An outbreak of aseptic meningitis has been ongoing in several areas of Latgale region, in the south-eastern part of Latvia since the end of June 2010. By 9 August 2010, 114 cases had been notified. Most of the cases were registered in the city and amalgamated municipality of Daugavpils and neighbouring territories. According to current evidence, two types of enteroviruses, coxsackie A-9 virus and echovirus 30, are the causative agents of the outbreak.


Distributed key-value systems have been widely used as elemental components of many Internet-scale services at sites such as Amazon, Facebook and Twitter. This thesis examines a system design approach to scale existing key-value systems, both horizontally and vertically, by carefully engineering and integrating techniques that are grounded in recent theory but also informed by underlying architectures and expected workloads in practice. As a case study, we re-design FAWN-KV—a distributed key-value cluster consisting of "wimpy" key-value nodes—to use less memory but achieve higher throughput even in the worst case.
First, to improve the worst-case throughput of a FAWN-KV system, we propose a randomized load balancing scheme that can fully utilize all the nodes regardless of their query distribution. We analytically prove and empirically demonstrate that deploying a very small but extremely fast load balancer at FAWN-KV can effectively prevent uneven or dynamic workloads creating hotspots on individual nodes. Moreover, our analysis provides service designers a mathematically tractable approach to estimate the worst-case throughput and also avoid drastic over-provisioning in similar distributed key-value systems.
Second, to implement the high-speed load balancer and also to improve the space efficiency of individual key-value nodes, we propose novel data structures and algorithms, including the cuckoo filter, a Bloom filter replacement that is high-speed, highly compact and delete-supporting, and optimistic cuckoo hashing, a fast and space-efficient hashing scheme that scales on multiple CPUs. Both algorithms are built upon conventional cuckoo hashing but are optimized for our target architectures and workloads. Using them as building blocks, we design and implement MemC3 to serve transient data from DRAM with high throughput and low-latency retrievals, and SILT to provide cost-effective access to persistent data on flash storage with extremely small memory footprint (e.g., 0.7 bytes per entry).


Since the arrival on the market of high-quality cold-hardy grape varieties, northern winemaking has been developing tremendously in countries traditionally unsuited for grape and wine production. Cold-hardy grapes are mainly interspecific hybrids of Vitis vinifera with Vitis labrusca and Vitis riparia , making their chemical composition distinct from that of V. vinifera varieties traditionally used for winemaking and therefore limiting the use of current knowledge about V. vinifera varieties in the assessment of grape maturity. Consequently, to evaluate the flavor development of cold-hardy grapes in the province of Quebec, Canada, the ripening of Frontenac and Marquette berries in two vineyards located in the southwest (SW) and northeast (NE) areas of the province, starting at the beginning of veraison, was studied. Quality attributes, phenolic compounds, and aroma profiles showed significant changes during maturation. Although full maturity was reached for both Frontenac and Marquette in the SW vineyard (1380 accumulated growing degree days, based on 10 °C), the accumulation of 1035 growing degree days was not sufficient to fully ripen Frontenac and Marquette in the NE vineyard. Principal component analysis showed different ripening patterns for the two studied locations. The longer veraison in the SW vineyard resulted in higher quality attributes and higher flavor development for both Frontenac and Marquette. Under the colder conditions in the NE vineyard, metabolite accumulation was driven primarily by berry growth, and flavor development was limited. Besides growing degree days and technological parameters (total soluble solids, pH, titratable acidity), which provide significant guidelines for maturity assessment in cold climate, phenolic maturity may be followed by the accumulation of hydroxycinnamic esters and flavonoids, although the impact of these compound classes on quality remains to be determined in cold-climate wines. In both Frontenac and Marquette, aromatic maturity was best assessed using the ratio of cis-3-hexenol to trans-2-hexenal, which showed a constant decrease until maturity. Interestingly, a shift in C6 compound profile, illustrated by the progression of the sum of C6 compounds respectively produced from linoleic (C18:2; hexanal and 1-hexanol) and α-linolenic (C18:3; trans-2-hexenol and cis-3-hexenol) acids occurred during ripening, with α-linolenic acid (C18:3) degradation products decreasing in both varieties as maturation approached. At harvest, aroma profiles of both Frontenac and Marquette were dominated by C6 compounds (hexanal, trans-2-hexenal, 1-hexanol, cis-3-hexenol, and hexanoic acid), acetic acid, β-damascenone, and 2-phenylethanol, with Marquette additionally showing significant levels of monoterpenes (linalool, geraniol, and α-citral) and 1-octen-3-ol.


Angiogenesis is important for wound healing, tumor growth, and metastasis. Endothelial cells differentiate into capillary-like structures on a laminin-1-rich matrix (Matrigel). We previously identified 20 angiogenic sites on laminin-1 (alpha1beta1gamma1) by screening 559 overlapping synthetic peptides. C16, the most potent gamma1 chain peptide, blocked laminin-1-mediated adhesion and was the only gamma1 chain peptide to block attachment to both collagen I and fibronectin. This suggested that C16 was acting via a receptor common to these substrates. We demonstrated that C16 is angiogenic in vivo. Affinity chromatography identified the integrins alpha5beta1 and alpha(v)beta3 as surface receptors. Blocking antibodies confirmed the role of these receptors in C16 adhesion. C16 does not contain an RGD sequence and, as expected, an RGD-containing peptide did not block C16 adhesion nor did C16 act via MAP kinase phosphorylation. Furthermore, we identified a C16 scrambled sequence, C16S, which antagonizes the angiogenic activity of bFGF and of C16 by binding to the same receptors. Because the laminin gamma1 chain is ubiquitous in most tissues, C16 is likely an important functional site. Since the biological activity of C16 is blocked by a scrambled peptide, C16S may serve as an anti-angiogenic therapeutic agent.


This paper analyses the fundamentals of the Portuguese crisis. The financial crisis of 2007 worsened and triggered the current Portuguese crisis. We argue that the main problem that the economy is facing is its output stagnation due to a kind of Dutch disease that has created high and increasing levels of indebtedness, low and decreasing levels of saving and has reduced Portuguese competitiveness. Moreover, the existence of a dualist labour market and a new vague of emigration reproduces inefficiency increasing unemployment of younger workers and the supply of human capital abroad funded by the Portuguese taxpayers. Governance problems such as bad public budget governance, lack of transparency and accountability are also at stake and have to be solved to allow the economy to return to its long-run growth path.


INTRODUCTION
The intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) is one of the most utilized cardiac assist devices. Patients receiving IABP therapy are typically managed in high acuity clinical care areas with limited bed space and high demand. Our center instituted a certified clinical perfusionist (CCP) led initiative to remove IABP catheters in order to reduce IABP therapy time, hasten removal and improve efficiency.

METHODS
The purpose of the study is to compare outcomes for IABP removal by a certified clinical perfusionist to a physician. The primary outcome measures were site hematoma score and limb related complications. A survey was submitted to bedside nurses, managers/patient care coordinators, CCP's and physicians. The IABP quality assurance database was interrogated for the study.

RESULTS
There were 350 patients eligible for inclusion. The cohort was well balanced between CCP (n = 284) and physician (n = 66) groups for patient demographics, indication, insertion specifics and type of medical intervention. The majority of patients had no bruise or hematoma with perfusionist (n = 246, 87%) or physician (n = 58, 88%) (p = 0.78) removal. The physician group demonstrated a higher rate of grade 3 hematomas (p = 0.03). There was no statistically significant difference between CCP and physician groups for limb complications and mortality. Survey results showed an improved efficiency in bed space allocation, physician workload and a decreased IABP support time.

CONCLUSION
There is no difference in limb complications between perfusionist and physician removal of IABP catheters. The survey demonstrate an improvement in resource allocation and efficiency. A perfusionist led IABP removal program can be done safely and may help improve program efficiency.


In Volt/Var control (VVC) of active distribution networks(ADNs), both slow timescale discrete devices (STDDs) and fast timescale continuous devices (FTCDs) are involved. The STDDs such as on-load tap changers (OLTC) and FTCDs such as distributed generators should be coordinated in time sequence. Such VCC is formulated as a two-timescale optimization problem to jointly optimize FTCDs and STDDs in ADNs. Traditional optimization methods are heavily based on accurate models of the system, but sometimes impractical because of their unaffordable effort on modelling. In this paper, a novel bi-level off-policy reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm is proposed to solve this problem in a model-free manner. A Bi-level Markov decision process (BMDP) is defined to describe the two-timescale VVC problem and separate agents are set up for the slow and fast timescale sub-problems. For the fast timescale sub-problem, we adopt an off-policy RL method soft actor-critic with high sample efficiency. For the slow one, we develop an off-policy multi-discrete soft actor-critic (MDSAC) algorithm to address the curse of dimensionality with various STDDs. To mitigate the non-stationary issue existing the two agents' learning processes, we propose a multi-timescale off-policy correction (MTOPC) method by adopting importance sampling technique. Comprehensive numerical studies not only demonstrate that the proposed method can achieve stable and satisfactory optimization of both STDDs and FTCDs without any model information, but also support that the proposed method outperforms existing two-timescale VVC methods.


