Acr.--Many species of birds line their nests with feathers, presumably because of the insulative qualities of feathers and because feathers may act as a barrier between nest parasites and nestlings. In 1993, we experimentally examined the role of feathers as nest insulation on the incubation behavior, nestling growth, and reproductive performance of Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) nesting in boxes in western Michigan. There were no significant differences between the incubation rhythms of females with experimental nests (i.e. no feathers) and females with control nests (i.e. with feathers). Nestlings that were reared in control nests had significantly longer right tarsi and right wing chords; their masses were significantly greater than nestlings reared in experimental nests. In addition, nested analyses of variance indicated that both female age class (i.e. second year, after second year, or after hatching year) and the brood within which a nestling was reared had significant effects on nestling growth until nestling day 12. Whether an individual nestling was infected with ectoparasites was independent of whether it was reared in an experimental or control nest. Nest insulation affected reproductive performance: females with experimental nests had significantly longer incubation periods and produced significantly fewer fledglings than did females with control nests. These results suggest that nest insulation may be an important factor influencing incubation behavior, nestling growth, and reproductive performance of Tree Swallows in western Michigan. Received 1994, 1995.


Abstract In recent years, there has been a surge of private investment in space resources and the enactment of domestic legislation aimed at protecting property rights over the resources to be extracted. This article argues that the unilateral exploitation of space resources is not prohibited by the principle of non-appropriation and is consistent with the freedom of use for common benefit and interests, with the caveat that it does not exclude others from exploitation or exacerbate inequality among States. It also argues that a laissez-faire approach would be detrimental to the orderly, sustainable and safe exploitation and use of space resources and calls for the establishment of an international regulatory regime consisting of rules concerning international coordination, benefits sharing and environmental protection.


This research examined the effects of regulatory fit on media users' enjoyment of interactions with a virtual interlocutor and feelings of social presence and self-presence in the 3D virtual environments (VEs) of Second Life. Results from a two (regulatory focus state: promotion vs. prevention) × two (regulatory strategy: eagerness means vs. vigilance means) between-subjects full-factorial experiment demonstrated that the regulatory fit between regulatory focus state and means for goal pursuit in computer-mediated communication (CMC) within 3D VEs increases users' enjoyment, feelings of presence, and postexperimental healthy eating intentions. A path analysis further revealed the mediating roles of social presence and self-presence. Theoretical and methodological contributions as well as practical implications are discussed.


TSince long ago this agricultural country, Indonesia has never been separated from rice farming. However, the welfare of farmers has not been fully good. The harvest season that should bring joy and profit, not always absolute about the full benefits. Harvest season are often accompanied by problems such as drop of selling price due to abundant supply. The purpose of this study is to diclose that farmer groups can optimize the supply chain flow to overcome the drop of selling price. This research was conducted in descriptive research, by conducting direct observations on Tirta Jaya farmer groups in Demak, then mapping the existing supply chain flow, and finally finding optimization solutions in the flow. The results of this study indicate there is an unoptimal distribution channel for agricultural products, and the warehouse receipt system is the right alternative, and can be applied as one of the new distribution channels to overcome the drop of selling price during the harvest.


Abstract Context Environmental exposures are associated with approximately 19% of disease globally, and exposure to neurotoxic chemicals is estimated to cost the United States $50 billion per year. Despite calls from the Institute of Medicine to increase training for clinicians regarding environmental health since the 1990s, there is still little instruction in environmental health for clinicians. This leaves gaps in knowledge that need to be bridged through outreach and education to practicing clinicians. Academic detailing (AD) is an educational intervention associated with improved prescribing practices in healthcare professionals but has not been applied to preventive or environmental health. Childhood lead exposure is a common condition associated with lifetime increased risk of cognitive and behavioral problems. Ohio has more than 2 million homes built before 1978, making exposure to lead-based paint a significant public health problem; however, only 50% of high-risk children are tested for lead. Few receive health promotion information regarding lead poisoning prevention, in part because this is not a part of training for healthcare providers (HCPs). Objectives The objectives of this study were twofold: (1) implement a pilot of AD sessions on the topic of childhood lead poisoning prevention with frontline HCPs and their staff in different practice settings; and (2) evaluate the acceptability of these training sessions utilizing quantitative and qualitative methods. Methods Physicians, nurses, social workers, community health workers, and clinical office staff were recruited from clinics who care for children at high risk for lead exposure. Trainings consisting of small group AD style sessions were presented at these sites. Learning objectives included increasing knowledge regarding lead testing requirements, enabling identification of lead's impact on child development and equipping participants to provide anticipatory guidance for parents regarding lead poisoning prevention. Participants provided feedback through an anonymous questionnaire and qualitative feedback. Results There were 46 participants (12 physicians in practice/in training, 21 nursing or office staff, and 13 community health or social workers); more than 90% of the participants reported that the training achieved its learning objectives. Small-group presentations were preferred (91%); approximately 39% of participants requested an online format. Participants preferred that the presenters be either a public health or lead clinical expert, and they suggested that future activities include clinical vignettes. Conclusions Academic-detailing style training shows promise in promoting childhood lead poisoning prevention for frontline HCPs.


In Cash is King: Flows, Balances, and Buffer Days, we explore the financial lives of small business through the lens of cash inflows, outflows and account balances. Using a new data asset constructed from over 470 million transactions conducted by 597,000 small businesses from February to October 2015, our analysis shows that half of all small businesses hold a cash buffer large enough to support 27 days of their typical outflows. Our findings are fivefold. First, the median small business has average daily cash outflows of $374 and average daily cash inflows of $381, with wide variation across and within industries. Second, the median small business holds an average daily cash balance of $12,100, with wide variation across and within industries. Third, the median small business holds 27 cash buffer days in reserve. Fourth, small businesses in labor-intensive or low-wage industries hold fewer cash buffer days than those in capital-intensive or high-wage industries. Fifth, small business cash buffer days vary across metropolitan areas, but no clear pattern emerges from this variance. We hope this report draws attention to cash balances as an important issue, helps people better understand differences among small businesses, and helps in the development of smarter programs, products, and policies that enable small businesses to flourish.


The undeveloped southern tip of Topsail Island, NC, known as South Topsail Beach, has been accreting land and extending southwest into New Topsail Inlet at the rate of approximately 100 feet per year for the past decade, growing to its current size of roughly 135 acres. The dynamic coastal processes that dominate this landscape create habitat that the federally threatened shorebird the piping plover (Charadrius melodus), the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), and the annual plant seabeach amaranth (Amaranthus pumilus) depend on for survival. Human disturbance and loss of habitat due to shoreline stabilization are among the biggest threats to success of these species throughout their habitat range. This Masters Project, in the form of a management plan, seeks to address the needs of these threatened species, while allowing for traditional and passive recreational uses at South Topsail Beach. In an effort to better understand shoreline change at this location, and to inform management recommendations for South Topsail Beach, a geospatial analysis using LIDAR (light detection and ranging) data was performed. Areas of erosion and accretion on both sides of New Topsail Inlet were identified and volumetric change was calculated for the years 1996 through 2005. Beach profiles were created to more closely examine spatial changes. Monitoring shoreline change over time can be used as a management tool to indicate habitat size and quality on a local level. On a broader scale, this type of analysis may be used to identify additional undeveloped dynamic inlet habitat appropriate for conservation.


The Indian farming is traditionally organic and farmers were following organic cultivation till the middle of the twentieth century. After independence we gradually started practicing chemical farming to increase food production to meet the needs of growing population. With the introduction of high yielding varieties programme the chemical farming attained higher production by using various inputs like improved seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc. Later on in the 1980s realizing the adverse impact of chemical farming, various farming and consumer groups worldwide began pressing for government regulation of organic production. In recent years, explosive organic market growth has encouraged the participation of agribusiness interest. Organic farming uses nature as the best role model for agriculture and considers soil as a living system. In India, the Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Agriculture are promoting organic farming in a big way. The demand for organic produce increases year after year in India and in international trade market. Organic products produced in India are tea, spices, fruits and vegetables, rice, coffee, cashew nuts, oilseeds, wheat, pulses, cotton and herbal extracts. Organic farming is the only way farmers can escape from the vicious cycle of debt and a negative economy. It is also necessary from the point of view of small producers. Organic farming is a food system that raises income and increases food and food safety at both ends. It is one in which the environment is preserved, farmers and workers have fair access to the means of food production while receiving a fair return for their labour and consumers have their food at fair prices. Several studies reported that if all the outputs and all the inputs are taken into account, organic farming which relies on internal inputs has higher productivity than external input chemical agriculture. Keeping these potentials in mind, farmers in various states of India have started practicing organic farming but at the same time they are facing several constraints. So the efforts from various players like policy makers, researchers, extension workers, farmers' representatives, input suppliers, marketing personnel and consumers are needed to promote organic farming in a big way to tackle the present agrarian crisis. This is deliberated in this paper. It is hoped that organic farming will emerge as an important component of sustainable agriculture and congenial environment in years to come.


