (93%), and watchful waiting (78.4), with alpha-blocker as the drugs most preferred by respondents. For indication to perform surgery for BPH, only bladder stones, decreased renal function, and trial without catheter failure were considered by more than 85% of respondents. Open prostate surgery was performed by 54.8% respondents for the following reasons: large prostate volume, presence of bladder stone, unavailability of endourology equipments, abnormality of bladder, and residency training program. At last, this study found median (minimumemaximum) of Indonesian urologists adherence level toward BPH guidelines is 78.5% (28.6%e100%). Conclusions: In general, Indonesian urologists have a good adherence toward guidelines. However, there is still wide variation of their adherence to it. © 2018 Asian Pacific Prostate Society, Published by Elsevier Korea LLC. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).


We report gold nanoparticle based FRET assay to monitor the cleavage of DNA by nucleases. Fluorescence signal enhancement is observed by a factor of 120 after the cleavage reaction in the presence of S1 nuclease. The mechanism of distant dependent fluorescence quenching has been discussed. Our experimental results on distance dependent fluorescence quenching match quite well with theoretical findings obtained from the fluorescence quenching model by Gersten and Nitzan (Surf. Sci. 1985, 158, 165). Our experimental observation paradigm for the design of optical based molecular ruler strategies at distances more than double the distances achievable using traditional dipole-dipole Columbic energy transfer based methods.


Visual Abstract Neural stem cells (NSCs) hold great promise for neural repair in cases of CNS injury and neurodegeneration; however, conventional cell-based transplant methods face the challenges of poor survival and inadequate neuronal differentiation. Here, we report an alternative, tissue-based transplantation strategy whereby cerebral organoids derived from human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) were grafted into lesioned mouse cortex. Cerebral organoid transplants exhibited enhanced survival and robust vascularization from host brain as compared to transplants of dissociated neural progenitor cells (NPCs). Engrafted cerebral organoids harbored a large NSC pool and displayed multilineage neurodifferentiation at two and four weeks after grafting. Cerebral organoids therefore represent a promising alternative source to NSCs or fetal tissues for transplantation, as they contain a large set of neuroprogenitors and differentiated neurons in a structured organization. Engrafted cerebral organoids may also offer a unique experimental paradigm for modeling human neurodevelopment and CNS diseases in the context of vascularized cortical tissue.


: In sarcopenia, muscle volume and strength decrease with ageing, disturbing activity of daily life in the elderly. We investigated risk factors of sarcopenia including life-style, nutrition intake and past history in randomly selected community living population aged 40 years and over. The subjects were 1,783 men and 1,825 women. They were followed up 10 years and repeatedly measured, we made a total of 14,010 measurements. Smoking, lack of exercise, shortage of energy, protein, branched-chain amino acid intake, and low self-rated health were risk factors of sarcopenia determined by muscle volume in dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Risk factors of sarcopenia determined by physical performance were also investigated in subjects aged 65 years or over. Smoking increased risk of sarcopenia, and intakes of total energy, vitamin D, protein and branched-chain amino acid significantly decreased risk of sarcopenia. However, physical activity was not related to incidence of sarcopenia.


We study the constrained capacity of a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) fading channel with a phase-shift keying (PSK) input alphabet and show a uniform prior distribution is capacity achieving. An expression for the capacity is derived which requires a single expectation and can be evaluated easily through simulation. The simulations are facilitated by analytical expressions for the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a required covariance matrix. The derived expression is used to provide good approximations to the capacity at low signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) as well as to compare the input-constrained MIMO capacity to the unconstrained MIMO capacity.


Zheltozems (literally "yellow earths") that can be classified as Acrisols, Alisols, or Ultisols, occupy very small areas in Russia; they are strongly modified by human activities. The unchanged profiles are preserved only locally, in particular, in the Sochi arboretum. When compiling the soil map of the arboretum, different Zheltozems were described on gentle and moderately steep slopes and diverse parent materials: calcareous claystone and its heavy-textured derivates. The micromorphology of three characteristic Zheltozem profiles developed on these different parent materials was also studied. The features that they have in common are the following: in all profiles, a specific heavy-textured Bw, or BM 'metamorphic' horizon was identified with a certain set of micromorphological properties: a massive microstructure with fine planes merging into deformed biogenic pores, a monic groundmass with few silt grains that are sometimes oriented, and impregnative iron-oxides pedofeatures. The b-fabric was defined as stipple speckled, poro- and granostriated, locally (mono)striated ressembling stress coatings. There are almost no clay coatings except for very few fine internal ones that are light yellow and homogeneous; clay and iron pseudomorphs (alteromorphs) occur over some skeleton grains. Many of these properties are related to the clay mineral composition. There are varying quantities of smectites and kaolinite-smectites, whereby the former increase with depth. The presence of expanding minerals is known to contribute to the disintegration of coatings. Remnants of these are observed in typic iron-manganic nodules. In terms of WRB, this horizon is an intergrade between cambic and argic, which is not accounted for in soil diagnostics. As three different Zheltozems are studied in the same area, the following genesis of this specific intergrade can be given. The saprolite in one of the profiles is composed of fragments of weathered calcareous argillites (subangular) and sandstones (angular) separated by planes with infillings. The micromass in the argillites is locally depleted of carbonates; some fragments have rusty-black iron-manganic intercalations, external clay coatings and iron quasicoatings. The infillings contain fine carbonate nodules and fragments of clay coatings. The sequence of soils studied enabled us to identify the pedoplasmation phenomena, as described by Stoops and Schaefer (2010). This process starts with the decarbonatization, fragmentation and ferrugination of rock fragments, which are gradually assimilated by the groundmass, so that only a trend to linear arrangement of grains is preserved. The pedoplasmation starts in the saprolite of in situ argillite, next follows a transformation of the lithogenic fabric into a pedogenic one with the development of a Bw horizon. These phenomena are more obvious in the profile on the oldest parent material – clayey colluvium. The low porosity and dense fabric of the Bw horizon hinder the removal of carbonates from the underlying layers (saprolite), and this may be a reason for the incompatibility between abundant rainfall inherent to the wet subtropical climate in Sochi region and the high position of the line of effervescence with hydrochloric acid in Zheltozems on calcareous argillite.


