Copy number variants are insertions and deletions of 1 kb or larger in a genome that play an important role in phenotypic changes and human disease. Many software applications have been developed to detect copy number variants using either whole-genome sequencing or whole-exome sequencing data. However, there is poor agreement in the results from these applications. Simulated datasets containing copy number variants allow comprehensive comparisons of the operating characteristics of existing and novel copy number variant detection methods. Several software applications have been developed to simulate copy number variants and other structural variants in whole-genome sequencing data. However, none of the applications reliably simulate copy number variants in whole-exome sequencing data. We have developed and tested SECNVs (Simulator of Exome Copy Number Variants), a fast, robust and customizable software application for simulating copy number variants and whole-exome sequences from a reference genome. SECNVs is easy to install, implements a wide range of commands to customize simulations, can output multiple samples at once, and incorporates a pipeline to output rearranged genomes, short reads and BAM files in a single command. Variants generated by SECNVs are detected with high sensitivity and precision by tools commonly used to detect copy number variants. SECNVs is publicly available at https://github.com/YJulyXing/SECNVs.


Pain is a subjective, multidimensional experience that depends on many factors, including pain stimulus intensity, expectations and mood. Compared to questionnaires, pain event-related potentials (pain ERP) allow pain to be evaluated more objectively. Pain ERP means that people receive pain stimuli, for instance electrical stimuli applied to the finger, with simultaneous registration of electrical brain activity. Habituation is an important phenomena following repeated exposure to pain stimuli, describing the progressive decrease of brain signal amplitude. Habituation occurs less in people with chronic pain and is considered a potential key mechanism in the development of chronic pain. Pain hypervigilance, i.e. heightened vigilance for pain sensations, has an impact on pain experience as well. This dissertation examines the relationship between habituation, hypervigilance and chronic pain. We used a new analysis method called the Event-Related Fixed-Interval Area (ERFIA) multilevel method, which not only evaluates ERP peaks, but also examines the pain ERP in closer detail. We showed that stimulus intensity, habituation and hypervigilance had an impact on large sections of the ERP. People with chronic pain showed reduced habituation independent of hypervigilance. Both chronic pain and hypervigilance were independently associated with reduced habituation of the pain ERP. These findings are relevant to the development of future treatment strategies.


Despite the significant research on automation systems verification, further work is needed on methods for the industrial scale verification of automated processes that are able to cover control software errors, sensor and actuator errors as well as design errors in the process to be controlled. In this paper, such an approach is based building on previous work on runtime verification using plant simulation models created during the plant design process. A framework for runtime verification is proposed based on keyword driven testing that is applied to the entire automated process rather than only to control software. Through the use of ontologies, the framework is made independent of any particular simulator. The approach is demonstrated with a case study from the mineral processing industry.


The main focus for this study was to compare and evaluate the quality changes and to determine the shelf life of previously frozen whole cod fishes (Gadus morhua) using rapid and slow freezing methods. Whole cod fishes were frozen to an internal temperature of -18°C using an air blast freezer (rapid freezing) and a freezer (slow freezing) then kept in the freezer at -18°C for two weeks. After which all fishes were thawed quickly at ambient temperatures, cut into slices, air package and store at 4°C for ten days. Chemical, microbiological and basic nutritional analyses and sensory evaluations were used to determine the quality changes and shelf life of the thawed fishes. The data and statistical test (p<0.05) showed no significant differences between the two methods of freezing and sensory evaluations determined the shelf life to have ended after three days in chilled storage.


Recently, variational auto-encoder (VAE) based approaches have made impressive progress on improving the diversity of generated responses. However, these methods usually suffer the cost of decreased relevance accompanied by diversity improvements. In this paper, we propose a novel multimodal response generation framework with exemplar augmentation and curriculum optimization to enhance relevance and diversity of generated responses. First, unlike existing VAE-based models that usually approximate a simple Gaussian posterior distribution, we present a Gaussian mixture posterior distribution (i.e, multimodal) to further boost response diversity, which helps capture complex semantics of responses. Then, to ensure that relevance does not decrease while diversity increases, we fully exploit similar examples (exemplars) retrieved from the training data into posterior distribution modeling to augment response relevance. Furthermore, to facilitate the convergence of Gaussian mixture prior and posterior distributions, we devise a curriculum optimization strategy to progressively train the model under multiple training criteria from easy to hard. Experimental results on widely used SwitchBoard and DailyDialog datasets demonstrate that our model achieves significant improvements compared to strong baselines in terms of diversity and relevance.


Earth radiation budget instruments are devices designed to study global climate change. These instruments use telescopes embarked on low-earth-orbit satellites to measure Earth emitted and reflected solar radiation. Radiation is sensed as temperature changes caused by radiation absorbed during scans of the earth on a delicate gold-black coated detector. This work is part of a larger effort to develop an end-to-end dynamic electro-thermal model, based on first-principles, for the next generation of earth radiation budget instruments, the Radiation Budget Instrument (RBI). A primary objective of this effort is to develop a numerical model of the detector to be used on RBI. Specifically, the sensor model converts radiation arriving at the detector, collimated and focused through telescopes, into sensible heat; thereby producing a voltage. A mathematical model characterizing this sensor is developed. Using a MATLAB algorithm, an implicit finite-volume scheme is implemented to determine the model solution. Model parameters are tuned to replicate experimental data using a robust parameter estimation scheme. With these model parameters defined, the electro-thermal sensor model can be used, in conjunction with the remaining components of the end-to-end model, to provide insight for future interpretation of data produced by the RBI. Thermal Analysis of the Detector in the Radiation Budget Instrument (RBI)


n this article we argue that, to date, the knowledge management literature has insufficiently ad- dressed the construct of power. The power literature is reviewed using three categories: power-as- entity, power-as-strategy and power-is-knowledge. We find that much of the knowledge management literature, while not directly addressing power, aspires to the dictum "knowledge is power", which corresponds to the power-as-entity approach. Drawing on the work of Foucault we go on to show that, while the power-as-entity approach is important, it is not sufficient. Foucault's work demonstrates how our understanding of knowledge management can be enriched by adopting a power-as-strat- egy approach. Further, the work of post-Foucauldian power theorists, especially Flyvbjerg (1998), shows that while knowledge is power, "power is also knowledge" — and thus the nature and context of power shapes organizational knowledge. We argue that Foucault's inseparability of knowledge and power provides a foundation from which it can be shown that the inversion of the "knowledge is power" dictum to "power is knowledge" has significant implications for the theory and practice of knowledge management.


A comparison study of radiation damage in n-type silicon grown by the floating zone technique and n-type silicon carbide grown by the sublimation epitaxy technique was carried out for the first time under the same irradiation conditions. This comparison is drawn for an energy region of fast electrons at ≈ 1 MeV where Frenkel pairs as primary defects, i e the self-interstials bound to their parent vacant sites at a distance of a few lattice spacings, are produced most effectively. The removal rates of charge carriers in n-Si and n-SiC (4H and 6H) were found to be about 0.23 cm-1 and 0.015 cm-1, respectively. The possible reasons of the observed difference are briefly discussed.


There has been a tendency in the sociology of education to stress the anxieties and fears that are so potently aroused in relation to the transition to secondary school. While this work is extremely important we suggest that an emphasis on fear and anxiety cannot get to grips with the very real sense of excited anticipation with which the children's talk in our study is also infused. The focus of this paper is to consider some of the ways in which anxiety does figure in children's narratives around the secondary school transfer. We examine some of the positive functions of anxiety as part of a developmental process, placing it as an integral and necessary force in transitional states, particularly those connected to changes which impact powerfully on children's construction of 'self'. We consider some of the ways in which some psycho-dynamic frameworks (object relations theories) and social theories (particularly modernism) conceptualise anxiety and its place in the struggle involved in the project of 'selfhood'.


The recF143 mutant of Escherichia coli is deficient in certain functions that also require the RecA protein: cell survival after DNA damage, some pathways of genetic recombination, and induction of SOS genes and temperate bacteriophage through cleavage of the LexA and phage repressors. To characterize the role of RecF in SOS induction and RecA activation, we determined the effects of the recF143 mutation on the rate of RecA-promoted cleavage of LexA, the repressor of the SOS genes. We show that RecA activation following UV irradiation is delayed by recF143 and that RecF is specifically involved in the SOS induction pathway that requires DNA replication. At 32 degrees C, the recA441 mutation partially suppresses the defect of recF mutants in inducing the SOS system in response to UV irradiation (A. Thomas and R. G. Lloyd, J. Gen. Microbiol. 129:681-686, 1983; M. R. Volkert, L. J. Margossian, and A. J. Clark, J. Bacteriol. 160:702-705, 1984); we find that this suppression occurs at the earliest detectable phase of LexA cleavage and does not require protein synthesis. Our results support the idea that following UV irradiation, RecF enhances the activation of RecA into a form that promotes LexA cleavage (A. Thomas and R. G. Lloyd, J. Gen. Microbiol. 129:681-686, 1983; M. V. V. S. Madiraju, A. Templin, and A. J. Clark, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 85:6592-6596, 1988). In contrast to the constitutive activation phenotype of the recA441 mutant, the recA441-mediated suppression of recF is not affected by adenine and nucleosides. We also find that wild-type RecA protein is somewhat activated by adenine in the absence of DNA damage.


Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1), a critical kinase for mitotic progression, is overexpressed in a wide range of cancers. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNA molecules and proposed to play important roles in the regulation of tumor progression and invasion. However, the relationship between PLK1 and miRNAs have remained unclear. In the present study, the association between PLK1 and miR-296-5p was investigated. The upregulation of PLK1 mRNA expression levels combined with the downregulation of miR-296-5p levels were detected in both non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tissues and cell lines. Functional studies showed that knockdown of PLK1 by siRNA inhibited NSCLC cells proliferation. Impressively, overexpression of miR-296-5p showed the same phenocopy as the effect of PLK1 knockdown in NSCLC cells, indicating that PLK1 was a major target of miR-296-5p. Furthermore, using western blot analysis and luciferase reporter assay, PLK1 protein expression was proved to be regulated by miR-296-5p through binding to the putative binding sites in its 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR). Taken together, the present study indicated that miR-296-5p regulated PLK1 expression and could function as a tumor suppressor in NSCLC progression, which provides a potential target for gene therapy of NSCLC.


In Complexity and Contradiction Robert Venturi presents a critique of modernism, with its rigid systems and fetishization of the functional. Mining the past and utilizing examples as diverse as Borromini's churches and Frank Furness's houses, Venturi addresses the complexity of architectural form, made visible through unexpected juxtapositions and scalar manipulations. He considers intricate baroque ornament and heavy Egyptian columns alongside Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye to impress upon the reader that the study of architecture requires close analysis and historical breadth. The perspective is that of a designer, however, not a historian, a point Venturi makes clear from the outset.

The book ends with twelve of the architect's own projects, seven of which were unrealized. The same black-and-white photography that caresses the facades of Roman churches documents Venturi's Guild House housing project for the elderly in Philadelphia. The implicit connection is that of form and memory, and a blending of everyday materiality with historical reference. The polemic thus calls for an architecture of remembrance, the images composed like a dream sequence of memories long internalized. However, the past is not a passive imprint but a reflection of "society's inverted scale of values" (43).1 The central issue is that of representation, of architecture itself as well as the multiple discursive positions that it may enable.2

The book is provocative and visually sophisticated, and its influence in the fifty years since its publication cannot be overestimated. The power of Venturi's argument for historicism lies in its flexibility. Although answers to the questions "Whose history?" and "Which moment in time?" are alluded to in Complexity and Contradiction , they are also left somewhat ambiguous (for example, even though Venturi provides no dates and makes no attempt at geographic specificity, his bias toward Italian baroque comes through). Venturi's claim for using traditional building …


In our increasingly globalised economy, managing continuous change whilst remaining competitive and dynamic has become a central issue for firms in the industrial sector. One of the elements for obtaining this competitiveness is the value creation model of the firm. The most important challenges in firms are characterised by dynamic complexity which makes it difficult to understand factors in their context. Consequently management and decision making is hindered (Antunes et al., 2011). Business models are characterised by complexity and dynamism. Performance of the firm is a complex topic determined by the large amount of variables that can be involved in the system, and the different effects that influence the system in the short and long term. Due to this complexity a systemic view is required, that is, an holistic view of the whole system. Such a systemic view enables managers to make decisions based on evidence rather than intuition and personal experiences, as they understand how the whole system works. Thus, the main aim of this research is to use an empirical tool such as System Dynamics (SD), to support and sustain firms in the identification of new constructs related to their Business Model (BM).


The billet of magnesium AZ31B was made by twin-screw rheo-cast, and the specimen cut from the rheo-cast billet and normal cast billet were compressed in Gleeble-3000 hot simulator. The deformation temperature was 300, 350, and the strain rates were 0.001~1s-1. The relationship among flow stress, deformation temperature and strain rates were analyzed. The variation of the microstructure was observed and compared after the specimen was hot compressed. The results show that the surface of the rheo-cast specimen is much more smooth than the normal cast specimen after the compression. The dynamic recrystallization had taken place during the compression and the recrystallized grain of rheo-cast sample is more tiny than normal cast specimen.


Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease leading to inflammatory tissue damage in multiple organs (e.g., lupus nephritis). Current treatments including steroids, antimalarials, and immunosuppressive drugs have significant side effects. Activated protein C is a natural protein with anticoagulant and immunomodulatory effects, and its recombinant version has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat severe sepsis. Given the similarities between overshooting immune activation in sepsis and autoimmunity, we hypothesized that recombinant activated protein C would also suppress SLE and lupus nephritis. To test this concept, autoimmune female MRL-Fas(lpr) mice were injected with either vehicle or recombinant human activated protein C from week 14–18 of age. Activated protein C treatment significantly suppressed lupus nephritis as evidenced by decrease in activity index, glomerular IgG and complement C3 deposits, macrophage counts, as well as intrarenal IL-12 expression. Further, activated protein C attenuated cutaneous lupus and lung disease as compared with vehicle-treated MRL-Fas(lpr) mice. In addition, parameters of systemic autoimmunity, such as plasma cytokine levels of IL-12p40, IL-6, and CCL2/MCP-1, and numbers of B cells and plasma cells in spleen were suppressed by activated protein C. The latter was associated with lower total plasma IgM and IgG levels as well as lower titers of anti-dsDNA IgG and rheumatoid factor. Together, recombinant activated protein C suppresses the abnormal systemic immune activation in SLE of MRL-Fas(lpr) mice, which prevents subsequent kidney, lung, and skin disease. These results implicate that recombinant activated protein C might be useful for the treatment of human SLE. The Journal of Immunology , 2011, 187: 3413–3421.


ABSTRACT West Nile virus (WNV) is now widely distributed worldwide, except in most areas of Asia where Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is distributed. Considering the movement and migration of reservoir birds, there is concern that WNV may be introduced in Asian countries. Although manuals and guidelines for serological tests have been created in Japan in preparedness for the introduction of WNV, differential diagnosis between WNV and JEV may be complicated by antigenic cross-reactivities between these flaviviruses. Here, we generated a monoclonal antibody specific for the nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of WNV and established an epitope-blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay that can differentiate WNV from JEV infections in horse sera. Under conditions well suited for our assay system, samples collected from 95 horses in Japan (regarded as negative for WNV antibodies), including those collected from horses naturally infected with JEV, showed a mean inhibition value of 8.2% and a standard deviation (SD) of 6.5%. However, inhibition values obtained with serum used as a positive control (obtained after 28 days from a horse experimentally infected with WNV) in nine separate experiments showed a mean of 54.4% and an SD of 7.1%. We tentatively determined 27.6% (mean + 3 × SD obtained with 95 negative samples) as the cutoff value to differentiate positive from negative samples. Under this criterion, two horses experimentally infected with WNV were diagnosed as positive at 12 and 14 days, respectively, after infection.


Ambitious therapeutic goals in the therapy of inflammatory bowel disease need more stringent individual endpoints. Several definitions for composite endpoints are under evaluation to describe disease control. Most commonly symptomatic (PRO2) remission is combined with endoscopic response, histology and/or biomarker remission. Here we explore the addition of fatigues as a lead problem reported by patients with IBD as part of a composite endpoint.

 We have conducted an interim analysis of an ongoing open label study of patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) assigned to anti-TNF therapy, vedolizumab, ustekinumab or tofacitinib. Patients are scheduled for evaluations at start of the respective therapy and at weeks 2, 6, 14, 26 and 52. Endoscopies are conducted before therapy and at weeks 14 and 52. Clinical remission (CR) was defined as CDAI < 150 and reduction of partial Mayo score (pMayo) > 50% vs. baseline at week 14. All patients who are not in CR and/or no improvement in endoscopy at week 14 are assessed for a switch in the mechanism of action and observation schedules after a switch are reset to week 0. FACIT-F scores <30 was defined as clinically relevant fatigue.

 Fatigue was present in 52% patients (39/75) at baseline. 54% (25/46) of the patients achieved CR at week 14 while 46% (21/46) did not meet CR criteria (non-responder). Fatigue at baseline was persistent at week 14 in 12% (3/25) of CR responders, in contrast to 43 % (9/21) of non-responders. 64% (21/33) of all patients reached a combined endpoint of CR and absence of fatigue. If fatigue was present at baseline (n = 25), fatigue response was observed in 52% (13/25) of the patients, while CR was only reached in 40% (10/25) and the combined endpoint of CR and fatigue response in 24% (6/25) of the patients at week 14. In contrast, 71% (15/21) of patients without fatigue at baseline reached CR at week 14. Absence of fatigue at baseline thus increased the chance of CR at week 14, with an OR of 3.75 [1.031 – 11.50] (p = 0.0422 in Fisher's exact test).

 Fatigue is an important complaint strongly impacting the patients' quality of life. A composite endpoint including fatigue and clinical remission (based on pMayo and CDAI) can be reached in a significant percentage of patients treated with biological therapies. Presence of fatigue at baseline might serve as a strong marker for clinical non-response at week 14. Further evaluation and replication of this novel composite endpoint will be conducted in our ongoing trial with a particular focus on inclusion of endoscopies and long-term outcome.


Dogon masks have been famous for a long time—and none more so than the kanaga mask, the so-called croix de Lorraine. A host of interpretations of this particular mask circulate in the literature, ranging from moderately exotic to extremely exotic. This contribution will focus on one particular mask situated within the whole mask troupe, and it will do so in the ritual setting to which it belongs: a second funeral, long after the burial. A description of this ritual shows how the mask troupe forms the constantly moving focus in a captivating ritual serving as second funeral. Thus, the mask rites bridge major divides in Dogon culture, between male and female, between man and nature, and between this world and the supernatural one. They are able to do so because they themselves are in constant motion, between bush and village and between sky and earth. Masks are matter in motion and symbols in context. Within imagistic religions such as the Dogon one, these integrative functions form a major focus of Dogon masks rituals—and hence, to some extent, of African mask rituals in general. In the Dogon case, the ritual creates a virtual reality through a highly embodied performance by the participants themselves. Then, the final question can be broached, that of interpretation. What, in the end, do these masquerades signify? And our kanaga mask, what does it stand for?