BACKGROUND: Large errors may occur when predicting basal metabolic rate (BMR) based on physical characteristics in obese people. In addition, the contribution of abdominal visceral fat to BMR remains controversial. This study examined the accuracy of several predictive equations for BMR and the contribution of abdominal fat distribution to BMR in obese Japanese participants in the Saku Control Obesity Program (SCOP). METHODS: BMR was determined using a mask and Douglas bag in adult males (n = 12) and females (n = 11). We measured abdominal subcutaneous and visceral fat areas using computerized tomography.RESULTS: All the equations, with the exception of Bernstein's, overestimated BMR in obese males. Some equations, including the Japan-Dietary Reference Intakes and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations/World Health Organization/United Nations University (FAO/WHO/UNU) equations, overestimated BMR in obese females, while the Harris-Benedict and Henry equations provided relatively accurate predictions of BMR in obese females. We found no correlation between abdominal visceral fat area and BMR when adjusted for sex, fat-free mass, and abdominal subcutaneous fat area (partial r =−0.022). Abdominal subcutaneous fat area correlated significantly with BMR when adjusted for sex, fat-free mass, and abdominal visceral fat area (partial r = 0.732), although this correlation was no longer significant after adjustment for total fat mass (partial r = 0.266).CONCLUSIONS: In obese Japanese subjects, most the predictive equations overestimated BMR in males, whereas some equations were relatively accurate for females. Our findings indicate abdominal fat distribution may not be independently related with BMR.


OBJECTIVE
We evaluated the association of plasma total homocysteine (tHcy), cardiac risk factors and total nitrite in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients, cardiac syndrome X patients and in healthy subjects.

METHODS
Forty two CAD, 22 cardiac syndrome X patients and 30 healthy subjects, aged 30 to 75 years were included into the study. Blood samples of tHcy, serum total nitrite and cardiac risk factors were studied appropriately. The results were compared between the groups. The independent contributions of tHcy and total nitrite to CAD and cardiac syndrome X and their interactions with cardiac risk factors were evaluated.

RESULTS
After adjusting for age, median values of tHcy and total nitrite were evaluated for their skewness. Coronary artery disease patients had higher median plasma tHcy levels than cardiac syndrome X patients (p<0.001) and healthy subjects (p<0.001) and lower serum total nitrite levels than patients in the two other groups (p<0.05), respectively. Using a univariate linear regression analysis tHcy had a moderately significant positive correlation with age (beta=0.34, p=0.002) and a weakly significant inverse correlation with female gender (beta=-0.24, p=0.032). Using a partial correlation analysis by controlling for age, gender and clinical situations tHcy had a positive but moderately significant correlation with LDL cholesterol (r=0.23, p=0.01) and triglycerides (r=0.27, p=0.016). Total nitrite had a positive but weakly significant correlation with HDL cholesterol (r=0.23, p=0.04) and fibrinogen (r=0.24, p=0.03) and an inverse but moderately significant correlation with LDL cholesterol (r=-0.37,p=0.001). Using a multivariate stepwise regression analysis total nitrite was inversely and significantly associated with tHcy (beta=-0.45) in the control group. The contribution of HDL cholesterol to the association was beta=-0.45, p=0.044, R2=36.2%, HDL cholesterol with fibrinogen--beta=-0.45, p=0.05, R2=36.6% and HDL cholesterol with LDL cholesterol--beta=-0.45, p=0.05, R2=36.3%. In a forward stepwise logistic regression analysis the age adjusted odds ratio (OR) for coronary artery disease per standard deviation change in log-transformed tHcy concentration was - 0.82, p=0.013 and in total nitrite concentration was - 1.08, p=0.02. Using the same model neither tHcy nor total nitrite was associated with cardiac syndrome X (p=0.221 and p=0.112), respectively.

CONCLUSION
The low nitrite levels can be a marker of endothelial dysfunction in the presence of hyperhomocysteinemia and other cardiac risk factors. Our results might support endothelial dysfunction in CAD but not in cardiac syndrome X patients.


A key challenge in soft robotics is how to design self-supported large-scale soft robots. In order to address this we have created a braided manipulator. The manipulator consists of a biaxially braided cylinder made from twelve glass-fiber enforced rods. The manipulator measures 1.38m in height in its equilibrium state and has a diameter of 8.5cm at the top and 20.0cm at the base and only weighs 35g. The manipulator is fixed to a base which weighs 1.9kg in which three stepper motor driven winches are embedded at 120° intervals. From each winch a string is braided vertically through the braided manipulator and is fixed to the top. In experiments we find that the manipulator can be compressed to 51cm corresponding to 38%. The manipulator compresses in 54s which is determined by stepper speed and winch diameter and expands when the actuators are turned off in 105ms. We also find that the force required to compress the manipulator is constant at 2.6N for most of actuation range. The force generated by the manipulator corresponds to a payload of 265g which is an order of magnitude more then the weight of the manipulator itself. The limitations of the current work is that the actuation, processing, and power is externalized to the manipulator and modelling and control are unaddressed. However, overall we find that the braided manipulator is evidence that braiding holds potential as a construction paradigm for soft robotics as we have demonstrated that it allows for large-scale and light-weight soft robots.


DNA helicases are molecular motors that catalyse the unwinding of energetically unstable structures into single strands and have therefore an essential role in nearly all metabolism transactions. Defects in helicase function can result in human syndromes in which predisposition to cancer and genomic instability are common features. So far different helicase genes have been found associated in 8 such disorders. RecQ helicases are a family of conserved enzymes required for maintaining the genome integrity that function as suppressors of inappropriate recombination. Mutations in RecQ4, BLM and WRN give rise to various disorders: Bloom syndrome, Rothmund-Thomson syndrome, and Werner syndrome characterized by genomic instability and increased cancer susceptibility. The DNA helicase BRIP1/BACH1 is involved in double-strand break repair and is defective in Fanconi anemia complementation group J. Mutations in XPD and XPB genes can result in xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne syndrome and trichothiodystrophy, three genetic disorders with different clinical features but with association of transcription and NER defects. This review summarizes our current knowledge on the diverse biological functions of these helicases and the molecular basis of the associated diseases.


Research indicates correctional officer (CO) mental health training may be effective in facilitating the safety and security of both inmates and COs. We assessed Department of Corrections' CO preservice (requisite for beginning an official post) mental health training requirements in 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. We obtained information regarding instruction method, training duration, and courses required. Descriptive statistics showed that all jurisdictions require mental health training, ranging from 1.5 to 80 hr (M = 13.54, SD = 14.58, Mdn = 8). When considering course titles, the most common course topic is crisis intervention (n = 44, 84.62%). The next most frequent course topics are general psychoeducation (n = 24, 46.15%), special populations (n = 12, 23.08%), specific clinical interventions (n = 7, 13.46%), institutional procedure specific to mental health (n = 6, 11.54%), and CO mental health and self-care (n = 4, 7.69%). Future research should examine whether CO mental health training is related to positive mental health outcomes and other important institutional metrics, as well as variations in training and its impact at the national and international levels.


The increased adoption of fertiliser and improved seeds are key to raising land productivity in Ethiopian agriculture. However, as in much of sub-Saharan Africa, the adoption and diffusion of such technologies has been slow. We use data from the Ethiopia between 1999-2009 to examine the role of learning from extension agents versus neighbours for both improved seeds and fertiliser. We use the structure of spatial networks of farmers and panel data to identify these influences and find that while the initial impact of extension agents was high, the effect wore off, in contrast to learning from neighbours.


Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) has been progressing rapidly. The IEEE 802.11n Physical (PHY) layer provides wider channel bandwidth, shorter guard interval, and up to four data streams. Therefore PHY 802.11n has a maximum of 128 data rate options from 6.5 Mbps to 600 Mbps. In addition, Medium Access Control (MAC) has been added Aggregate MAC Protocol Data Unit (AMDPU) scheme. If AMPDU is transmitted with a data rate corresponding to the channel conditions, then the probability AMPDU is received without error becomes increased. MAC determines the data rate used for transmitting AMPDU using a rate adaptation algorithm. Therefore some papers have proposed rate adaptation algorithms based on channel conditions. In this paper we propose a new rate adaptation algorithm that we call Adaptive Auto Rate Fallback for High Throughput (AARF-HT). Our development is done using NS-3 simulator version 3.26. AARF-HT algorithm performance is also tested through a number of simulations extensively. The simulation results show the data rate adaptation function based on the channel width, guard interval and the number of spatial streams in IEEE 802.11n WLAN has functioned well. The test results also show the AARF-HT algorithm resulted in higher throughput compared to the AARF algorithm.


The 5-HT3A serotonin receptor1, a cationic pentameric ligand-gated ion channel (pLGIC), is the clinical target for management of nausea and vomiting associated with radiation and chemotherapies2. Upon binding, serotonin induces a global conformational change that encompasses the ligand-binding extracellular domain (ECD), the transmembrane domain (TMD) and the intracellular domain (ICD), the molecular details of which are unclear. Here we present two serotonin-bound structures of the full-length 5-HT3A receptor in distinct conformations at 3.32 A and 3.89 A resolution that reveal the mechanism underlying channel activation. In comparison to the apo 5-HT3A receptor, serotonin-bound states underwent a large twisting motion in the ECD and TMD, leading to the opening of a 165 A permeation pathway. Notably, this motion results in the creation of lateral portals for ion permeation at the interface of the TMD and ICD. Combined with molecular dynamics simulations, these structures provide novel insights into conformational coupling across domains and functional modulation.


We describe an architecture currently under design and implementation at the University of Bath whose purpose is the provision of a net-wide musical service, building on previous experience in the development and deployment of mathematical Web services (MONET) as well as long standing involvement in sound synthesis (CSound). The structure and components of this architecture are discussed, and a number of sample applications are presented, to show the scope of the capabilities of this architecture. A particular motivation for the development of this architecture is to provide the means to have music where ever we go, whether delivered on a workstation, laptop or palm-held device. This opens up a number of possibilities for performance or personal delight.


