This paper analyzes a model in which incentive constrained contracting implies both amplification and intertemporal propagation of technology shocks. In the model risk averse agents choose between a riskless technology and a risky technology (`the entrepreneurial activity') with higher expected return but also with moral hazard. Under the optimal contract, entrepreneurs need to bear more risk when productivity is low. This renders agents' technology choices procyclical, i.e., more agents become entrepreneurs when productivity is high, which in turn amplifies technology shocks. The technology choices and hence the amount of entrepreneurial activity can be correlated across time even if technology shocks are independent. The propagation is asymmetric and results in long expansions and short, `sharp' recessions. We think that our model complements the existing literature on the effects of countercyclical agency costs by pointing out an additional mechanism that renders agency costs countercyclical. In our model it is the risk associated with the entrepreneurial activity rather than constraints on outside funding (due to the limited resources of the entrepreneur) that constrains the amount of entrepreneurial activity. In contrast to the literature on the effects of financial contracts on aggregate dynamics which typically considers one period financial contracts only, we study (in work to be completed) both one period and multiperiod (two period) contracts and show that multiperiod contracts have important effects on the dynamic properties of aggregates. Thus, restricting attention to one period contracts importantly alters the implications for aggregate dynamics. We provide a characterization of optimal two period contracts and find that: (i) entrepreneurs who are unsuccessful early on are most likely to be credit constrained and (ii) incentive constraints are more stringent in the second period of a contract and thus compensation is optimally delayed towards that period (which may be interpreted as the accumulation of `internal funds').


Over the past twenty years academics, industry commentators and practitioners in the field of physical distribution have been pre-occupied with the computational and technical side of computerised vehicle routing and scheduling (CVRS). Comparatively little research activity has been carried out on the user or management aspects of the technology. The current study aims to make up for this research deficit by investigating the adoption of CVRS technology in the British road freight industry. Moreover, the study evaluates the success of the software used in a strategic, tactical and operational role. The subject of the empirical analyses is the British brewing industry. The findings highlight the fact that CVRS technology is used by only a relatively small number of organisations despite being an effective means to improve the efficiency of transport operations and to provide substantial intangible benefits. The research also develops and empirically validates a model of CVRS in the organisational context. "Organisational context" means that the focus is on the organisational aspects rather than on the technical aspects of the technology. The model investigates relationships between variables and addresses two major research questions: What are the reasons leading to the apparent lack of CVRS system penetration the "CVRS user-gap"? What are the key factors of successful implementations and subsequent use of the software? To overcome the "CVRS user-gap", the study suggests appropriate measures focusing on individuals' awareness of and attitudes towards the software rather than on improving the quality of the software. To ensure CVRS success, the potential users of CVRS should have a certain level of technological and organisational maturity. Emphasis needs to be placed on adequate system implementation. Special attention should also be given to three critical success factors: • the quality of the software; • the system operator's ability to use the software; and • the drivers willingness and ability to adhere to the computer-generated route proposals.


Schulze-Delrieu, Konrad. Visual parameters define the phase and the load of contractions in isolated guinea pig ileum. Am. J. Physiol. 276 (Gastrointest. Liver Physiol. 39): G1417–G1424, 1999.—How the movements of the intestinal walls relate to luminal pressures and outflow remains incompletely understood. We triggered the peristaltic reflex in the isolated ileum of the guinea pig and quantified wall movements through computerized measurements of diameter changes. Contractions developed as indentations close to the upstream end of the loop. The indentations deepened and expanded in length. The downstream shoulder of contractions started and stopped to propagate before the upstream shoulder. Shoulders differed in their length and gradient over most of the duration of the contraction, and this gives the contraction an axial asymmetry. Over the course of individual contractions, the length of the indented segment correlated well with the luminal pressure. Contractions in response to large volumes generated long indented segments and high luminal pressures. The onset and the end of pressure waves and of outflow did not necessarily coincide with the onset and end of visual parameters of contractions. These findings indicate that objective visual parameters might be useful to describe and to classify contractions.


The reported biomechanical properties of soft tissues are often dependent on the method used to determine specimen cross-sectional area as this is an important factor in tissue stress calculations. Cross-sectional shape is also important, especially for documenting morphological changes in the tissue during healing. Successful measurement of these geometric characteristics, however, has been hindered by the complex geometry of many biological tissues, as well as concerns regarding the deformability of these tissues under mechanical contact. The overall objective of this thesis was to evaluate the cross-sectional shape and area of normal and healing ligaments using laser-based devices. Lasers allow for measurements without inducing mechanical contact and deformation. Initially, the effects of treatment with a bio-scaffold, small intestinal submucosa (SIS), on the cross-sectional shape and area of healing ligaments were evaluated using the laser micrometer system. However, due to limitations of currently available methods such as the inability to detect concavities, a new system was also developed and evaluated. The cross-sectional shape and area of non-treated healing and SIS-treated healing rabbit MCLs were assessed using a laser micrometer system 26 weeks after gap injury. No significant changes in shape were detected between SIS-treated and non-treated MCLs. However, SIS-treatment significantly reduced the cross-sectional area at 26 weeks after injury in comparison to the non-treated group. A charge coupled device (CCD) laser reflectance system was developed in order to determine the cross-sectional shape and area of tissues containing surface concavities. For this system, a CCD laser displacement sensor recorded distance measurements off a specimen while it rotated 360°. The area and shape could then be determined from this data. The system was evaluated using geometric shapes of known cross-sectional area before being applied to biological specimens.This work demonstrated that cross-sectional shape and area measurements can be used to quantify tissue healing and remodeling. Additionally, the CCD laser reflectance system successfully detected concavities on the surfaces of tissues and therefore is a viable approach to biological tissue measurement. However, this system does not offer much improvement in accuracy over the laser micrometer system for tissues that do not have significant concavities.


cDNA clones of messenger RNAs for acidic and basic chitinases were isolated from libraries of tobacco mosaic virus-infected Samsun NN tobacco and petunia. The tobacco cDNA clones for acidic chitinase fell into two different groups, whereas all petunia cDNA clones had the same sequence. Also, tobacco genomic clones were isolated and one was characterized. This genomic clone, corresponding to one of the cDNA clones, showed that this acidic chitinase gene contains two introns. The amino acid sequences of the acidic chitinases from tobacco, as deduced from the cDNA clones, fully agreed with partial sequences derived from peptides obtained from purified tobacco-derived pathogenesis-related proteins PR-P and PR-Q. The deduced amino acid sequences showed that PR-P and PR-Q are 93 and 78%, respectively, identical to the petunia enzyme. All deduced chitinase sequences indicated the presence of an NH2-terminal, highly hydrophobic signal peptide. In addition, the polysaccharide-binding domain present at the NH2-terminus of basic chitinases from mature tobacco is not present in these acidic chitinases. Furthermore, the complete coding sequence for the petunia chitinase, constructed downstream of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter, was used to transform tobacco. The resulting chimeric gene was constitutively expressed, and the petunia enzyme was targeted to the extracellular fluid. In contrast, a basic chitinase of tobacco, expressed from a chimeric gene, was found in total leaf extracts but not in preparations of extracellular fluid.


I. The contribution to acidification of the stomach contents of pigs by hydrochloric acid secretion or by Iactic acid produced by fermentation was studied in fifteen suckling pigs from six litters born and reared either in a 'conventional' environment or in an isolated 'clean' environment. Sequential samples of stomach contents obtained during periods of up to 24 h were analysed for their chloride and lactic acid contents, pH and total titratable acidity. These values gave a measure of organic and inorganic acids respectively. 2. Six pigs from two litters born and reared in a 'clean' environment had acid secretion in the stomach at 2 d of age, and the concentrations of lactic acid in stomach contents remained low (0-40 mmol/l) throughout the suckling period. 3. Eight pigs from three litters born and reared in a 'conventional' environment, and a ninth pig born in this environment but moved to the 'clean' environment at 24 h of age, had lactic acid in concentrations of up to 250 mmol/l in stomach contents within the 1st week of life. The pattern of lactic acid production (and hence the acidity of stomach contents) was governed by the frequency of suckling. 4. Both between- and within-litter variation in the age of onset of HCl secretion was evident in the group reared in a 'conventional' environment, and when HCI secretion did occur it was usually accompanied by a reduction in lactic acid production. 5. It is concluded: (I) that the environment at birth is important in determining the fermentative ability of the stomach flora; (2) that if Iactic acid is produced in large amounts in the stomach, it may partly or completely inhibit acidification by HCI.


Author(s): Baek, Yaein | Advisor(s): Elliott, Graham | Abstract: Instability of parametric models is a common problem in many fields of economics. In econometrics, these changes in the underlying data generating process are referred to as structural breaks. Although there is an extensive literature on estimation and statistical tests of structural breaks, existing methods fail to adequately capture a break. This dissertation consists of three papers on developing econometric methods for structural breaks and forecasting.The first chapter develops a new method in estimating the location of a structural break in a linear model and provide theoretical results and empirical applications of the estimator. In finite sample the conventional least-squares estimates a break occurred at either ends of the sample with high probability, regardless of the true break point. I suggest an estimator of the break point that resolves this pile up issue and thus, provide a more accurate estimate of the break. The second chapter constructs a statistical test to test existence of a structural break when the direction of the parameter shift is known. In practice it is likely that a researcher is interested in testing for a structural break in a particular direction because the direction is known, such as policy change or historical data. We incorporate this information in constructing three tests that have higher power when direction is correctly specified. The last chapter proposes a multi-period forecasting method that is robust to model misspecification. When we are interested in obtaining long horizon ahead forecasts, the direct forecast method is more favorable than the iterated forecast because it is more robust to misspecification. However, direct forecast estimates tend to have jagged shapes across horizons. I use a mechanism analogous to ridge regression on the direct forecast model to maintain robustness while smoothing out erratic estimates.