Abstract. The German Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System (GITEWS) is built upon a complex sensor data infrastructure. To best fulfill the demand for a long living system, the underlying software and hardware architecture of GITEWS must be prepared for future modifications both of single sensors and entire sensors systems. The foundation for a flexible integration and for stable interfaces is a result of following the paradigm of a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). The Tsunami Service Bus (TSB) – our integration platform in GITEWS – realizes this SOA approach by implementing the Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) standards and services. This paper focuses on architectural and implementation aspects of the TSB. Initially, the general architectural approach in GITEWS by SOA and SWE is presented. Based on this conception, the concrete system architecture of GITEWS is introduced. The sensor integration platform TSB is then discussed in detail, following by its primary responsibilities and components. Special emphasis is laid on architectural transparency, comprehensible design decisions, and references to the applied technology.


The assessment of water body dynamics is not only in itself a topic of strong demand, but the presence of water bodies is important information when it comes to the derivation of products such as land surface temperature, leaf area index, or snow/ice cover mapping from satellite data. For the TIMELINE project, which aims to derive such products for a long time series of Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data for Europe, precise water masks are therefore not only an important stand-alone product themselves, they are also an essential interstage information layer, which has to be produced automatically after preprocessing of the raw satellite data. The respective orbit segments from AVHRR are usually more than 2000 km wide and several thousand km long, thus leading to fundamentally different observation geometries, including varying sea surface temperatures, wave patterns, and sediment and algae loads. The water detection algorithm has to be able to manage these conditions based on a limited amount of spectral channels and bandwidths. After reviewing and testing already available methods for water body detection, we concluded that they cannot fully overcome the existing challenges and limitations. Therefore an extended approach was implemented, which takes into account the variations of the reflectance properties of water surfaces on a local to regional scale; the dynamic local threshold determination will train itself automatically by extracting a coarse-scale classification threshold, which is refined successively while analyzing subsets of the orbit segment. The threshold is then interpolated by fitting a minimum curvature surface before additional steps also relying on the brightness temperature are included to reduce possible misclassifications. The classification results have been validated using Landsat and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data and proven an overall accuracy of 93.4%, with the majority of errors being connected to flawed geolocation accuracy of the AVHRR data. The presented approach enables the derivation of long-term water body time series from AVHRR data and is the basis for applied geoscientific studies on large-scale water body dynamics.


Eighteen years ago in this journal, Spitzer and colleagues 1 published "Quantification of Agreement in Psychiatric Diagnosis," in which they argued that a new measure, Cohen's k statistic, 2 was the appropriate index of diagnostic agreement in psychiatry. They pointed out that other measures of diagnostic reliability then in use, such as the total percent agreement and the contingency coefficient, were flawed as indexes of agreement since they either overestimated the discriminating power of the diagnosticians or were affected by associations among the diagnoses other than strict agreement. The new statistic seemed to overcome the weaknesses of the other measures. It took into account the fact that raters agree by chance alone some of the time, and it only gave a perfect value if there was total agreement among the raters. Furthermore, generalizations of the simple k statistic were already available. This family of statistics could be used to assess