Archaeological iron objects become infested with chloride ions during burial. These enhance electrochemical corrosion, acidify the pore solution and form hygroscopic p-FeOOH. Controlling chloride-induced corrosion requires <15% relative humidity (RH) this is difficult to achieve in practice. Iron objects are at significant risk when dry storage is not maintained. Alkaline deoxygenated solutions remove chloride ions from objects. A large quantitative dataset was needed to evaluate the chloride extraction efficiency, the relationship between chloride concentration and corrosion rate and the risks posed by aqueous treatments. Using 120 archaeological iron nails as sample material, and recording chloride extraction behaviour for each individual object, three treatments were tested nitrogen-deoxygenated 0.1M NaOH (20 C) and alkaline sulphite (0.1M NaOH/0.05M Na2S03) at 20 C and 60 C. Objects were subsequently digested to measure residual chloride. Chloride extraction efficiency was 60-99% in most cases 87% of treatments resulted in residual chloride levels <1000 ppm. Accelerated corrosion tests showed that treated objects were more stable than untreated. Post-treatment scanning electron microscopy identified chloride ions in corrosion products or within slag inclusions, but none at the metal/corrosion interface. The transformation of synthetic P-FeOOH showed that 0.5M NaOH or 0.1M NaOH/0.05M Na2S03 (60 C) produced the maximum transformation (c.50%) to a-FeOOH and/or a-Fe203. It could not be confirmed whether this reaction occurs on objects. Risk to objects was evaluated by assessing physical damage during treatment and modelling chemical residues. Less than 2% of objects experienced total fragmentation 69% experienced no change. The most likely chemical residue from alkaline sulphite is Na2S04 this poses no threat to objects at RH <76%. The research reported here is a substantial addition to the body of data about desalination treatment. It improves understanding of the benefits and risks of treatment in relation to developing improved conservation strategies for highly chloride-contaminated objects.


The objective of this paper is to address a question of the effectiveness of Financial Service Authority (Otoritas Jasa Keuangan - OJK) investigators in eradicating financial service crimes in Indonesia. This question arises because in Law on Financial Service Authority there are OJK's investigators with an investigatory authority on OJK crimes, including; banking, capital market, insurance, pension fund, financing institutions, and other financial service institution sectors. Meanwhile, there have been other investigators with an authority to investigate, namely, public prosecutor, police, and KPK (Indonesia's corruption eradicating commission). The theoretical framework of this paper was grounded in the thoughts of Aristotle, who says that the goal of law is to achieve justice, and that of Hans Kelsen's stuffen theory. The method of writing was juridical-normative, by studying legislations, both contained in laws themselves and in literatures/books of legal science, particularly those related to Financial Service Authority. The result was in a form of juridical aspect and written in a descriptive-analytical form. The conclusion of this paper was as follows: There was an overlapping of authorities between OJK's investigators and public attorney's investigators, police, and KPK, be they in the investigation of general crimes and that of special crimes/corruption. As for the effectiveness of OJK's investigators, it should be proved yet in the future.


We focus on the data models for storing the data generated by radio frequency identification (RFID) transactions and architectures for processing such data. We consider the supply chain comprised of the manufacturer, distributor, retailer, and the consumer. We discuss details of the data generated by RFID transactions and data models to store such data. Different organizations in the supply chain may use this data for different applications such as automatic product ordering, shelf replenishment, and product recall. We present models to anticipate the data requirements generated by RFID transactions and indicate how existing enterprise applications can be adapted to handle RFID data. The results presented in this paper will help a practitioner to 1) design and develop databases and applications for handling RFID data and 2) significantly reduce the storage requirements of RFID data. Using the data architectures, we discuss two supply chain applications-product recall and shelf replenishment-in detail. We present analytical models for the cost and time required for shelf replenishment in a retail store.


Setting up of institutional repositories has been gathering momentum in India and many academic and R&D establishments have made it mandatory to set up institutional repositories. This paper briefly details the work that has goneinto setting up and configuring the digital repository of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MOES). The repository has been setup using the free and open source software, GNU Eprints.org (http://eprints.org). Such a repository will not only help in thewider dissemination of the publications that emerge from the projects and programmes supported by the MOES, but it willalso serve as an information management system for the ministry.


The main purpose of this paper is to examine the concept of critique in Habermasian thought. Given that the concept of critique is a central theoretical category in the work of the Frankfurt School, it comes as a surprise that little in the way of a systematic account which sheds light on the multifaceted meanings of the concept of critique in Habermas's oeuvre can be found in the literature. This paper aims to fill this gap by exploring the various meanings that Habermas attributes to the concept of critique in 10 key thematic areas of his writings: (1) the public sphere, (2) knowledge, (3) language, (4) morality, (5) ethics, (6) evolution, (7) legitimation, (8) democracy, (9) religion, and (10) modernity. On the basis of a detailed analysis of Habermas's multifaceted concerns with the nature and function of critique, the study seeks to demonstrate that the concept of critique can be considered not only as a constitutive element but also as a normative cornerstone of Habermasian thought. The paper draws to a close by reflecting on some of the limitations of Habermas's conception of critique, arguing that in order to be truly critical in the Habermasian sense we need to turn the subject of critique into an object of critique.


The article considers the development of dispensarization of population, including new tasks, possible obstacles in the content of this work and approaches to overcome them.


This study explores the prevalence and multilevel risk factors of 1,309 Israeli Arab and Jewish adolescents' experiences of unwelcome sexual behaviors by peers in residential care settings (RCSs) for at-risk children. I examine the links between adolescents' reports of sexual victimization, adolescents' individual characteristics, and RCS-level characteristics using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM). Approximately 40 percent of adolescents reported having been victims of at least one sexually violent act by peers in the month prior to the survey. Adolescents with more adjustment difficulties, those who experienced more physical maltreatment by staff, and those who perceived the institutional antiviolence policy as less clear, fair, and consistent were at higher risk for peer sexual victimization. Sexual victimization by peers is also positively associated with concentrations of males and adolescents with adjustment difficulties and with residence in Jewish and group settings. The link between staff maltreatment and sexual victimization by peers was stronger among adolescents from Jewish than Arab RCSs.


Abstract : Graph partitioning is a topic of extensive interest, with applications to parallel processing. In this context graph nodes typically represent computation, and edges represent communication. One seeks to distribute the workload by partitioning the graph so that every processor has approximately the same workload, and the communication cost (measured as a function of edges exposed by the partition) is minimized. Measures of partition quality vary; in this paper we consider a processor's cost to be the sum of its computation and communication costs, and consider the cost of a partition to be the bottleneck, or maximal processor cost induced by the partition. For a general graph the problem of finding an optimal partitioning is intractable. In this paper we restrict our attention to the class of k-ary n-cube graphs with uniformly weighted nodes. Given mild restrictions on the node weight and number of processors, we identify partitions yielding the smallest bottleneck. We also demonstrate by example that some restrictions are necessary for the partitions we identify to be optimal. In particular, there exist cases where partitions that evenly partition nodes need not be optimal.


We describe a 50-year-old man with rest angina and ECG anterior wall subendocardial ischemia. During coronary angiography, a high-grade proximal left anterior descending stenosis was present. Spontaneous total spasm distal to the lesion occurred without chest pain or ST segment shifts. The patient underwent aortocoronary bypass surgery and continued to have the same pain as preoperatively. Repeated catheterization demonstrated total occlusion of the bypass graft with unchanged native coronary vessels. This suggests prolonged coronary artery spasm as the mechanism for graft occlusion.


This article presents the results of a qualitative study examining a series of artistic and cultural activities that emerged over the last years in Brazil in the context of psychiatric reform. Using both semi-structured interviews with users and mental health professionals as the authors of these activities, as well as participant observation in cultural and artistic events within the period 2007-2010, this study analyzes the role of recognition within the artistic-cultural dimension in the production of subjectivities different from those produced by the traditional psychiatric field.


The assimilative capacity of water bodies is an important factor in the integrated management of surface water resources. The current study examined the auto-recovery processes of the Apies River from wastewater discharged into it from a municipal wastewater treatment facility, using a series of equations, including the modified Streeter-Phelps equation. Field data obtained include dissolved oxygen (DO), temperature, stream velocity, depth, and width. Water samples were also obtained at 10 sampling stations for the determination of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) using standard methods. It was observed that the DO and BOD level (5.59 mg/L and 8.5 mg/L respectively) of the effluent from the wastewater treatment facility indicated better water quality than the Apies River background DO level (5.42 mg/L) and BOD level (13 mg/L). Also, at 270 m downstream of the effluent discharge point, another effluent stream (Skinnerspruit) adversely impacted on the Apies River with DO and BOD levels of 6.5 mg/L and 9.0 mg/L, respectively, compared to the Apies River background values of 6.81 mg/L and 8.0 mg/L, respectively. The stream, however, recovered well from both the background and imposed pollution sources as it had a computed positive auto-recovery factor of 1.74. Furthermore, the measured DO deficit was plotted against predicted DO deficit. The plot revealed a close match between the measured and predicted DO deficit, indicating that the model could be used for predicting DO deficit along other segments of the river. To further improve on the natural auto-recovery processes of the Apies River, it was recommended that flow along the Skinnerspruit should be enhanced by clearing the observed aquatic plants growing within the channel. Also, suspected pollution activities taking place further upstream on the Apies River should be investigated and appropriately addressed.


In this paper, a theory is developed that relates the natural response of an electric power system to sudden outages of transmission elements. The key development is in determining, via state-space analysis, the anticipated spectral content of either frequency or phase angle measurements as observed immediately following the sudden outage. This theoretical development mainly focuses on frequency measurements and the elements subjected to sudden outages are generators. For any sudden generator outage, the power system exhibits a very specific natural response in terms of its kinetic and potential energies. Kinetic energy in the system is directly related to each specific generator's rotational speed. It is shown that the effect can be seen directly in bus frequency measurements. Each remaining generator on the system has its own unique response to the sudden outage which contributes to the overall system natural response. This overall response is generally composed of oscillatory components which have specific frequencies. These oscillations, as measured by frequency meters, can be used to identify sudden element outages via their spectral content.