In this paper, the long-term average achievable rate over block-fading buffer-aided relay channels is maximized using a hybrid scheme that combines three essential transmission strategies, which are decode-and-forward, compress-and-forward, and direct transmission. The proposed hybrid scheme is dynamically adapted based on the channel state information. The integration and optimization of these three strategies provide a more generic and fundamental solution and give better achievable rates than the known schemes in the literature. Despite the large number of optimization variables, the proposed hybrid scheme can be optimized using simple closed-form formulas that are easy to apply in practical relay systems. This includes adjusting the transmission rate and compression when compress-and-forward is the selected strategy based on the channel conditions. Furthermore, in this paper, the hybrid scheme is applied to three different models of the Gaussian block-fading buffer-aided relay channels, depending on whether the relay is half or full duplex and whether the source and the relay have orthogonal or non-orthogonal channel access. Several numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the achievable rate results and compare them to the upper bounds of the ergodic capacity for each one of the three channel models under consideration.


We describe a patient with two coexistent cutaneous eruptions: (1) trauma-induced bullae of the distal extremities and elbows and (2) multiple concentric gyrate lesions on the trunk and extremities, some of which became bullous. The gyrate lesions were stationary and nonpruritic. Biopsy of both types of lesions showed a subepidermal blister and a minimal inflammatory infiltrate. Direct immunofluorescence revealed linear deposition of IgG and C3 at the dermoepidermal junction and indirect immunofluorescence was negative. By immunoelectron microscopy, these immune deposits were localized to the lower lamina lucida. The eruption was not controlled despite high-dose (80 mg/d) oral administration of prednisone and required the addition of an oral administration of methotrexate (20 mg weekly). On further evaluation, an intraductal mammary carcinoma was detected. Following radiation therapy, the methotrexate and prednisone therapy were tapered without recurrence of the eruption during a follow-up period of 18 months.


Field studies often use external examination of the vagina or the swelling of the scrotum to make deductions about the reproductive condition of rodents. In this study we sought to determine what information on reproductive condition could be gained from external examination of the reproductive anatomy of spinifex hopping mice (Notomys alexis) using individuals from a captive colony. Female N. alexis with perforate vaginae had a significantly larger mean uterine mass and larger mean maximum ovarian follicle diameter than non-perforate females. Corpora lutea were recorded in two perforate animals but were not present in females with a 'pinhole'-size perforate or non-perforate vagina. In male hopping mice scrotal bulge size was unrelated to testes mass, ventral prostate mass or presence/absence of sperm in the cauda epididymides. Males with dark scrotal pigmentation had a significantly smaller mean testes mass than males with light or no pigmentation. However, there was no relationship between scrotal pigmentation and ventral prostate mass or sperm presence in the cauda epididymides. Our study suggests that vaginal perforation is an acceptable indicator of sexual maturity in female hopping mice, but scrotal bulge size and scrotal pigmentation should not be used to predict reproductive condition of males.


Astrophysical stellar reactions at extremely high temperatures involve a variety of problems both in nuclear reactions and nuclear structures. Specifically, the problems in the νpprocess were discussed in this talk based on our recent experimental results with low-energy RI beams and a simulation study. The νp-process is one of the key processes for investigating the mechanism of type II supernovae, and the process could be possibly responsible for "the excess production" of p-nuclei around mass 90-100. Alpha cluster resonances have been discovered experimentally to play a crucial role for the stellar (α, p) reactions just above the alpha threshold. Neutron induced reactions in the proton-rich nuclear regions in the νp-process are also suggested to play an important role, which involve nuclear structures of high level density at high excitation energies, probably giant resonances. The discussion also covered the p-nuclei production through the νp-process at around mass 100.


An explicit formula for the transition probability density function of the Hull and White stochastic volatility model in presence of nonzero correlation between the stochastic differentials of the Wiener processes on the right hand side of the model equations is presented. This formula gives the transition probability density function as a two dimensional integral of an explicitly known integrand. Previously an explicit formula for this probability density function was known only in the case of zero correlation. In the case of nonzero correlation from the formula for the transition probability density function we deduce formulae (expressed by integrals) for the price of European call and put options and closed form formulae (that do not involve integrals) for the moments of the asset price logarithm. These formulae are based on recent results on the Whittaker functions [1] and generalize similar formulae for the SABR and multiscale SABR models [2]. Using the option pricing formulae derived and the least squares method a calibration problem for the Hull and White model is formulated and solved numerically. The calibration problem uses as data a set of option prices. Experiments with real data are presented. The real data studied are those belonging to a time series of the USA S&P 500 index and of the prices of its European call and put options. The quality of the model and of the calibration procedure is established comparing the forecast option prices obtained using the calibrated model with the option prices actually observed in the financial market. The website: http://www.econ.univpm.it/recchioni/finance/w17 contains some auxiliary material including animations and interactive applications that helps the understanding of this paper. More general references to the work of the authors and of their coauthors in mathematical finance are available in the website: http://www.econ.univpm.it/recchioni/finance.


Aim: Behcet's disease is a multi-systemic autoimmune disease, characterized with recurrent oral-genital ulcers and uveitis. Neuro-Behcet's disease (NBD) may rarely cause tumour like brain lesions.
Methods: Here we present a case of forty-two-year-old Turkish male with tumour like brain lesion whose tissue biopsy result was compatible with necrotic inflammation, perivascular polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNL), lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells infiltration. Bacterial and fungal blood cultures were negative. The patient was diagnosed with NBD and was treated with intravenous methylprednisolone 1000 mg/day for 5 days. His neurologic examination improved significantly with the treatment. We evaluated histopathological properties of all biopsy proven cases reported so far in the literature including our case.
Results: When tumour-like lesions were seen in patients who had Behcet's disease in past medical history, NBD should be considered for preventing unnecessary brain operation. Seventy-three percent of all biopsy proven tumefactive NBD cases had inflammatory cell infiltration in the tumour like lesion area.
Conclusion: After excluding infectious aetiology, high dose IV methylprednisolone should be begun as soon as possible in spite of mass effect that is compatible with tumour in brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); the good response to steroid supports to the diagnosis of tumefactive NBD. Although most tumefactive NBD patients have inflammatory infiltration in biopsy material why some cases do not have any inflammatory cell infiltration in acute lesion area needs to be clarified in further research.


Introduction: Mammary augmentation is among the most popular types of cosmetic procedures and mammary prosthesis the most commonly accepted technique. A mammary prosthesis can be placed on transaxillary, periareolar, submammary incisions in subglandular, subpectoral, subfascial planes or in a combination of planes. Given the potential interaction between the prosthesis and the surrounding tissues, the plane in which the prosthesis is implanted has an important role among the factors affecting this interaction. The plastic surgeon decides on the incision and plane to be used by assessing the advantages and disadvantages. Materials and Methods: Prostheses were implanted in the subfascial plane in 47 patients who underwent augmentation mammaplasty. Round Moderate Plus or High Profile Cohesive II™ Gel implants were used. Device volumes ranged from 275 to 600 cc. Of the 47 procedures, 23 were performed over an axillary incision, 20 over an inframammary incision, and 4 over a periareolar incision. Endoscopic-assisted dissection was performed in all of the 23 cases in which transaxillary incision was used. Results: All 47 patients who underwent subfascial prosthesis implantation were followed up for a mean of 5 years (range: 2–7 years). Long-term results were satisfactory with few complications. The overall patient satisfaction rate was 89.3%, and none of the patients required an implant removal or change. None of the patients complained of severe pain, regardless of the type of incision, and resumed their daily activities on postoperative day 2. Conclusion: The subfascial augmentation technique provides good and long-term results. It requires longer operating times and is a more difficult technique compared to other planes. As the choice of incision does not largely affect the overall result, the position of the scar depends on the patient's preference, the properties of the implant, and the experience of the surgeon. The endoscopic assistance should be preferred when using the transaxillary approach.


Author(s): Lin, Li-Chiang | Advisor(s): Smit, Berend | Abstract: Nanoporous materials such as zeolites, zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs), and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are used as sorbents or membranes for gas separations such as carbon dioxide capture, methane capture, paraffin/olefin separations, etc. The total number of nanoporous materials is large; by changing the chemical composition and/or the structural topologies we can envision an infinite number of possible materials. In practice one can synthesize and fully characterize only a small subset of these materials. Hence, computational study can play an important role by utilizing various techniques in molecular simulations as well as quantum chemical calculations to accelerate the search for optimal materials for various energy-related separations. Accordingly, several large-scale computational screenings of over one hundred thousand materials have been performed to find the best materials for carbon capture, methane capture, and ethane/ethene separation. These large-scale screenings identified a number of promising materials for different applications. Moreover, the analysis of these screening studies yielded insights into those molecular characteristics of a material that contribute to an optimal performance for a given application. These insights provided useful guidelines for future structural design and synthesis. For instance, one of the screening studies indicated that some zeolite structures can potentially reduce the energy penalty imposed on a coal-fired power plant by as much as 35% compared to the near-term MEA technology for carbon capture application. These optimal structures have topologies with a maximized density of pockets and they capture and release CO2 molecules with an optimal energy. These screening studies also pointed to some systems, for which conventional force fields were unable to make sufficiently reliable predictions of the adsorption isotherms of different gasses, e.g., CO2 in MOFs with open-metal sites. For these systems, we developed a systematic, transferable, and efficient methodology to generate force fields by using high-level quantum chemical calculations for accurate predictions of properties. The method was first applied to study the adsorption of CO2 and N2 in Mg-MOF-74, an open-metal site MOF. Two different approaches were developed: one approach based on MP2 calculations on a representative cluster and a second approach based on DFT calculations on a fully periodic MOF. Both approaches gave significantly better predictions of the experimental adsorption isotherms compared to conventional force fields. In addition, we extended the DFT approach to study water adsorption in these materials. Moreover, instead of deriving detailed force fields, we have also proposed an alternative method to efficiently correct initial trial force fields with little information obtained from quantum chemical calculations. Finally, we studied the dynamics of CO2 in Mg-MOF-74 using molecular simulations. This study addressed the dynamic behaviors of CO2 adsorbed in Mg-MOF-74, and provided an alternative explanation to the experimentally measured chemical shifts of 13C labeled CO2 adsorbed in a powder Mg-MOF-74 sample. Our results further illustrated that subtle changes in the topology of frameworks greatly influence CO2 dynamics.