Statement of the problem: Organizations can affect service quality and customer satisfaction through the emotional displays of front-line employees. Thus, employees' positive emotions during service transactions can improve customers' mood and their satisfaction with the service (Groth et al., 2009). Since employees may not naturally feel in tune with the emotions they ought to express, they often engage in a process of regulating their emotional responses to fulfill display rules of the role. This emotion regulation (ER) process driven by role requirements has been referred to as "Emotional Labor" and often labeled as "service with a smile" (e.g. Grandey, Fisk & Steiner, 2005). The literature has accumulated extensive evidence about the negative consequences of faking the emotions required by the role in terms of its associations with burnout (e.g. Martinez-Inigo et al., 2007). Importantly, the excessive emphasis on these distress aspects has limited our understanding about the potential gains for employee well-being. The deep acting ER strategy seems to be associated with a more positive nomological network than suppressing emotions in customer interactions (Hulsheger & Schewe, 2011). However, inconsistencies in and problems with one of the mainstream instruments of deep acting (Bono & Vey, 2005; Judge et al. ,2009), calls for a re-examination of the construct's operationalization and a clarification of its consequences. Building on eustress literature and emotion regulation theory we developed and tested an eustress/distress model of "service with a smile." We also cross-validated the model across two national groups (the UK and Spain) with different tolerance levels for rule-governed behavior in order to address the limited cross-national research in the field. Procedures: We used a cross-sectional and cross-national design. Employees working in theme parks were selected owing to the salience of rules for positive emotions this context requires. Since we wanted to cross-validate the model across countries with different emotional cultures, homogeneity in all other aspects was sought. Theme park clusters belonged to equivalent chains in each country. A total of 208 employees from Spain and 204 from UK participated in the study. The British participants' ages ranged from 18 to 72, with an average of 29 years old; 36.2% of the sample were male and 63.8% were female. In the Spanish sample, 52.4% of the sample was male and 47.6% were female. The minimum age was 17 and the maximum 61, with an average of nearly 30 years old. Previously validated measures of the variables of study were used. These included the ERQ (Gross & John, 2003); Perception of customer interactions scale (Brotheridge & Lee, 2002 plus some items created for this study); Commitment (Moreno et al., 2012); Exhaustion and Efficacy sub-scales of MBI (Schaufeli et al., 1996); Turnover Intentions (Moreno et al., 2012). Analyses: We used Multigroup Confirmatory Factor Analysis (MGCFA) techniques to test measurement invariance of the instruments, and subsequently we also tested the hypothesized relationships with MGCFA. Results: Cognitive reappraisal was related to perception of thriving customer interactions, which elicited the eustress response (i.e. increased efficacy and commitment). Importantly, this route was independent of the distress route associated with suppressing emotions (i.e. perceived draining interactions, exhaustion and turnover intentions). The hypothesized relationships were confirmed in both countries, thus no differences in the process were detected. However, the impulsive-oriented country (Spain) reported significantly lower levels of perception of draining interactions, exhaustion and turnover intentions than the institutionally oriented country (UK). This expands previous findings where another impulsive-oriented country reported similar scores (Grandey et al., 2005) Practical Implications: In line with the resource development route findings, we recommend that employees receive training and support to re-interpret costumer demands in less harming ways; some examples are discussed in this paper. Furthermore, the need to attend to cultural values in the selection of employees is also discussed.
Conclusions: This is one of the first studies to apply a positive psychology perspective in the examination of the "service with a smile" phenomenon through the eustress route component of classic stress theory. This framework allowed us to test the eustress and distress routes simultaneously and to explore the relationships between them. The cross-validation of the model with members of the Anglo-Saxon and Latin-European cluster is also an innovative element.


While special education has become a hotly debated issue of school policy, most of the discussion has centered on the aggregate costs of providing mandated programs for disabled children. Little attention has been paid to the effectiveness of such programs or possible interactions with the provision of regular education. This study, building on the unique data of the Harvard/UTD Texas Schools Project provides direct evidence on the effectiveness of special education programs. The average special education program boosts mathematics and reading achievement of special education students, particularly those classified as learning disabled, while not detracting from regular education students. These results are estimated quite precisely from models of fixed effects in achievement gains, and they are robust to a series of specification tests. At this stage, it is not possible to judge whether the program benefits are sufficiently large to justify the added spending involved.


Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the subject of several overlapping schemes of classification in which the subgroups are often poorly defined. New methods of classification have been applied to accommodate new information and new concepts. These are often appropriate only in limited circumstances and may lead to confusion if applied out of context. We will describe the principal schemes used to classify AF and discuss the limitations of each.


The community organization of coral reef fishes in the seagrass sub-habitat of Kavaratti toll, Lakshadweep, India was studied during the period from January 1991 to June 1992. Twenty-seven families represented by 65 species were recorded by the visual censes method. The community diversity for families and species was 2.49 and 3.14 respectively. Juveniles and sub-adults of the most adult reef fish, which inhabit other sub-habitats, were recorded here. The high species diversity in the seagrass beds is due to their roles as nurseries, shelter and foraging grounds for many species. Labridae, Chaetodontidae, Acanthuridae and Mullidae were the most speciose families. Ocurrence of siganids was highly seasonal. The cover that seagrass canopy provides conceals many species and perhaps influenced counts. The occurrence of balistids could be related to the presence of interstitial and patches and abundant invertebrate food. Scorpaenids subsisted on abundant invertebrates and juveniles fishes. High counts and pronounced variations make seagrass beds unstable habitats. However, monsoon assemblages were relatively stable perhaps due to lack of excessive new recruits and a habitat shift by most species.