In a globalized economy it is relevant to question whether the Nordic Working Environment (WE) model will remain as the basic and implicit framework for the governance of the WE. This paper explores institutional changes in the governance of the WE, and critically examines how a more explicit and market-oriented framework might influence the governance of the WE in the Nordic countries. Firstly, the paper examines the changes in the governance of the WE at the societal level (Denmark) for the period 1954 - 2007, and identifies institutional logics informing these changes. Secondly, the paper examines changes in the governance of the WE at the level of the construction sector, using case material from four of the largest construction projects completed in Denmark in recent years. The analyses reveal three discrete periods, representing distinct logics influencing the governance of the WE, i.e., the logic of the state, the logic of democracy and the logic of the market. The logic of the state and the logic of democracy represent an implicit framework, whereas the logic of the market entails a shift to a more explicit framework. The shift to a more explicit framework for the governance of the WE, is also identified at the level of the construction sector. This leads to a pivotal shift in the clients' and the construction companies' relationship with the institutional environment in the four large construction projects. From worker representatives being the primary stakeholders, to a shift where the fulcrum of the development of the WE lies between management, the state and stakeholders in the companies' environment. This shift opens up a range of new and more market-oriented approaches to the governance of the WE that seems to challenge the extant Nordic WE model.


3 mol% yttric(Y2O3)-stabilized tetragonal zirconia ( denoted as: 3Y-TZP) powders were synthesized by the reaction of Zr(CO3)2·nH2O,Y2(C2O4)3·nH2O,H2C2O4·2H2Oand H4C2O2-C2H5OH mixed via stirring ball milling. The curve of decomposition of precursors was studied according to differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetry (DTA-TG). The 3Y-TZP powders were confirmed by characterization of XRD, TEM and BET. These results shown that the size of the 3Y-TZP powders were in the range of about 18nm-28nm with good dispersion and the main phase of target production was tetragonal phase. When calcining temperature and holding time was higher, the size of particles grown up and the tetragonal phase volume fraction decrease gradually. And the calcining temperature has more significant effect.


EPIC (explicitly parallel instruction computing) architectures, exemplified by the Intel Itanium, support a number of advanced architectural features, such as explicit instruction-level parallelism, instruction predication, and speculative loads from memory. However, compiler optimizations that take advantage of these features can profoundly restructure the program's code, making it potentially difficult to reconstruct the original program logic from an optimized Itanium executable. This paper describes techniques to undo some of the effects of such optimizations and thereby improve the quality of reverse engineering such executables.


: Experience of reconstructive surgeries after extensive resections of anterior abdominal and chest walls performed on account of tumors is described. Recovery of integrity of anterior abdominal wall was performed by serial grafting with dura mater and polypropylene net implant. The thorax was repaired with special grafts of the ribs and sternum. The integrity of the skin was reestablished with either suturing of the separated flaps or transposition of myodermal flap on vascular pedicle.


This paper is the next sequence of ethnography of a movement of the farmer community in Daleman, Java, Indonesia (Cahya, 2011). It specifically described the process of the ethnographic reflective dialog conducted in Daleman community while the revitalization movement was in progress. Although the reflective dialog resulted in some tensions amongst the participants, it succeeded in rebuilding the awareness and the spirit of togetherness of the community. The long and complicated process of reflective dialog enabled the members of Daleman community to develop their awareness to learn from the events they had experienced. This kind of dialog also inspired them to generate and continue the movement they had made. The story in this ethnography gives an important lesson that a reflective dialog plays very important roles in preserving the continuation of the movement of the community revitalization.


Injection moulding is an efficient means for producing plastic products in large quantities. Warpage deflection is one of the most severe defects occurring to the moulded plastic parts. In this paper, we report a novel method for reducing warpage deflection by applying a Uniform Design of Experiment (UDE) method. UDE is an experimental approach that is able to distribute experiments evenly within experimental space, especially when large number of experimental levels is necessary. We describe the method with a case study, for which the experimental table is developed and the procedure for the application of the method is elaborated. The results demonstrate that the method is effective for reducing injection moulding warpage deflection, and it is relatively more efficient than other means of DOE (Design of Experiment) approaches


Anthropogenic ocean acidification is likely to have negative effects on marine calcifying organisms, such as shelled pteropods, by promoting dissolution of aragonite shells. Study of shell dissolution requires an accurate and sensitive method for assessing shell damage. Shell dissolution was induced through incubations in CO2‐enriched seawater for 4 and 14 days. We describe a procedure that allows the level of dissolution to be assessed and classified into three main types: Type I with partial dissolution of the prismatic layer; Type II with exposure of underlying crossed‐lamellar layer, and Type III, where crossed‐lamellar layer shows signs of dissolution. Levels of dissolution showed a good correspondence to the incubation conditions, with the most severe damage found in specimens held for 14 days in undersaturated condition (Ω ~ 0.8). This methodology enables the response of small pelagic calcifiers to acidified conditions to be detected at an early stage, thus making pteropods a valuable bioindicator of future ocean acidification.


.. Objectives: Aim of this study was to compare the effects of two different shoulder positions on infraclavicular subclavian venous catheterization in critically ill patients. Study Design: Prospective Comparative study. Setting: Sheikh Zayed Medical College Rahim Yar Khan Pakistan. Period: 1st July 2017 to 30th June 2018. Material & Methods: Enrolling 100 patients thru convenient sampling, divided into two groups, Group A & Group B, 50 in each group. In group A patients were put in supine position, with head turned to contra lateral side and caudal pull was applied on ipsilateral shoulder. While in group B patients were lying supine, head turned to contra lateral side and shoulders were retracted by placing a small pillow vertically under the chest between the scapulae. In both groups, subclavian vein was approached through infra clavicular route. Number of attempts of venous punctures (1st attempt / 2nd attempt), total time spent on procedure (from 1st skin puncture to CVC insertion), complications (arterial puncture, pneumothorax, hydrothorax, malpositioning), any hemodynamic irregularity (ECG changes), radiographic findings to confirm successful CVC insertion was recorded. Results: Number of successful subclavian venous catheterizations was same in both groups (94% vs. 94%) with no significant difference (p= 1.000). 1st attempt success was more in group A as compared to group B, though statistically this was not significant (p= 0.275). Total time spent on CVC insertion (from 1st skin puncture to catheter insertion) was less than 05 mints in 84% patient in group A and 82% in group B. While more than 05 mints were spent on 16% vs. 18% patients in group A vs. B. This was also not statistically significant (p=0.790). In group A 2/50 (4%) while in group B 1/50 (2%) cases were recorded as malpositioning on post-CVC radiograph. Other complications were not encountered in either group. Conclusion: Lowered shoulder and retracted shoulder positions are equally effective for SVC insertion in terms of success, 1st attempt success, total time spent and number of complications.


Angiosarcoma of breast or chest wall is a rare recognized side effect in breast cancer survivors secondary to Adjuvant radiation. The treatment of angiosarcoma of the breast is carried out in number of ways. We would like to report the case of a 50-year old woman. She developed an angiosarcoma of the breast following adjuvant radiation to her conserved breast and was successfully treated with classical Cyclophosphamide, Methotrexate, and 5- fluorouracil (CMF) chemotherapy leading to a successful local surgical salvage.


Abnormalities of the urinary tract account for approximately 20% of all fetal malformations. Most of renal abnormalities are not life-threatening, but severe bilateral renal abnormalities account for 10% of all terminations for lethal fetal malformations. Abnormalities of the renal parenchyma can be divided into two main categories: anomalies of the renal echogenicity and cystic changes of the renal parenchyma. In this article, we present a review of the literature regarding the detection and management of fetal echogenic kidneys. Whenever fetal urinary tract malformations are detected, extra-urinary anomalies should be ruled out by a complete assessment of the fetus. The management of prenatally urinary tract malformations is moving towards a multidisciplinary approach with obstetricians, paediatric nephrologists and urologists.


The hot pursuit principle is defined as the right of a nation-state to pursue and seize a non-national vessel suspected of having committed a crime within the nation-state's internal waters and territorial sea and arrest it on the high sea (Churchill & Lowe, 1999). The hot pursuit allows a nation-state to enforce its laws and regulations against non-national ships that flee onto the high seas where the nation-state lacks jurisdiction (Reuland, 1993). Pursuit must be continuous and it must end as soon as the chased ship enters into the territorial sea of its own nation-state or a third nation-state's (Churchill & Lowe, 1999). The hot pursuit is officially recognized by the Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) from 1982.

In December 2013, a New York district Court judge issued a warrant requesting Microsoft to produce emails and private information associated to particular accounts hosted by Microsoft. The data was storage on a Hotmail server located in Ireland and was related to a drug trafficking investigation (HLR, 2015; Scott, 2014). According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), the U.S. government has the right to demand the emails of anyone in the world as long as the email provider has headquarters within U.S. borders (Thielman, 2015). Microsoft refused to deliver the names and accounts of the server stored in Ireland arguing that a U.S. Court has no jurisdiction over information stored out of U.S. territory. Similarly, the Irish government supported the Microsoft opinion and claimed that U.S. Courts do not have sovereignty to issue search warrants to be executed abroad (Goldman, 2016).

Using the Microsoft case, this paper intends to analyze the implications of applying the "hot pursuit" principle into the cyber domain. For this purpose, the analysis will be centralized in the arguments and allegations of the involved parties by using the codification software Atlas-Ti. The research design will follow an inductive approach and will focus in the arguments about why one nation-state's sovereignty should be applicable or not beyond the borders of its own territory.