Introduction Decompensated chronic liver disease (DCLD) is a medical emergency with high mortality, usually managed by non-specialists in emergency (ED) and acute medical (AMU) departments in critical early stages. A recently introduced BSG/BASL care bundle1 (CB) highlights crucial investigations, which can influence outcome if performed early (<6 hr). We audited performance against CB recommendations and impact on outcome. Methods Data was reviewed retrospectively using electronic records. Adherence to 4 key CB investigations (blood tests/cultures, ultrasound (US) and ascitic tap in <6 hr) was logged, plus arrival/admission time and outcome (length of stay – LOS; readmission rate, mortality). Results All patients admitted over 3 months with DCLD were included (n = 25 patients/33 total AMU admissions). Ascites (51.5%) and jaundice (24.2%) were the commonest presenting complaints. Most (57.6%) had Childs C disease (Childs A 6%; B 36.4%). LOS was variable (mean 11 days; median 7 [1–60]), and 7 people were readmitted within 1 month. In-patient mortality was 16% (12.1% of admissions) in keeping with national data, and 80% were alive at 3 months. No-one had all 4 investigations performed within 6 hr of admission. 81.8% had routine blood tests performed (usually by ED), but only 15.1% had blood cultures, despite early identification of sepsis being a critical aspect of DCLD care. All cultures were taken for other reasons (e.g. cellulitis, pyrexia/rigour) suggesting sepsis risk in DCLD is under-appreciated by non-specialists. 39.4% had US requested within 6 hr and there was a lack of awareness of hepatoma/venous thrombosis as DCLD precipitants. Just 24.1% of those with ascites had a diagnostic tap within 6 hr, with most not performed until under gastroenterology care. Data suggests this was due to inexperience of the admitting doctor, both in understanding importance of excluding/treating sepsis early, and technical capability to perform the test. Slow patient flow added considerable delay to assessment/investigation, with 35% arriving in AMU > 6 hr post ED arrival (mean 4.5; median 5.5 [0.3–16 hr]), closing the window of opportunity for early intervention. There was a non-significant trend towards long waits in those who subsequently died (mean 7.5 hr; median 5.9 [3.6–14.5]), but no correlation between delay and LOS. Conclusion Patients with DCLD were under-investigated and experienced considerable delay in assessment and investigation, possibly impacting mortality. CB awareness was limited, and we identified failure of non-specialists to appreciate causes of DCLD and importance of rapid and robust assessment, compounded by delays in patient flow. We arranged talks for AMU staff on DCLD, and have commenced enhanced gastroenterology in-reach for ED/AMU, to identify and treat patients more rapidly. Reference 1 http://www.bsg.org.uk/images/stories/docs/decomp_cirrhosis_care_bundle.doc Disclosure of Interest None Declared


Underdevelopment of most African countries in spite of their riches is informed by interest, recklessness, and greed played by dishonest and corrupt politicians; neither religion nor ethnic geographies; because other nations like America and Switzerland exist as entities irrespective of their differences. That is why; behind the facade of democracy there are vultures that confiscate and share the countries resources into their pockets as portrayed in Parliament of Vultures by Emeka Nwabueze. Most Nigerian Politicians lack conscience. Consequently, the once giant of Africa-Nigeria becomes a laughing stock while her neglected youths take to kidnapping and killing. Dramatic art as a close observer ex-rays the society to reveal to the masses the mysteries that surround them. They disclose to the ignorant masses the impending danger created by unscrupulous and perverted politicians and suggest ways of reformation. Essentially, this paper attempts the analysis of literary influence on politics through the visionary windows provided by Emeka Nwabueze. Politics is a social experience; and social experience is to a literary artist as air is to life. Events within the writer"s environment provide source materials for his imagination with which he creates enduring works of art. To this end, this paper tilts to sociological approach in the analyses of the play. It deduces and submits decisively that literature with its moral force holds much power to sway, persuade or induce, therefore cohere with politics for development of any society.


On the basis of the Neyman‐Scott process a model is proposed to generate rainfall at two sites simultaneously. This model takes into account the correlation, which is produced by generating bivariate correlated variates. The cross correlation between the sites has been computed in order to estimate the parameters. Finally, the model is validated for three pairs of stations situated in the Swiss Plateau region.


In this dissertation, we introduce different models for understanding and controlling the spreading dynamics of a network with a consumable resource. In particular, we consider a spreading process where a resource necessary for transit is partially consumed along the way while being refilled at special nodes on the network. Examples include fuel consumption of vehicles together with refueling stations, information loss during dissemination with error correcting nodes, consumption of ammunition of military troops while moving, and migration of wild animals in a network with a limited number of water-holes. We undertake this study from two different perspectives. First, we consider a network science perspective where we are interested in identifying the influential nodes, and estimating a nodes' relative spreading influence in the network. For this reason, we propose generalizations of the well-known centrality measures to model such a spreading process with consumable resources. Next, from an optimization perspective, we focus on the application of an Electric Vehicle road network equipped with wireless charging lanes as a resource allocation problem. The objective is this case is to identify a set of nodes for optimal placement of the wireless charging lanes. For this reason, we propose an integer programming model formulation and use it as a building block for different realistic scenarios. We conclude this dissertation by giving an approach to improve route selection for the optimization model proposed by using feedback data while giving comparisons to different realistic scenarios.


This main purpose of this study was to investigate the aesthetic components of environmental graphics of Iran Birds Garden using a method of descriptive analytics. Library resources were used to collect data. Two bird gardens in Asia were selected as the research statistical population and were analyzed qualitatively. The major objectives of this study were designing new and efficient ideas to increase the Iranian and foreign tourists, investigating Asian birds garden in terms of pictograms, designing guide signs in this garden and finding a solution to improve this branch of graphics in Iran. The results indicated the use of simple and understandable pictographic symbols and signs, animal motifs inspired by birds original form and color can attract domestic and foreign tourists to these gardens. Since the environmental graphics as a powerful instrument and science to attract international and Iranian visitors has not received proper attention in Iran, this paper tried to investigate this branch of visual communication collecting comprehensive information about aesthetics and environmental graphics.
Keywords: Environmental graphics; aesthetics; pictograms; birds garden
References:
Ostovar, M. (2013). Environmental Graphic Art, First Edition. Tehran: Razname Publications.
Iloukhani, M. (2014). Environmental Graphics, Second Edition. Tehran: Fatemi Publications.
Rashvand, Z. (2013). Graphic Design with an Approach to Cities Way finding Information Functions" Ketabe Mahe Honar, No. 184, 86-91.
Abedi, A. (2012) Graphics: Analysis and Criticism, First Edition. Tehran: Ketab Ame Publications.
Ebadian, M. (2011) "A Selection of Hegel's Aesthetics, Third Edition, Tehran: Art Academy.
Frasca, J.(2007). Graphic Design: Beautiful Art or Social Science Translated by Mohammad Reza Farzad and Herfeh Honaramand,19, 14-28.
Falahdar, Homeira (2007) "The Role of Environmental Graphics in Educational Centers, Growth of Art Education Quarterly, 1, 21.
Collins, D. (2009). Aesthetics Experience, Translated by Farideh Farnoudfar, Second Edition. Tehran: Art Academy.
Karimian, S. A. (2013). Aesthetics Fundamentals in Islamic Mysticism, First Edition. Tehran: SAMT Publications.
Karimi, M. M. (2013) Approaches and Methods in Urban Aesthetics", Baghe Nazar, 24, 47-56.
Gout, B., Dominique M. L. (2010). Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, Translated by Manouchehr Sanei Dareh, Fourth Edition. Tehran: Art Academy.
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Jaberi, A., Majid. (2013) Visual Analysis of Font and Pictogram in Environmental Graphics of Zoo", Art University, Tehran.


In our previous work (1993) we developed a method for extracting fuzzy rules directly from numerical input-output data for pattern classification. In this paper we extend the method to function approximation. For function approximation, first, the universe of discourse of an output variable is divided into multiple intervals, and each interval is treated as a class. Then the same as for pattern classification, using the input data for each interval, fuzzy rules are recursively defined by activation hyperboxes which show the existence region of the data for the interval and inhibition hyperboxes which inhibit the existence region of data for that interval. The approximation accuracy of the fuzzy system derived by this method is empirically studied using an operation learning application of a water purification plant. Additionally, we compare the approximation performance of the fuzzy system with the function approximation approach based on neural networks. >


Surveying the dizzying universe of classic books, Michael Dirda, the Pulitzer Prize-winning literary essayist, proves himself to be one of the most engaging critics of our time-and great fun to read. Opening with an impassioned critique of modern reading habits, he then presents many of the great, and idiosyncratic, writers he loves most. In this showcase of one hundred of the world's most astonishing books, Dirda covers a remarkable range of literature, including popular genres such as the detective novel and ghost story, while never neglecting the deeper satisfactions of sometimes overlooked classics. Short-listed for the Los Angeles Times Book Award for criticism, Bound to Please is a glorious celebration of just how much fun reading can be.