1455 June 2013 A 58-YR-OLD man with septic shock and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) secondary to pyelonephritis was admitted to the intensive care unit. The blood pressure was 80/60 mmHg, and the echocardiogram showed diffuse severe hypokinesis. The patient was treated with antibiotics, recombinant thrombomodulin, continuous hemofiltration/hemodialysis, and mechanical ventilation. The patient received vasoactive agents, including norepinephrine, dopamine, and dobutamine. Three days after admission, all digits in the four extremities exhibited progressive pallor. Administration of norepinephrine was discontinued. Over the next 3 days, symmetric peripheral gangrene developed (fig.). The blood culture revealed the presence of Escherichia coli. With continued supportive treatments, the patient recovered quickly without additional spread of the skin lesion. The patient underwent amputations of the affected digits. Symmetric peripheral gangrene is a condition that often is associated with sepsis and DIC.1 It may present as part of purpura fulminans secondary to sepsis and DIC.2 Digital ischemia caused by a combination of the low systemic perfusion state and peripheral vasoconstriction induced by septic shock and catecholamines may cause or exacerbate symmetric peripheral gangrene.1 Various therapies to modulate inflammation and coagulation have been attempted for the treatment of sepsis and DIC.3 However, no definitive treatment other than the amputation of necrotic digits has been established for symmetric peripheral gangrene. Treatment of the underlying infection with antibiotics and supportive therapies to improve systemic and peripheral perfusion should be the mainstays of care for patients with symmetric peripheral gangrene associated with sepsis and DIC.2


ABSTRACT The Src family of protein-tyrosine kinases (SFK) play important roles in mitogenesis and morphological changes induced by growth factors. The involved substrates are, however, ill defined. Using an antiphosphotyrosine antibody to screen tyrosine-phosphorylated cDNA expression library, we have identified Tom1L1, an adaptor protein of the Tom1 family and a novel substrate and activator of the SFK. Surprisingly, we found that Tom1L1 does not promote DNA synthesis induced by Src. Furthermore, we report that Tom1L1 negatively regulates SFK mitogenic signaling induced by platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) through modulation of SFK-receptor association: (i) Tom1L1 inhibits DNA synthesis induced by PDGF; (ii) inhibition is overcome by c-myc expression or p53 inactivation, two regulators of SFK mitogenic function; (iii) Src or Fyn coexpression overrides Tom1L1 mitogenic activity; (iv) overexpression of the adaptor reduces Src association with the receptor; and (v) protein inactivation potentiates receptor complex formation, allowing increased SFK activation and DNA synthesis. However, Tom1L1 affects neither DNA synthesis induced by the constitutively active allele SrcY527F nor SFK-regulated actin assembly induced by PDGF. Finally, overexpressed Tom1 and Tom1L2 also associate with Src and affected mitogenic signaling in agreement with some redundancy among members of the Tom1 family. We concluded that Tom1L1 defines a novel mechanism for regulation of SFK mitogenic signaling induced by growth factors.


Most software development organizations nowadays use issue-tracking tools to manage software processes throughout the life-cycle. Still, understanding development processes, keeping track of process execution, and reacting to deviations in projects remains challenging. In particular, the actual process usually differs from the process perceived by developers, making it hard to define the processes developers are expected to carry out. This is further challenged by frequently changing processes and process variations in different projects and teams. In this paper we describe an empirical study in which we applied a constraint mining approach from the field of software monitoring to automatically extract process definitions in the form of constraints. Specifically, we applied the approach to datasets extracted from four real-world projects (using the Jira issue-tracking tool) in a company developing a recreational activities platform. The mined constraints describe the boundaries of the actual processes and thus help to understand process behavior. Constraints can be frequently re-mined to understand process evolution. The mined constraints can also be used to monitor future processes to detect problems in the development process early on. We involved a domain expert to evaluate the usefulness of our results and investigated to what extent the mined constraints reflect the official development process of the company. We also report mining results for different issue types, across projects, and over different time windows.


This article addresses the nature and measurement of White racial identity. White identification is conceptualized as an automatic association between the self and the White ingroup; this association is fostered through social exposure to non-Whites and serves to link self- and ingroup evaluations. Four studies validated a measure of White identification against criteria derived from this model. In Study 1, the White Identity Centrality Implicit Association Test (WICIAT) predicted response latencies in a task gauging self-ingroup merging. In Study 2, the WICIAT correlated with census data tapping exposure to non-Whites. In Studies 3 and 4, the WICIAT predicted phenomena associated with the linking of self- and ingroup evaluations: identity-related biases in intergroup categorization (Study 3) and self-evaluative emotional reactions to ingroup transgressions (Study 4). Together, the findings shed light on the antecedents and consequences of White identity, an often-neglected individual difference construct.


Analysis of tissue is essential in dealing with a number of problems in cancer research. The identification of normal, dysplastic and cancerous colonic mucosa is an example of such a problem. In this paper, texture analysis techniques have been employed with the purpose of measuring characteristics of the tissue images. Those include histogram, grey-level difference statistics and co-occurrence matrix feature extraction algorithms. These characteristics are used as inputs for two different artificial intelligence approaches to address the image classification problem; a genetic algorithm and an artificial neural network. No significant differences have been found in the classifications obtained by both methodologies.


Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is caused by genetic defects decreasing Fas function and is characterized by lymphadenopathy/splenomegaly and expansion of CD4/CD8 double-negative T cells. This latter expansion is absent in the ALPS variant named Dianzani Autoimmune/lymphoproliferative Disease (DALD). In addition to the causative mutations, the genetic background influences ALPS and DALD development. We previously suggested a disease-modifying role for the perforin gene involved in familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (FHL). The UNC13D gene codes for Munc13-4, which is involved in perforin secretion and FHL development, and thus, another candidate for a disease-modifying role in ALPS and DALD. In this work, we sequenced UNC13D in 21 ALPS and 20 DALD patients and compared these results with sequences obtained from 61 healthy subjects and 38 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. We detected four rare missense variations in three heterozygous ALPS patients carrying p.Cys112Ser, p.Val781Ile, and a haplotype comprising both p.Ile848Leu and p.Ala995Pro. Transfection of the mutant cDNAs into HMC-1 cells showed that they decreased granule exocytosis, compared to the wild-type construct. An additional rare missense variation, p.Pro271Ser, was detected in a healthy subject, but this variation did not decrease Munc13-4 function. These data suggest that rare loss-of-function variations of UND13D are risk factors for ALPS development.


The pricing of public transport may range from charging the full price to supplying it for free. The present situation in most European countries is between the two extremes implying a partial cost recovery. In this paper we will explore both extremes on the axis of cost recovery: free public transport, and public transport without subsidies. We start with a discussion of free public transport, and give a short survey of the intentions governments may have with its introduction. After this short survey we discuss in more detail the experiences with free public transport in four real world cases, two from Belgium and two from the Netherlands: the city of Hasselt, the Brussels region (for students), the Leiden-The Hague bus corridor, and free public transport for students in The Netherlands. Then we discuss the other extreme: public transport without subsidies. We start with a short overview of the financial performance of the Dutch public transport systems and an analysis of the impacts of measures to improve the benefit-cost ratios. Then the effects of subsidy suspension in the Netherlands are estimated by developing two scenarios that describe opposite extremes in the hypothetical situation that no subsidies are granted to public transport operators and comparing the outcomes with a reference scenario where continuation of subsidies is assumed. The paper concludes with a discussion of the merits and problems of both pricing policies: free public transport and public transport without subsidies.


Author(s): Cano, Sandra E | Advisor(s): Bailey, Alison; Durkin, Diane | Abstract: This qualitative dual case study investigated the impact of the Sobrato English Academic Language (SEAL) Model on English learners' acquisition of academic English language. This study of a model of intervention is based on Critical Race Theory, investigating the use of culturally and linguistically responsive practices and strategies to learn academic English language. Following a document review, a series of interviews with 11 participants, observations of 5 teachers on 2 separate occasions, and a review of artifacts, 5 key findings were unearthed: SEAL (a) incorporates culturally responsive practices and strategies in its model design to give teachers tools to create a cultural context to serve as a bridge to learning academic English language; (b) integrates research-based strategies to teach English learners academic English language; (c) utilizes student-to-student discourse to promote oral production of academic English language; (d) utilizes a unit design involving thematic planning to expand precise language, teach grammatical forms, and explanations in academic contexts; and (e) makes use of a variety of strategies, allowing for the reprocessing of academic English language. Considering these findings, the SEAL Model makes 3 significant contributions to the field of education in academic English language learning: (a) SEAL incorporates a professional development structure, providing a variety of resources shaping the perception that students' culture, language, and identity are an asset rather than a deficiency; (b) SEAL teachers design units based on science and social studies content to frame the context of language learning where students engage in collaborative opportunities to learn academic English language within the content while practicing language tasks; and (c) SEAL has explicitly identified foundational research and strategies as best practices, providing professional development on these strategies with all levels within school districts.Four recommendations were made due to the study's findings: (a) the need for culturally and linguistically responsive awareness for parents, (b) models for extending learning of strategies, (c) opportunities for the processing of unit concepts and strategies, along with time to prepare teaching materials, and (d) the implementation of local and SEAL universal assessments.