We tackle the problem of video multicast over mobile ad hoc networks in this paper using multiple trees multicast routing protocol. More specifically, we propose an extension to the Multicast Ad Hoc On-Demand Distance Vector (MAODV) to construct two highly-disjoint trees in a single routine; we called it Multiple-Tree Multicast Ad Hoc On-Demand Distance Vector (MT-MAODV) routing protocol. By using Multiple Description Coding (MDC) scheme for video coding, the video is divided into two independent sub-streams and is transmitted separately along these trees. This technique is believed to improve the overall quality for best-effort video. Preliminary simulation shows that the proposed MT- MAODV routing protocol provides better video quality as compared to the conventional video multicast using single tree.


Owing to the electron-deficient nature of boron atoms, the structures and properties of boron clusters can be enriched by doping various metal atoms, including lanthanide metal atoms. Nevertheless, the viability of actinide analogues has not been fully elucidated up to now. Here we demonstrate a series of highly stable low-valent actinide(III) boron clusters AnB7 (An = Pa, U, Np, and Pu) using first-principles calculations. The predicted global minimum structures of all the AnB7 complexes possess half-sandwich geometries with C6v symmetry and belong to MIII[B7]3--type species. In each AnB7 species, the B73- ligand possesses double aromaticity features with six delocalized π electrons and six delocalized σ electrons. Bonding analysis shows that although there is a substantial contribution of electrostatic interaction in each cluster, covalent interaction is responsible for the stability of AnB7. All the AnB7 species show significantly high formation energies, especially for NpB7, which is in line with the stronger Np-B covalent bonds. In addition, the simulated photoelectron spectroscopy analysis confirms the high electronic stability of neutral AnB7. These results imply that these ultrastable actinide(III) complexes are accessible in the gas phase at room temperature. This work may provide a theoretical basis for the design of highly stable boron-based nanomaterials as well as preparation of low-valent actinide complexes.


The effects of multiple ultrasonic frequencies on grinding surface quality of Al2O3-ZrO2 nano-composite ceramics are researched to provide optimization laws for ultrasonic grinding parameters. Some SEM photographs of ultrasonic grinding surface with different frequencies are provided to research the surface quality. The enhanced surface quality of ceramics with ultrasonic grinding is explained as the transition of single abrasive particle removal mode from brittle to ductile, which is resulted from the reduction of equivalent rigidity on surface under ultrasonic vibration. And this phenomenon becomes more evident as frequency increases. Through the XRD experiment, the phase transition from tetragonal phase t-ZrO2 to monoclinic phase m-ZrO2 becomes increasingly obvious by the action of ultrasonic vibration. The compressive stress generated during this phase transition can suppress the initiation and expansion of microcracks on the processing surface. The research shows that, the grinding surface quality with ultrasonic vibration is superior to that without ultrasonic vibration, and increasing ultrasonic frequency can contribute to the improvement of the surface quality.


Based on ethnographic research in Hamburg Sternschanze and utilizing the cultural criminological perspective as an underlying theme, this book explores the contested spaces of gentrified inner city neighborhoods. It examines the complex and sometimes paradoxical interplays of urban revaluation, criminalized anti-gentrification resistance, and urban control. The main focus lies on the spatialized commodification of urban counter-culture and its incorporation into the process of gentrification. It is shown that by these processes, "authentic" anti-gentrification resistance becomes increasingly sanitized. Blurred and hardly distinguishable from commodified rebellion, it eventually loses its subversive power and political vigor, and, unwillingly, turns into an integral of the process of urban revaluation it is originally meant to defend. (Series: Hamburger Studien zur Kriminologie und Kriminalpolitik - Vol. 50)


This paper presents a research on the effects of ultrasonic frequencies of 19.9 kHz, 23.6 kHz and 29.3 kHz on both of cyclic amplitude and fatigue life of Al2O3-ZrO2 nano-composite ceramics. According to the high-cyclic-life tests at low load level, some prohibition influence on the process of crack initiation and propagation under ultrasonic vibration is revealed as frequencies are raised from 19.9 kHz to 29.3 kHz. During the low load level tests, the toughness increment induced by the transcrystalline fracture is found in the scanning electronic micrographs of the fractures, which shows the existence of the inhibition effect on the crack initiation and propagation. At the same time, the fracture XRD indicates that t-m phase transition of ZrO2 under 29.3 kHz is higher than that under 19.9 kHz, which means that both the required cyclic amplitude and the fatigue life can be improved if the ultrasonic frequency is increased to 23.6 kHz. All the test results show that high frequencies exhibit stronger toughening improvements than the lower ones do. This paper is a pre-research for the ultrasonic ceramic grinding and the conclusions obtained are meaningful for the study of the crack propagation mechanism during the grinding.