Most location sharing applications display people's locations on a map. However, people use a rich variety of terms to refer to their locations, such as "home," "Starbucks," or "the bus stop near my house." Our long-term goal is to create a system that can automatically generate appropriate place names based on real-time context and user preferences. As a first step, we analyze data from a two-week study involving 26 participants in two different cities, focusing on how people refer to places in location sharing. We derive a taxonomy of different place naming methods, and show that factors such as a person's perceived familiarity with a place and the entropy of that place (i.e. the variety of people who visit it) strongly influence the way people refer to it when interacting with others. We also present a machine learning model for predicting how people name places. Using our data, this model is able to predict the place naming method people choose with an average accuracy higher than 85%.


One of the four proteins involved in the cleavage of glycine to l-carbon units and the transfer of electrons from glycine to diphosphopyridine nucleotide is a flavoprotein. Precipitation of the protein with acid ammonium sulfate in the presence of 1 M potassium bromide separated the coenzyme from the apoenzyme. The latter was fully reactivated by incubation with flak adenine dinucleotide, but showed no activity with flavin mononucleotide. The flavoprotein could be reduced either by glycine or by reduced diphosphopyridine nucleotide. When reduced by the latter, no protein other than the flavoprotein was required for the electron transfer, but to achieve a measurable rate of reduction by glycine it was necessary to add the three other proteins plus tetrahydrofolate. Dihydrofolate was entirely inactive in the system.


The institutions responsible for administrating and providing justice in Mexico City lack the methodology, techniques, protocols, and highly trained personnel to carry out the search for disappeared persons. Neither a structure nor organization exist to carry out this work. To avoid continuing to act solely empirically, we decided to propose a model for searching for human remains and surface evidence. We took as a guide the knowledge and experience of the Weldon Spring protocol, which was created, adopted and applied in the United States for cases of mass disasters. The adaptation of this protocol to Mexico City is focused on the protected natural areas and areas of ecological conservation, since they are the zones where human bodies are most likely deposited, a product of crimes carried out by urban organized crime groups. Those areas are located in the higher and more remote parts of the city, and in addition they lack illumination, modes of transportation, public services and security; and they constitute 23.7% of the land under conservation. With this model we stress the importance of developing solid work team; knowledge of natural areas and how urban organized crime is constituted; and the need to carry out prospecting remotely and on foot. It is also important to create a route organized in transect lines and to consider the social and economic impact of using current technological tools to geo-reference the site and the implementation of index cards to register events.


Novel low melting glasses in the MoO3-La2O3-Nd2O3 system were obtained at different cooling rates (102 K/s and 104-105 K/s). Characterization of the amorphous samples was made by differential thermal analysis (DTA) and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) method. According to DTA data of the glass samples, the glass transition temperatures are at 325-330 0C, the crystallization started above 410 0C and the melting temperatures are at 660-720 0C. A structural model of glasses was suggested on the basis of XAFS and IR investigations. It was shown that the predominant structural units in the amorphous network of glasses containing 90 -80 mol% MoO3 are MoO6 groups. The appearance of MoO4 groups deteriorates the glass formation ability.


Nitrones have a well-recognized capacity as spin-traps and are considered powerful free radical scavengers, which are two important issues in hypoxia-induced oxidative stress and cell death in brain ischemia. Consequently, nitrones have been proposed as therapeutic agents in acute ischemic stroke (AIS). In this paper, we update the biological and pharmacological characterization of ISQ-201, a previously identified cholesteronitrone hybrid with antioxidant and neuroprotective activity. This study characterizes ISQ-201 as a neuroprotective agent against the hypoxia-induced ischemic injury. Transitory four-vessel occlusion and middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO) were used to induce cerebral ischemia. Functional outcomes were determined using neurofunctional tests. Infarct area, neuronal death, and apoptosis induction were evaluated. In addition, ISQ-201 reactivity towards free radicals was studied in a theoretical model. ISQ-201 significantly decreased the ischemia-induced neuronal death and apoptosis, in a dose-dependent manner, showing its therapeutic effect when administered up until 6 h after post-ischemic reperfusion onset, effects that remained after 3 months from the ischemic episode. Furthermore, ISQ-201 significantly reduced infarct volume, leading to recovery of the motor function in the tMCAO model. Finally, the theoretical study confirmed the reactivity of ISQ-201 towards hydroxyl radicals. The results reported here prompted us to suggest ISQ-201 as a promising candidate for the treatment of AIS.


Abstract The aluminosilicate iodide sodalite |Na8I2|[AlSiO4]6 was examined by temperature-dependent neutron time-of-flight powder diffraction from 5 K to 290 K and X-ray diffraction from 298 K to 1200 K. The temperature-dependent properties of the mean structure in space group P4̅3n were obtained by Rietveld analysis. A negative slope for the thermal expansion coefficient below 50 K could be observed, and the displacement parameters of the iodide ions indicate anharmonic effects. Local structure models (8×8×8 super cells) were refined against pair-distribution functions calculated from total scattering data collected at 5 K, 165 K and 240 K. The results indicate isotropic displacements for all atoms except for I-atoms, showing the effects of an anharmonic potential around this anion at very low temperatures.


Long-term follow-up information pertaining to 162 dogs with appendicular osteosarcoma treated by amputation alone was collected from 17 veterinary institutions. The majority (72.5%) of dogs died or were euthanatized because of problems documented to be related to metastases. The first clinically apparent sites of metastasis were the lungs (60.8% of total), the skeleton (5.2%), or both (4.6%). A Kaplan-Meier survivorship distribution was plotted on the basis of available survival time data in all 162 dogs. The mean and median survival times were estimated to be 19.8 and 19.2 weeks, respectively, and the 1- and 2-year survival rates were estimated to be 11.5 and 2.0% respectively. Statistically significant relationships were not found between survival time and reporting institution, gender, site of primary tumor, whether the primary tumor was proximally or distally located, whether the primary tumor was located in the forelimb or hind limb, whether presurgical biopsy was performed, and whether death was tumor related. A significant (P less than 0.01) quadratic relationship was found between age and survival time. Survival time was longest in dogs 7 to 10 years old and was shorter in older and younger dogs.


Abstract Elemental distribution maps by wavelength-dispersive electron microprobe of enamel and dentine in modern crocodile teeth illustrate variations in both minor and major elements. Mg has the largest difference between the enamel and dentine, being enriched in the dentine. Mg, Ca and P are not homogeneously distributed in the dentine, but their distribution reflects changes during growth of the teeth. These variations in compositional differences of teeth from modern samples potentially can assist in establishing growth rates in fossil teeth samples, and thereby provide information on the physiology of extant species.


Anti-corruption strategies over the past two decades have expanded to include a variety of measures ranging from international conventions and anti-corruption toolkits to business and NGO (Non Governmental Organisation) initiatives. While these strategies are undeniably essential in the fight against corruption, recognising their impact on the behaviour of companies is vital to assessing and improving them. Surveys conducted by accountancy and auditing firms over the last decade identify some general issues concerning company practices and attitudes to combating corruption and indicate some of the limiting factors. While these insights are a useful starting point the survey findings provide only a descriptive and fragmented understanding of the issues due to the diversity of scope and approaches applied. In order to obtain a more thorough understanding of the impacts of different strategies and how these might be strengthened the authors are currently engaged in an in-depth survey of both businesses and NGOs. In focusing on the role of NGOs as important stakeholders in the field of anti-corruption the scope of this research extends further than the previous surveys which report only on the perspective and practice of businesses. Prior to engaging in the full survey a pilot survey of both companies and NGOs was undertaken and this paper presents the finding of this pilot survey. This paper firstly outlines the scope of the present analysis. Section II proceeds with an examination of the key findings of the existing surveys to provide a picture of the extent to which company attitudes to corruption have been explored and the broad themes that emerge. The insights identified in this section provide the context for the pilot study findings which are presented in Section III, which concludes with observations and points for further research.


One hundred forty-nine children in grades kindergarten through 12th, ages 5 to 18 years of age participated. Children in this study were referred to special education for an evaluation or for counseling. They were referred for learning difficulties (LD), behavioral problems (BD), or they were performing exceptionally well in the classrooms (Gifted). One third of the children were from divorced homes. There were significant differences between children from divorced homes and nondivorced homes for IQ scores and a variety of academic subtests. The children from divorced homes scored lower than children from nondivorced homes, but the mean scores for both groups were within the average range. Children actually being placed in special education and children not being placed in special education were also significantly different on certain variables (primarily IQs). As was expected, gifted children scored higher on more variables than did BD or LD children. BD children generally scored higher on more variables than did the LD children.


Abstract The results of the estimation of the viscosity for Ag – In and In–Sb liquid alloys are presented in this paper. Different theoretical models for viscosity determination, according to the Moelwyn–Hughes, Iida –Ueda –Morita, Kozlov– Romanov– Petrov, Hirai, Seetharaman – DuSichen and Kaptay, have been applied in the process of viscosity calculation at different temperatures – for the Ag – In alloys in the range 1073 – 1273 K and for the In–Sb alloys in the range 873 – 1073 K. The results for both systems, obtained using different models, were compared mutually and with available literature experimental data. The models, mostly capable to predict appropriate viscosity data for investigated binary systems, were defined.