This proposal is important because it presents a concrete opportunity to study a long-time-suggested academic proposal of applying some of the elements of the law of the sea into the cyberspace. At this point existent studies focus in: a) applying the categories included in UNCLOS as part of a national security policy over the Internet packets, b) applying anti-piracy rules in case of copyright infringement and c) protecting the under-sea cables (Kalpokienė & Kalpokas, 2012; Sechrist, 2010; Steven, 2001).

References

Churchill, R. R., & Lowe, A. V. (1999). The Law of the Sea. Manchester University Press.
Goldman, D. (2016). Microsoft is fighting the DOJ too. Retrieved March 31, 2016, from http://money.cnn.com/2016/02/23/technology/microsoft-ireland-case/
HLR. (2015). In re warrant to search a certain email account controlled & maintained by Microsoft Corp. Harvard Law Review, 128(3), 1019 – 1026.
Kalpokienė, J., & Kalpokas, I. (2012). Hostes Humani Generis: Cyberspace, the Sea, and Sovereign Control. Baltic Journal of Law & Politics, 5(2), 132–163. Retrieved from http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/bjlp.2012.5.issue-2/v10076-012-0014-y/v10076-012-0014-y.xml?format=INT
Reuland, R. C. (1993). The customary right of hot pursuit onto the high seas : annotations to article 111 of the Law of the Sea Convention. Virginia Journal of International Law. -.
Scott, M. (2014, December 24). Ireland Lends Support to Microsoft in Email Privacy Case. The New York Times. New York, New York, USA. Retrieved from http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/12/24/ireland-lends-support-to-microsoft-in-email-privacy-case/?_r=0
Sechrist, M. (2010). Cyberspace in Deep Water: Protecting Undersea Communications Cables By Creating an International Public-Private Partnership. Harvard - Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Retrieved from http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/publication/20710/cyberspace_in_deep_water.html?breadcrumb=%2Fexperts%2F2223%2Fmichael_sechrist
Steven, B. (2001). Innocent Packets? Applying navigational regimes from the Law of the Sea Convention by analogy to the realm of the cyberspace. Naval Law Review, 48, 56–83. Retrieved from http://unclosdebate.org/evidence/1115/unclos-provisions-transit-passage-provide-good-model-international-agreements
Thielman, S. (2015). Microsoft case: DoJ says it can demand every email from any US-based provider. Retrieved March 31, 2016, from http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/sep/09/microsoft-court-case-hotmail-ireland-search-warrant


This article argues that it may be useful to sometimes hold autonomous agents, and not only their users, responsible for their acts. In this connection autonomous systems can be computer programs that interact with the outside world without human interference, including 'intelligent' weapons and self-driving cars. The argument is based on an analogy between human beings and autonomous agents and its main element is that if humans can be held responsible, so can, in principle, autonomous agents. This argument can only be convincing if the relevant similarities between human beings and autonomous agents are more important than the relevant differences. An important part of the argument is therefore aimed at showing precisely this. The main point here is that the argument does not claim that autonomous agents are actually like human beings, but rather that human beings are actually like autonomous agents. This analogy can only lead to the conclusion that autonomous agents can be held responsible if it is assumed that human beings can be held responsible, even if they – as the argument assumes – are like autonomous agents. This will be argued indeed, and leads to the transition from the question whether human beings and autonomous agents can be held responsible and liable to the question whether it is desirable to do so. The answer to this last question is guardedly affirmative: it depends on the circumstances, but yes, sometimes it is desirable to hold human beings and autonomous agents responsible and liable for what they did. Therefore it sometimes makes sense to do so.


One of the main pointers of the health of any economy is its Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It indicates the size of the economy. It also helps in determining and comparing the growth of economy over different periods and also with that of other economies. Investment is the major factor that contributes to the growth of GDP. Increase in level of investment leads to the multiplier impact on increasing the levels of employment and income. There is significant role of Foreign Investment in open economies. Such investment can be direct or indirect. The current study aims to know the relationship and impact of growth rate of foreign direct investment (FDI) in India on growth rate of GDP in India. The study used correlation analysis and regression analysis. It found that there existed insignificant relationship between the growth rate of FDI and economic growth rate. Also, the results of regression analysis indicated the no significant impact of growth rate of FDI on growth rate of GDP.


Signalling by Wnt proteins (Wingless in Drosophila) has diverse roles during embryonic development and in adults, and is implicated in human diseases, including cancer. LDL-receptor-related proteins 5 and 6 (LRP5 and LRP6; Arrow in Drosophila) are key receptors required for transmission of Wnt/beta-catenin signalling in metazoa. Although the role of these receptors in Wnt signalling is well established, their coupling with the cytoplasmic signalling apparatus remains poorly defined. Using a protein modification screen for regulators of LRP6, we describe the identification of Xenopus Casein kinase 1 gamma (CK1gamma), a membrane-bound member of the CK1 family. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments show that CK1gamma is both necessary and sufficient to transduce LRP6 signalling in vertebrates and Drosophila cells. In Xenopus embryos, CK1gamma is required during anterio-posterior patterning to promote posteriorizing Wnt/beta-catenin signalling. CK1gamma is associated with LRP6, which has multiple, modular CK1 phosphorylation sites. Wnt treatment induces the rapid CK1gamma-mediated phosphorylation of these sites within LRP6, which, in turn, promotes the recruitment of the scaffold protein Axin. Our results reveal an evolutionarily conserved mechanism that couples Wnt receptor activation to the cytoplasmic signal transduction apparatus.


Context. Particle acceleration during solar flares results in departures of the distribution of particle energies from the Maxwellian distribution. Apart from the high-energy tail, the bulk of the distribution was recently also found to be significantly affected, due, e.g., to the presence of double layers. Aims. We investigate the influence of several proposed non-Maxwellian distribution functions on the X-ray flare line spectra. The distribution functions considered are sharply peaked and include the n-distribution, the moving Maxwellian distribution, and the distribution formed in strong double layers in the flaring plasma. Methods. Synthetic Si xiid‐Si xiv spectra involving allowed and dielectronic transitions at 5−6 A are calculated numerically. The parameters chosen for the calculations correspond to the impulsive phase of solar flares, as inferred by previous authors. Results. The Si xiid λ5.56/Si xiii λ5.68 and Si xiid λ5.82/Si xiii λ5.68 ratios depend on the relative number of electrons at energies corresponding to the formation of the Si xiid lines. Therefore, these ratios increase with the increasing narrowness of the peak of the electron distribution function. The highest ratios are achieved for the distribution formed in double layers, while the moving Maxwellian distribution is less likely to reproduce the observed enhancement of Si xiid intensities. However, the ratio of the allowed Si xiv λ5.22/Si xiii λ5.68 transitions depends on the ionization equilibrium. This ratio is very small for the double-layer distribution. Combination of the double-layer distribution with a Maxwellian distribution with the same mean energy significantly enhances this ratio, while keeping the Si xiid intensities sufficiently increased to explain the characteristics of the observed spectra. Conclusions. These results support the presence of double layers in the plasma during impulsive phase of solar flares.


ABSTRACT Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs) are novel drugs in the field of oncology however carry the risk of immune-related dermatologic, gastrointestinal, and endocrine side effects which can be fatal. These new innovative immunoregulatory drugs have intertwined the fields of oncology and endocrinology. CTLA-4 and PD-1 are co-inhibitory receptors on T cells that turn the T cell 'off' when binding to receptors on APCs. Tumor cells can also carry receptors for CTLA- and PD-1. By rendering T cells inactive, tumor cells can evade immune attack. Antibodies that bind to CTLA-4 and PD-1 lead to T cell activation and destruction of both tumor and normal host cells. ICPIs have been used in a variety of malignancies including melanoma, kidney cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer. A unique underrecognized side effect of the autoimmune response is hypophysitis leading to central adrenal insufficiency which can be fatal. Additional immune-related adverse events (irAEs) include hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, diabetes, and hypoparathyroidism.


This environmental assessment for the Vietnam HIV/AIDS Prevention Project focuses on the risks posed by health care waste at rehabilitation centers. Possible pathways to infection include: Direct contact, contact through vectors (flies, rodents, animals), airborne transmission; the pollution of water sources, especially in the medical centers where tap water is not available or dug wells or the local environment is used; through contact with the hazardous healthcare waste. These risks can be reduced by: Efficient separation from the waste stream at the point of generation; disinfection before disposal, e.g. chemical treatment, steam/heat treatment; incineration particularly through using a cluster incinerator; providing personal protective equipment e.g. heavy duty gloves, safety glasses, thick clothes; designing systems to minimize contact, e.g. good onsite storage, bagging of waste, use of boxes to store waste sharps, more effective transportation or trolleys, no putting clinical waste into domestic waste bin without lids; restricting access to healthcare waste dumping site; improving awareness of risks; applying vector control methods e.g. covering waste; protecting water supplies from contamination; implementing good hygiene practices when dealing with waste e.g. hand washing; creating a dedicated budget line for waste management; implementing final disposal by effective sanitary landfill; immunizing those in contact with healthcare waste against certain diseases e.g. Hepatitis B and tetanus; providing better access to healthcare for those in contact with waste e.g. in order to stop infections from deteriorating; and providing rehabilitation centers with enough equipment and analytical to detect the HIV positive trainees having tuberculosis or Hepatitis B so that they can protect them and protect others from contamination.