The health monitoring of propulsion systems has being been one of the most challenging issues in space launch vehicles, particularly for the manned space missions. The development of an advanced health monitoring system involves many technical aspects, such as failure detection and fault diagnosis as well as the integration of hardware and algorithms, for improving the safety and reliability of propulsion systems. The inverse problem-based strategy provides a new solution to the design of model-based fault diagnosis methods for monitoring the health of propulsion systems. This paper presents a decomposition approach to the inverse problem-based fault diagnosis for a class of liquid rocket propulsion systems. Simulation results are provided for demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed approach to the inverse problem-based fault diagnosis.


»Kontroversen um die Digitalen Geisteswissenschaften: Ein Arbeitsplan«. Observations on the current stage of the Digital Humanities and their environment identify four dangers: (1) The focus on infrastructures for the Digital Humanities may obscure that research ultimately is driven by analytical methods and tools, not just by the provision of data or publishing tools. (2) Information technology can support the Humanities in many forms and national traditions. That textual analysis is much discussed right now, should not hide the view of a broader disciplinary field. (3) The mobile revolution looming may once again lead to a repetition of highly destructive processes observed at the PC and the internet revolutions. (4) The Digital Humanities may have to take a much stronger part in the development, not only the reception, of technology. – A series of concrete and controversial questions, which allow the discussion of some of these trends, is derived.


Background: Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) has been globally recognized as gold standard of performance based assessment that aids in evaluating the clinical competency of medical undergraduate students. Hence, it increases the confidence of students in their learning ability by helping them to identify areas of weakness and gaps in their competencies. This study was conducted to identify perception towards OSCE among medical students.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was adopted and a total 173 respondents were selected from MBBS 4th and 5th year of Chitwan Medical College by using probability stratified proportionate random sampling technique. Self-administered questionnaire with 5-point likert scale were used to collect the data. Descriptive and inferential statistics was used to analyze data.
Results: About half of the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) students had positive perception toward OSCE. There is significant association between the level of perception towards OSCE and year of study (p=0.002), choice of study MBBS (p=0.045) and evidenced based learning (p=0.041).
Conclusions: Thus, optimum emphasis should be given on formulating OSCE guideline and orienting student about it and also organization should create environment to facilitate actual objective structured clinical examination in order to increase positive perception in our context.


Citizenship is changing, as is urban management, therefore so is the way we perceive landscape. New technologies are helping us to obtain more participation ability and boost a shared transformation of the territories we inhabit. Tactical urbanism and open source urban planning, in which everyone might feel a part by participating and contributing knowledge, is in a day's order. This shared knowledge, focused on urban landscape can help to promote the appreciation of unseen and unknown spaces around us. This paper shows how to approach the heritage to the citizenship in both an amusing and educational way at the same time. After a brief discussion in which we will review the cases where the introduction of new technologies (ICT) benefits the learning, perception and evaluation of the urban landscape that surround us, we will explain in detail how some experiences placed in the Camino de Santiago, passing from Estella (Navarra), should be provided. This environment has many factors which give a deep territorial identity. Its intense medieval roots, strategic location and landscape diversity (tangible and intangible), remarks this identity and makes it unique. These experiences will be the result of the collaboration between different cultural agents working in the area as well as the citizens themselves. It is intended, likewise, to involve the tourist or pilgrim who perceives that landscape for the first time and to find, this way, a glocal point of view (global + local) that will contribute to a better enhancement of this heritage from that crossed knowledge.


In this article, the authors support problem-based learning (PBL) based on its high level of alignment in addition to providing learners in engineering with an additional opportunity in learning process competencies, as contained within the South African National Critical Cross-field and Developmental Outcomes (COs). Constructive alignment describes a process in which the learning outcomes (LOs) become the objective for designing a curriculum that enables LOs to be achieved through appropriate activities and an assessment process that enables these LOs to be demonstrated. PBL applies problem-solving as a vehicle in achieving LOs. The degree to which a learner manages to achieve a given LO still serves as the authentic criteria for assessment. In addition, PBL provides learners an opportunity in acquiring non-subject-related skills, also referred to as process competencies, soft-skills, transferable skills, or graduate attributes. These skills are required especially for the management of human capital and are considered as crucial for successful practice in the engineering profession. It is therefore questioned why a PBL approach is not implemented by engineering faculties at South African Higher Education Institutions. The successful implementation of PBL, however, depends on a number of non-didactic issues that are highlighted in this paper. It is concluded that very few didactic methods can achieve the quality of learning we provide to engineering learners when using PBL, and therefore, it is proposed that South African Higher Education Institutions should also provide their academic staff with training opportunities in this regard.


High family risk was tested as an impediment to recovery in children exposed to interparental violence (IPV) participating in community-based intervention. Characteristics of IPV were also explored as moderators for the effect of an IPV-focused intervention over a common factors intervention. Baseline, posttest and follow-up measurements of 155 parents and children (aged 6 to 12 years; 55.5% boys) were fitted in a multilevel model. Outcomes were clinical classifications of internalizing and externalizing problems, and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Tested moderators were child maltreatment, symptoms of disordered attachment, parental psychopathology, parenting stress, poverty, and IPV characteristics. Children without symptoms of disinhibited social engagement disorder, children of parents with high levels of psychopathology, and children of parents with high levels of parenting stress showed strongest recovery. Participation in an IPV-focused intervention was not more effective than in a common factors intervention, irrespective of the nature of the IPV. Based on rate of recovery, participation in community-based group interventions does not need to be contraindicated for children facing high family risk after being exposed to IPV, except for children with symptoms of disinhibited social engagement disorder.