In deterministic parameters estimation, it is common place to design a minimum variance distortionless response estimator (MVDRE) instead of a maximum likelihood estimator to tackle the problem of identifying the components of observations formed from a linear superposition of individual signals to noisy data. When several observations are available and the individual signals are allowed to perform a random walk between observations, one obtains the general class of linear discrete state-space models. This paper introduces a novel recursive formulation of the MVDREs of individual signals compatible with recursive estimation.


In Ghana as many other countries in the global South, many children and young people are marginalized in education. From a pilot project we had learnt from our work in India that an approach based on "real literacies", in which links are made to authentic literacies in the environment, with teaching and support by deaf peer tutors and deaf research assistants, was fruitful. That pilot also included consultations with the deaf community in Ghana. The project reported upon here, "Peer to peer deaf multiliteracies: research into a sustainable approach to education of Deaf children and young adults in developing countries " (P2PDML) extended the principles to include young children as well as adults and was reconceptualised upon the richer foundation of multiliteracies, embracing available semiotic repertoires and means of learning. This paper presents three multimodal vignettes which illustrate the dynamic combinations of modes utilized in effective pedagogic activities and gives a flavour of the project's approaches to peer tutoring and documentation of activities. Finally, in line with the conference theme, "The power and possibilities for the public good when researchers and organizational stakeholders collaborate" we also report on our engagement with significant stakeholders.


This article takes as its starting point the overwhelming concentration of Bangladeshi women in the homeworking sector of the clothing industry in London. This pattern forms a contrast to the large numbers of male Bangladeshi workers also concentrated in the garment industry but who are to be found mainly in the factories and sweatshops. The article uses the accounts given by the Bangladeshi homeworkers themselves for their concentration in this form of work to explore different theoretical explanations of female labour supply behaviour, focusing in particular on questions of choice and constraint, culture and economy. The study suggests that the 'preferences' revealed by the labour market behaviour of Bangladeshi women cannot be attributed solely to them, but must be seen in terms of bargaining and negotiation with other, more powerful members of the family. Furthermore, the intra‐household decision‐making process is itself embedded within a broader institutional environment which determines the access enjoyed by different groups to socially‐valued resources. For Bangladeshis, a key factor in this broader environment is the operation of racially‐based forms of exclusion from the mainstream opportunities. Consequently, community solidarity and networks represent important symbolic and material resources for members. However, these resources are distributed in highly gender‐specific ways, with very clear implications for women's place within the community. The article argues therefore that any attempt to explain Bangladeshi women's concentration in homework has to move beyond a focus on either individual circumstances or cultural norms to an exploration of the interaction of racism, community identity and gender relations in shaping women's labour market options.


Information Retrieval is concerned with locating information (usually text) that is relevant to a user's information need. Retrieval systems based on word matching suffer from the vocabulary mismatch problem, which is a common phenomenon in the usage of natural languages. This difficulty is especially severe in large, full-text databases since such databases contain many different expressions of the same concept. One method aimed to reduce the negative effects of the vocabulary mismatch problem is for the retrieval system to exploit statistical relations. This report examines the utility of conceptual indexing to improve retrieval performance of a domain specific Information Retrieval System using Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI). Techniques like LSI attempt to exploit and model global usage patterns of terms so that related documents that may not share common (literal) terms are still represented by nearby conceptual descriptors. Experimental results show that the method is noticeable more efficient, compared to baseline, for relatively complete queries. However, the current implementation did not improve the effectiveness of short, yet descriptive, queries.


Adenoid cystic carcinoma of the breast is a rare neoplasm, with only 140 cases having been reported to date. Data on 123 of these cases are reviewed herein and another case is presented in detail. Several features distinguish this type of breast cancer from more typical histologic types and suggest that it may have a unique tumor behavior. The prognosis appears to be favorable and the incidence of axillary lymph node involvement is lower. Distant metastases are uncommon, but they tend to occur without prior lymph node involvement. This lack of prognostic significance for negative axillary lymph nodes underscores the need for other prognostic markers in this disease and suggests that axillary dissection can be eliminated in most cases. Similarities to typical breast cancer include the incidence of local recurrence and the lack of effect of surgical treatment on distant metastases and overall survival. These data suggest that breast-conserving treatment may be applicable to adenoid cystic carcinoma.


The purpose of this paper is to investigate, through empirical analysis, a) whether or not undergraduate students have any entrepreneurial intentions, based on their psychological characteristics such as locus of control, etc. and b) whether or not these psychological characteristics have any impact on their entrepreneurial intentions. For this purpose, anonymous questionnaires were administered to undergraduate students in the third and final year in higher education institutions in the Athens area. Statistical tools were employed in order to analyse the collective data. Results indicated that in general Greek undergraduate students were not risk-takers while they had little inclination towards entrepreneurship. Moreover, Greek undergraduate students have shown a positive locus of control, good self confidence and an aptitude for innovation while they have not shown high levels of tolerance to ambiguity Taking into consideration that a) the economic development and the competitive advantage of a country are basically determined by the qualitative improvement of, and the productive use of, inputs such as entrepreneurship, and b) the enhancement of entrepreneurial skills of students is mainly the result of an effective education system, then this paper supports the view that advancing the existing knowledge on the relationship between entrepreneurial skills and the entrepreneurial intentions of young people would make a valuable contribution to a more competitive education system and to more innovative entrepreneurship.


In 1977, Volodin et al. observed that the electrohydrodynamic instability of charged helium surfaces can lead to the loss of the electrons from the surface in the form of bubbles. These are Multielectron Bubbles (MEBs) which contain electrons pinned on their inner surfaces. The MEBs form a model system for studying electrons on curved surfaces, which are predicted to have many interesting properties. Recent experiments showed that above the Lambda point, MEBs could be trapped using a Paul-trap and their sizes are mainly determined by the amount of vapour present inside. Here, we report the experimental observation of the coalescence of two MEBs which were moving upward in bulk liquid helium-4. The charge and radii of the MEBs were determined before and after the coalescence. The merging of two similar charged bubbles was possible because of the presence of vapour inside the merging MEBs.


Abstract Purpose: The aim of this work is to identify the most significant risk factors for hearing impairment in high risk neonates hospitalized at our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and to assess the sensitivity of hearing screening tests. Methods: This study involved 260 neonates admitted to a tertiary NICU; they were classified into two groups; 150 preterm and 110 full terms with risk factors for hearing loss. The hearing screening tests performed were transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) and the automated auditory brainstem response (AABR). Results: Forty-eight preterm neonates (32%) and 30 full term neonates (27.3%) had pathological AABR. In preterm group, mechanical ventilation more than five days, sepsis, usage of aminoglycosides, loop diuretics, vancomycin alone or in combination with aminoglycosides and prolonged duration of admission were considered risk factors of hearing affection whereas in full term group mechanical ventilation more than five days was the risk factor of hearing affection (p<.05). Conclusions: The prevalence of hearing loss is highest among high risk neonates and TEOAE and AABR were found to be reliable screening tools. Use of ototoxic drugs and mechanical ventilation for more than five days were significant risk factors for hearing loss in our study population.


Potato tuber colour is an important factor that influences consumer preferences. Eastern plain region of India contributes about 50% of total potato acreage and production. Consumers in this region generally prefer red skinned varieties. Growing awareness for nutrient rich food can create a niche market for nutritious potatoes. Potato is crop of choice for mineral biofortification owing to better mineral bioavailability due to its high ascorbic acid and minimal phytate content. Iron and zinc are the essentially required minerals for good health. Considering the nutritional importance of these elements and wider prevalence of their deficiency in Indian sub-continent, thirteen Eastern regions red skinned advanced hybrids and varieties were evaluated to find the genetic diversity for iron and zinc content. A significant wide range of contents was observed for both the elements. High heritability of both mineral suggests feasibility of selecting genotypes for breeding nutrient rich varieties. Identified genotypes can be utilised as parental lines for future breeding programme and can be released as nutrient rich potato variety.


In this paper, we consider the response analysis of a Duffing–Rayleigh system with fractional derivative under Gaussian white noise excitation. A stochastic averaging procedure for this system is developed by using the generalized harmonic functions. First, the system state is approximated by a diffusive Markov process. Then, the stationary probability densities are derived from the averaged Itô stochastic differential equation of the system. The accuracy of the analytical results is validated by the results from the Monte Carlo simulation of the original system. Moreover, the effects of different system parameters and noise intensity on the response of the system are also discussed.


Rat submandibular mucin (RSM) was purified by acid precipitation, then alcohol precipitation of the 30000g supernatant of gland homogenate, followed by column chromatography on Sephadex G-200. The mucin, which was eluted in the void volume, had an amino acid profile typical of a salivary mucus glycoprotein with high proportions of threonine, serine and proline (48.8% of total amino acids), and low proportions of aromatic and basic amino acids. It consisted of 63% (w/w) carbohydrate, which was shown by g.l.c. analysis to contain N-acetylglucosamine, N-acetylgalactosamine, galactose, sialic acid and fucose in the proportions 1.0:3.4:2.6:3.1:1.2. After staining of the mucin with periodic acid/Schiff reagent, analytical equilibrium ultracentrifugation in a CsCl density gradient produced a symmetrical peak of buoyant density 1.449g/ml, without evidence of protein contaminants. Sedimentation velocity centrifugation revealed a major periodate/Schiff-positive component (S(0) (20,w) 5.06) with an associated shoulder of slower sedimenting material, suggesting polydispersity in the size of the mucin. Our findings suggest that the RSM purified in these studies has a molecular weight between 200000 and 1x10(6). Antibody to RSM was prepared in a rabbit and produced a single precipitin line on immunoelectro-osmophoresis with the mucin. Immunofluorescence studies showed that the antibody localized only to submandibular acinar cells and confirmed that these cells were the source of RSM. The antibody was not directed towards the blood-group-A determinant (terminal N-acetylgalactosamine) present in the mucin.