Nowadays, the traditional information retrieval (IR) is inadequate for the user who requires precise results. Hence, the importance of the semantic IR arises. It is very important to move from the level of ambiguous terms to that of well-specified concepts in the indexing phase to enrich the search process. To handle the problems of semantic ambiguity of indexed terms as well as the uncertainty and imprecision inherent in the information retrieval process, a semantic indexing approach was proposed for a better document representation. It is based on indexing the associated synsets with document terms that are identified by mapping on the WordNet ontology. These synsets are defined following a term disambiguation process (WSD). The key to the proposed system is a weighting model which calculates the importance of each index item considering many factors that improve the performance of the information retrieval system. Proposed conceptual weight is based on local and global integrality, degree of re-homogenization, and degree of specificity of the concept. A corrector parameter to reduce the impact of errors in WSD process is included. The experimental evaluation of the introduced semantic IR model shows very satisfactory results compared to well-cited benchmarks.


Precision guidance and precision sprayer control have substantial promise to reduce input application overlap, thus saving chemicals, fuel, and time during the application process. In this report we provide preliminary estimates of the magnitude of the private benefits for a precision guidance system combined with auto-boom control for agricultural sprayers (precision spraying). Hypothetical farm fields are analyzed, allowing comparison of the performance of the precision system to a traditional, non-precision system for different field shapes. An analysis of the impact of size of farm on system profitability also is explored. Our analyses suggest that, even when considering only private benefits of input savings, the value derived from a precision spraying system can be substantial. This is especially true when the sprayer patterns become more complex due to non-rectangular fields and due to the presence of waterways, drainage ditches or similar obstructions. Economic benefits of the precision spraying system increase proportionally to the cost of the spray material being applied and with the number of annual applications. Benefits also increase with increases in driver error rates for non-precision systems. Because most of the costs of the precision spraying system relate to the fixed investment, these costs are largely constant regardless of farm size. This translates to net benefits of precision spraying that increase with increased farm size.


We investigate the outage performance of a two-phase two-way decode-and-forward (DF) relay channel in which each transceiver is equipped with two antennas, and uses the Alamouti orthogonal space-time block code (OSTBC) for transmission. The focus is on attaining good outage performance as enabled by the use of OSTBC transmissions in both phases, along with a low complexity near-optimum receiver in the first phase, and physical layer network coding (PNC) in the second phase. Assuming perfect channel state information at the receiver(s) in both phases, we derive expressions for the probability distribution functions of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for all links in a Rayleigh flat-fading scenario. More precisely, we derive an exact expression of the outage probability for the end-to-end transmissions. The accuracy of the derived outage expression is verified by simulation results. We also demonstrate the impacts of channel asymmetry on the outage behavior. Numerical results show that the proposed scheme provides good performance under symmetric channel conditions.


In this paper, the use of adaptive mesh generation is proposed as a method of streamer simulation. The error estimation scheme is also presented. The employed adaptive scheme can refine the mesh where needed. In addition, it is possible to coarsen the unnecessarily dense mesh. For a numerical example, the propagation of a negative streamer was simulated and the results were shown. Through the adaptive mesh generation, we can obtain not only higher resolution but also more efficient grid distribution with a smaller number of grids.


The concept of harm and the nature of its proper role in the criminal law has challenged legislators, judges and philosophers for over two thousand years. More recently, sentencing commentators have suggested that we need a theory of harm that can justify imposing principled controls on the extent to which the state is entitled take the harmful effects of a crime into account when punishing offenders.
This thesis attempts to resolve both the philosophical and the practical problems posed by the highly contested concept of harm. It abandons the traditionally divisive debates over the purposes of punishment and focuses instead on constructing a two dimensional model of a crime that reflects our common nature as human beings, our shared language and culture of value and our common identity as members of a community governed by a state which exists for the purpose of providing the conditions under which we can live a good life together. This equality based model links the three concepts of harm, wrongdoing and fault with the three elements of the good life that we appear to value most, namely, our welfare, our autonomy and our desire to be respected by others as equals. It is used to analyse our criminal justice practices with the aim of ensuring that the decisions that we make at each of the three key decision making stages of legislation, conviction and sentencing can be structured around a single, coherent and consistently applied scheme of values.
The thesis concludes by presenting an account of the criminal law and the sentencing process that relies upon the normative aspects of wrongdoing and fault to justify imposing limits on the role played by harm. This model:
•allocates distinct functions to the concepts of harm, wrongdoing and fault in the assessment of the seriousness of a crime;
•explains the significance of harm's role in the legislative task of setting general penalty ranges and the judicial task of determining individual sentences;
•contains a two-limbed remoteness test limiting the categories of harm that may be taken into account;
•justifies a principle of comparative fault that limits the quantum of punishment where the state itself is partly responsible for the harm caused by offenders; and
•demonstrates that it is possible to construct a principled and coherent account of the criminal law and sentencing law without first having to agree upon a theory of punishment.


Primary renal malignant fibrous histiocytoma is extremely rare. The prognosis is generally poor because of the high rate of local recurrence even if radical surgery is performed. We report a case of primary renal malignant fibrous histiocytoma in a 43-year-old woman. A well-defined renal mass (10x9x7cm) with lobulated contour was revealed by abdominal ultrasonography and computerized tomography in our patient who presented with left-flank pain. The contralateral kidney and renal functions were normal. No other primary tumor focus was detected by screening performed to exclude a metastasis to the kidney. However, a nodule consistent with metastasis was identified in the liver. The patient underwent left radical nephrectomy. A huge, yellowish-white, partly necrotic neoplasm infiltrating the renal parenchyma, perirenal fat and adrenal tissue was revealed by gross examination. Microscopically, the tumor was composed of pleomorphic spindle to polygonal cells arranged in fascicles and storiform structures with extensive necrosis. Twelve mitotic figures were noted in 10 high power fields. Immunohistochemical staining for vimentin and CD68 were positive whereas pan-cytokeratin, smooth muscle actin, S-100, HMB-45 and desmin were negative. "A pleomorphic type of malignant fibrous histiocytoma" was diagnosed based on both the microscopic and immunohistochemical findings. The patient presented with multiple bilateral lung metastasis three years after nephrectomy. Histopathological examination is essential since malignant fibrous histiocytoma cannot be differentiated clinically and radiologically from other lesions with kidney involvement. The overall prognosis is unfavorable with a recurrence rate of more than 50% and the 5-yearsurvival rate is only 14%.


The performance of direct-conversion IQ transmitters with 25% duty-cycle passive mixers is analyzed. The up-conversion transfer function is calculated and it is shown that due to lack of reverse isolation of the passive mixer, the high- and low-side conversion gains can be different. The contribution of thermal noise from mixer switches to the total output noise of the transmitter is formulated. It is also revealed that the up-conversion of the baseband signal to higher order harmonics places more stringent linearity requirements on the post-mixer driver.


In this work, we consider the front-end receivers for flat fading MIMO transmission, whose essential feature is the calculation of the log-likelihood ratios (LLRs) for the transmitted bits. When the number of transmit antennas and the modulation size grow, the exact calculation of the LLRs becomes unfeasible due to the necessity to enumerate the symbols affecting the output. In this work, to avoid the burden of explicit enumeration, instead of calculating the likelihoods exactly, we explore the possibilities offered by the saddlepoint approximation of the likelihood functions. The resulting fixed-complexity approach significantly outperforms the well known linear-filter based minimum mean square error detection. A complexity analysis identifies the main computational bottleneck of the proposed detection algorithm.


Results of a field and microstructural study between the northern and the central bodies of the Lanzo plagioclase peridotite massif (NW Italy) indicate that the spatial distribution of deformation is asymmetric across kilometre-scale mantle shear zones. The southwestern part of the shear zone (footwall) shows a gradually increasing degree of deformation from porphyroclastic peridotites to mylonite, whereas the northeastern part (hanging wall) quickly grades into weakly deformed peridotites. Discordant gabbroic and basaltic dykes are asymmetrically distributed and far more abundant in the footwall of the shear zone. The porphyroclastic peridotite displays porphyroclastic zones and domains of igneous crystallization whereas mylonites are characterized by elongated porphyroclasts, embedded between fine-grained, polycrystalline bands of olivine, plagioclase, clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene, spinel, rare titanian pargasite, and domains of recrystallized olivine. Two types of melt impregnation textures have been found: (1) clinopyroxene porphyroclasts incongruently reacted with migrating melt to form orthopyroxene + plagioclase; (2) olivine porphyroclasts are partially replaced by interstitial orthopyroxene. The melt-rock reaction textures tend to disappear in the mylonites, indicating that deformation in the mylonite continued under subsolidus conditions. The pyroxene chemistry is correlated with grain size. High-Al pyroxene cores indicate high temperatures (1100-1030°C), whereas low-Al neoblasts display lower final equilibration temperatures (∼860°C). The spinel Cr-number [molar Cr/(Cr + Al)] and TiO 2 concentrations show extreme variability covering almost the entire range known from abyssal peridotites. The spinel compositions of porphyroclastic peridotites from the central body are more variable than spinel from mylonite, mylonite with ultra-mylonite bands, and porphyroclastic rocks of the northern body. The spinel compositions probably indicate disequilibrium and would favour rapid cooling, and a faster exhumation of the central peridotite body, relative to the northern one. Our results indicate that melt migration and high-temperature deformation are juxtaposed both in time and space. Melt-rock reaction may have caused grain-size reduction, which in turn led to localization of deformation. It is likely that melt-lubricated, actively deforming peridotites acted as melt focusing zones, with permeabilities higher than the surrounding, less deformed peridotites. Later, under subsolidus conditions, pinning in polycrystalline bands in the mylonites inhibited substantial grain growth and led to permanent weak zones in the upper mantle peridotite, with a permeability that is lower than in the weakly deformed peridotites. Such an inversion in permeability might explain why actively deforming, fine-grained peridotite mylonite acted as a permeability barrier and why ascending mafic melts might terminate and crystallize as gabbros along actively deforming shear zones. Melt-lubricated mantle shear zones provide a mechanism for explaining the discontinuous distribution of gabbros in ocean-continent transition zones, oceanic core complexes and ultraslow-spreading ridges.