Focusing on green buildings does not only help to reduce climate change it also increases the quality of life by improving people's health and wellbeing. Solar energy is an important contributor to improving air quality as it is an emission free form of power generation. Solar energy contributes to new green buildings or renovations by producing energy for either direct use at the respective site or by feeding it into the energy grid, where feed-in tariffs have been established by the country's government. The economic advantages of a solar system lie in its energy and revenue generating effects, in its capability to increase the value of a property and in the competitive advantages it provides to the owners business. Today most roofs are unused space. As traditional PV systems – framed in glass and tilted – are often too heavy for low load bearing industrial roofs the application of PV systems is restricted to a few heavy weight carrying industrial and residential roofs. To reduce climate change effects and the dependency on fossil fuels Solar Integrated has developed various lightweight PV products to make low-slope industrial roofs accessible for solar energy. As an example our Solar Membrane Roofing, which consists of a traditional roofing membrane with integrated PV elements. These modules are welded to existing or new membrane roofs. Such PV system adds only 4,9kg/m² to the weight. As the PV system becomes an integrated part of the roof, it is aesthetically pleasing and allows taking advantage of higher feed in tariffs for building integrated PV in some countries. Products for metal roofs and for combination with green roofs make a wide range of roofing types available for solar power generation. In a case study the energy generation and emission saving benefits of an installed PV system will be explored in detail.


Abstract Adaptive finite element method (adaptivity) is known to be an effective numerical tool for some ill-posed problems. The key advantage of the adaptivity is the image improvement with local mesh refinements. A rigorous proof of this property is the central part of this paper. In terms of coefficient inverse problems with single measurement data, the authors consider the adaptivity as the second stage of a two-stage numerical procedure. The first stage delivers a good approximation of the exact coefficient without an advanced knowledge of a small neighborhood of that coefficient. This is a necessary element for the adaptivity to start iterations from. Numerical results for the two-stage procedure are presented for both computationally simulated and experimental data.


This atlas provides data on formation water compositions from throughout the North Sea Basin. It is intended for a varied audience with different needs: production chemists for scale prediction, petrophysicists for estimation of water resistivity and geochemists and geologists for the interpretation of water compositions and basin plumbing. The objective at the outset was not simply to provide a table of water compositions, but to supply as much supplementary data on reservoir conditions and geological setting as possible to enable the individual data to be placed in context. The atlas contains four main sections: a field compendium, comprising a field-by-field compilation of water compositions with accompanying geological description and field maps; a water resistivity (Rw) atlas updating a 1989 publication by the Society of Professional Well Log Analysts (Amiard & Harrison 1989); scale prediction maps estimating susceptibility of produced waters to scaling; and a water chemistry atlas containing maps and figures illustrating the spatial and stratigraphic distributions of water compositions. It has not been the intention here to provide interpretations of the data; the objectives are to make observations of major trends and clusters of data and to highlight anomalies. Problematic data are indicated within the field notes and consultation of these is strongly recommended. We wish to thank all those parties involved in the preparation of this volume. In particular: Mike Findlay and Stewart Brown of the Petroleum Science and Technology Institute, Edinburgh who helped with the data gathering process. Mike Collins of the Geological Society of London Publishing ... This 250-word extract was created in the absence of an abstract.


Certain practices and procedures that take place in the emergency department may complicate the subsequent investigation of a death. Recognizing that the emergency physician has a duty to care for the living patient that cannot be compromised, the author focuses on the areas in which emergency department practices may be modified to better meet the need for an accurate and informed determination of the cause of death.


The microtubule-based flagellum, or basal body/axoneme, is ancestral: it is a so-called "derived character" defining the extant eukaryote branch, present at the apparition of the early eukaryotic cell. It is a genuine cell compartment. Its structural conservation throughout evolution is remarkable, as well as the molecular conservation of the intraflagellar transport genes. From the start, it links cell sensation and cell locomotion, two properties which require integrated wiring at the cell level. The cell division machinery has been also tightly coupled with this organelle throughout evolution, possibly to ensure the continuity of this cellular polarized organization through division. The association of three basic cell modules, locomotion, sensation and division, all expressing a facet of cell polarity, within the same apparatus, could have given optimal survival value to primitive eukaryotic cells and could explain the evolutionary conservation and success of the basal body/axoneme. In vertebrates, primary cilia are critical sensory organelles, including during early mammalian development. Today the eukaryotic flagellum is not only an important issue for basic cell biology and developmental biology but also for human pathology. Many apparently unrelated severe developmental pathologies turned out to be all connected to the assembly or the function of the primary or beating cilia. The current efforts on human ciliopathies benefit directly from long lasting basic research on the flagellar assembly in experimental models like Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.


AIM A comparative analysis of the content of the soluble form of cell adhesion protein P-selectin in the blood plasma of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), massive atherosclerosis (MA) and primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH), investigation of the relationship between plasma content of P-selectin and known markers of platelets and endothelial cells activation, preliminary assessment of the prognostic value of P-selectin determination. MATERIALS AND METHODS This study included 16 patients with AMI, 20 patients with MA, 21 patients with PPH and 18 healthy donors. The follow-up was 1-5 years. End-points in the group of patients with AMI were recurrent acute coronary syndrome and coronary artery by-pass operation, in the group with MA--thrombotic complications (acute coronary syndrome, ischemic stroke) and in the group with PPH--death. P-selectin was measured by ELISA and platelet factor 4 (PF4), thromboxane B2 (TXB2), endothelin-I and stable prostacyclin metabolite 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha (6-keto-PGF1 alpha) by means of commercial ELISA kits. RESULTS Mean level of P-selectin in blood plasma of patients with AMI (1 day) (361 +/- 18 ng/ml), MA (410 +/- 31 ng/ml) and PPH (627 +/- 83 ng/ml) was increased in comparison with the group of healthy donors (269 +/- 12 ng/ml) (everywhere p < 0.001). In AMI, P-selectin was increased on day 1 only, on days 2, 3 and 10-14 of the disease the level of P-selectin was significantly lower than on day 1 and did not differ from the control level in the group of donors. In patients with MA a significant correlation was detected between plasma content of P-selectin and platelet activation marker PF4 (r = 0.606, P = 0.007) and in patients with PPH between the content of P-selectin and another platelet activation marker TXB2 (r = 0.622, p = 0.013). However, no correlation was found in PPH patients between the content of P-selectin and markers of endothelial activation and/or damage (endothelin-1 and 6-keto-PGF1 alpha). Difference in the concentration of P-selectin in patients with or without end-points during the follow-up period was detected in patients with AMI (353 +/- 14 ng/ml and 451 +/- 24 ng/ml, p = 0.009) and PPH (477 +/- 58 ng/ml and 927 +/- 184 ng/ml, p = 0.017) but not with MA (426 +/- 37 ng/ml and 361 +/- 24 ng/ml, p = 0.295). CONCLUSION The level of P-selectin in plasma was increased in patients with acute thrombosis (AMI, 1 day) as well as in patients without clinical signs of thrombosis but with a massive injury of the vasculature (MA and PPH). The increase of P-selectin was, presumably, caused by its secretion from activated platelets since its concentration in plasma correlated with platelet concentration but not endothelial activation markers. Preliminary data indicate that blood plasma soluble P-selectin may be considered as a potential prognostic marker in AMI and PPH.


The role of the digestive action of gastric juice in the problem of peptic ulcer has long been recognized by clinicians; this is evident from the use of such descriptive terms as "peptic," "erosive," "corrosive" and "digestive." The originator of this concept is not known. but possibly the thought came to Matthew Baillie, to John Abercrombie and to Cruveilhier also, for John Hunter had already (1778) raised the question of why the normal stomach does not digest itself. The theory was developed further during the nineteenth century, particularly during the latter half, and in 1910, Schwarz1enunciated his now famous and much disputed doctrine of "no acid—no ulcer." The purpose of the present paper is to discuss the present status of the subject and the therapeutic implications. Time and usage have apparently justified the selection of the term "peptic ulcer" to denote a specific lesion appearing in various definite


Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is a powerful technique that can be applied in-situ to deconvolute the various loss mechanisms in the polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) that occur at different rates. The frequency response of a PEFC that results from EIS is in essence characterised by energy dissipating and energy storing elements of the cell. It can be represented by an equivalent circuit that is composed of resistors and capacitors respectively. By understanding the arrangement and magnitude of the electrical components in the equivalent electrical circuit, it is possible to generate a deeper understanding of how and where the electrical energy that is generated due to the redox reaction is being dissipated and retained within the real physical system. Although the use of equivalent circuits is often an adequate approach, some electrochemical processes are not adequately described by electrical components. In which case, it is necessary to adopt a more rigorous approach of describing processes through the use of differential equations to describe the physics of the electrochemical system at the frequency domain.

Studies in the literature have attempted to construct mathematical models to describe the impedance response of the cathode catalyst layer (CCL) based on conservation equations describing the electrochemical and diffusion processes. However this has resulted in a complicated mathematical analysis which in turn results in complicated solutions. The resulting equations cannot be easily validated against real-world EIS measurements and only analytical results have been reported. In this thesis a mathematical model to describe the impedance response of the CCL has been developed. This model is derived from fundamental electrochemical theory describing the physics of the CCL. The mathematical treatment is simplified by taking into account some considerations based on the EIS theory. The resulting model can be easily applied to real-world EIS measurements of PEFCs and presents parameters commonly known in the electrochemical area. The scientific contribution of this doctoral thesis is mainly divided in two sections: Modelling and Application.