A bio-based process oil for rubber compounds is one of the compounding ingredients to be used toward an eco-friendly and more sustainable rubber technology. This work investigates epoxidized palm oil (EPO) as an alternative for petroleum-based process oil in silica-reinforced natural rubber (NR) tire tread compounds. The effect of different incorporating steps of EPO on the properties of the rubber compounds is first studied, taking into account that the polar functional groups in the oil molecules may interact with the silanol groups on the silica surface. The properties of silica-reinforced NR compounds with EPO oil are compared with that of reference mixes with treated distillate aromatic extract (TDAE) and without oil. The compounds with EPO show a lower viscosity, filler–filler interaction, and flocculation rate constant but higher cure reaction rate constants compared with the compound with TDAE. The results indicate that the epoxide groups in EPO interact with the silanol groups on the silica surface, promoting a greater shielding effect on the polar surface and thus better silica dispersion and less interference with the vulcanization reaction. The different incorporating steps of EPO show no significant effect on the viscosity, filler–filler interaction, or flocculation rate constant but clearly affect the extent of crosslinking, as indicated by the cure torque difference. The presence of EPO in an early stage of the mixing together with the first half addition of silica and silane results in the lowest cure torque difference, modulus, and tensile strength (i.e., the highest tan δ at 60 °C), which indicates a possible obstruction for the interaction between the silanol groups and silane coupling agent by the EPO molecules. Comparing EPO with different epoxide contents in the range of 1–3 mol%, the increase in epoxide content gives similar Payne effects but enhances the cure reaction, resulting in improved tensile properties and tan δ at 60 °C. The results clearly prove that EPO can be used as a TDAE alternative.


STR.-In his letter (Journal, February 9, p. 338) Dr. H. L. Marriott severcly criticizes the statistical evidence which led me to the conclusion that the specially collected figures of my report to the Medical Research Council do not support his suggestion that the large rise in deaths from carbonmonoxide poisoning in England and Wales in the years 1953 to 1955 may be the resutlt of the change in resuscitation procedures adopted in local-authority ambulances. Rcferring to a tabulation that I made for London, of emergency calls classified as suicide or attempted suicide due to coal-gas poisoning, Dr. Marriott asserts that the main inference reads that " the number of cases carried has, in fact. increased very substantially-from, roughly, a little over 100 in 1951 and 1952 to well over 200 in 1953 to 1955." Reference to my report will show that I myself laid no stress upon this increase in the absolute numbers. Having, without emphasis or comment, made the factual statement quoted above, I went on to point out that, regardless of the absoltute numbers and with a proportion of cases treated in ambul:nce that had not materially changed between 1951 and 19'55. the proportion reported dead on arrival at hospital had not risen. The figure was 350% dead in 1951-2 and 31% dead in 1953-5. It is this comparison that is crucial, but Dr. Marriott makes no reference to it. I was, however, reluctant to accept this result at its face value. since, as I pointed out, the definition of "suicide" as compared with "accident" had been changed in London in 1952. To overcome this possible flaw in the comparisons I specially scrutinized the thousands of accident records to reach a complete count of all coal-gas poisoning cases removed by ambulance in 1951 and 1953. Dr. Marriott refers to these data as relating only to two " selected " years -as if there were some bias underlying the selection. In fact 1951 was the last year in which the ambulances carried CO./O2 mixture and 1953 the first full year in which they carried 02 ; these two years, therefore, are precisely those which give the contrast Dr. Marriott requires. Between them there occurred a rise of 36% in the coal-gas emergency calls. Concurrently the relevant deaths in London rose by 291. Dr. Marriott ignores this latter figure, although clearly it is this close correspondence between the rise in ambulance cases and the rise in deaths that is fundamental to any valid conclusion. Similarly, in criticizing the " scanty data " that I was able to collect from provincial cities, he does not point out that the rise of 30%/. in their ambulance cases also closely mirrors the concurrent rise in deaths in all England and Wales (24%). Nor does he note that 8 out of the 9 provincial towns that could provide data had recorded an increase in their ambulance calls for coal-gas poisoning over the relevant years. In short, both in London and the provinces the rise in mortality commented upon by Dr. Marriott appears to have been atssociated with a rise in the number of cases occurring as mcastired by the ambulance emergency calls. It was the consistency of this evidence that led me to a conclusion worded, very deliberately, as follows: "The data are clearly not precise enouigh to prove accurately the relative advantaiges (or disadvantages) of the C02/02 mixture compared with pure oxygen and they were not collected for that purpose. They are. however, sufficient to make it extremely ditlicult to believe that the pronounced increase in mortality of re cnt years is primarily due to any such difference." I see nothing in Dr. Marriott's criticisms of the statistical data which wotild lead me to alter either sentence of that staltement.-I am, etc.,


Microbiomes are transmitted between generations by a variety of different vertical and/or horizontal modes, including vegetative reproduction (vertical), via female germ cells (vertical), coprophagy and regurgitation (vertical and horizontal), physical contact starting at birth (vertical and horizontal), breast-feeding (vertical), and via the environment (horizontal). Analyses of vertical transmission can result in false negatives (failure to detect rare microbes) and false positives (strain variants). In humans, offspring receive most of their initial gut microbiota vertically from mothers during birth, via breast-feeding and close contact. Horizontal transmission is common in marine organisms and involves selectivity in determining which environmental microbes can colonize the organism's microbiome. The following arguments are put forth concerning accurate microbial transmission: First, the transmission may be of functions, not necessarily of species; second, horizontal transmission may be as accurate as vertical transmission; third, detection techniques may fail to detect rare microbes; lastly, microbiomes develop and reach maturity with their hosts. In spite of the great variation in means of transmission discussed in this paper, microbiomes and their functions are transferred from one generation of holobionts to the next with fidelity. This provides a strong basis for each holobiont to be considered a unique biological entity and a level of selection in evolution, largely maintaining the uniqueness of the entity and conserving the species from one generation to the next.


Abstract In this study, use of sunflower oil methyl ester as an alternative fuel in a 4 stroke turbo diesel engine with 4 cylinders, direct injection, and 55 kW power was analyzed. The engine has been fueled by diesel fuel and biodiesel (B100) obtained from methyl ester of sunflower oil and by running the test engine with 14 different speeds and full load, the results have been analyzed. Smoke emissions obtained in biodiesel use were slightly less, which could be attributed to better combustion efficiency. Also, HC and CO emissions of biodiesel were found to be lower. Results of this study show that performance values of sunflower oil methyl ester are similar to those of diesel fuel. It can be concluded that biodiesel's exhaust emissions are lower than diesel fuels, which indicates that biodiesel has more favorable effects on air quality.


Activation of non-cultivar-specific plant defense against attempted microbial infection is mediated through the recognition of pathogen-derived elicitors. Previously, we have identified a peptide fragment (Pep-13) within a 42-kDa cell wall transglutaminase from various Phytophthora species that triggers a multifacetted defense response in parsley cells. Many of these oomycete species have now been shown to possess another cell wall protein (24 kDa), that evoked the same pattern of responses in parsley as Pep-13. Unlike Pep-13, necrosis-inducing Phytophthora protein 1 (NPP1) purified from P. parasitica also induced hypersensitive cell death-like lesions in parsley. NPP1 structural homologs were found in oomycetes, fungi, and bacteria, but not in plants. Structure-activity relationship studies revealed the intact protein as well as two cysteine residues to be essential for elicitor activity. NPP1-mediated activation of pathogen defense in parsley does not employ the Pep-13 receptor. However, early induced cellular responses implicated in elicitor signal transmission (increased levels of cytoplasmic calcium, production of reactive oxygen species, MAP kinase activation) were stimulated by either elicitor, suggesting the existence of converging signaling pathways in parsley. Infiltration of NPP1 into leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana Col-0 plants resulted in transcript accumulation of pathogenesis-related (PR) genes, production of ROS and ethylene, callose apposition, and HR-like cell death. NPP1-mediated induction of the PR1 gene is salicylic acid-dependent, and, unlike the P. syringae pv. tomato DC3000(avrRpm1)-induced PR1 gene expression, requires both functional NDR1 and PAD4. In summary, Arabidopsis plants infiltrated with NPP1 constitute an experimental system that is amenable to forward genetic approaches aiming at the dissection of signaling pathways implicated in the activation of non-cultivar-specific plant defense.


Ciliates are defined by the presence of dimorphic nuclei. Following conjugation, both the functional macronucleus (MAC) and the transcriptionally inactive germline micronucleus (MIC) develop from a zygotic nucleus. As the MAC develops, germline chromosomes are processed by excision of internal sequences, fragmentation and amplification of the remaining chromosomes. The extent of processing varies among lineages and, in all but one class of ciliates, the resulting MACs divide by an unusual process termed 'amitosis'. Research on these chromosomal rearrangements, largely from studies of only a handful of taxa from two of the nine classes of ciliates, has failed to find evidence of homologous processing among ciliate lineages. This observation, coupled with the structural diversity of MAC genomes among ciliates, led to the hypothesis of multiple origins of at least two MAC properties: (1) the ability to divide and (2) the mechanisms underlying chromosomal processing. Applying this logic to a more inclusive analysis of ciliate lineages, where an even greater diversity of MAC structure is observed, increases the potential number of origins of these MAC characteristics. Here, it is proposed that a single origin of a relatively plastic mechanism underlying MAC development better explains the observed diversity in MAC structure and processing among ciliates. Such a mechanism is suggested by the demonstration of epigenetic effects during MAC development in Paramecium and Tetrahymena.