In this article, the concept of geographical cancer equality is described and strong evidence that rural populations have poorer cancer outcomes is highlighted. Currently, hard evidence is lacking for what causes poorer outcomes in rural populations with cancer, and this hinders efforts to address this striking health inequality. Current trends in 'big data' science and systems to assess the quality of universities' research output could discourage the very kind of research that will truly discover why rural communities fare worse with cancer. Smaller local studies, employing mixed research methods and using technology in innovative ways, offer the way forward and will signpost policies and interventions with real potential to redress urban–rural cancer inequality.

Rural-dwellers have poorer cancer survival than those living in cities. In a recent systematic review, we identified 39 studies from seven countries, the majority reporting poorer survival in rural areas.1 Place of residence is a major source of inequity worldwide, but compared to other sociodemographic factors affecting cancer outcomes, geographical cancer inequalities are under-researched and barely understood. One problem is that current insights into geographical inequity derive from population-based studies and big data research. It is accepted practice for data scientists to offer explanations for significant associations in their data. In the case of rural residence and increased cancer mortality, the usual explanation is almost too obvious: rural-dwellers have poorer access to health services. In reality, geographical inequality is likely multi-factorial, driven by patient, topographical, and cultural factors, as well as just service organisation. Potentially modifiable local factors are obscured in big data. Here, we argue that collected insights from robust local and primary care-based studies …


End-to-end task-oriented dialog systems usually suffer from the challenge of incorporating knowledge bases. In this paper, we propose a novel yet simple end-to-end differentiable model called memory-to-sequence (Mem2Seq) to address this issue. Mem2Seq is the first neural generative model that combines the multi-hop attention over memories with the idea of pointer network. We empirically show how Mem2Seq controls each generation step, and how its multi-hop attention mechanism helps in learning correlations between memories. In addition, our model is quite general without complicated task-specific designs. As a result, we show that Mem2Seq can be trained faster and attain the state-of-the-art performance on three different task-oriented dialog datasets.


A collective communication library for parallel computers includes frequently used operations such as broadcast, reduce, scatter, gather, concatenate, synchronize, and shift. Such a library provides users with a convenient programming interface, efficient communication operations, and the advantage of portability. A library of this nature, the collective communication library (CCL), intended for the line of scalable parallel computer products by IBM, has been designed. CCL is part of the parallel application programming interface of the recently announced IBM 9076 Scalable POWERparallel System 1 (SP1). We examine several issues related to the functionality, correctness, and performance of a portable collective communication library while focusing on three novel aspects in the design and implementation of CCL: (i) the introduction of process groups, (ii) the definition of semantics that ensures correctness, and (iii) the design of new and tunable algorithms based on a realistic point-to-point communication model.<<ETX>>


Series resonant converter (SRC) is one of the main parts which has to be designed carefully to be compatible with the general requirements of photovoltaic (PV) grid-connected system. The extensive search space for design parameters of SRC such as resonant tank component values, transformer turn ratio, dead time and switching frequency requires an automated design framework. The proposed framework is developed using genetic algorithm (GA), differential evolution algorithm (DEA), and nondominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) for the multi-objective optimization of SRC circuit while accomplishing zero voltage switching (ZVS). Regulating the output voltage while minimizing the losses of MOSFET, diode and transformer are the design objectives. FEM is applied to subdivide the single phase transformer into simpler and finite parts to calculate flux density value according to the optimized design parameters. Amongst these evolutionary algorithms, NSGA-II achieved the best optimization performance considering various operation modes and required specifications. Simulation results are also provided to validate the efficient and robust automated design of SRC to be used in photovoltaic systems.


Mg-4.9Zn-0.9Y-0.7Zr alloy and Mg-4.9Zn-0.7Zr alloy were prepared by ingot metallurgy method.The influence of Y addition on microstructure and properties was studied.Phase analysis,microstructure and morphology of second phases were investigated by XRD,OM and SEM.The component and morphology of the second phases was analyzed by EDAX and TEM.The results showed that Y was an effective element strengthening Mg-Zn-Zr alloy and a large number of Mg3Zn6Y phase formed due to the addition of Y.During the process of hot rolling,Mg3Zn6Y phase was pulverized into large amount of dispersion particles,which pinned dislocation effectively,so ultimate strength and yield strength at room temperature were improved,as well as good plasticity was remained.


AbstractHereditary colonic polyposis conditions are all characterized by high rates of cancer, but they have diverse phenotypes, genetic heterogeneity, and assorted inheritance patterns. The most well known of these conditions include familial adenomatous polyposis, attenuated familial adenomatous polyposis, MUTYH (MutY human homolog)–associated polyposis, Peutz-Jeghers syndrome, juvenile polyposis syndrome, and Cowden syndrome. Early recognition of these conditions is not only vital for management in affected individuals, but also for prevention and early detection in at-risk relatives. Reviewed here are the genetic testing strategies for colonic polyposis, as well as an overview of characteristic features and management considerations for these syndromes.


Homocysteine (Hcy) is a natural, non-essential amino acid formed by the de-methylation of methionine. Pathologic elevations occur in many chronic conditions, particularly the cardiovascular conditions common with aging, and in SARS-Cov2. The most common co-existing morbidities, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes are all strongly associated with elevated levels of Homocysteine. Homocysteine's effects include potential mechanisms for triggering severe COVID-19 disease, or preventing its control. For instance, SARS-CoV2 enters cells through its spike proteins that attach to the Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) cellular receptors to form a tunnel through which the virus enters the celli. Homocysteine, in attaching to the enzyme, may inhibit its attachment to the receptors and allow more virus to enter the cells. High homocysteine levels increase inflammatory cytokines that are over-produced in cytokine release syndrome or "cytokine storm", increase endothelial dysfunction, inhibit nitric oxide synthesis, and lead to thrombus formation. All of these pathologies are hallmarks of severe SARS-Cov2.


Within the context of Netspeak, and English as a global language, weblogs (blogs) are defined as frequently modified web pages in which dated entries are listed in reverse chronological sequence, are becoming an increasingly popular form of communication on the World Wide Web. The present paper introduces blogs as an asynchronous type of online communication that share features with asynchronous discussion forums. The paper presents the origin of blogs, the blogosphere – who blogs and about what and most importantly, why people blog. The scope of blogs is argued to have expanded dramatically over the past decade, making blogging more of a multifaceted tool than a specific type of Internet platform. The paper outlines the basic linguistic features of blogs and gives an overview of basic blog types and their corresponding linguistic properties and aspects. The paper serves the purposes of characterizing the properties of the emergent blog genre, situating it with respect to the broader genre ecology of the Internet. The idea is to provide an empirical snapshot of the weblog in its present stage, as a historical record for purposes of comparison with future stages of evolution, and to contribute to a theoretical understanding of how technological changes trigger the formation of new genres, which in turn may affect the genre ecology of a larger domain such as the Internet.


T he single site implementation study is an invaluable tool for studying the large-scale enterprise solution. Together with constructivist frameworks and ethnographic approaches it has allowed the development of rich local pictures of the immediate and adaptive response by user organizations to the take-up of what are, today, often generic packaged systems. However, to view the packaged enterprise solution principally at the place where the user encounters it also has limitations. It produces somewhat partial understandings of these complex artifacts. In particular, it downplays important influences from other sites and time frames. This paper argues that if we are to understand the full implications of enterprise solutions for organizations then we should study their "biography." This idea points to how the career of workplace technology is often played out over multiple time frames and settings. To understand its shaping therefore requires scholars to go beyond the study of technology at a single locale or moment and, rather, attempt to follow it through space and time. The paper develops two ideas to aid this kind of study. We discuss better spatial metaphors that might help us explore the hybrid and extended spaces in which packaged software systems develop and evolve. We also review improved temporal understandings that may capture the multiple contemporary and historical time frames at play. The paper concludes by discussing some possible research directions that a focus on the biography of a technology might allow. with the authors for 9 1/4 for 3 online in in


Nowadays with the evolution of Internet of Things (IoT), building a network of sensors for measuring data from remote locations requires a good plan considering a lot of parameters including power consumption. A Lot of communication technologies such as WIFI, Bluetooth, Zigbee, Lora, Sigfox, and GSM/GPRS are being used based on the application and this application will have some requirements such as communication range, power consumption, and detail about data to be transmitted. In some places, especially the hilly area like Rwanda and where GSM connectivity is already covered, GSM/GPRS may be the best choice for IoT applications. Energy consumption is a big challenge in sensor nodes which are specially supplied by batteries as the lifetime of the node and network depends on the state of charge of the battery. In this paper, we are focusing on static sensor nodes communicating using the GPRS protocol. We acquired current consumption for the sensor node in different locations with their corresponding received signal quality and we tried to experimentally find a mathematical data-driven model for estimating the GSM/GPRS sensor node battery lifetime using the received signal strength indicator (RSSI). This research outcome will help to predict GPRS sensor node life, replacement intervals, and dynamic handover which will in turn provide uninterrupted data service. This model can be deployed in various remote WSN and IoT based applications like forests, volcano, etc. Our research has shown convincing results like when there is a reduction of −30 dBm in RSSI, the current consumption of the radio unit of the node will double.