The first step of the modelling section develops an equation describing charge conservation in the CCL and together with Ohm s Law equation accounting for ionic conduction, predicts the impedance response of the CCL at low currents. The second step includes the change of oxygen concentration during the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) into the equation accounting for CCL low current operation. The study of mass transport in the CCL is very complex; the literature has treated it with simplifications and approximations. The finite diffusion distance for oxygen to reach the reaction sites in the CCL forms a complicated network of multi-phase parallel and serial paths and can change in dimension at different operating conditions (flooding, drying). In the mathematical treatment of this doctoral thesis the finite diffusion distance and surface concentration of oxygen in the CCL are considered to be independent of the thickness of the CCL. EIS reflects only bulk measurements based on the total CCL thickness. Even though this results in an over-simplification for the oxygen diffusion in the total CCL, this approach simplifies the mathematical treatment to predict the impedance response of the CCL at high current operation, and as result it can be successfully validated against real-world EIS measurements.

In the application section the model is applied with real-world EIS measurements of PEFCs. First the model is applied with EIS measurements presenting inductive effects at high frequencies. The model reveals mechanisms masked at high frequencies of the impedance spectrum by inductance effects. The results demonstrate that the practice of using the real part of the Nyquist plot where the imaginary part is equal to zero to quantify the ohmic resistance in PEFCs can be subject to an erroneous interpretation due to inductive effects at high frequencies. Secondly the model is applied to cathode impedance data obtained through a three-electrode configuration in the measurement system and gives an insight into the mechanisms represented at low frequencies of the impedance complex-plot. The model predicts that the low frequency semicircle in PEFC measurements is attributed to low equilibrium oxygen concentration in the CCL-gas diffusion layer (GDL) interface and low diffusivity of oxygen through the CCL. In addition the model is applied with simultaneous EIS measurements in an Open-Cathode PEFC stack. The factors that limit the performance of the PEFC stack are evaluated with simultaneous EIS measurements and the model. The results show that the change in impedance response of individual cells within the stack is attributed to oxygen limitations, degradation in membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) and temperature distribution. This EIS knowledge enables an assessment of the state of health in operational fuel cell stacks. In the last section of the application section, the mathematical model translated in the time domain via reverse Laplace Transform predicts the current distribution through the CCL. This provides information to improve the performance of the CCL as well as determine the uptake of product water in the membrane.

Finally the conclusions and future work are presented. This doctoral thesis has established a backbone understanding of how the electrochemical and diffusion mechanisms relate to the electrochemical impedance spectra of PEFCs. The goal of a future work is to develop this EIS knowledge into a real-time EIS system for non-intrusive diagnostics of degradation in operational PEFCs. This implies a modification of the model to consider oxygen transport through the CCL thickness as part of a multi-species mixture using mass transport theory including concentrated solution theory to fuel cell engineering.


Orthogonal polynomials satisfy a three-term recursion relation irrespective of the weight function with respect to which they are defined. This gives a simple formula for the kernel function, known in the literature as the Christoffel - Darboux sum. The availability of asymptotic results of orthogonal polynomials and the simple structure of the Christoffel - Darboux sum make the study of unitary ensembles of random matrices relatively straightforward. In this book, the author develops the theory of skew-orthogonal polynomials and obtains recursion relations which, unlike orthogonal polynomials, depend on weight functions. After deriving reduced expressions, called the generalized Christoffel - Darboux formulas (GCD), he obtains universal correlation functions and non-universal level densities for a wide class of random matrix ensembles using the GCD. The author also shows that once questions about higher order effects are considered (questions that are relevant in different branches of physics and mathematics) the use of the GCD promises to be efficient.


Manifestations of sexual dimorphism at the preimaginal phase was studied on the laboratory culture of Ixodes persulcatus. It has been found out that larger engorged larvae produce, in general, larger nymphs and smaller larvae produce smaller nymphs. The classification of engorged nymphs into large (over 2.9 mm) and small ones (less than 2.9 mm) has made it possible (with 100% probability) to obtain females from the former and males from the latter. Differences in linear sizes of scutum, gnathosoma and its appendages in male and female nymphs were determined that has made possible the identification of sex in hungry nymphs.


OBJECTIVES
Group living is an approach that can create small, homelike environments in traditional nursing homes in Japan. The aim of the present study was to examine quality of life (QOL) of residents with dementia in group-living situations.

METHODS
The group-living group consisted of facilities that formed residential units. Each unit had a common area and stable staff assignments. The control group consisted of facilities that did not form residential units. The quality of life instrument for Japanese elderly with dementia (QLDJ) scale was used to rate QOL by direct care workers of 616 residents with dementia from 173 facilities in the group-living group and 750 residents from 174 facilities in the control group. QOL was based on the following subscales: interacting with surroundings; expressing oneself; and experiencing minimal negative behavior.

RESULTS
Multilevel regression analyses demonstrated a significantly greater QOL with respect to interacting with surroundings, expressing oneself, and experiencing minimal negative behavior for residents with dementia in the group-living group compared to the control group, as measured by the QLDJ. The total QLDJ score was also significantly higher for the group-living group.

CONCLUSION
The results suggest improved QOL of residents with dementia under group-living situations. Future studies should examine the effect of group-living on QOL of residents with dementia using a cohort design, following residents longitudinally from admission.


The PRC's increasingly assertive foreign policy behaviors have triggered heightened anxiety among its regional neighbors. Washington has abided by a long-standing strategic ambiguity policy to manage the Taiwan Strait impasse. However, as the KMT's "1992 consensus" policy places Taiwan in close union with Beijing, Taipei's security positions sometimes go against the interests of the US and its allies in the Asia-Pacific. Pulling Taiwan away from China's orbit is congruent with US interest in continuing that enduring policy framework and ensuring a healthy balance across the Strait.


The fuel procurement strategies of merchant power generators have changed dramatically from earlier independent power contracts and illustrate much greater market risk. Fuel-price and availability risks must be managed effectively or the power generator runs the risk of an imbalance between its fuel costs and power revenues. The competitive nature of the merchant-power market is encouraging merchant generators to minimize their fixed-cost exposure to remain competitive with other generators. New and creative financial/fuel procurement arrangements are evolving to manage such an important risk, and the gas and electric industries are continuing to converge.


Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito-transmitted arthritogenic alphavirus that has reemerged to produce devastating epidemics of fever, rash, polyarthralgia, and polyarthritis. During natural infection in the mammalian host, CHIKV replicates in a variety of cell types, including keratinocytes, endothelial cells, macrophages, and skeletal muscle. The contribution of CHIKV replication in discrete cell types to pathogenesis is unclear. To understand the role of CHIKV tropism in pathogenesis, target sequences corresponding to various tissue-specific miRNAs were engineered into the genome of clinical CHIKV isolate SL15649. Replication kinetics of these viruses were assessed alongside mismatch-control strains engineered to contain synonymous mutations in miR-target sequences to alleviate miRNA-mediated restriction. A CHIKV strain incapable of replication in skeletal muscle, SKE, and its mismatch control, SKE MM, were found to replicate with anticipated kinetics in vitro. In situ hybridization of limb sections from infected C57BL/6 mice using a CHIKV RNA-specific probe showed diminished SKE replication in myofibers in the interosseous muscle of the left rear foot adjacent to the site of inoculation, though both SKE and SKE MM replicated comparably in connective tissue that does not express the restrictive miRNA. Mice infected with SKE displayed diminished hind limb swelling and inflammation and necrosis of the interosseous muscle compared to mice infected with SKE MM, despite comparable titers in musculoskeletal tissues at days 1, 3, and 7 post-inoculation. Additionally, SKE infection was associated with decreased production of IL-6, IL-1b, IP-10, and TNFa, as well as diminished infiltration of CD4+ T cells into the interosseous muscle. Treatment of mice with an antibody directed against the IL-6 receptor led to diminished footpad swelling in mice infected with SKE MM, reducing swelling to levels seen in mice infected with SKE. Additionally, vaccination with SKE protected mice against disease following challenge with WT SL15649. These data suggest that IL-6, which is released following infection of myofibers, is a critical mediator of CHIKV-induced inflammation and may represent a therapeutic target to alleviate CHIKV disease. Additionally, incorporation of skeletal muscle-specific miR-target sequences into the CHIKV genome may constitute a new method for developing live-attenuated vaccines.


Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to seek to extend the work of Robson (1991, 1992) by exploring the accounting implications of the way in which subsets of non-financial accounting numbers are constructed. In particular, the study investigates whether the different procedures for organising subsets of a set of accounting data may lead to different conclusions about (the same) reality. Design/methodology/approach - – The empirical analysis focuses on the procedures by which organisations translate work-related injury outcomes to accounting numbers. First, existing procedures are problematised within their institutional context. This highlights complementary elements of translation and neo-institutional theory that together explain how institutional factors might operate to constrain the problematising process. An empirical analysis of workers' compensation data covering a ten year period is then conducted to calculate and contrast performance using two competing logics of accounting for injury. Findings - – The findings demonstrate that different representations of reality may result not only from accounting choices as to "what" is measured, but also from accounting choices as to "how subsets of measured data are organised". Specifically, different ways of organising injury data into subsets led to different representations of the reality of overall injury performance. The evidence further suggests taken-for-granted assumptions and institutionalised practices may prevent adequate problematisation of the underpinning logic that guides the procedures for organising translations of work-related injury and illness to accounting numbers. Practical implications - – The results suggest the existing logic of accounting for injury fails to recognise the financial or non-financial complexity of non-fatal injury outcomes. "Lost time injury" measures are revealed as neither valid nor reliable measures of injury (or safety) and therefore inappropriate for informing the occupational health and safety (OHS) decisions of managers, boards and external stakeholders. These findings reveal an urgent need for change in injury accounting practice and, in turn, raise serious concerns about the increasingly institutionalised global template for external disclosure of OHS performance information. Originality/value - – This paper takes a novel look at the construction of social performance measures and suggests further attention to the construction of accounting subsets is warranted. In demonstrating serious problems in accounting logic that underpin existing, and deeply institutionalised, measurement and reporting practices, the findings reinforce the need to routinely re-problematise accounting practices. Failure to critically review those accounting translations that underpin decision-making may prove a fatal mistake.