The amplification of Marburg virus in primary cultures of peritoneal macrophages of animals with different sensitivity to infection with this virus, as well as the capacity of this virus to adsorb on macrophages were studied. Macrophages of the animals sensitive to Marburg virus were capable to support its reproduction in vitro whereas those of resistant animals were not. Macrophages of the animals with intermediate sensitivity were shown to be either completely resistant to virus reproduction or to delay it. Besides, macrophages of sensitive and insensitive animals were capable to adsorb this virus, this capacity being markedly reduced in macrophages isolated from immunized animals and those sensitive animals which developed the disease after inoculation of the virus. The authors conclude that animal susceptibility to Marburg virus in vivo correlated with the capacity of macrophages to support Marburg virus reproduction in vitro and not with the capacity of the virus to adsorb on the macrophage surface. It is suggested that the evaluation of Marburg virus amplification in macrophages could be used as a criterion for evaluation of the susceptibility of animals to this virus in vivo.


Computers and communications technologies have an increasingly significant impact upon the ways we learn and teach. With current technology, it is possible to have reasonably good videoconferencing using standard PCs and off-the-shelves softwares. A possible use of videoconferencing for education is for remote tutoring. This research seeks to assess the response of potential users to such a remote tutoring system. Will they perceive the system to be useful? Will they use the system? Using the technology acceptance model, a survey of the potential users was made. Results of the survey show that perceived usefulness of remote tutoring systems and attitudes towards use are determinants of individuals' usage intentions.


In recent years, the friction coefficient decline in the joints of steel structures caused by corrosion has drawn public attention. Therefore, this study investigated the friction coefficient and surface roughness of high tension bolt joints using a Zn/Al metal spraying corrosion resistance method to estimate the application possibility of the Zn/Al metal spraying corrosion resistance method on the joints of steel structures. According to results, the friction coefficient of Zn/Al metal spraying was 0.50 or more. In addition, the friction coefficient increased according to the decrease in surface roughness (Sm/Rz). Therefore, the Zn/Al metal spraying is applicable to a corrosion resistance method for high tension bolt joints.


Because there is no law specifically addressing colleges' and universities' legal obligations to allow faculty for health reasons to opt for online, rather than in-person, teaching during the coronavirus pandemic, colleges, universities, and their faculties generally seem to be proceeding on the assumption that any such legal obligations are no more than minimal. This Article challenges that widespread assumption and argues that colleges and universities in fact have very substantial legal obligations in this regard.

We focus on the group of faculty whom we believe colleges and universities have the clearest legal obligation to protect -- those who, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, appear to be most vulnerable to getting seriously ill or even dying if they contract the coronavirus. In the language of the CDC, our focus is faculty members "at increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19," which, according to the CDC, means anyone who has reached age 65 or who has one of various "medical conditions," including cancer, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, hypertension, pregnancy, and more.

We argue that four separate legal sources are best understood as requiring colleges and universities to exempt high-risk faculty from any in-person teaching requirement. Two of the four sources are federal statutes that qualify as major statements of national policy – the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. The other two sources are important state-law doctrines with strong support in the American Law Institute's most recent restatement of the law of torts – protection from intentional infliction of physical harm, and protection from intentional infliction of emotional distress.

We hope our arguments will provide college and university leaders with a perspective that will prompt them to recognize the great importance of adopting an exemption policy that at a minimum covers high-risk faculty. Perhaps they would adopt such a policy simply to avoid possible legal liability. Ideally, however, they would do so at least in part out of a recognition that a college or university policy at odds with legal sources as weighty as the four discussed speaks very poorly for their institution.


In the era of mass media competition, each media came up with such various programs, as well as the news program. And this research is aiming at investigating the students' view toward "Reportase Investigasi" News Program on TRANS TV, by using descriptive analytical method.
This research was conducted on 6 students of journalistic class 2003.The research was held in University of Muhammadiyah Malang, around August to September 2007. Firstly, by spreading the PreResearch Polling, to find the students who fulfilled the criteria to be interviewed. The
number of informants it selves is determined by using Purposive Sampling where the investigator does not necessarily have a quota of informants to fill.
In this descriptive qualitative research, the analysis technique was used by employing data collection, data simplification, data classification, data interpretation, and data conceptualization.
And in the final stage, research data then analyzed by approaching the Dependency Theory and Social Judgment Theory.
Based on the one and a half month of investigation, the result show the tendency that most the interviewees view that the program is not adequately fulfilled the journalism essences.
Meanwhile from the news packaging, viewers see that the points have already deliver the sense of investigation reporting, only a small correction related to the news packaging point.
Related to the theory this field investigation shows that there has been a tendency of what the theory call as the anchor impact, where the viewers still perceived the program as they showed in the beginning stages. Furthermore, the ego involvement also plays a big part in adjudicating the media. As the program goes and running continually, the viewers go on the perception that the
program should be seen as usual as an psychological impact of what the theory said, that the people is depending on the media as argued by Sandra BallRokeach and Melvin DeFleur. The program will be more is more ego involving to the audience, as the victim, or as ones who's trying to avoid the loses that caused by certain businesses. In this phenomenon, the dependency of the people to the media is proven to be existing.


Antimicrobial resistance is more widespread than can be accounted for as being a consequence of the selection pressure caused by the use of antibiotics alone. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that a high mercury content in feces might select for mercury-resistant bacteria and thus for antimicrobial resistance linked to mercury resistance. Three subject groups with different exposures to dental amalgam fillings were compared. None of the subjects had taken antimicrobial agents during the three preceding months or longer. The group exposed to dental amalgam (n = 92) had 13 times more mercury in feces than the group that had never been exposed to amalgam (n = 43) and the group whose amalgam fillings had been removed (n = 56). No significant differences in either mercury resistance or antibiotic resistance in the fecal aerobic gram-negative flora of these subject groups were seen. The following antimicrobial resistance frequencies were detected with a replica plating method: > or = 1% resistance was seen in 40% of the subjects for ampicillin, 14% of the subjects for cefuroxime, 6% of the subjects for nalidixic acid, 14% of the subjects for trimethoprim, 19% of the subjects for sulfamethoxazole, and 25% of the subjects for tetracycline. The amount of mercury in feces derived from amalgam was not selective for any resistance factors in aerobic gram-negative bacteria, but antimicrobial resistance was widespread even among healthy subjects with no recent exposure to antibiotics.


This paper presents a technique that helps automate the reverse engineering of device drivers. It takes a closed-source binary driver, automatically reverse engineers the driver's logic, and synthesizes new device driver code that implements the exact same hardware protocol as the original driver. This code can be targeted at the same or a different OS. No vendor documentation or source code is required. Drivers are often proprietary and available for only one or two operating systems, thus restricting the range of device support on all other OSes. Restricted device support leads to low market viability of new OSes and hampers OS researchers in their efforts to make their ideas available to the 'real world.' Reverse engineering can help automate the porting of drivers, as well as produce replacement drivers with fewer bugs and fewer security vulnerabilities. Our technique is embodied in RevNIC, a tool for reverse engineering network drivers. We use RevNIC to reverse engineer four proprietary Windows drivers and port them to four different OSes, both for PCs and embedded systems. The synthesized network drivers deliver performance nearly identical to that of the original drivers.


This paper revisits the problem of economic development questioning the implicit premise that developing economies are nascent systems on their way to maturity. It is proposed that the developing countries should instead be viewed as mature systems in a low-welfare homeostasis reached under resource constraints. When seen as mature systems, the transformation of the existing mix of economic activity into one that can yield better lives for people takes precedence over the widely advocated objectives of growth, productivity improvement, structural transformation, specialization for export, privatization and other such agendas that will not change the tendency towards the low-welfare homeostasis. Viewing developing countries as mature economies also calls for seeking as a part of the development strategy the accelerated decay of the obsolete and irrelevant baggage that might fill the landscape, so room is created for replacing it with more appropriate infrastructure. Schumpeter's concept of creative destruction and Forester's Urban Dynamics model are explored as alternative frameworks for economic development.


Pharmaceutical Nanotechnology Webinar will be held on November 30, 2020, accommodating proficiency gathering of academic and industrial expertise focusing on the theme "Reestablishing Innovation in nanotechnology for a conceivable future". This Webinar provides a platform to share new ideas and advancing technologies in Nanotechnology. This Webinar can focus on new concepts and approaches


Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate serum and peritoneal fluid (PF) glycodelin-A concentrations in women with ovarian endometriosis. Ninety-nine matched pairs of serum and PF samples were included in our study. The case group comprised 57 women with ovarian endometriosis and the control group 42 healthy women undergoing sterilization or patients with benign ovarian cysts. Glycodelin-A concentrations were measured using ELISA. Endometriosis patients had significantly higher serum and PF glycodelin-A concentrations compared to controls, and this increase was observed in both proliferative and secretory cycle phases. Glycodelin-A concentrations were more than 10-fold higher in PF than in serum and correlated with each other. Intensity and frequency of menstrual pain positively correlated with glycodelin-A concentrations. Sensitivity and specificity of glycodelin-A as a biomarker for ovarian endometriosis were 82.1% and 78.4% in serum, and 79.7% and 77.5% in PF, respectively. These results indicate that Glycodelin-A has a potential role as a biomarker to be used in combination with other, independent marker molecules.