In studying the abstraction of musical ideas from diverse invariants, six-note melodies of varying note durations and note intensities were used as prototypes. Four types of transformations on a prototype distorted each of four musical components: contour, interval, loudness, and duration. In an acquisition phase, listeners heard simple transformations on a single prototype, but in recognition heard both simple and compound transformations as well as the prototype, which had been unheard in acquisition. Predictions were borne out, namely, that both prototypes and simple transformations were falsely recognized with greater certainty than any other transformed melodies; and latencies of recognition of the prototypes, an alternative measure of certainty, were shorter than latencies of recognition of any other transformed melodies. It is argued that the methods used enable the examination of the properties of musical transformation spaces.


Competitive Diffusion is a recently introduced game-theoretic model for the spread of information through social networks. The model is a game on a graph with external players trying to reach the most vertices. In this thesis, we consider the safe game of Competitive Diffusion. This is the game where one player tries to optimize his gain as before, while his opponents' objectives are to minimize the first player's gain. This leads to a safety value for the player, i.e. an optimal minimal expected gain no matter the strategies of the opponents. We discuss safe strategies and present some bounds on the safety value in the two-player version of the game on various graphs. The results are almost entirely on the safe game on trees, including the special cases of paths, spiders and complete trees but also consist of some preliminary studies of the safe game on three other simple graphs. Our main result consists of a Centroidal Safe Strategy (CSS) Algorithm which suggests a safe strategy for a player on any centroidal tree, a tree which has one vertex as centroid, and gives its associated guaranteed gain.


A central challenge to applying many off-policy reinforcement learning algorithms to real world problems is the variance introduced by importance sampling. In off-policy learning, the agent learns about a different policy than the one being executed. To account for the difference importance sampling ratios are often used, but can increase variance in the algorithms and reduce the rate of learning. Several variations of importance sampling have been proposed to reduce variance, with per-decision importance sampling being the most popular. However, the update rules for most off-policy algorithms in the literature depart from per-decision importance sampling in a subtle way; they correct the entire TD error instead of just the TD target. In this work, we show how this slight change can be interpreted as a control variate for the TD target, reducing variance and improving performance. Experiments over a wide range of algorithms show this subtle modification results in improved performance.


Indoor positioning system (IPS) has become one of the most attractive research fields due to the increasing demands on location-based services (LBSs) in indoor environments. Various IPSs have been developed under different circumstances, and most of them adopt the fingerprinting technique to mitigate pervasive indoor multipath effects. However, the performance of the fingerprinting technique severely suffers from device heterogeneity existing across commercial off-the-shelf mobile devices (e.g., smart phones, tablet computers, etc.) and indoor environmental changes (e.g., the number, distribution and activities of people, the placement of furniture, etc.). In this paper, we transform the received signal strength (RSS) to a standardized location fingerprint based on the Procrustes analysis, and introduce a similarity metric, termed signal tendency index (STI), for matching standardized fingerprints. An analysis of the capability of the proposed STI to handle device heterogeneity and environmental changes is presented. We further develop a robust and precise IPS by integrating the merits of both the STI and weighted extreme learning machine (WELM). Finally, extensive experiments are carried out and a performance comparison with existing solutions verifies the superiority of the proposed IPS in terms of robustness to device heterogeneity.


Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the level of knowledge regarding drug abuse among the school students. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study design was used. 106 samples were selected randomly from grade IX and X of Shree Janak Secondary School. Self-administered structured knowledge questionnaire was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics was used to calculate percentage and frequency. The chi square test was used to find association between selected demographic variable and level of knowledge. P value of 0.05 was considered significant. Results: 99.1% of the respondents heard about drug abuse, 97.9% said drug abuse is bad for health, 96.2% said Gaja is commonly available, 51.9% said high chance of getting HIV with drug abuse, 67% said financial burden as cause, 60.4% said drug abuser performed poorly at school work, 71.7% said awareness program as the way to prevent from drug abuse and 26.4% said counselling. Similarly, 52.8% said rehabilitation is the way to treat drug abuse, 88.7% said dependence to drug as the long term complication of drug abuse. Majority 57.5% had poor, 41.5% have adequate and 0.9% had good level of knowledge regarding drug abuse. Conclusion: Half of the respondents had poor knowledge regarding drug abuse and level of knowledge is significantly higher for Brahmin/Chhetri and poor for Janajati, Dalit and Madhesi.


Abstract. The vertical distribution of radiolarians was investigated using a vertical multiple plankton sampler (100–0, 250–100, 500–250, and 1000–500 m water depths, 62 μm mesh size) at the Northwind Abyssal Plain and southwestern Canada Basin in September 2013. To investigate seasonal variations in the flux of radiolarians in relation to sea ice and water masses, a time-series sediment trap system was moored at Station NAP (75°00´ N, 162°00´ W; bottom depth 1975 m) in the western Arctic Ocean during October 2010–September 2012. The radiolarian flux was comparable to that in the North Pacific Ocean. Amphimelissa setosa was dominant during the season with open water as well as at the beginning and end of the seasons with sea-ice cover. During the sea-ice-cover season, however, oligotrophic and cold-water-tolerant actinommids were dominant, productivity of Radiolaria was lower, and species diversity was greater. These suggest that the dynamics of sea ice are a major factor affecting the productivity, distribution, and composition of the radiolarian fauna.


Background: To investigate the type and diagnostic criteria for the incidence of neurological complications after renal transplantation.
Material and Methods: Clinical data of 1216 patients undergoing renal transplantation in the 309th Hospital of Chinese People's Liberation Army between September 2008 and December 2015 were retrospectively analysed. The pathogenesis, clinical characteristics and treatment of neurological complications following renal transplantation were investigated.
Results: Among 1216 cases, 58 patients presented with postoperative neurological complications, accounting for 4.8%. Specifically, 27 cases (46.6%) were diagnosed with encephalopathy, 12 (20.7%) with cerebrovascular diseases, 5 (8.6%) with epilepsy, 5 with central nervous system infection (8.6%) and 9 (15.5%) with peripheral neuropathy.
Conclusion: The pathogenesis of neurological complications after renal transplantation is complicated. Renal transplantation recipients are likely to present with diverse clinical symptoms, primarily characterized with encephalopathy and cerebrovascular events. Clinical diagnosis and treatment should be implemented as early as possible.


This article describes using renewable energy for bioethanol production. Kostanay Region is a developed agricultural region. Most part of its area is under grain crops and corn, oil crops and vegetables. In the course of production, transportation, storage and processing of agricultural crops, a large part of them becomes unsuitable for use; in future they cannot be used for the intended purpose. Substandard product often stays in the fields to rot or is thrown away. Information considered in this article demonstrates that agricultural waste can be used to produce rather inexpensive bioethanol. Most part of the population in this region is rural. Settlements are far apart from each. It would be reasonable to use bioethanol as a source of electric and thermal energy to meet the needs of rural residents and infrastructure. Wastes from bioethanol production can be used for feeding animal stock what is also important for rural areas and reduces environmental burden. In the course of human life, solid waste is formed that is suitable for producing bioethanol, and consequently, for generating thermal and electric energy. Presented calculations show the feasibility of processing municipal solid waste into bioethanol. EU countries successfully use researches performed by their scientists for developing technologies for the production of bioethanol and synthetic fuels. Kazakhstan, with its experience in cultivation of oilseeds and required planted area, can successfully develop bioethanol industry. No researches in this respect have been conducted to this day in Kazakhstan. Using bioethanol provides consumers with their own energy sources that meet quality standards, thereby increasing energy security of region, reducing the amount of harmful emissions into the atmosphere, and creating small-scale energy enterprises where rural residents can work.


Given the increased prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), it is likely that busy primary care providers (PCP) are providing care to individuals with ASD in their practice. Autism Speaks provides a wealth of educational, medical, and treatment/intervention information resources for PCPs and families, including at least 32 toolkits. This article serves to familiarize PCPs and families on the different toolkits that are available on the Autism Speaks website. This article is intended to increase physicians' knowledge on the issues that families with children with ASD frequently encounter, to increase their ability to share evidence-based information to guide treatment and care for affected families in their practice.


Letters to the Editor reflect the viewpoints of the writers and do not represent the official position of the journal or of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Letters on any topic, including the contents of Pediatrics, are welcome from all members of the profession. For instructions on submitting Letters to the Editor, please see the Instructions for Authors in this issue or visit the journal's Web site.


The electronic and optical properties of hexagonal wurtzite AlN doped with Zn and Mg are studied based on the density functional theory. The density of states, dielectric function and absorption spectra are calculated using plane-wave ultrasoft pseudo-potential and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The absorption peaks are found during 0-13 eV and 43-48 eV in Mg doped AlN, while in Zn doped AlN, only during 0-15eV. The absorption peak about 43-48 eV found in Mg doped AlN is due to the transition of the deep 2p energy level in Mg to conduction band. The first peak of the dielectric imaginary part is related to the transition of the doped atoms. The peak of the dielectric imaginary part and absorption peak appears about 8 eV is due to the transition of N 2p to Al 3p state. Results show that the electronic and the optical properties of hexagonal wurtzite AlN are directly related to the electronic structure of the impurities in the crystal.