Abstract
Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, cancers and chronic respiratory diseases, have remained the major burden and threat of the world with quite alarming rise in the developing nations. Eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables is associated with a decreased risk of many chronic diseases.
Methods: Community-based cross-sectional survey based on the World Health Organization (WHO) NCD Stepwise approach was done. The survey was conducted in the 9 regions and two city administrations (Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa) in Ethiopia. The target population for this survey included all men and women age 15-69 years old who consider Ethiopia to be their primary place of residence. A single population-proportion formula was used to determine the sample size: design effect coefficient of 1.5, Z-score of1.96, proportion of 35.2%and marginal error of 0.04. A total of 513 EAs were covered nationwide. Thus, 10,260 study participants were included in the study. A mix of sampling approach namely stratified, three-stage cluster sampling, simple random sampling and Kish method were employed to select the study settings and the study participants. Descriptive weighted analysis was done along with complex sample analysis, and bivariate and multivariate analysis was conducted for fruit and/or vegetable intake.
Result: The prevalence of fruit and/or vegetable consumption in Ethiopia was found to be (1.5%). More female than male ate fruit and vegetable in Ethiopia. When adjusted for included demographic and residence confounders (age, sex, location, income, education), those in rural area of residence ate ≥5 servings of fruits and vegetable [OR and (95% CI) [2.77 (1.60, 4.80)] than their counterparts.
Conclusion and recommendation: Fruits and/or vegetables intake was generally extremely low. As the general level of risk factors rises, more people are put at risk. Preventive interventions to address these behaviours are implemented at individual, group, and community levels and include education, access to fruits and vegetables should therefore aim at reducing risk throughout the population. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2017;31(Special Issue):355-361]
Key Words: STEPs survey, fruit, vegetables, Ethiopi


Sturge-Weber Syndrome is an uncommon neurocutaneous syndrome usually presenting with a triad of cutaneous, neurologic, and ophthalmological symptoms. The most common ocular manifestation in Sturge-Weber syndrome (SWS) is a refractory glaucoma which is generally associated with neurologic and uveal manifestations. This report presents a rare and incomplete form of SWS: A vascular malformation of the face, an ipsilateral glaucoma that responded well to medical treatment, without choroidal hemangioma nor neurologic manifestations.


We study and experimentally implement a double-slit quantum eraser in the presence of a controlled decoherence mechanism. A two-photon state, produced in a spontaneous parametric down-conversion process, is prepared in a maximally entangled polarization state. A birefringent double slit is illuminated by one of the down-converted photons, and it acts as a single-photon two-qubits controlled-not gate that couples the polarization with the transversal momentum of these photons. The other photon, which acts as a which-path marker, is sent through a Mach-Zehnder-like interferometer. When the interferometer is partially unbalanced, it behaves as a controlled source of decoherence for polarization states of down-converted photons. We show the transition from wavelike to particle-like behavior of the signal photons crossing the double slit as a function of the decoherence parameter, which depends on the length path difference at the interferometer.


Introduction: Genetic characterization of markers is needed to evaluate the polymorphism in different populations and to establish reference databases useful in forensic applications and anthropological studies. Thus, the aim of the current study was to determine the allele frequencies and some statistical parameters of forensic and paternity interest for 15 STR loci included in PowerPlex® 16 System kit (D3S1358, TH01, D21S11, D18S51, Penta E, D5S818, D13S317, D7S820, D16S539, CSF1PO, Penta D, vWA, D8S1179, TPOX and FGA) in the population from Araraquara region, Sao Paulo State, Brazil. Methods: Blood samples from 403 unrelated individuals living in Araraquara region were collected on FTA cards and genomic DNA was extracted using the FTA method 16 Systems kit (Whatman). The amplification was performed using PowerPlex (Promega), following the manufacturer's recommendations. Separation and detection were carried out by ABI377 automated sequencer (Applied Biosystems) and genotyping was performed by comparison with the Ladder included in the kit using GeneScan 2.1 software (Applied Biosystems). The allele frequencies and exact test of the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were calculated using the ARLEQUIN software v 3.1. Statistical parameters of forensic and paternity interest (Power of Discrimination, Matching Probability, Polymorphism Information Content, Power of Exclusion and Typical Paternity Index) were calculated using PowerStats software v1.2 (Promega). Results and Discussion: For a significance level of 0.0033 (after Bonferroni correction) no deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were observed for any of the analyzed loci. Power of discrimination values were higher than 0.86 and the polymorphic information content values ranged from 0.6450 for TPOX to 0.8863 for Penta E. Combined power of exclusion for the 15 tested STR loci was 0.999999785, respectively. Conclusion: The 15 loci offer a highly discriminating system for paternity and forensic purpose of individuals in population from Araraq! uara reg ion. This work was supported by PADC-FCFAr-UNESP, FUNDUNESP, CNPq.


Imposing chirality into nanoscale superstructures is a major step forward toward systematic understanding and utilization of nanomaterials. In an attempt to achieve tunable chirality during in situ preparation of hybrid nanomaterials, we here report a novel unimolecular strategy of employing a coordinatable organogelator for the realization of chirality control in the formation of gold nanoparticle superstructures. The work takes advantage of thermally reversible sol-gel transition of the chiral dispersion as template, which causes different micelle properties that can influence the coordination ability between the organogelator and Au(III) ions. Followed by a reduction reaction, gold nanoparticle superstructures with P-helicity were prepared from the sol form of the template through a coordination-induced chiral inversion, whereas those with M-helicity were obtained from the gel form with chiral holding. Such superstructures are solvent-stable and the chirality difference between them could be observed in many solvent environments.


A variable-speed driven pump can result in significant energy conservation where reduced flow rates are required for long periods of time. Concerning adjustable-speed pump drives, one major contribution of this paper is to show that a permanent magnet motor based on the slotless axial-flux PM machine (AFPM) topology can be a suitable candidate to advantageously compete with the induction motor for such a low-cost drive application. To the purpose of a cost comparison, the paper discusses the design and construction of a prototype machine which has been conceived to replace a 1.2 hp induction motor being used in a standard adjustable-speed pump drive. Results taken from laboratory tests of the prototype machine are reported together with an assessment of the machine manufacturing cost.


Information technology plays a key role during large scale search and rescue operations, such as those carried out by the Icelandic Association for Search and Rescue (ICE-SAR). Systems used by incident managers must support their processes and actions, and enable fast and efficient information gathering and distribution. In this project, two novel additions to the incident management system used by ICE-SAR and the Civil Protection in Iceland, were developed. The first is a new system called Preparedness, which aids in the collaborative creation and management of preparedness plans. Through integration with an incident management system, Preparedness furthermore allows incident managers to initiate a preparedness plan within the same system as is used to carry it out, increasing speed and accuracy in the plan's execution. The second is a search area and evacuation management component, an addition to ICE-SAR's and the Civil Protection's incident management system. Creating and managing search areas and evacuation zones is now, for the first time, possible from within the system. This allows for a connection between areas, and the tasks, groups and individuals within the incident management system. This enables a plethora of new features around search area and evacuation management to be implemented. These two additions bring an already successful incident management system to a new level, and make it a complete solution for incident management. Verkferlar viðbragðsaðila sameinaðir í einni heildstæðri hugbúnaðarlausn


As language and culture are inseparably interwoven native speakers reflect their own culture in their speech and writing. For this reason, some language teaching theorists stress the need to teach the target culture to non-native speakers not only because the transmission of this culture breaks down isolation but also gives life and meaning to the foreign language. On the contrary, other language teaching theorists fear that learning the target culture may result in undermining the non-native speakers' identity or lead to psychological problems such as frustration and feelings of inferiority. This study, therefore, provides the ground on which course designers can make decisions about the inclusion of culture in the EFL curriculum. The purposes of the study were: (1) to determine EFL teachers' willingness and preparedness to deal with foreign cultures in the classroom, (2) to determine whether a significant difference exists between the mean scores of rural and urban teachers with respect to their willingness to deal with foreign cultures, and (3) to investigate the relationship between EFL teachers' willingness to deal with foreign cultures and their own cultural awareness. Subjects for the study were 200 EFL teachers randomly drawn from secondary school EFL teachers in Menoufia and Qena (100 per governorate). Data for the study were gathered by means of a questionnaire which was designed by the researcher and comprised 30 statements of willingness and preparedness (15 items for each). Statistical analysis of the data was carried out through descriptive statistics, the t-test and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient. Results of the study indicated that: (1) EFL teachers were neither willing nor prepared to deal with foreign cultures in the classroom, (2) there was no statistically significant difference between rural and urban teachers with respect to their willingness to deal with foreign cultures in the classroom, and (3) there was a statistically significant relationship between teachers' willingness to deal with foreign cultures and their own cultural awareness (r= 0.62, p