Dirac electrons in clean graphene can mediate the interactions between two localized magnetic moments. The functional form of the RKKY interaction in pristine graphene is specified by two main features: (i) an atomic-scale oscillatory part determined by a wavevector Q → ?> connecting the two valleys; with doping another longer range oscillation appears which arises from the existence of an extended Fermi surface characterized by a momentum scale kF; (ii) an algebraic Rα decay in large distances where the exponent α =− 3 is a distinct feature of undoped Dirac sea in two dimensions. In this work, we investigate the effect of a few per cent vacancies on the above properties. Depending on the doping level, if the chemical potential lies on the linear part of the density of states, the exponent α remains at −3 even in vacant graphene. Otherwise α reduces towards more negative values. Presence of vacancies washes out both atomic-scale and Friedel oscillations of the RKKY interaction. The absence of atomic-scale oscillations indicates the destruction of two-valley structure of the parent graphene material. However, the absence of Friedel oscillations upon 'alloying' with vacancies indicates that a quantum ground state of heavily vacant doped graphene is not given by a unique kF momentum scale.


The purpose of this study is to examine how the trade balance between the United States and Mexico is influenced by the Peso/Dollar exchange rate as well as US and Mexican GDP. This study also briefly examines the Marshall-Lerner condition and J-curve phenomena. Quarterly GDP and real exchange rate data are analyzed using a statistical regression where the independent variables are domestic GDP, foreign GDP, and real exchange rates. Results of the regression are used to explain movements in the trade balance in terms of the variables, as well as evaluate the sensitivity to each. The analysis is conducted from the U.S. perspective meaning that depreciation, a reduction in the value of the U.S. Dollar relative the Mexican Peso, results in a rise in U.S. exports and a fall in U.S. Imports. The sample period of this study is 1994-I to 2010-IV. It was selected because the revaluation of the Mexican Peso was complete by 1994-I. Two models are used to analyze the US Mexico trade balance one an elasticity approach and the other an absorption approach. Results from both models show a fall in United States GDP positively impacts the trade balance; while a drop in Mexican GDP negatively affects the trade balance. Most importantly results show that the trade balance displays an immediate positive reaction to a depreciation of the Dollar. Further, the effects of depreciation have a positive impact on the trade balance for an additional three periods following the depreciation. These results support the hypothesis that the Marshall-Lerner condition is met and provide no evidence of J-Curve patterns.


How to motivate yourself to learn has always been an area of interest, gamification has become a way of capturing and enhancing ones motivation. But how should the learning applications be designded to maximize the users motivation? This paper adresses wether Yu-Kai Chous framework Octalysis, is applicable on learning applications. The study is conducted by using a modified set of heuristics that are applied to the evaluated applications to gather data that is then used to evaluate the framework. The paper concludes that the framework can be used to evaluate learning applications but it should be modified to improve the results. This modified framework is presented in the conclusion of this paper.


This paper presents a novel immersive Virtual Reality platform, named ARGO3D, tailored for improving research and teaching activities in Earth Sciences. The platform facilitates the exploration of geological environments and the assessment of geo-hazards, allowing reaching key sites of interest (some of them impossible to be reached in person) and thus to take measurements and collect data as it can be done in the real field. The target audience of ARGO3D encompasses students, teachers and early career scientists, as well as civil planning organisations and non-academics. The overall workflow for real ambient reconstruction, processing and rendering of the virtual ambient is presented, as well as a detailed description of the VR software tools and hardware devices employed.


Introduction Mediterranean diet has shown a protective role against cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer onset, microvascular damage and dementia in many trials. Our purpose is the assessment of a correlation between physical activity, Mediterranean diet, body mass index (BMI), depression and erection disorder (ED). Methods After having signed disclaimer to the study participation, we administered the IIEF 15 questionnaire (International Index of Erectil Function), the Hamilton questionnaire for major depression, the Med-Diet Questionnaire, the Ipaq Questionnaire (International Index of Physical Activity) to 245 patients and calculated the BMI. Only 141 were eligible. We excluded patients with a history of smoking, with obesity from the second grade to rise, anorexia, hyperlipidemia, Induratio Penis Plastica, diabetes, cardiovascular and neurological disease, hypogonadism, prostatitis, diabetes, hypertension, psychiatric diseases and the history of radical prostatectomy and finally age >72 and <50 years or who were taking cholesterol-lowering medication. Patients were divided into two groups: 65 patients without ED and 76 patients with ED. Results We found a statistically difference in BMI between the groups. Adherence to Med-Diet showed a significant difference between the two groups at Student t-test and the Chi-square test. The Ipaq test and Hamilton test did not show statistical differences between the two groups neither for Student t-test nor for Chi-square test, but high levels seem to be protective factors. Conclusions Body weight and a healthy diet are protective factors against the ED, more than a sufficient physical activity. Depression has shown only a worsening tendency of the erection.


Brazing of cemented carbides to steel bodies gives rise to the development of complex stress states and distortions which influence the fatigue behaviour of the parts. It is quite important to estimate the residual stresses with numerical methods whose agreement is to be guaranteed with experimental characterization of the brazed parts. In this work FEM simulations and X-ray as well as neutron stress analysis were used to examine the residual stresses of brazed samples. Joints with different geometries and dimensions made of cemented carbide and different steels showing different phase transformation behaviours were investigated.


In this paper, the conduction losses of power MOSFETs are calculated analytically for application in three-phase voltage DC-link pulsewidth modulation (PWM) power converter systems. Contrary to a conventional calculation, the dependency of the turn-on behavior on the drain current is considered in terms of a quadratic approximation. The derived relationships are represented graphically; they can be included directly into the dimensioning of the power transistors.


Objective: The aim of this study was to determine if a preoperative pain neuroscience education program would result in superior outcomes compared to usual preoperative education for total knee arthroplasty. Design: Controlled clinical trial with alternating allocation. Setting: Community-based hospital. Subjects: Consecutive sample of 120 patients scheduled for total knee arthroplasty. Intervention: Traditional hospital preoperative total knee arthroplasty education program on its own, or with an additional 30-minute group pain neuroscience education session. Main measures: Primary outcomes were measurements at one, three, and six months for pain, function, fear of movement, and pain catastrophization. We also compared opioid usage, healthcare expenses, and patient satisfaction between groups. Results: There were no statistically significant differences in any outcome measures between the two groups over time, except for patient satisfaction. Those in the experimental group had more agreement with statements about "preparation for surgery" (P = .038), "would do again" (P = .032), and "met expectations" (P = .033) compared to those in the control group averaged over the three measurement times. Patients improved in several outcome measures over time regardless of group assignment, with a 34% improvement in pain, 36% improvement in function, 16% improvement in fear of movement, and 23% improvement in pain catastrophization scores. Conclusion: Adding a brief 30-minute pain neuroscience education session to a traditional preoperative total knee arthroplasty education program did not result in any significant improvements, except patient satisfaction.


Thyroid hormones (THs) are essential for brain development, and iodine is required for TH synthesis. Environmental chemicals that perturb the thyroid axis result in modest reductions in TH, yet there is a paucity of data on the extent of neurological impairments associated with low-level TH disruption. This study examined the dose-response characteristics of marginal iodine deficiency (ID) on parameters of thyroid function and neurodevelopment. Diets deficient in iodine were prepared by adding 975, 200, 125, 25, or 0 µg/kg potassium iodate to the base casein diet to produce five nominal iodine levels ranging from ample (Diet 1: 1000 μg iodine/kg chow, D1) to deficient (Diet 5: 25 µg iodine/kg chow, D5). Female Long Evans rats were maintained on these diets beginning 7 weeks prior to breeding until the end of lactation. Dams were sacrificed on gestational days 16 and 20, or when pups were weaned on postnatal day (PN) 21. Fetal tissue was harvested from the dams, and pups were sacrificed on PN14 and PN21. Blood, thyroid gland, and brain were collected for analysis of iodine, TH, and TH precursors and metabolites. Serum and thyroid gland iodine and TH were reduced in animals receiving two diets that were most deficient in iodine. T4 was reduced in the fetal brain but was not altered in the neonatal brain. Neurobehavior, assessed by acoustic startle, water maze learning, and fear conditioning, was unchanged in adult offspring, but excitatory synaptic transmission was impaired in the dentate gyrus in animals receiving two diets that were most deficient in iodine. A 15% reduction in cortical T4 in the fetal brain was sufficient to induce permanent reductions in synaptic function in adults. These findings have implications for regulation of TH-disrupting chemicals and suggest that standard behavioral assays do not readily detect neurotoxicity induced by modest developmental TH disruption.


Background & Problem: Equestrian is the second largest youth sport in Sweden. Many young people struggle to maintain their avocation growing older. The common issue is the fact that it is one of the most expensive sports to perform, which implies large investments and spendings that is difficult to manage as a young adult. Is there a solution to make it more efficient for these young adults to keep up with their avocation and evolve the equestrian lifestyle?Aim: The aim of this thesis is to identify a suitable target group among students, to an accommodation concept developed by Julmyra Horse Center (JHC), and establish an overview what specific requirements this seeked target group might have.Method: A quantitative study is done by creating an online survey sent out to 200 students studying at Sweden's University of Agricultural Science (SLU) which is complemented by four qualitative interviews of the respondents from the qualitative survey.Result: There are students interested in the concept that JHC offer. Public transportation and that the lifestyle living at JHC is affordable are two recurring factors in the decision making process.Conclusion: A segment of students willing to invest in an equestrian lifestyle could be found. Price and placement are the two crucial elements to whether students would consider living at JHC or not. The target group is narrowed down to a smaller group, into a professional equestrian lifestyle.


Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a disabling, chronic disease characterized by the body's inability to produce sufficient energy for normal everyday activities. Children with ME/CFS experience debilitating fatigue referred to as post-exertional malaise (PEM) after minimal mental or physical exertion which is not relieved by sleep. It can significantly reduce the ability of the child to take part in personal, educational, or social activities and can compromise executive function, and can result in a moderate to severe disability. As many as 1% of school-age children suffer from this disease in varying degrees of severity, and ME/CFS has been shown to negatively impact school attendance, participation, connectedness, and academic performance (1). Some studies suggest that ME/CFS may be the major cause of extended school absences (2). Whereas, the literature supplying practice-based guidance for other chronic conditions affecting children in school, such as Autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) will be found in educational journals, very little guidance for students with ME/CFS appears in the clinical medicine literature. Although school nurses are beginning to play a larger role in supporting these children, physicians or healthcare providers retain primary responsibility of informing the school system of the needed adjustments for the young ME/CFS patient to succeed in the school environment. This article argues that the physician has a much broader responsibility to provide diagnostic, symptomatic, and treatment information about ME/CFS than they would with other conditions such as Autism or ADHD that qualify students for special services. For students with ME/CFS, the physician's letter required in the school's evaluation process is a critical resource to advise and guide education professionals regarding appropriate student placement, classroom support, and instructional accommodations or modifications. The specifics of what should be included in a model physician's letter are included.


ABSTRACT In light of the defund the police movement, it is imperative we consider what police reform could and potentially should look like. Some, for example, have called for a reduced police footprint in marginalised communities through reallocating police funding towards preventative services for a myriad of social issues. However, drawing on David Bayley's Police for the Future, we show that a dilemma arises with respect to police involvement in these issues: the police cannot be solely relied upon to address all social issues, but they cannot be fully absolved of the responsibility either. As such, further drawing on Bayley's thoughts for police reform, we instead argue for the adoption of evidence-based policing as a more fruitful driver of meaningful, long-term police reform as it not only enables the police to identify practices that are effective or even harmful, but it also can be used as means for police accountability.


From October 1994 qualified district nurses and health visitors from eight demonstration sites in England have been able to prescribe from a limited list of formulary items. Data collected from nurses formed only one part of the evaluation of nurse prescribing. These data highlighted a number of areas where prescribing nurses were faced with difficult decisions. A number of authors have considered how both doctors and nurses make decisions, and the factors which may influence the decision making process. With reference to the literature this paper focuses on the findings related to decision making in the context of nurse prescribing.


The demand for rehabilitation robots is increasing for the upcoming aging society. Power-assisting devices are considered promising for enhancing the mobility of elderly and disabled people. Other potential applications are for muscle rehabilitation and sports training. The main focus of this paper is to control the load of selected muscles by using a power-assisting device, thus enabling ldquopinpointedrdquo motion support, rehabilitation, and training by explicitly specifying the target muscles. By taking into account the physical interaction between human muscle forces and actuator driving forces during power-assisting, the feasibility of this muscle force control is analyzed as a constrained optimization problem. A prototype power-assisting device driven by pneumatic rubber actuators is developed. A control system is developed with a graphical user interface that provides an easy operation to designate desired forces for target muscles. The validity of the method is confirmed by experiments by measuring surface electromyographic (EMG) signals for target muscles.


Advocates of the market paradigm firmly support that 'getting the price right' would enhance industrial performance and thereby labour performance along the lines of comparative advantages. Development policy along this line was consistently pursued in Thailand from the early 1990s, following considerable inconsistencies after the initial attempt of trade liberalisation in the early 1970s. The average tariff rate in the manufacturing sector decreased substantially from 45.6 percent in 1993 to 18.5 percent in 2001. In view of this, it was hypothesised that the trade liberalisation in the early 1990s has had a positive impact on labour productivity, skilled workers and wage premiums. The research was initiated by testing for structural breaks using variables such as employment, output, export and intermediate-input import. The tests for employment indicate structural breaks in 1993 and 1999 which coincides the period of trade reforms. These results provide support for further research on the impact trade liberalisation on labour markets in Thailand. In this study, selected labour market performance variables labour productivity, wage premium and skilled/unskilled ratio were separately regressed on average tariff and other trade-related variables to test our hypothesis. Results from the study show that trade liberalisation had a positive impact on labour market performance. In addition, improvement in labour productivity has been reflected in wage premiums and skilled employment. The Thai experience unambiguously reflects a reallocation of resources towards high productivity and high skilled industrial sectors as a response to trade liberalisation.


Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in hematological malignancies. We have previously identified several differentially expressed lncRNAs in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) by microarray analysis. In this study, we explored the regulatory circuitry, potential functions, clinical and prognostic relevance of these lncRNAs in MDS by developing a lncRNA regulation network. We identified a novel lncRNA, LOC101928834, which was significantly upregulated in the bone marrow of patients with MDS and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). We further evaluated the clinical relevance of LOC101928834 in 89 MDS and 110 AML patients and found that higher level of LOC101928834 expression was associated with higher white blood cell count, higher blast percentage, the subtype of refractory cytopenia with excess blasts (RAEB) and shorter overall survival in MDS patients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that LOC101928834 expression could discriminate MDS-RAEB patients from control with an area under the receiver-operating curve (AUC) of 0.9048. Moreover, functional analysis showed that LOC101928834 promoted cell proliferation and cell cycle progression, and activated Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in vitro. In conclusion, LOC101928834 expression is correlated with clinical and biological features of MDS and may serve as a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker.


Background: Residual calculus exists not only on teeth treated by scaling alone but also on teeth treated by flap surgery. Periodontal microsurgery enables more definite removal of calculus, atraumatic handling of tissues through optical magnification. The purpose of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes of microsurgery with conventional open flap debridement in patients with chronic periodontitis. Methods: Thirteen chronic periodontitis patients were randomly assigned for test (microsurgical) and control (conventional) open flap debridement in a split mouth design. At baseline, 3, 6 and 9 months the following clinical parameters were recorded: Probing pocket depth, relative attachment level, gingival recession, gingival bleeding index. Postoperative healing at 1-week by early healing index and pain scale for 7 days were assessed. Results: Paired t-test was used to compare means within the groups, and unpaired t-test was applied to compare the means of the two groups. At 3, 6 and 9 months postoperatively there was a significant reduction in gingival bleeding index, probing pocket depth, relative attachment level within both the groups and there was no significant difference between both the groups. Gingival margin level and gingival recession increased in both the groups, but it was not statistically significant. Early healing Index score of 1 was found in 85% of test sites and 28% of control sites. The mean pain scale was 0 in test site and 1.07 ΁ 0.75 in control site. Conclusions: In open flap debridement procedure, a microsurgical approach can substantially improve the early healing index and induce less postoperative pain compared with applying a conventional macroscopic approach.


Abstract: This book analyses the economic situation of elite athletes in Germany. The athletes under investigation are from non-professionalised sports and receive funds from the German Sports Aid Foundation. An online survey was conducted to assess the income, life, and career situation of elite athletes. The sample was representative for the supported athletes with regard to age, gender, and squad level. With regard to the career situation, the results provide evidence on the sporting success and sporting goals of athletes as well as on the time spent on sport and the intention to drop out of the sport. With regard to the income situation, the findings indicate that many athletes have to work to finance their sporting career. The average brut and net income for athletes as well as hourly wages for athletes in several sports are provided and compared to other professions. Moreover, monthly sport-related expenditure and monthly available income are presented. The results section finishes with the athletes' agreement to a list of statements, their level of satisfaction with several aspects, the perceived intellectual support from several institutions, and some expectations from policy-makers. The book contains unique empirical findings on the situation of elite athletes in Germany.


OBJECTIVE Many of the "antiseptic" practices recommended by health care professionals for insulin injection have been successfully challenged as unnecessary. Since people with diabetes have long been observed to inject their insulin through their clothing, this study was undertaken to determine the safety and perceived benefits of administering insulin by this "rogue" technique. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Fifty people with insulin-treated diabetes were randomized into a 20-week single-blinded prospective crossover study comparing the conventional subcutaneous injection technique (with skin preparation) to an experimental injection technique through clothing. Skin assessment, glycated hemoglobin levels, and leukocyte count were determined before randomization, at 10 weeks (before crossover), and again at 20 weeks (at completion). The participants injected through a single layer of fabric, which ranged from nylon to denim. Problems, benefits, type of clothing, and other comments were recorded by the subjects in an injection log. RESULTS Forty-two (84%) subjects completed the study. The mean age was 41 years (range, 23–63 years), 50% were women, 86% were Caucasian, and 80% had type I diabetes. The mean duration of diabetes was 14 years (range, 1–33 years). Fifty-one percent had > 16 years of education. The demographic characteristics of the dropouts were similar to those who completed the study. Over the 20-week period ∼ 13,720 injections were performed by participants. None of the subjects experienced erythema, induration, or abscess at injection sites. Neither the glycated hemoglobin levels nor the leukocyte counts differed between the conventional and experimental regimens. During the injection-through-clothing phase of the study, only minor problems, such as blood stains on clothing and bruising, were recorded in the logbooks. However, subjects reported that injection through clothing offered benefits such as convenience and saving time. CONCLUSIONS It is safe and convenient to inject insulin through clothing.