OBJECTIVE: Since its casual discovery and implication as a human pathogen that provokes transitory aplastic crises and infectious erythema, the B19 parvovirus has been related to a wide spectrum of diseases. To better understand this clinical diversity, we reviewed the cases of a serology positive infants admitted to the hospital. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From January 1992 to June 1995, all clinical charts were reviewed and we obtained 15 patients that had positive IgM antibodies by immunoenzyme assay. RESULTS: The mean age was 12.2 months. No sex differences were seen. The incidence was higher in winter months. Over 50% of the patients belong to the last year studied. Clinical findings included 5 cases of arthritis (one juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, one polyarticular syndrome and 3 nonspecific forms), hematology disturbances in 5 cases (1 case of erythrophagocytosis, 1 of thrombocytopenic purpura, 2 of anemia and 1 chronic neutropenia), 3 cases of febrile syndrome, 1 liver dysfunction, and 1 neuromyelitis. Complementary exams were not significant and follow-up in all infants was satisfactory. CONCLUSIONS: The B19 parvovirus, a poorly understood virus, is related to many clinical situations where is true significance remains unknown.


Mobile technology is now being widely used to assist language learning and teaching. This study was designed and conducted to investigate the impact of a reading application on Iranian EFL learners' reading comprehension and reading self-efficacy. To this end, 56 EFL learners of a private institute in Iran were selected and assigned to one experimental and one control group. The learners in the experimental group read 10 passages independently using the reading application to help them find meanings and understand the text. The learners in the control group carried out the same process with the same reading passages with the teacher assisting them with the comprehension of vocabulary and the passage. The learners in both groups were given a reading test from Preliminary English Test (PET) and The Reading Self-efficacy Scale both before and after the treatment. The results of one-way between-groups MANOVA revealed that independent reading using the reading application positively and 1 DOI: 10.22051/lghor.2019.25118.1100 2 Associate Professor of English Department, Faculty of Humanities, Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, (Corresponding author); firstname.lastname@example.com 3 Ministry of Education, West Azerbaijan; firstname.lastname@example.com 94 — The Effect of a Reading Appli-cation on the Reading Com-prehension and Reading Self-Efficacy of ... significantly affected the learners' reading comprehension and reading self-efficacy. The results of this study can be explained through the cognitive theory of multimedia learning and have implications for teachers and students in improving reading and self-efficacy.


Proxy records from a core site off Northwest Africa were generated and compared with data from the subpolar Northeast Atlantic to unravel some main climatic features of interglacial marine isotope stage (MIS) 11 (423–362 ka). The records point to an almost 25 kyr lasting full interglacial period during stage 11 that was preceded by a considerably long glacial-interglacial transition (Termination V). Off NW Africa, a strong reduction of terrestrially derived iron input is noted after 420 ka suggesting a pronounced increase in continental humidity and vegetation cover over Northwest Africa. In analogy to the Holocene climate of the region, this early wet phase of MIS 11 was likely associated with enhanced influence of the West African monsoon system on the Saharan-Sahel region which led to both a reduction in trade wind intensity off NW Africa and the formation of sapropel S11 in the Mediterranean Sea. A detailed comparison with data from the subpolar North Atlantic indicates a remarkable coherent timing for the main environmental changes in both regions giving evidence for strong interglacial climate connection between the low and high latitude North Atlantic. Although our records of MIS 11 compare well with the Holocene in terms of some major climate characteristics there are distinct differences in the temporal evolution of each peak warm interval. This suggests that care should be taken when using MIS 11 as analogue to forecast future interglacial conditions.


Contact Electrification of MoS2 at nanometer level was demonstrated using a tapping mode Atomic Force Microscope or AFM. A highly doped n-type Si tip, d.c. biased from 0 to ±2 V with a resonant frequency of 300 kHz and a fixed amplitude set-point amplitude of 20 nm, was used to generate contact electrification on the surface of 5 mm x 3 mm MoS2 sample. Using the Kelvin Probe Force Microscope or KPFM, the surface potential images were shown to have bipolar charging and the surface charge affinity is more influenced by the positive bias voltage.


A vast ocean of data is collected every day, and numerous applications call for the extraction of actionable insights from data. One important task is to detect untrustworthy information because such information usually indicates critical, unusual, or suspicious activities. In this paper, we study the important problem of detecting untrustworthy information from a novel perspective of correlating and comparing multiple sources that describe the same set of items. Different from existing work, we recognize the importance of time dimension in modeling the commonalities among multiple sources. We represent dynamic multi-source data as tensors and develop a joint non-negative tensor factorization approach to capture the common patterns across sources. We then conduct a comparison between source input and common patterns to identify inconsistencies as an indicator of untrustworthiness. An incremental factorization approach is developed to improve the computational efficiency on dynamically arriving data. We also propose a method to handle data sparseness. Experiments are conducted on hotel rating, network traffic flow, and weather forecast data that are collected from multiple sources. Results demonstrate the advantages of the proposed approach in detecting inconsistent and untrustworthy information.


A description is given of Pichia lachancei sp. nov., a new species of yeast that occurs in association with several Hawaiian plant species of the genera Tetraplasandra, Cheirodendron and Clermontia. The new species is heterothallic and occurs in nature in the haploid as well as the diploid state. Upon conjugation of complementary mating types, zygotes are formed that reproduce by budding as diploid cells. When placed on sporulation medium, four hat-shaped spores are produced which are rapidly released from the ascus. Phylogenetic analysis showed that P. lachancei is most closely related to Pichia rhodanensis and Pichia jadinii. The diploid type strain of P. lachancei, isolated from rotting bark of Tetraplasandra hawaiiensis on the island of Hawaii, is strain UCD-FST 79-9T (= ATCC 201914T = CBS 8557T = NRRL Y-27008T).


Wave packets in graphene whose central wave vector is at Dirac points are investigated by numerical calculations. Starting from an initial Gaussian function, these wave packets form into annular peaks that propagate to all directions like ripple-rings on water surface. At the beginning, electronic probability alternates between the central peak and the ripple-rings and transient oscillation occurs at the center. As time increases, the ripple-rings propagate at the fixed Fermi speed, and their widths remain unchanged. The axial symmetry of the energy dispersion leads to the circular symmetry of the wave packets. The fixed speed and widths, however, are attributed to the linearity of the energy dispersion. Interference between states that respectively belong to two branches of the energy dispersion leads to multiple ripple-rings and the probability-density oscillation. In a magnetic field, annular wave packets become confined and no longer propagate to infinity. If the initial Gaussian width differs greatly from the magnetic length, expanding and shrinking ripple-rings form and disappear alternatively in a limited spread, and the wave packet resumes the Gaussian form frequently. The probability thus oscillates persistently between the central peak and the ripple-rings. If the initial Gaussian width is close to the magnetic length, the wave packet retains the Gaussian form and its height and width oscillate with a period determined by the first Landau energy. The wave-packet evolution is determined jointly by the initial state and the magnetic field, through the electronic structure of graphene in a magnetic field.


Advances in genomics and informatics have enabled the production of large phylogenetic trees. However, the ability to collect large phenotypic datasets has not kept pace. Here, we present a method to quickly and accurately gather morphometric data using crowdsourced image-based landmarking. We find that crowdsourced workers perform similarly to experienced morphologists on the same digitization tasks. We also demonstrate the speed and accuracy of our method on seven families of ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii). Crowdsourcing will enable the collection of morphological data across vast radiations of organisms, and can facilitate richer inference on the macroevolutionary processes that shape phenotypic diversity across the tree of life.


Excessive livestock grazing has caused extensive land degradation and soil erosion, thereby threatening people's livelihoods. Increased grazing pressure on communal rangelands in Lesotho and Iceland has led to massive amounts of soil being eroded each year causing a tremendous loss in biological diversity and ecosystem goods and services. In response to the above-mentioned effects of unsustainable rangeland management practices, a study on the effects of different grazing systems on ecosystem functions in Lesotho and Iceland was carried out. The two main objectives of the study were to assess the impacts of different grazing systems on Lesotho's rangeland ecosystem functions. Secondly, the study aimed at comparing the similarities or differences on effects of a similar grazing system, seasonal grazing, in the two countries. In addition, this study was aimed at determining and providing guidelines for sustainable rangeland management with grazing systems that are compatible for maintaining and improving rangeland health conditions, sustaining productivity and improving the economy of the countries and the livelihoods of present and future generations. The study was carried out by investigating types of grazing systems practiced in Lesotho and their impacts on rangeland health, looking at their effects on rangeland site stability, plant species diversity and rangeland productivity. Land Restoration Training Programme Keldnaholt, 112 Reykjavik, Iceland UNU Land Restoration Training Programme ii The results from the two countries coincide with the fact that both countries are experiencing severe rangeland degradation mainly due to poor grazing management. The study concluded that grazing management systems such as rest rotational grazing, deferred grazing and modified seasonal rotational grazing could be suitable for both Lesotho and Iceland for maintaining, conserving and improving rangeland conditions and in enhancing functional ecological processes. This paper should be cited as: Rampai R I (2017) Effects of different grazing systems on ecosystem functions in Lesotho and Iceland. United Nations University Land Restoration Training Programme [final project] http://www.unulrt.is/static/fellows/document/rampai2017.pdf UNU Land Restoration Training Programme iii TABLE OF CONTENTS


The purpose of this study was to determine the patterns of gastrointestinal and anal sphincter motility in 25 consecutive patients with severe constipation. Three patterns of abnormal motility were observed in 68% of the patients: (a) isolated anal sphincter dysfunction (20%), (b) a generalized disorder of gastrointestinal motility (24%), and (c) rectosigmoid dysfunction (24%). The remaining patients had either a previously unrecognized primary disorder leading to constipation or the irritable bowel syndrome. Duration of symptoms, laxative usage, or other historical features failed to distinguish each of the groups. Anal sphincter dysfunction was diagnosed by demonstrating impaired sphincter relaxation during rectal distention. Generalized motor disorders were diagnosed by demonstrating impaired colonic and esophageal function together with an abnormality in gastric emptying. Rectosigmoid dysfunction was manifest by an impaired rectosigmoid motor response to feeding without evidence of other organ dysfunction. These studies indicate that a high percentage of patients with more severe degrees of constipation have a serious but sometimes treatable disorder of bowel function, rather than the irritable bowel syndrome.