Two types of apparatus are described for the culture of bone marrow in vitro. The first, a macro method, is suited to the study of large amounts of bone marrow. The second, a micro method, allows observations of the development of individual cells. Studies of erythropoiesis by these technics has allowed insight into production of erythrocytes. These data will be reported in a subsequent article.


Author(s): Fan, Yichong | Advisor(s): Ai, Huiwang | Abstract: The objective of my Ph.D. study is to develop novel genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors to image and dissect biological signaling pathways in the context of live cells. I utilized protein engineering techniques to convert fluorescent proteins into fluorescent biosensors that can actively respond to specific, spatiotemporally organized cellular changes.In this thesis, we expanded the fluorescent protein toolkit by engineering one of the first red fluorescent probes⎯rxRFP1⎯for sensing general redox states in the live cells. To further extend the usage of this sensor in various subcellular domains, such as mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, and the cell nucleus, we developed a group of rxRFP1 mutants showing different midpoint redox potentials for studying compartmentalized redox dynamics under various pathophysiological conditions. We also developed the first genetically encoded fluorescent biosensor for thioredoxin (Trx) redox by engineering a redox relay between the active-site cysteines of human Trx1 and rxRFP1. We utilized the resultant biosensor⎯TrxRFP1⎯to selectively monitor the perturbations of Trx redox in various mammalian cell lines. We further combined TrxRFP1 with a green fluorescent Grx1-roGFP2 biosensor to simultaneously monitor the dynamics of the two major cellular antioxidant systems, Trx and glutathione, in live cells in response to chemically and physiologically relevant stimuli. We exploit another strategy which introduces reactive functional groups into circular permutated fluorescent proteins (cpFPs) using a genetic code expansion technology. Through a powerful directed protein evolution process, we were able to modulate the reactivity and chemoselectivity of an introduced p-boronophenylalanine (pBoF) in a cpRFP scaffold, resulting in fluorescent probes selectively responsive to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and peroxynitrite (ONOO—). Furthermore, by using boronic acid and short peptides as synergistic recognition motifs, we were able to engineer a series of reversible probes for nucleotides and carbohydrates showing surprisingly high specificity and large dynamic ranges. We have successfully utilized this new family of fluorescent probes to visualize various cellular activities.


The present study was carried out in Abu Dhabi to evaluate the levels of contamination of mother's milk with the 4-hydroxy metabolite of aflatoxin B1. More than 22 nationalities living in Abu Dhabi were chosen as donors for this study. These different nationalities have different food habits. Most of those donors with the exception of U.A.E. have come to U.A.E. at ages 18 - 35 years. Their previous food habits have been looked into in comparison with the present style of life in U.A.E. The present study revealed that mother's milk is showing an increase in the level of aflatoxin contamination. The level of AFM; in mother's milk was as high as 3 ng / ml and, from 445 mother donors, AFM1 was detected in 99.5% of mother's breast milk. Analysis of the data shows no significant correlation between nationalities and total fat content of mother's milk with the level of AFM1. However, a detailed analysis of the composition of the milk fat revealed that milk rich in saturated fatty acid may be associated with high level of aflatoxin M1. In contrast milk containing high AFM1 usually had low levels of linoleic acid. High concentration of Lactose, the sole carbohydrate in human milk, has no association with AFM1 levels. It was found that a high protein content in the diet may be associated with high AFM1, in the mother's milk. Clearly the interaction between dietary factors, the presence of AFB1 in the diet, and the physiology of milk production are complex.


&NA; Date Presented 3/31/2017 This study used functional near‐infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to identify changes in cognitive workload in a child with motor impairment during experiences with robot‐assisted mobility. The study provides preliminary support for using fNIRS to measure cognitive workload in novel motor tasks. Primary Author and Speaker: Kelly Cusick Additional Authors and Speakers: Alexandra DiStasi, Stephanie Holowinski, Olivia Fitzpatrick Contributing Authors: Megan Davis, Melody H. Wallace, Sharon A. Stansfield, Carole Dennis, H&él&ène M. Larin, Nancy Rader, Judith Pena‐Shaff


Long distance running has become a fashionable recreational activity. This study investigated the effects of external impact loading on bone and cartilage introduced by performing a marathon race. Seven beginners were compared to six experienced recreational long distance runners and two professional athletes. All participants underwent magnetic resonance imaging of the hip and knee before and after a marathon run. Coronal T1 weighted and STIR sequences were used. The pre MRI served as a baseline investigation and monitored the training effect. All athletes demonstrated normal findings in the pre run scan. All but one athlete in the beginner group demonstrated joint effusions after the race. The experienced and professional runners failed to demonstrate pathology in the post run scans. Recreational and professional long distance runners tolerate high impact forces well. Be-ginners demonstrate significant changes on the post run scans. Whether those findings are a result of inadequate training (miles and duration) warrant further studies. We conclude that adequate endurance training results in adaptation mechanisms that allow the athlete to compensate for the stresses introduced by long distance running and do not predispose to the onset of osteoarthritis. Significant malalignment of the lower extremity may cause increased focal loading of joint and cartilage.