Analog integer order notch filters (IONF) are practically realised by using two or more capacitors. If the dissipation factor of capacitors (used in the IONF) increases then the overall order of the circuit reduces. Reduction in the order causes attenuation-loss at the notch frequency. Once the order reduces, the loss can only be compensated by reducing the quality factor of the IONF circuit, which is not desirable. This problem can be overcome by using a fractional order notch filter (FONF). The FONF circuit uses fractional order capacitors ( $Z=\frac {1}{Cs^\beta }$ ), which provides an extra degree of design freedom to control the order of the circuit, thereby helping in compensating the attenuation-loss. In this work, a new fractional order notch filter (FONF) has been proposed in which the attenuation-loss, due to change in the order of the system, can be compensated by tuning resistor/s of the proposed circuit.


Early identification of students at risk of dyslexia has been an educational challenge in the past years. This research had two main goals. First, we aimed to develop a screening protocol for early identification of Brazilian children at risk for dyslexia; second, we aimed to identify the predictive variables of this protocol using Principal Component Analysis. The major step involved in developing this protocol was the selection of variables, which were chosen based on the literature review and linguistic criteria. The screening protocol was composed of seven cognitive-linguistic skills: Letter naming; Phonological Awareness (which comprises the following subtests: Rhyme production, Rhyme identification, Syllabic segmentation, Production of words from a given phoneme, Phonemic Synthesis, and Phonemic analysis); Phonological Working memory, Rapid naming Speed; Silent reading; Reading of words and non-words; and Auditory Comprehension of sentences from pictures. A total of 149 children, aged from 6 years to 6 and 11, of both genders who were enrolled in the 1st grade of elementary public schools were submitted to the screening protocol. Principal Component Analysis revealed four factors, accounting for 64.45% of the variance of the Protocol variables: first factor ("pre-reading"), second factor ("decoding"), third factor ("Reading"), and fourth factor "Auditory processing." The factors found corroborate those reported in the National and International literature and have been described as early signs of dyslexia and reading problems.


In few decades, non-conventional energy sources have been consider as the most encouraging source for off-grid power generation. It is challenging task to generate power with renewable sources integrated with grid with improved power quality. In this paper, an improved current control strategy is propose for photovoltaic grid connected system for empowerment of power quality. Also a hybrid PLL is propose in this paper which detects the phase angle with high accuracy. Due to the utilization of power electronic devices, harmonics are produce in system and this one is the major concern which creates the power quality issues. It is also difficult to compensate the effects imposes on system due to non-linear loads. Thus, the priority of this paper goes for the improvement of power quality by simply reducing total harmonic distortion (THD) with maintaining balance source under non-linear load condition. This paper includes some improved features of synchronous reference frame method which leads to a low THD. The propose method is simulated in matlab environment to reveal its fruitfulness.


Background: Physician assistant/associates (PAs) are health care professionals whose roles expand universal access to a broad range of people across many nations. In the US, there is a growing shortage of physicians. PAs and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) were developed to help span medical providers' supply and demand gap. A forecasting project was undertaken to predict the likely census of PAs in the medical workforce spanning 2020 to 2035. Methods: Microsimulation modeling of the American PA workforce was performed using standard stock and flow format. The number of clinically active PAs employed in 2020 formed the baseline. Graduation rates and PA program expansion were factored as critical parameters to predict annual growth; attrition estimates balanced the equation. Two models, one based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and another based on data from the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA), were analyzed to estimate future annual PA numbers. Results: As of 2020, the BLS estimated 125,280 PAs were employed in the medical workforce; the NCCPA estimate was 148,560 PA in active practice. The mean age was 40, and 76% were female. The Accreditation Review Commission accredited 277 PA education programs for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA), and 99% had a graduating class. The mean annual graduation cohort was 45. The BLS model predicted approximately 204,243 clinically active PAs by 2035; the NCCPA-based model predicted 211,537 PAs in clinical practice. Conclusions: A physician assistant/associate predictive model based on two data sources projects the supply of PAs by 2035 between 204,000 and 212,000: a growth rate of ± 35% (3.5% model differences). If the most likely scenario is realized, the 15-year growth of the PA will help improve the gap in the supply and demand of American medical service.


The development of customer-driven strategies requires companies first to identify what their customers want. This approach is most effective when consumers know what they want and have stable preferences that can be used to predict their future purchase decisions. However, evidence from several recent studies suggests that consumers' wants are often fuzzy, unstable, and susceptible to influence by a variety of seemingly irrelevant factors. Specifically, the choices that consumers make can be systematically affected by manipulating the set of alternatives under consideration, the manner in which alternatives are evaluated, the description of alternatives, and other factors. Accordingly, being close to the customer must involve an understanding of how consumers' preferences are shaped and influenced, rather than merely revealing and serving existing preferences. This article concludes with a discussion of ways in which companies can use current knowledge about the psychology of customer choice in the development of product, positioning, pricing, communications, and selling strategies.


Premise of the study Tribe Citharexyleae comprises three genera: Baillonia, Citharexylum, and Rehdera. While there is good support for these genera as a clade, relationships between genera remain unresolved due to low sampling of the largest genus, Citharexylum. A molecular phylogenetic approach was taken to resolve intergeneric relationships in Citharexyleae and infrageneric relationships in Citharexylum. Methods Seven chloroplast regions, two nuclear ribosomal spacers, and six low-copy nuclear loci were analyzed for 64 species of Citharexyleae. Phylogenetic analyses were conducted using maximum likelihood, Bayesian inference, and Bayesian multi-species coalescent approaches. Habit, presence/absence of thorns, inflorescence architecture, flower color, fruit color, and geography were examined to identify diagnostic characters for clades within Citharexylum. Key results Intergeneric relationships resolved Rehdera as sister to Citharexylum and Baillonia nested within Citharexylum. Two species, C. oleinum and C. tetramerum, fell outside of Citharexyleae close to tribe Duranteae. There is strong support for seven clades within Citharexylum, each characterized by a unique combination of geography, fruit color/maturation, and inflorescence architecture. Conclusions Baillonia is included in Citharexylum; Rehdera is retained as a distinct genus. A subgeneric classification for Citharexylum is proposed.


Background/Objective Electronic cigarette (E-cigarettes) emissions present a potentially new hazard to neonates through inhalation, dermal and oral contact. Exposure to nicotine containing E-cigarettes may cause significant systemic absorption in neonates due to the potential for multi-route exposure. Systemic absorption of nicotine and constituents of E-cigarette emissions may adversely impact weight and lung development in the neonate. To address these questions we exposed neonatal mice to E-cigarette emissions and measured systemic cotinine levels and alveolar lung growth. Methods/Main Results Neonatal mice were exposed to E-cigarettes for the first 10 days of life. E-cigarette cartridges contained either 1.8% nicotine in propylene glycol (PG) or PG vehicle alone. Daily weights, plasma and urine cotinine levels and lung growth using the alveolar mean linear intercept (MLI) method were measured at 10 days of life and compared to room air controls. Mice exposed to 1.8% nicotine/PG had a 13.3% decrease in total body weight compared to room air controls. Plasma cotinine levels were found to be elevated in neonatal mice exposed to 1.8% nicotine/PG E-cigarettes (mean 62.34± 3.3 ng/ml). After adjusting for sex and weight, the nicotine exposed mice were found to have modestly impaired lung growth by MLI compared to room air control mice (p<.054 trial 1; p<.006 trial 2). These studies indicate that exposure to E-cigarette emissions during the neonatal period can adversely impact weight gain. In addition exposure to nicotine containing E-cigarettes can cause detectable levels of systemic cotinine, diminished alveolar cell proliferation and a modest impairment in postnatal lung growth.


Source routing requires that the source station knows a route to the destination. The paper presents a new bridge protocol for route discovery in multiple-ring networks, where several token-rings are connected by bridges. The protocol gives to the source station an indication of the availability of a route to the destination. If such a route exists, the source is supplied with a description a list of ring and bridge identities of the route that is fastest at the time of protocol execution. The main advantage of the new route discovery protocol over the existing one is its communication efficiency: the number of frames used is the sum of the number of rings and number of bridges in the network, as opposed to the exponential function required in the existing protocol. Another advantage of the new protocol is its option that allows determining routes to multiple destinations, thus supporting efficient multicast source routing. Fig. 1. A Multiple-Ring Network.


In current practice, business processes modeling is done by trained method experts. Domain experts are interviewed to elicit their process information but not involved in modeling. We created a haptic toolkit for process modeling that can be used in process elicitation sessions with domain experts. We hypothesize that this leads to more effective process elicitation. This paper brakes down "effective elicitation" to 14 operationalized hypotheses. They are assessed in a controlled experiment using questionnaires, process model feedback tests and video analysis. The experiment compares our approach to structured interviews in a repeated measurement design. We executed the experiment with 17 student clerks from a trade school. They represent potential users of the tool. Six out of fourteen hypotheses showed significant difference due to the method applied. Subjects reported more fun and more insights into process modeling with tangible media. Video analysis showed significantly more reviews and corrections applied during process elicitation. Moreover, people take more time to talk and think about their processes. We conclude that tangible media creates a different working mode for people in process elicitation with fun, new insights and instant feedback on preliminary results.