PURPOSE
To evaluate abdominal ventral wound healing by using a specific biomaterial, a handmade polyamide surgical mesh.

METHODS
A surgical incisional defect was made in ten rabbits to simulate a hernia in the ventral abdominal musculature. A polyamide surgical mesh was used in hernioplasty. They were monitored for surgical wound healing, and macroscopically and histologically evaluated at the end of the experiment. The polyamide surgical mesh did not cause foreign body reaction, pain, edema, or infection in the surgical site. The manure production was not affected by intestinal tissue adherences to the mesh, consistent with the ultrasonography result where adherences were not observed and organized scarring tissue formed in the incisional defect. The polyamide mesh was fixed over the abdominal wall, and its external and internal sides were surrounded by a vascularized connective tissue.

RESULTS
None of the experimental animals developed adherences from internal organs to the polyamide mesh, except two rabbits where the omentum formed adherence to the internal scarring tissue without present herniation or compromise of the rabbit's health.

CONCLUSION
Polyamide surgical mesh for hernioplasty presents, in rabbits, excellent biocompatibility, with minimal body adverse reactions and low cost.


This paper reports on the findings of a research aimed at exploring the professional identity (PI) of English as Foreign Language (EFL) teacher in Iran. The research further examined the extent to which the identified PI factors affect their teaching quality. The authors argue that earlier classification of different factors of professional identity of EFL teachers is arbitrary and may only be valid by definition. The possible grouping of these factors is also examined to identify what clusters of factors have relative importance in EFL teacher's professional identity and how these clusters may contribute to the quality of teaching. Sample participants contributed in semi-structured interviews and subsequently based on the thematic analysis of the interviews a questionnaire was developed and completed by a total of 143 EFL instructors and students. Factor Analysis of data identified four distinct clusters accounted for a total of nineteen variables presenting the PI profile of EFL teacher in which Personal Characteristics (PC) emerged as the most important cluster. Consequently, five clusters identified to have a considerable effect on teaching quality, Pedagogical knowledge (PK) found to be the most influential cluster. These findings may well serve as a valuable pedagogical resource for EFL teachers and policy makers to help improve teaching quality, educational processes, and curriculum design.


This study examined the efficiency of a sample of hospitals in the Great Plains using a nonparametric approach. Technical efficiency was less than either allocative or scale efficiency. Urban hospitals are relatively more efficient than rural hospitals with respect to all efficiency measures. Private hospitals are more efficient than others.


The time it takes for a clothes dryer to dry a load of laundry is important to consumers. On a heavy laundry day, many consumers expect the drying to be completed by the time the washing is done in order to quickly run one load after another. To assess the efficiency of dryer technologies with respect to drying time, we tested a variety of North American and European dryers. Further, we modified a conventional dryer to include exhaust air-to-air heat exchanger technology. We found various energy-efficient dryer technologies can have significant impacts on drying time. Unvented heat pump dryers, which can use 50 to 60 percent less energy compared to conventional electric dryers, take two to two-and-a-half times as long to dry. Another efficient dryer technology is an exhaust heat exchanger that uses waste heat coming out of the drum to preheat incoming air. This technology can reduce energy use by about 20 percent and actually reduces drying time. Another method of saving significant amounts of energy is running the dryer in no-heat mode much of the time, saving about 25 percent of energy use but tripling the drying time. Automatic termination saves approximately 15 percent of energy and decreases drying time. Natural gas dryers provide a cost-effective way of reducing environmental impact with fast drying, while vented heat pump and radiofrequency dryers represent promising emerging technologies. With increased network capability coming to the market, some of these energy saving options could be turned on or off through software upgrades.


The interplay between biological and chemical reactions in the freshwater phytoplankton phycosphere and the resulting modulations of contaminant speciation and uptake is poorly characterized. Here we modeled the effect of algal C and N uptake on carbonate cycling and speciation of selected contaminants in the phycosphere (external boundary layer) of chrysophytes, a key phytoplankton group in oligotrophic systems. We calculated an enrichment in H+ concentration relative to that in the bulk solution (pH 7.0) of approximately 40% or a depletion of approximately 30% for NH4+ or NO3--grown cells, respectively, at the algal membrane surface of a 5-μm radius cell. Such changes are mainly due to direct H+ uptake or release at the plasmalemma if NO3- or NH4+ is the N source, respectively. Due to these pH changes in the external boundary layer, competition between H+ and metals for uptake is enhanced, for NH4+-grown cells which contributes to a decrease in potential metal uptake. Our model suggests that the uptake of protonated weakly acidic organic acids (HA) is greater in NH4+-grown cells compared to that in NO3--grown cells. The account of chemical reactions in the algal external boundary layer could improve ecological risk assessments for a wide range of contaminants.


On 21 April 1918 Thomas Cecil (2nd Lord ) Farrer addressed the Surrey Archaeological Society's AGM on the theme of 'Patriotism in Things of Beauty'. In the context of sacrifice and shortages in the fourth year of war , he sought to protect scenes of natural beauty in Surrey and their historical associations. Liberty, historical continuity, local patriotism and incessant watchfulness were his abiding points of reference in war and peace in defence of an older England in the open spaces and villages of surrey. His public action was historically minded, steeped in place-awareness and acknowledged that landscape preservation could memorialise the fallen of the Great War. Examples of preservationist and access issues involving documentary records, material culture and historic buildings and monuments will be explored. These will illuminate Lord Farrer's activism in the Surrey Archaelogical Society, the National trust, the Commons and Footpaths Preservation Society and the County Ancient Monuments Committee. Being rooted in the past and by walking the ground, Lord Farrer valued everyday scenes in mid-Surrey which all were entitled to enjoy amid intact, but often endangered, landscapes in the aftermath of war. His practical liberal mindedness was consistently evidenced in 40 years of public engagement, but after 1918 the urgent quest for peace and quiet in the countryside had a deeper resonance for lovers of Surrey. As an 'old Liberal', who believed in peace, retrenchment and reform, Farrer strove to made sense of the conflict between beauty and utility amid history and nature near metropolitan London.


Purpose of reviewThis article reviews the results of case series and trials which evaluated venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV-ECMO) for severe respiratory failure. Potential indications of the technique in this setting are discussed. Recent findingsMajor technological improvements in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machines and the positive results of the conventional ventilatory support versus extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for severe adult respiratory failure (CESAR) trial have reignited interest in VV-ECMO in patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and persistent hypoxemia or hypercarbia on conventional mechanical ventilation. The technique has also been successfully used as a rescue therapy for the most severe ARDS cases associated with the recent Influenza A(H1N1) pandemic. However, as the CESAR study was criticized for methodological limitations and because results of nonrandomized case-series of ECMO are prone to selection biases, indications for VV-ECMO remain highly controversial. SummaryBefore widespread diffusion of VV-ECMO for severe ARDS, new trials should test the efficacy of early initiation of the technique with tight control of mechanical ventilation in the control group, initiation of ECMO prior to transportation to ECMO centers, and the use of ECMO in every patient randomly assigned to receive it.


t he public is concerned about air quality and sustainability. Cotton producers, gin owners, and plant managers are concerned about rising energy prices. b oth have an interest in cotton gin energy consumption trends. Changes in cotton gin energy consumption during the past 50 yr, a period of significant increase in labor productivity, were estimated to determine if replacing man-hours with machinery resulted in increased energy use. Data from recent audits and monitoring studies were combined to estimate energy consumption in total and for each of 10 processing or materialshandling functions. t hese values were compared to similar data published nearly 50 yr ago, by region and across the U. s . b ale formation energy consumption had increased because gins now press bales to nearly twice the density compared to the early 1960s. Other processing categories decreased significantly. Most materials-handling categories did not change much, but trash handling had decreased despite the increasing energy burden of more stringent emissions regulations. In total, electrical energy consumed per unit of cotton processed decreased by 19% to 34% even as gin processing rates increased three to six fold and mechanization has made labor four to six times more productive. t his is welcome news when consumers are concerned about the carbon footprint of their apparel.


What does the US public believe about the credibility of institutional actors when it comes to protecting information privacy online? Drawing on perspectives of environmental risk, this article addresses the question through a nationally representative telephone survey of 1200 adults who go online at home. A key result is that a substantial percentage of internet users believes that major corporate or government institutions will both help them to protect information privacy and take that privacy away by disclosing information to other parties without permission. This finding and others raise questions about the dynamics of risk-perception and institutional trust on the web.