The hot plate technique for measuring the thermal conductivities (the exact term for the quantity measured is thermal transmission, which, depending on the material being measured, can have components of convective, radiative and conductive heat transfer; it is commonly referred to as the effective or apparent thermal conductivity) of insulating materials has been in existence in various forms since 1898. A brief historical survey of the early development of the experimental technique is followed by a brief description of the basic principles of the method of measurement. The technique has since become very well established and is documented in the written standard ISO8302:1991. It is now unarguably recognized as the most accurate technique for determining the thermal conductivity of insulations, having an uncertainty of about 1.5% over a limited temperature range near ambient. Details of two guarded hot plate apparatuses designed and constructed at NPL over the last decade or so, one to measure insulations up to 250 mm thick at or around room temperature and the other to measure insulations and refractories at temperatures up to 850 °C, are given. Finally, there is a section on certified reference materials required for validating the performance of newly built guarded hot plate apparatus and for calibrating heat flow meter apparatus, a type of hot plate apparatus commonly used for quality control purposes in insulation manufacturing plant. A brief overview of these reference materials includes details of their availability, thermal conductivities and temperature ranges.


The structure of the ternary complex consisting of yeast phenylalanyl-transfer RNA (Phe-tRNAPhe), Thermus aquaticus elongation factor Tu (EF-Tu), and the guanosine triphosphate (GTP) analog GDPNP was determined by x-ray crystallography at 2.7 angstrom resolution. The ternary complex participates in placing the amino acids in their correct order when messenger RNA is translated into a protein sequence on the ribosome. The EF-Tu-GDPNP component binds to one side of the acceptor helix of Phe-tRNAPhe involving all three domains of EF-Tu. Binding sites for the phenylalanylated CCA end and the phosphorylated 5′ end are located at domain interfaces, whereas the T stem interacts with the surface of the β-barrel domain 3. The binding involves many conserved residues in EF-Tu. The overall shape of the ternary complex is similar to that of the translocation factor, EF-G-GDP, and this suggests a novel mechanism involving "molecular mimicry" in the translational apparatus.


This paper estimates public and private preferences towards economic, environmental and sociocultural values associated with a planned large-scale onshore wind-power development in northern Sweden, and analyses the most important determinants of the individual's Willingness to Pay (WTP) for reducing the negative impact associated with the establishment. Sociocultural effects were deemed the most important in the private sample, whereas new job opportunities are valued most highly in the public sample. We further find that ascription to moral and social norms together with individuals' perceptions related to general and institutional trust constitutes significant determinants of WTP.


ABSTRACT To facilitate enzyme and pathway engineering, a selection was developed for improved sesquiterpene titers in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. α-Bisabolene, a candidate advanced biofuel, was found to protect yeast against the disruptive action of nonionic surfactants such as Tween 20 (T20). An experiment employing competition between two strains of yeast, one of which makes twice as much bisabolene as the other, demonstrated that growth in the presence of T20 provided sufficient selective pressure to enrich the high-titer strain to form 97% of the population. Following this, various methods were used to mutagenize the bisabolene synthase (BIS) coding sequence, coupled with selection by subculturing in the presence of T20. Mutagenesis targeting the BIS active site did not yield an improvement in bisabolene titers, although mutants were found which made a mixture of α-bisabolene and β-farnesene, another candidate biofuel. Based on evidence that the 3′ end of the BIS mRNA may be unstable in yeast, we randomly recoded the last 20 amino acids of the enzyme and, following selection in T20, found a variant which increased specific production of bisabolene by more than 30%. Since T20 could enrich a mixed population, efficiently removing strains that produced little or no bisabolene, we investigated whether it could also be applied to sustain high product titers in a monoculture for an extended period. Cultures grown in the presence of T20 for 14 days produced bisabolene at titers up to 4-fold higher than cultures grown with an overlay of dodecane, used to sequester the terpene product, and 20-fold higher than cultures grown without dodecane.


In this paper we propose an image corner detector based on the direct curvature scale space (DCSS) technique, referred to as the curvature product DCSS (CP-DCSS) corner detector. After the contours of interested objects are extracted from a real-world image, their curvature functions are respectively convolved with the Gaussian function as its standard deviation gradually increases. By measuring the product of the curvature values computed at several given scales, true corners on the contours can be easily detected since false or insignificant corners have been effectively suppressed. A point is declared as a corner when the absolute value of the curvature product exceeds a given threshold and is a local maximum at the mentioned point. CP-DCSS combines the advantages of two recently proposed corner detectors, namely, the DCSS corner detector and the multi-scale curvature product (MSCP) corner detector. Compared to DCSS, CP-DCSS omits a parsing process of the DCSS map, and hence it has a simpler structure. Compared to MSCP, CP-DCSS works equally well, however, at less computational cost.


This introduction to the special issue combines a review of the existing literature about the causes and consequences of private regulation in the global economy with a preview of the articles in this issue. To organize this (p)review, I introduce a conceptual model "beyond supply and demand," which distinguishes three major subsets of stakeholders of global private regulation, which may (but need not) overlap: the political actors who call for private regulation, the rule-makers who provide such governance for the global economy, and what I call the "targets" of the private regulations, who are supposed to behave according to these private rules. I then highlight the three core questions addressed by the contributions to the special issue: (1) How do private bodies attain regulatory authority; why do private regulators provide governance; and why do the targets of the rules comply? (2) Who governs the global economy through private regulations? And (3) what are the effects of private regulation, and how does the rise of private regulation affect public regulatory authority and capacity?


A new stress function modelling the fails in biological tissue is here proposed. Under the assumption that the cell membrane may be modelled as neo-Hookean materials, we develop the problem in the framework of non-linear elasticity. We attempt to model the ice nucleation phenomenon when freezing and thawing occurs in cellular cryo-preservation. The ice seed generated surface can be either soft or wrinkled and, when the latter emerges a punch contact against the cell membrane takes place. Restricting our attention on opportune mono-dimensional sub-set, we extend the multiple critical points theorem at our model. We find a particular solution in agreement to the classical fracture models besides a response function in accordance to the stress and strain field distribution in biological materials.


In this paper we analyze the impact of service station availability on the demand for alternative-fuel vehicles and the consumers' willingness to pay for an enlarged fueling infrastructure. We examine a stated preferences choice experiment conducted as a CAPI survey with about 600 interviews of potential car buyers in Germany and estimate the coefficients of a discrete choice model. We simulate different scenarios and analyze how individual choice probabilities for alternative fuel-types are changing with a modified fueling infrastructure. In our scenarios hybrids, LPG/CNG and hydrogen will be real alternatives to the existing conventional technologies. However, biofuels and electric power trains are well behind even in a situation where their infrastructure is equally developed. Moreover, on the basis of our model we compute what increases in fixed or variable costs consumers of different income groups are willing to accept for an increasing station density.


The most prevalent social and economic issues plaguing cities are symptomatic of much bigger underlying environmental problems. Cities are governed by legislation set within artificial political boundaries, however ecology systems surpass and are not restricted by these boundaries. The decisions urban designers and planners make on behalf of a city influences the natural environment, which in turn can affect other cities negatively. This thesis addresses the current disconnect between the way cities are planned, their artificial boundaries, and the larger, underlying ecological systems. The purpose of this research is to create new methods of design and planning from ecological scale thinking. This thesis uses the Mississippi River as a case to illustrate how ecological scale thinking can reframe present urban design and planning paradigm. The research aims to answer the following questions: What are the principal causes of the Mississippi River's ecological degradation, and what measures can be taken to restore the River's quality? By regionalizing the organization of political jurisdictions, this will allow urban designers and planners to account for externalities and rebuild damaged ecological systems at the geographical scale. Over the past century, man-made interventions have transformed the Mississippi River, altering it from its natural form and processes. These augmentations have been the result of planning decisions, which ignore the larger ecological system of the River. This thesis demonstrates that the existing political juggernaut consists of many actors only considering problems within their own jurisdiction, and therefore make decisions in a vacuum. Instead of making a complete overhaul of the man-made system, this thesis proposes solutions utilizing the existing infrastructure and the waste it produces. It concludes by proposing a new management model: a Sediment Network that redistributes the waste sediment throughout the Mississippi River Basin in the form of new commodities. The Sediment Network illustrates at both the local scale and continental scale, how cities can utilize the sediment as a medium for urban revitalization, restore the River's health, and finally become an instrument for redistributing political power in order to achieve a more holistic form of planning. Deconstructing the Mississippi River 5


Effects of Intratracheally Administered Indium Phosphide on Male Fischer 344 Rats: Takamoto Uemura, et al. Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, School of Medicine, Keio University—Objective—To examine the effects of intratracheally administered indium phosphide (InP) and distribution of indium on male Fischer 344 rats. Materials and methods—Rats were intratracheally given 0, 1, 10 or 100 mg/kg of InP with a mean diameter of 0.8pm and observed for 1 and 7 days. The bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was examined biochemically and cytologically. Serum biochemical, hematological and histopathological examinations were done, and the indium concentration in organs and serum was determined. Findings—The number of neutrophils in BALF remarkably increased in a dose‐effect manner 1 and 7 days after administration and InP particles were phagocytized in the macrophages. Total protein (TP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), total phospholipid (TPL) and total cholesterol (T‐Cho) in BALF showed a clear dose‐effect relationship 7 days after administration. Indium was detected in the liver and spleen and increased in a dose‐related manner on the next day and 7 days after administration. Serum indium was detected in the group given more than 10 mg/kg but did not reveal a dose relationship. Histopathological examination of the lungs showed phagocytized InP particles in the macrophages and the migration of neutrophiles in the alveoli. InP particles remained in the bronchioles and alveoli until 7 days after. No histopathological changes were detected in the liver or spleen. A hematological study did not reveal significant findings, interpretation—Intratracheally administered InP particles cause pulmonary inflammation and those particles remain in the lower airways for at least 7 days. Phagocytosis of macrophages may contribute to their disposal and distribution to the liver and spleen. Further study is required with particles with a lower toxic activity than InP and with the same particle size as the InP used in this study, to clarify their specific toxicity. Simultaneously longer observation is needed to assess toxicity in the other organs after distribution.