The UK, in common with many other countries, has seen a rapid rise in the per capita consumption of energy drinks in the last few years. Energy drinks (soft drinks containing more than 150mg of caffeine per litre) are made up of water, caffeine, sugars and a range of additives and flavourings. Sales of energy drinks in the UK increased by 155% between 2006 and 2014, from 235 to 600 million litres, an average per capita consumption of 9.4 litres in 2014. While the market for soda is declining, the $50 billion global energy drinks market is projected to grow at an annual rate of 3.5% between 2015 and 2020. This paper aims to present the latest available evidence on whether this trend is cause for concern, and if so, what could be done about it. Robust evidence demonstrates that children and teenagers who drink energy drinks are also more likely to consume alcohol, smoke or use drugs. There is also some evidence that youth energy drink consumers are more likely to have unhealthy diets, and experience hyperactivity and a range of other health effects. For example, emergency department visits linked to youth energy drink consumption in the USA doubled between 2007 and 2011, with the most frequently indicated symptoms being vomiting, nausea, feeling jittery or on edge, trouble sleeping, palpitations, dizziness, fainting, abdominal pain and headache. There is still a lot we do not know about the health impacts of energy drinks, particularly in relation to heavy and long-term consumption by young people. Evidence is also lacking in terms of the effects on younger children and those with existing cardiovascular problems. However, in light of high levels of consumption among young people, a few countries and localities have taken action in an attempt to reduce levels of intake, including banning sales to under-18s, permitting sales only from pharmacies, as well as voluntary measures to reduce consumption. Energy drinks are also captured under many of the soda taxes in place in a range of countries. Owing to concerns about sugar, some energy drink manufacturers have developed low or no sugar varieties. However, there has been no action on the high caffeine content of energy drinks. There are a range of actions that, however, could be taken to reduce consumption in light of the health concerns, including labelling and limits on marketing and sales. While there are significant gaps in the evidence base around the health impacts of energy drinks, the evidence that has emerged so far indicates some effects worrying enough for policy makers and civil society to sit up and take note.


In the early sixties Leonard Parker discovered that the expansion of the universe can create particles out of the vacuum, opening a new and fruitfull field in physics. We give a historical review in the form of an interview that took place during the Conference ERE2014 (Valencia 1-5, September, 2014).


Modifiable lifestyle factors influence the risk of developing many neurological diseases. These factors have been extensively linked with blood-based genome-wide DNA methylation (DNAm), but it is unclear if the signatures from blood translate to the target tissue of interest - the brain. To investigate this, we apply blood-derived epigenetic predictors of four lifestyle traits to genome-wide DNAm from five post-mortem brain regions and the last blood sample prior to death in 14 individuals in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 (LBC1936). Using these matched samples, we found that correlations between blood and brain DNAm scores for smoking, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, alcohol and body mass index (BMI) were highly variable across brain regions. Smoking scores in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex had the strongest correlations with smoking scores in blood (r=0.5, n=14) and smoking behaviour (r=0.56, n=9). This was also the brain region which exhibited the strongest correlations for DNAm at site cg05575921 - the single strongest correlate of smoking in blood - in relation to blood (r=0.61, n=14) and smoking behaviour (r=-0.65, n=9). This suggested a particular vulnerability to smoking-related differential methylation in this region. Our work contributes to understanding how lifestyle factors affect the brain and suggests that lifestyle-related DNAm is likely to be both brain region dependent and in many cases poorly proxied for by blood. Though these pilot data provide a rarely-available opportunity for the comparison of methylation patterns across multiple brain regions and the blood, due to the limited sample size available our results must be considered as preliminary and should therefore be used as a basis for further investigation.


One of the most conspicuous characters of the ocean sunfishes, family Molidae, is the punctuation of the body by a deep, abbreviated, caudal fin‐like structure extending vertically between the posterior ends of the dorsal and anal fins, termed the clavus by Fraser Brunner. Homology of the clavus has been a matter of debate since the first studies on molid anatomy in the early 1800s. Two hypotheses have been proposed: 1) It is a highly modified caudal fin; 2) It is formed by highly modified elements of the dorsal and anal fins. To resolve this homology issue, we studied the ontogeny of the molid vertebral column and median fins and compared it to that of a less morphologically derived gymnodont (see Part 1 of this study), a member of the family Tetraodontidae. We show that in molids the chorda never flexes during development, that the claval rays form from the posterior ends of the dorsal and anal fins toward the middle, thus closing the gap inward, and that elements of the molid clavus have an identical development and composition as the proximal‐middle and distal radials of the regular dorsal and anal fins. We thus conclude that the molid clavus is unequivocally formed by modified elements of the dorsal and anal fin and that the caudal fin is lost in molids. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


The primary sculpture of the seed surface in the genus Frailea (Cactaceae) is characterized by a ± flat outer periclinal wall and the presence of an usually eccentric papilla. Papilla morphology differs mainly in size and breadth:length ratio. Seeds of different species (groups) are characterized by special patterns in the arrangement of short and long papillae on the surface, thus providing a useful tool for taxonomic studies in Frailea. The seeds of Frailea castanea possess branched papillae, a character restricted in this genus to this species. Moreover, such papilla morphology seems to be unique for the seed epidermis in spermatophytes. The possible function of the papillae is discussed.


Concerns among staff in the Linguistics Department at Macquarie University regarding the disparate and at times unsatisfactory level of academic literacy skills of commencing postgraduate applied linguistics students have been increasing. Since staff agreed that students with English as their L1 or as an additional language might benefit from early intervention, an academic literacies course was developed for and made available to those students. The course consisted of a one-week intensive discipline-specific program followed by a 12 week program. The one-week program was offered as a full-time intensive course and the 12 week program was offered on a part-time basis. Attendance in both phases was non-compulsory. This paper reports on the rationale for the choice of key content areas for both phases of the program. The relevance and effectiveness of choices made becomes evident when students' and teachers' evaluations of both phases are reviewed. Some of the challenges encountered during the delivery of both phases are discussed. Recommendations regarding changes that could be implemented in the delivery of such programs are also put forward.


An overview of the extensive and frequently controversial literature on communally breeding birds developed since the early 1960s, when students of evolution began to examine sociality as a product of natural selection. Jerram Brown provides original data from his own theoretical and empirical studies and summarizes the wide array of results and interpretations made by others.Originally published in 1987.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.


A spatial-temporal scheme based on non-uniform subband general parameter filter banks for broadband beamforming of scaled aperture array is proposed in this paper. The scaled aperture array is composed of several uniformly-spaced linear subarrays, each of which processes an octave subband signal respectively. The non-uniform subband signal is implemented by tree-structure general parameter filter banks. Each subarray broadband beamforming is carried out by a kind of tapped-delay-line (TDL) infinite-impulse-response (IIR) filters beamformer, and four subarrays share the same weights. This processing architecture based beamformer splits the broadband signal into several narrower subband ones which are processed in parallel, and subarray is operating with lower sampling rate, which contributes to decreasing the computational load significantly and improving the speed and performances as well. Simulations show that computation complexity and load of this beamformer are much lower relative to the conventional TDL broadband beamfomer.


This paper addresses parameter estimation in reduced rank linear regressions. This estimation problem has applications in several subject areas including system identification, sensor array processing, econometrics and statistics. A new estimation procedure, based on instrumental variable principles, is derived and analyzed. The proposed method is designed to handle noise that is both spatially and temporally autocorrelated. An asymptotical analysis shows that the proposed method outperforms previous methods when the noise is temporally correlated and that it is asymptotically efficient otherwise. A numerical study indicates that the performance is significantly improved also for finite sample set sizes. In addition, the Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRB) on unbiased estimator covariance for the data model is derived. A statistical test for rank determination is also developed. An important step in the new algorithm is the weighted low rank approximation (WLRA). As the WLRA lacks a closed form solution in its general form, two new, noniterative and approximate solutions are derived, both of them asymptotically optimal when part of the estimation procedure proposed here. These methods are also interesting in their own right since the WLRA has several applications.


Four azulene dyads have been synthesized and studied by spectroscopic and electrochemical methods. A triarylamine, a boron-dipyrromethene (BDP or BODIPY), a porphyrin, and an isoalloxazine moiety have been linked to an extended π electron system at the 2-position of azulene, leading to the dyads 1-4, respectively. For the synthesis of 1-4, first 2-(4-ethynyl-phenyl)azulene (EPA) was prepared, which was further reacted with the halogenated chromophores by Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. The dyads 1-4 exhibit strong absorption bands in the visible range, which are dominated by the absorption spectra of the individual subchromophores. Fluorometric studies of 2-4 revealed that after excitation of the subchromophoric unit attached to the parent azulene moiety, quenching mainly through energy transfer to azulene is effective, whereas possible charge-transfer interactions play only a minor role. Potentiodynamic oxidation of the dyads 1-4 leads to the formation of polymer films, which are deposited at the electrode. The polymer film derived from 1 was further characterized by spectroelectrochemistry. During positive doping of poly-1, a strong absorption band appears at 13,200 cm(-1), which is typical for triarylamine radical cations. This band is overlapping with a broad absorption band in the low-energy region that might be caused by charge-transfer interactions within the polymer.


This paper studies automatic detection of topic transitions for recorded presentations. This can be achieved by matching slide content with presentation transcripts directly with some similarity metrics. Such literal matching, however, misses domain-specific knowledge and is sensitive to speech recognition errors. In this paper, we incorporate relevant written materials, e.g., textbooks for lectures, which convey semantic relationships, in particular domain-specific relationships, between words. To this end, we train latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) models on these materials and measure the similarity between slides and transcripts in the acquired hidden-topic space. This similarity is then combined with literal matchings. Experiments show that the proposed approach reduces the errors in slide transition detection by 17-41% on manual transcripts and 27-37% on automatic transcripts.