To facilitate rational decision making regarding cyber security investments, decision makers need to be able to assess expected losses before and after potential investments. This paper presents a model based assessment framework for analyzing the cyber security provided by different architectural scenarios. The framework uses the Bayesian statistics based Extended Influence Diagrams to express attack graphs and related countermeasures. In this paper it is demonstrated how this structure can be captured in an abstract model to support analysis based on architectural models. The approach allows calculating the probability that attacks will succeed and the expected loss of these given the instantiated architectural scenario. Moreover, the framework can handle the uncertainties that are accompanied to the analyses. In architectural analysis there are uncertainties acquainted both to the scenario and its properties, as well as to the analysis framework that stipulates how security countermeasures contribute to cyber security.


For a drastic reduction of heat transfer in glazing units low emissivity coatings and filling gases with low thermal conductivity, e.g., argon, krypton or xenon, are used. As the rim seal is not perfectly leak tight, part of the filling gas may diffuse out and air could diffuse into the spacing, resulting in a deterioration of the insulating performance. By measuring the sound velocity in the gas filling the relative amount of the noble gas can be determined. A theoretical expression for the sound velocity of an air-argon mixture is experimentally verified to 0.5%. In order to determine the krypton or xenon content to within about 10%, the sound velocity is determined by measuring changes of the travel time and the glazing spacing instead of absolute values. A change in spacing is achieved by pressing ultrasonic transducers onto the glazing unit with varying force. A sound frequency of typically 1 MHz is used for experiments carried out on a 50 x 50 cm{sup 2} argon filled double pane glazing with a spacing of 14 mm. The expected change of sound velocity with gas composition is analyzed with respect to the loss of thermal performance of the glazing. For xenon andmore » krypton the effective U-value of the glazing can be determined from the ultrasound measurement with an uncertainty of better than 0.04 W/m{sup 2} K, whereas for argon the uncertainty with the present setup is acceptable only for higher air content of the glazing.« less


Over the last few years the problem of determining orbital and physical parameters of close binaries has become paramount in interpreting the complex nature of these systems. Photometry and spectroscopy have in many cases combined to give reasonably accurate values of such parameters as the binary inclination and orbital eccentricity. In some cases however the two methods have provided conflicting values of the inclination i, for example, and it remains to obtain independent estimates to confirm or not the previous values. The development of techniques to interpret the variable linear polarization observed in certain binaries has proceeded hand in hand with the improvement of observational techniques and the continuing discovery of new 'polarimetric binaries'. A relatively simple model was presented by Brown,McLean and Emslie (1978) whereby the variation inpolarization of the light from binaries is caused by the orbital motion of a scattering region situated within the system and corotating with it. This scattering region is assumed optically thin and under the corotation assumption to be in a circular orbit about the primary star. The behaviour of the polarization is phase locked to the orbital period of the system and variation occurs, in the general case at both the first and second harmonic of that period (i.e. at the period itself and half that period). If the scattering region is of a form symmetric about the orbital plane of the system then the polarization has a second harmonic structure only (i.e. it varies a half the binary period) and produces a double looped ellipse figure in the Q,U plane. In this thesis we extend this simple, and hence 'canonical' model to enable an optimum set of JONILP.6.0 parameters to be obtained in the presence of noisy data. The optimum inclination iopt is found when the chi2 statistic is minimized and an eror or uncertainty in this value is estimated by forming a Relative Confidence Interval at a particular (i.e. chosen) significance level. This model optimization technique is then applied to Cygnus X-1 data with the result that the uncertainty in iopt is significantly larger than previous estimates. (cf. Chapter 2) thorough statistical and numerical analysis of the determination of inclinations by this method is undertaken in Chapter 3 and Chapter It where we establish the severe nature of the bias of the inclination estimator in the canonical model and show that a high degree of accuracy is needed in polarimetric measurements before reasonable (i.e. + 5


Abstract— The effect of shallow marine water (˜30–100 m deep) in the late excavation and early modification stages of a marine‐target crater 5 km in diameter, as exemplified by the Late Cretaceous Wetumpka impact structure in Alabama, USA, is manifest in the early collapse of a weak part of the rim. Excavation flow and connate marine water are interpreted to be factors in this collapse. This partial rim collapse catastrophically emplaced an upper‐structure‐filling unit of broken and redistributed sedimentary target formations, which presently mantles the deeper fallback breccia deposits within the structure. Furthermore, rim collapse flow facilitated the formation of a structurally modified, extrastructure terrain, which is located outside and adjacent to the collapsed rim segment. This extrastructure terrain appears to be the product of extensive slumping of poorly consolidated target sedimentary formations.