This is the second in a series of two papers generated from a recent study on risk-based analysis for developing strategies to ensure pipeline integrity. This paper focuses on the applications of the proposed deterministic and probabilistic models presented in the first paper for stochastic pipe fracture evaluations. Using these models, numerical predictions are made for line-pipe steel typically used in gas transmission pipelines and are compared with the available test data. Thereafter, the paper explores the significance of the random variables related to serviceability in pipelines subjected to flaw growth in service. The results are discussed in the light of a hydrotest-based approach to ensure pipeline integrity. It is concluded that analysis of hydrotest strategies to optimize safety for such populations (e.g., Leis and Brust, 1992) should be based on a probabilistic analysis that permits risk assessments associated with pipeline operating decisions and the type and frequency of hydrotests done to ensure continued safe operation of the line. This same probabilistic framework could be used to assess the operating and safety implications for flaw populations characterized by in-line inspection.


Many sequence-to-sequence tasks in natural language processing are roughly monotonic in the alignment between source and target sequence, and previous work has facilitated or enforced learning of monotonic attention behavior via specialized attention functions or pretraining. In this work, we introduce a monotonicity loss function that is compatible with standard attention mechanisms and test it on several sequence-to-sequence tasks: grapheme-to-phoneme conversion, morphological inflection, transliteration, and dialect normalization. Experiments show that we can achieve largely monotonic behavior. Performance is mixed, with larger gains on top of RNN baselines. General monotonicity does not benefit transformer multihead attention, however, we see isolated improvements when only a subset of heads is biased towards monotonic behavior.


This article expands upon and problematizes the practice of community-engaged research (CES) through the lens of school closings. Rather than employ a one-dimensional view of CES that portrays university researchers and community partners as collaborating equally on all stages of the research, we suggest a broader, more flexible understanding that incorporates various contextual factors. Drawing on local examples, from New York City and Baltimore, and one national effort to resist school closings, we  present three forms of CES: participatory action research (PAR), in which university researchers and community partners collaboratively engaged in almost all aspects of the process; the engaged learner, in which the researcher documented a community organizing campaign with the full support of the campaign organizers; and a grassroots listening project implemented without university partners. In each case, participants had to navigate the thorny issues of power differentials, race and racism, ownership and voice, and presentation and representation. Difficulties notwithstanding, CES has made important contributions to both the literature on and practice of school closings. We conclude the article with a discussion of some of the lingering tensions that characterize community-engaged scholarship.


Information Technology (IT) has become a significant industrial sector for the European Community. To remain competitive, Europe's IT industry needs manpower with the necessary IT skills. For some time, concern has been expressed over manpower shortages. Since the latter half of the 1980s, the European Community has been supporting IT training, principally via COMETT (Community Action Programme in Education and Training for Technology) and the ESPRIT (European Strategic Programme for Research and Development in Information Technology) VLSI Design Training Action. The present study aims to provide an overview of skills availability in the European IT industry, and to assess the effectiveness of the European Community's efforts to provide a greater supply of IT manpower. The study builds on and adds to research already conducted in this field. It is based on literature research in published sources, and on a dedicated survey carried out in five EC Member States in 1992. The survey covered 230 IT firms, of which 68 completed the questionnaire. On the basis, in particular, of the survey findings, it is concluded that a shortage of IT manpower, of critical importance in providing competitive advantage, exists and is expected to continue, if not grow worse, in the short term. While EC IT education and training programmes (COMETT and ESPRIT) have led to an improvement in the availability and quality of IT manpower, more effort is required at European level. Future efforts need to concentrate on SMEs and on the computer services sector.


Adhering to planning ethics is especially relevant when flood control planning of communities who settled in flood plains is at stake. Soweto-On-Sea (SOS) is an informal settlement in the flood plain of the Lower Chatty River near Port Elizabeth. As part of a research project which compared palaeoflood and conventional flood hydrology in the planning of flood control measures for SOS within a Cost Benefit Analytical (CBA) framework attention was also given to some ethical considerations. This paper, inspired by the conduct, rules and principles that govern the informal settlement of SOS evaluates some flood plain development and planning issues with a code of ethical conduct for planners and comes up with explanations for "unethical" conduct of and towards flood plain residents as well as some suggestions for improving future planning and developmental endeavours.


Aim: To assess the intensity of postoperative pain after endodontic treatment using full-sequence rotary Ni–Ti system either MPro or Hyflex in mandibular molars with irreversible pulpitis. Materials and Methods: This was a randomized, prospective, single-blind clinical trial. Fifty patients were randomly assigned into two equal groups according to rotary system used: Hyflex CM or MPro (n = 25). Both groups were mechanically prepared. Patients were asked to assess their postoperative pain using the numerical rating scale (NRS) at 3, 6, 24, 48, and 72 h after instrumentation. Data were presented as mean, standard deviation, median, and interquartile range values to be statistically analyzed with R statistical analysis software using Friedman's test followed by Nemenyi post hoc test at different time intervals within each rotary system. Mann–Whitney U test was conducted to compare NRS values between both rotary systems. Results: The intensity of pain postoperatively was low significantly in Hyflex group in all observation periods. MPro group showed a decreasing mean from 3 h to 72 h time intervals. 3 h recorded the highest mean (3.72 ± 1.88). Statistically, there was a significant difference between all intervals except after 48 and 72 h. Hyflex group showed the same. 3 h recorded the highest mean (1.72 ± 1.34). Statistically, there was a significant difference between 3 h and the rest time intervals, but no significant difference was found between the 6, 24, 48, and 72 h. For both groups, there was no significant association between gender and pain and there was no significant correlation between age and painConclusion: Both Hyflex and Mpro systems resulted in postoperative pain with a different degree but Hyflex system represented lower postoperative pain intensity when used for mechanical instrumentation of mandibular molars with irreversible pulpitis.


Abstract The formation of a large sinkhole at the Napoleonville salt dome, Assumption Parish, Louisiana, in August 2012 was accompanied by a rich sequence of complex seismic events. We implemented a grid‐search approach for automatic detection, location, and full moment tensor (MT) inversion of these events using 0.1–0.2 Hz displacement waveforms and 1D velocity models for the salt dome and the surrounding sedimentary strata. We were able to detect 62 events, with a 70% variance reduction (VR) detection threshold, during the one‐day period (19:00 hours, 1 August to 19:00 hours, 2 August, 2012) just before the discovery of the sinkhole. The source mechanisms of these events show large isotropic volume‐increase components (61%–82%), with magnitudes varying from M w  1.3 to 1.6 and good waveform fits (71%–86% VR). Locations are well constrained to an approximate depth of 470 m at the western edge of the salt dome, close to the sinkhole. For one representative event, the large volume‐increase component in the full MT solution is statistically significant over the deviatoric MT solution and stable with respect to: (1) the velocity models and stations used in the inversion, and (2) the uncertainties in the hypocenter and the MT solution itself. The network sensitivity solution computed for this event using both waveforms and P ‐wave first motion polarities provides greater confidence in the dominantly explosive source mechanism, which can be attributed to high‐pressure flow of natural gas or gas–water mixture through the disturbed rock zone below the sinkhole or pre‐existing zones of weaknesses in the source region. Online Material: Figures showing Q sensitivity, spatial distribution of moment tensor solutions, waveform fits from inversion and 1D models, and tables of the velocity model and event catalog.


Objectives: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is an effective treatment for patients with major depression but carries the risk of memory impairment. Bilateral ECT with ultrabrief pulses, instead of brief pulses, seems to result in a significant decrease in memory impairment. This study explores whether patients treated with ultrabrief-pulse bilateral ECT achieve a similar treatment effect compared with patients treated with regular brief-pulse bilateral ECT. Methods: This retrospective study included 65 patients with major depression treated with bilateral ECT, in the period 2002 to 2008. The patients were divided into 2 groups, depending on whether they received a pulse-width treatment of 0.5 (46 patients) or 0.25 millisecond (19 patients). Depressive symptoms were assessed with the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) score. Treatment outcomes were mean decrease in HAM-D score and treatment response rates and remission rates. Results: The mean decrease in HAM-D score in the 0.25- and 0.50-millisecond groups was 20.1 (SD, 8.9) and 19.3 (SD, 9.2), respectively (difference not significant); response rates were 73.6% and 75.6%, and final remission rates were 42.1% and 45.6%, respectively. Thus, the decreases in HAM-D score and the response and remission rates were very similar in both groups. Conclusions: In this study population, the use of ultrabrief-pulse (0.25 millisecond) bilateral ECT resulted in equivalent treatment outcome and efficacy compared with bilateral ECT with a brief pulse (0.50 millisecond).


OBJECTIVE
To describe clinical, laboratory, and surgical findings in dogs with confirmed gallbladder rupture and in which serum total bilirubin concentration was within reference limits.

DESIGN
Retrospective case series.

ANIMALS
5 dogs.