Methotrexate (MTX) dose-escalation studies were conducted in C57BL/6 mice to determine the chemoprotective effect of transplantation using bone marrow transduced with lentivirus vectors expressing a drug-resistant variant of murine dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR). Methotrexate-resistant dihydrofolate reductase [tyrosine-22 (Tyr22)DHFR] and enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) coding sequences were inserted into self-inactivating lentiviral vectors as part of a genetic fusion or within the context of a bicistronic expression cassette. MTX-treated animals that received Tyr22DHFR-transduced marrow recovered to normal hematocrit levels by 3 weeks post-transplant and exhibited significant GFP marking in myeloid and lymphoid lineage-derived peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). In contrast, MTX-treated animals transplanted with control GFP-transduced marrow exhibited extremely reduced hematocrits with severe marrow hypoplasia and did not survive MTX dose escalation. To minimize cell manipulation, we treated unfractionated marrow in an overnight exposure. Transduction at a multiplicity of infection of 10 resulted in up to 11% vector-modified PBMCs in primary recipients and successful repopulation of secondary recipients with vector-marked cells. Experimental cohorts exhibited sustained proviral expression with stable GFP fluorescence intensity. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of lentivirus vectors for chemoprotection in a well developed animal model, with the potential for further preclinical development toward human application.


A source coding technique for compressing HDTV (high-definition television) digital images for B-ISDN (broadband integrated services digital network) visual services is presented. The proposed technique is called hierarchical block truncation coding (HBTC). It is a combination of the block truncation coding (BTC) technique and a quadtree segmentation method. The quadtree segmentation is used to decompose an image into homogeneous regions so that the BTC method can exploit the nonstationarity of the image data. Bit rates around 1.46 b/pixel are achieved with this method. Experimental results for several HDTV images are presented. It is shown that greater image compression can be achieved by using a hierarchical BTC method in conjunction with quadtree segmentation, than by applying BTC to an image with uniform block divisions, since the correlation of uniform areas is exploited. This is especially true for appropriate images such as HDTV with large uniform areas. >


A Review of:
Sukovic, S. (2009). References to e-texts in academic publications. Journal of Documentation, 65(6), 997-1015.

Objective – To explore the role of electronic texts (e-texts) in the research and citation practices of scholars in the humanities.

Design – A mixed-methods approach, employing a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods extended by semi-structured interviews.

Setting – Six universities in Australia and one university in the United States.

Subjects – Sixteen humanities scholars participated in the study, including nine historians and seven literary scholars.

Methods – The study had two stages. The first stage included in-depth, semi-structured interviews, examination of participants' manuscripts and published works, and evaluation of some e-texts mentioned during interviews. The second stage involved detailed data gathering from a group of four participants selected from the participants in stage one, followed by a final interview. Data were collected throughout 2005 and 2006. In total, the study investigated thirty research projects.

In stage one, participants were asked to discuss one finished and one current research project in which e-texts were used as primary sources. Participants in the second stage were asked to record data about their interactions with e-texts during the current research project on forms and audiotapes. Researchers who completed forms and recorded comments were asked to discuss their view of e-texts in the research process. The interviews and tapes with comments were transcribed and coded to protect participants' anonymity and strengthen the interpretive validity of the study.

Data were analyzed by adopting a hermeneutical approach. The study results do not have any statistical significance and the findings cannot be generalized beyond the study data.

Main Results – Participants in this study used a wide variety of e-texts for their research, but seldom included citations to these electronic sources in their published work. E-texts included digitized materials from libraries, archives, and private collections as well as 'electronically born' documents, works of art and popular culture artifacts. Of the 22 works resulting from the research projects examined during the study period, half did not cite e-texts as primary materials. The 11 works that made at least one reference to an e-text included 4 works in which the only reference was to e-texts created by the actual author. In total, only 7 works referred to e-texts created by outside authors. These 7 final works were written by 5 participants, representing 31 percent of the total number of study participants.

Analysis of the participants' citation practices revealed that decisions to cite an electronic source or omit it from publication were based on two important factors: (1) the perceived trustworthiness of an e-text and (2) a sense of what was acceptable practice.

Participants established trustworthiness through a process of verification. To confirm the authenticity and reliability of an e-text, most participants compared electronic documents against a print version to verify provenance, context, and details. Even when digitized materials were established as trustworthy sources, however, hard copies were often cited because they were considered more authoritative or accurate.
Traditions of a particular discipline also had a strong influence on a participant's willingness to cite e-texts. Participants working on traditional historical topics were more reluctant to cite electronic resources, while researchers who worked on topics that explored relatively new fields were more willing to acknowledge the use of e-texts in published works. Traditional practices also influenced participants' decisions about how to cite materials. Some participants always cited original works in hard copy, regardless of electronic access because it was accepted scholarly practice.

Conclusions – The results of this study suggest that the small number of citations to electronic sources in publications in the humanities is directly related to researchers' doubts about the reliability and authenticity of e-texts. Electronic resources provide a large body of primary data for research in literary and historical studies; however, the uncertain trustworthiness of many primary materials in electronic form makes these texts less acceptable for academic publications.

The study provides suggestions for further research into the social dynamics that underpin and determine academic research practices and contemporary processes of knowledge production.


Cape Town—For the past year, South Africa9s first postapartheid government has been developing a comprehensive science policy. Now, just as the exercise is entering the home stretch, the man who has been instrumental in putting the new policy together has stepped down. Ben Ngubane, who headed the Ministry of Arts, Culture, Science, and Technology since the multiracial elections in 1994, resigned last month to join the KwaZulu/Natal provincial government. He is being replaced by Lionel Mtshali, a former history teacher and minister of education and culture in the former KwaZulu homeland government. Mtshali has pledged to carry forward Ngubane9s work on a white paper for science and technology which aims to make the research system more relevant to the needs of the new South Africa.


Pediatric cancer patients and their families face significant physical, emotional, and psychosocial challenges. Few studies have investigated how children manage these challenges and how parents may help in the process. This qualitative study aimed to explore common cancer-related stressors for children and to examine child coping and parental assistance in coping with these stressors during treatment. Fifteen children undergoing cancer treatment and their parents participated in semistructured interviews. Four themes emerged capturing cancer-related stressors: cancer treatment/side effects, distressing emotions, disruption in daily routines, and social challenges. Six themes emerged regarding child coping strategies that were classified within an approach/avoidance coping framework. Approach coping strategies included the following: cognitive restructuring, relaxation, practical strategies, seeking social support, and emotional expression. Distraction was the only avoidant coping strategy. Parents tended to encourage approach coping strategies (eg, cognitive restructuring, social support). Within families, few coping strategies were reported (child: M = 1.47, SD = 0.99; parent: M = 3.33, SD = 1.18), suggesting that early family-based interventions teaching coping techniques for cancer-related stressors may be beneficial.


Economists and others have long argued that the American regulatory system is unnecessarily inefficient. Critics charge that the system is both substantively inefficient, in that it sometimes mandates the use of inefficient means for achieving a regulatory goal, and procedurally inefficient, in its over-reliance on rules. These arguments have led to a wave of regulatory reform experiments in the federal bureaucracy, many of which seek to promote positive-sum changes in regulatory policy through bargaining among private- and public-sector stakeholders. As several commentators have noted, most of these regulatory reforms have not met expectations in that bargaining participants often forgo positive-sum changes in the status quo. Those same commentators have offered a variety of explanations for these failures, most of which (we argue) are unpersuasive or incomplete. We propose another explanation drawn from the standard bargaining literature in economics, one that seems to explain the trajectory of recent regulatory reforms. We argue that in the context of political conflict over policy changes, participants in these bargaining processes view positive sum policy changes in zero sum terms. That is, they bargain strategically, using their power to veto these positive-sum changes in order to extract further policy concessions from other stakeholders. This revelation has important implications for the future of this kind of regulatory reform.


Recently, integration of distributed generation (DG) in distribution systems has increased to high penetration levels. The impact of DG units on the voltage stability margins has become significant. Optimization techniques are tools which can be used to locate and size the DG units in the system, so as to utilize these units optimally within certain limits and constraints. Thus, the impacts of DG units issues, such as voltage stability and voltage profile, can be analyzed effectively. The ultimate goal of this paper is to propose a method of locating and sizing DG units so as to improve the voltage stability margin. The load and renewable DG generation probabilistic nature are considered in this study. The proposed method starts by selecting candidate buses into which to install the DG units on the system, prioritizing buses which are sensitive to voltage profile and thus improve the voltage stability margin. The DG units' placement and sizing is formulated using mixed-integer nonlinear programming, with an objective function of improving the stability margin; the constraints are the system voltage limits, feeders' capacity, and the DG penetration level.


Abstract Intensive agricultural development of the forest zone of the East European Plain started in the second part of the first millennium AD. Although the majority of the mediaeval population were peasants, archaeological study of ancient rural settlements is much less developed than that of ancient towns. The analysis of interrelationships between environmental conditions and the agricultural pattern across space, including the corresponding pattern of rural settlements, helps us to delimit the spatial frame in which it is possible to find rural settlements of different historical epochs, even if they have since disappeared. Five areas with different historical types of agricultural landscapes were revealed, based on their geological and climatic characteristics. Another analysis essential for archaeology deals with the age of contemporary agricultural landscapes and rural settlements along with the factors and laws that control their changes through time and space.