BACKGROUND
Cognitive dispersion, variation in performance across cognitive domains, is posited as a non-invasive and cost-effective marker of early neurodegeneration. Little work has explored associations between cognitive dispersion and Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers in healthy older adults. Even less is known about the influence or interaction of biomarkers reflecting brain pathophysiology or other risk factors on cognitive dispersion scores.

OBJECTIVE
The main aim of this study was to examine whether higher cognitive dispersion was associated with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of amyloid-β (Aβ42), total tau (t-tau), phosphorylated tau (p-tau), and amyloid positivity in a cohort of older adults at various severities of AD. A secondary aim was to explore which AD risk factors were associated with cognitive dispersion scores.

METHODS
Linear and logistic regression analyses explored the associations between dispersion and CSF levels of Aβ42, t-tau, and p-tau and amyloid positivity (Aβ42 <  1000 pg/ml). Relationships between sociodemographics, APOEɛ4 status, family history of dementia, and levels of depression and dispersion were also assessed.

RESULTS
Dispersion did not emerge as associated with any of the analytes nor amyloid positivity. Older (β= -0.007, SE = 0.002, p = 0.001) and less educated (β= -0.009, SE = 0.003, p = 0.009) individuals showed greater dispersion.

CONCLUSION
Dispersion was not associated with AD pathology, but was associated with age and years of education, highlighting individual differences in cognitive aging. The use of this metric as a screening tool for existing AD pathology is not supported by our analyses. Follow-up work will determine if dispersion scores can predict changes in biomarker levels and/or positivity status longitudinally.


Rejecting a reading of Theodor W. Adorno as a critic of the culture industry who could not conceive of film's critical potential, many commentators have argued that for Adorno, film can become autonomous and thus a medium for social critique. This article argues that such a reading is only partly correct. Indeed, Adorno thought that film could be a medium for critique, yet he never stopped asserting film's heteronomy. Building on the work of Miriam Hansen, the article argues that for Adorno, critical film could overcome the limitation of technique by film's representational base and its inability to achieve a neutral standpoint through the use of montage, which arranges the material without dominating it.


About 40% of human erythrocyte membrane protein is resistant to solubilization in 0.5% Triton X-114. These components comprise a structure called a Triton shell roughly similar in size and shape to the original erythrocyte and thus constitute a cytoskeleton. With increasing concentrations of Triton the lipid content of the Triton shell decreases dramatically, whereas the majority of the protein components remain constant. Exceptions to this rule include proteins contained in band 3, the presumed anion channel, and in band 4 which decrease with increasing Triton concentration. The Triton-insoluble complex includes spectrin (bands 1 and 2), actin (band 5), and bands 3' and 7. Component 3' has an apparent molecular weight of 88,000 daltons as does 3; but unlike 3, it is insensitive to protease treatment of the intact cell, has a low extinction coefficient at 280 nm, and is solubilized from the shells in alkaline water solutions. Component 7 also has a low extinction coefficient at 280 nm. Spectrin alone is solubilized from the Triton shells in isotonic media. The solubilized spectrin contains no bound Triton and coelectrophoreses with spectrin eluted in hypotonic solutions from ghosts. Electron micrographs of fixed Triton shells stained with uranyl acetate show the presence of numerous filaments which appear beaded and are 80--120 A in diameter. The filaments cannot be composed mainly af actin, but enough spectrin is present to form the filaments. Triton shells may provide an excellent source of material useful in the investigation of the erythrocyte cytoskeleton.


ABSTRACT In this dissertation I examine the emergent phenomenon of social entrepreneurship through the lens of the structure of entrepreneurial payoffs under conditions of near-Knightian uncertainty. Current theory assumes entrepreneurs will respond to a new form of incentive, beyond the pursuits of wealth, power, and prestige. It also assumes that productive entrepreneurship can result from a shift in the structure of payoffs. I examine four for-profit social entrepreneurial experiments executed in Southern Africa in order to enhance understanding of the question: "What recurring challenges do for-profit social entrepreneurs face in attempting to restructure payoffs under conditions of near-Knightian uncertainty?" My data are drawn from field observations, company archival records, email communications, and unique targeted interventions designed to solve vexing challenges which arose in the course of the experiments. The dissertation makes several contributions. First, it uncovers several new insights from my findings which should inform future research in for-profit social enterprises. Second, it sheds light on enterprise creation under conditions of near-Knightian uncertainty. Third, it introduces a framework for understanding the challenges faced by nonsingular objective firms, and proposes that lack of success in the creation of such firms is not necessarily failure – there are multiple levels of success that are part of an Aspirations Cascade, the highest efficiency being delivered by the social impact enterprise and the lowest efficiency achieved from direct charity.