PROCEDURES
Medical records were searched to identify dogs with gallbladder rupture that underwent treatment at the Kansas State University Veterinary Health Center from November 2007 through November 2013. Dogs were included if they had undergone abdominal ultrasonography, serum total bilirubin concentration was ≤ 0.4 mg/dL, and abdominal exploratory surgery confirmed the presence of gallbladder upture.

RESULTS
An exploratory celotomy was performed in all dogs because of ultrasonographic findings of mild to marked abdominal effusion and either an unidentifiable gallbladder (n = 1 dog) or a distended gallbladder with a suspected gallbladder mucocele (4 dogs). Serum total bilirubin concentration was within reference limits (median, 0.2 mg/dL; range, 0.1 to 0.4 mg/dL; reference range, 0.1 to 0.4 mg/dL) in all dogs before surgery. In 1 dog, bile acids concentrations in serum and in peritoneal fluid were compared and the results (48 μmol/L and 1,070 μmol/L, respectively) were supportive of the diagnosis of gallbladder rupture.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Results indicated that even when serum total bilirubin concentration is within reference limits, gallbladder rupture should be considered in dogs with acute signs of abdominal pain when a mucocele is suspected on abdominal imaging and free abdominal fluid is present. Results suggested that a comparison of serum to peritoneal fluid bile acids concentrations may provide additional support for a diagnosis of gallbladder rupture.


Higher education institutions are expected to produce skillful, problem solver, and competent graduates. This becomes possible when the instructors are using the appropriate teaching methodology and the learners are active and empowered in the teaching- learning process. In relation to this, constructivism theory emphasized that the learner is the center of the learning and the instructors playing an advising and facilitating role. In the teaching-learning process, when the learners are empowered using the appropriate teaching methodology, they feel a sense of confidence, capability, competence, and self-esteem, enabling them to meet life's challenges more effectively. Therefore, a shift in theory (education theory) to a more student-centered approach using active learning is recommended because this approach has its own role to make the students creative and competent in their study. Thus, this chapter of a book tried to address the contribution of active learning in the empowerment of learners in higher education institutions.


Comparative studies between harmonic elimination and optimal PWM strategies are given for high power three-level inverter feeding an induction motor. An effective PWM map construction method based on the valid region on the frequency modulation index plane is suggested. Thereby, an optimal map including asynchronous space vector PWM, harmonic elimination and optimal PWM method is generated covering all of the low, middle and high modulation index regions. The PWM map was designed for 1 MVA rated general purpose GTO inverter and implemented with a digital signal processor. Experimental results are presented for 10 kVA prototype. >


Infections with group A streptococci (GAS), or S. pyogenes, range from mild and superficial to very severe and lethal invasive disease. In severe invasive GAS infections, hypotension and multiorgan failure may develop rapidly resulting in the development of toxic shock-like syndrome (TSS). In the northern part of the world's Western Hemisphere, a high endemic level of GAS infection in the 19th century was followed by a spontaneous decline. Nonetheless, a resurgence of fulminant invasive GAS infections was noted in the late-1980s. Because of the unexpected resurgence of this dramatic bacterial disease, a prospective population-based national surveillance program on invasive GAS disease was initiated in The Netherlands in1992. The aim of this thesis was to gain understanding in the epidemiology of invasive GAS infections in the Netherlands and to investigate the relationship between the genetic composition of the bacterium and its clinical and epidemiological manifestations. From 1992 through 1996, a total of 880 patients with invasive streptococcal disease were clinically evaluated. Based on antigenic differences in their M-protein, GAS can be further subdivided. Predominant M-types were M1 (21%), M3 (11%), M6 (5%), M12 (5%), and M28 (8%). The case-fatality rate was 18% overall, but it reached 59% among cases of TSS. Older age, necrotizing fasciitis, sepsis without focus, pneumonia, infection with type M1 or M3 strains, and underlying cardiopulmonary disease were associated with fatality. For long term GAS disease surveillance, invasive isolates were obtained from 1504 patients from May 1994 until December 2003. There was a clear seasonal pattern in invasive streptococcal infections, with an estimated annual incidence that peaked in 1996 (4.0 cases / 100 000 individuals / year) and was at its lowest in 1999 (2.0 cases / 100 000 individuals / year). Since GAS virulence appears to be determined by a complex interplay between multiple virulence factors rather than a limited number of genes only, we constructed a mixed-genome microarray. Microarray analysis revealed that inter M-type differences clearly outweighed intra M-type differences on a whole genomic level. Genetic variation between and within M-types was largely attributable to phages or phage-like elements. Using the mixed-genome microarray technique we could identify biomarkers that were uniquely present among M1 and M3 strains. Further research is required to establish whether these biomarkers contribute to specific M1 and M3 characteristics, such as their TSS inducing potential and association with necrotizing fasciitis. We hypothesized that acquisition of novel genetic elements could have created unusually successful clones the, thus explaining the increase in frequency and severity of invasive GAS infections in the late1980s. Mixed-genome DNA-DNA microarray analysis showed that contemporary M1 and M28 strains in The Netherlands have evolved from ancestral strains through a series of transduction events: the core genome of all strains was identical and variation in prophage content accounted for the differences in genome composition over time. Acquisition of phage-encoded virulence factors is likely to have contributed to an overall increase in GAS virulence over time.


the amount of wind energy injected in the european electricity transmission system is expected to increase in next decades following the energy transition triggered by Directive 2009/28/eC.
nevertheless, both absolute amounts and time patterns of wind electricity supply are different in each european country because of non-homogeneous meteorological conditions, europe being large enough to span several different climatic areas.
indeed, different types of weather are often simultaneously present in different areas of the continent, and any planned pan-european electricity transmission grid aimed at dispatching electricity production throughout the continent has to face the challenge of balancing in real time differently intermittent and strongly inhomogeneous resources such as the wind production is.
in this study, the long term (90 years) on-shore potential wind power supply for european countries is simulated with a daily time resolution, on the basis of the wind fields provided for the period 1961-2050 by 12 regional climate models involved in the enseMBles model intercomparison project.
thanks to this data base a long term view of the evolution of potential wind power deployment will be provided. in particular, the time complementarity of wind energy production originating from different countries will be analysed with a special attention to the implications that such a complementarity is expected to have for the needs for international electrical interconnections transporting electricity from high production areas to high demand areas.


Through an empirically-disciplined human capital model, we demonstrate that the value of college varies dramatically across US high school completers. Roughly 40 percent place no value on the option to attend--despite the large public tuition subsidy. By contrast, a fourth of all attendees would enroll even absent the subsidy. The magnitude and pattern of variation suggests substantial potential for policy improvement: We show that simply redirecting the subsidy from individuals who always enroll towards a stock index fund for those who never enroll increases ex-ante welfare by 1 percent while preserving both enrollment and budget neutrality.


This report maps the field of ancillary funds in Australia. Public Ancillary Funds (PubAFs) are trusts that must fundraise from the general public, and make grants to approved nonprofit organisations. A majority of the individuals involved in the fund's decision- making must have a degree of responsibility to the Australian community (Ward, 2016). As stated by Ward (2012, p. 4), "the underlying concept of public funds is that the public are able and invited to contribute and the fund is operated in a public manner for public benefit".

Although limited details of PubAFs are publicly available, there is no previously published data on this valuable but overlooked segment of Australian philanthropy. This report examines what is known about PubAFs and maps the field, with data from online databases and reports, PubAF websites, and interviews with PubAF managers and trustees providing extensive and useful insights. Seven taxonomic categories of PubAFs are described, and an accountability typology is proposed at a conceptual level to better understand this sector.

Perceptions from PubAF managers and trustees detail how visibility and accountability within this charitable sub -sector might be enhanced, and implications for practice are noted.

The eight framing questions around accountability revealed complex and inter-related patterns and practices of accountability. Most notable and novel among these findings were when PubAFs are accountable, why PubAFs are accountable, the dominance of peer-benchmarking as the standard by which PubAFs are accountable, and the emergence of organisational qualities as a way in which PubAFs are accountable.

Findings also highlight a link between identity and accountability in PubAFs. There is a relationship between who we are, and how we give an account, such that the identity of an actor influences the account given. Notable emergent findings included the importance of geographic boundaries for PubAFs in shaping their giving and reflecting their mission, the varying interpretations of publicness, the importance and prominence of dyadic relationships, and PubAFs' strong future focus around sustainability and growth.

For those PubAFs (typically community foundations and wealth management foundations) that have sub-funds or donor-advised funds, particular accountability issues were noted. Co-funding, or a funding arrangement whereby two or more funders combine to support a project or organisation, was common between sub -funds within a PubAF, achieving synergies and supporting and linking both their identity and accountability.


Potential for the improvement of public space through technology is often sought in telephone applications. However, public space exists by grace of physical interaction between people and their environment, whereas smartphones often get in the way of such interaction. In contrast, Sensory Augmentation takes physical interaction as a starting point for applications. In this paper, we therefore explore the innovation potential of Sensory Augmentation for the improvement of public space. This was done by organizing brainstorm sessions aimed to yield design concepts for the application of sensory augmentation in public space. These brainstorms brought together experts in Sensory Augmentation with various stakeholders and resulted in 34 unique design concepts that addressed social interaction, play, health, navigation, and art, in public space. These concepts, for example, included a tool for the management of private space using a personal distance-to-vibration mapping, a sense for physiological changes that are indicative of hunger, and a proposal to improve the safety of 'smartphone Zombies'. On the basis of our analysis of the 34 concepts, we conclude that Sensory Augmentation holds a broad potential to improve public space. As such, our research provides a first look into this innovation potential and may guide further research on it.