bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Solving Security and Availability Challenges in Public Clouds
Authors: Schnjakin Maxim , Meinel Christoph
Published: December 2014

Cloud Computing as a service-on-demand architecture has grown in importance over the previous few years. One driver of its growth is the ever-increasing amount of data that is supposed to outpace the growth of storage capacity. The usage of cloud technology enables organizations to manage their data with low operational expenses. However, the benefits of cloud computing come along with challenges and open issues such as security, reliability, and the risk to become dependent on a provider for its service. In general, a switch of a storage provider is associated with high costs of adapting new APIs and additional charges for inbound and outbound bandwidth and requests. In this chapter, the authors present a system that improves availability, confidentiality, and reliability of data stored in the cloud. To achieve this objective, the authors encrypt users' data and make use of the RAID-technology principle to manage data distribution across cloud storage providers. Further, they discuss the security functionality and present a proof-of-concept experiment for the application to evaluate the performance and cost effectiveness of the approach. The authors deploy the application using eight commercial cloud storage repositories in different countries. The approach allows users to avoid vendor lock-in and reduces significantly the cost of switching providers. They also observe that the implementation improved the perceived availability and, in most cases, the overall performance when compared with individual cloud providers. Moreover, the authors estimate the monetary costs to be competitive to the cost of using a single cloud provider.
Seizing Electronic Evidence from Cloud Computing Environments
Authors: Dykstra Josiah
Published: December 2014

Despite a growing adoption of cloud computing, law enforcement and the judicial system are unprepared to prosecute cloud-based crimes. This chapter illuminates legal problems in the United States for electronic discovery and digital forensics arising from cloud computing and argues that cloud computing challenges the process and product of electronic discovery. The researchers investigate how to obtain forensic evidence from cloud computing using the legal process by surveying the existing statues and recent cases applicable to cloud forensics. A hypothetical case study of child pornography being hosted in the Cloud illustrates the difficulty in acquiring evidence for cloud-related crimes. For the first time, a sample search warrant is presented that could be used in this case study, and which provides sample language for agents and prosecutors who wish to obtain a warrant authorizing the search and seizure of data from cloud computing environments. The chapter concludes by taking a contrasting view and discusses how defense attorneys might be able to challenge cloud-derived evidence in court.
A Case Study of the Health Cloud
Authors: Chauhan Roma
Published: December 2014

Initiatives have recently been taken to facilitate effective sharing and collaboration of healthcare information. The process undertaken to manage healthcare data is always in debate. The healthcare industry is encouraged to leverage technology solution for providing improved services to patients and doctors. The chapter explains the need of the healthcare process re-engineering through the implementation of Software as a Service (SaaS). It also highlights the potential and challenges of integrating SaaS-based health cloud in the healthcare industry. This chapter explores the exciting journey of the Indian healthcare transformation through technology implementation. Moreover, the chapter discusses the different healthcare clouds and deployment models. It illustrates SaaS-based solutions for the healthcare segment and argues that cloud-based healthcare and mobile healthcare by use of portable devices can make health consultation convenient for patients across the world.
Rationale for Use of Cloud Computing
Authors: Zeid Amir , Shawish Ahmed , Salama Maria
Published: December 2014

Cloud Computing is the most promising computing paradigm that provides flexible resource allocation on demand with the promise of realizing elastic, Internet-accessible, computing on a pay-as-you-go basis. With the growth and expansion of the Cloud services and participation of various services providers, the description of quality parameters and measurement units start to diversify and sometime contradict. Such ambiguity does not only result in the rise of various Quality of Service (QoS) interoperability problems but also in the distraction of the services consumers who find themselves unable to match quality requirements with the providers' offerings. Yet, employing the available QoS models that cover certain quality aspects while neglecting others drive consumers to perform their service selection based only on cost-benefit analysis and performance evaluation, without being able to perform subjective selection based on a comprehensive set of well-defined quality aspects. This chapter presents a novel QoS ontology that combines and defines all of the existing quality aspects in a unified way to efficiently overcome all existing diversities. Using such an ontology, a comprehensive broad QoS model combining all quality-related parameters of both service providers and consumers for different Cloud platforms is presented. The chapter also provides a mathematical model that formulates the Cloud Computing service provider selection optimization problem based on QoS guarantees. The validation of the provided model is addressed in the chapter through extensive simulation studies conducted on benchmark data of Content Delivery Network providers. The studies report the efficient matching of the model with the market-oriented different platform characteristics.
High-Throughput Encryption for Cloud Computing Storage System
Authors: Jararweh Yaser , Al-Sharqawi Ola , Abdulla Nawaf , Tawalbeh Lo'ai , Alhammouri Mohammad
Published: December 2014

In recent years Cloud computing has become the infrastructure which small and medium-sized businesses are increasingly adopting for their IT and computational needs. It provides a platform for high performance and throughput oriented computing, and massive data storage. Subsequently, novel tools and technologies are needed to handle this new infrastructure. One of the biggest challenges in this evolving field is Cloud storage security, and accordingly we propose new optimized techniques based on encryption process to achieve better storage system security. This paper proposes a symmetric block algorithm (CHiS-256) to encrypt Cloud data in efficient manner. Also, this paper presents a novel partially encrypted metadata-based data storage. The (CHiS-256) cipher is implemented as part of the Cloud data storage service to offer a secure, high-performance and throughput Cloud storage system. The results of our proposed algorithm are promising and show the methods to be advantageous in Cloud massive data storage and access applications.
Vintage Analytics and Data Warehouse Design
Authors: Millet Ido , Andaleeb Syed S. , Fizel John L.
Published: December 2014

Vintage Analytics is a useful technique for a variety of domains where performance depends on experience or age. However, this technique might be underutilized due to lack of awareness and due to difficulties in data preparation. This paper provides examples of Vintage Analytics, including one detailed scenario demonstrating benefits and typical challenges in the context of a sales database. It then proposes data warehouse design guidelines to address these difficulties.
Fear and Perceived Likelihood of Victimization in Traditional and Cyber Settings
Authors: Maddison Jessica , Jeske Debora
Published: December 2014

This study considers the influence of perceived likelihood, demographics (gender and education) and personality on fear of victimization and cyber-victimization using a survey design (N=159). The results suggest that perceived likelihood of victimization predicts fear of victimization in traditional contexts. Women tend to be more fearful of victimization in traditional and cyber contexts, confirming previous research. No group differences emerged in relation to education. Self-esteem and self-efficacy were not significant predictors of fear or perceived likelihood of victimization. However, perceived likelihood was a significant predictor of fear of victimization in traditional settings. This may suggest that different variables (such as awareness of vulnerability) may play a role in fear of victimization in cyber settings. Further group comparisons revealed that fear of victimization and cyber-victimization dependent on whether or not participants reported high or low perceived likelihood of victimization and internet use. Higher internet use was associated with greater fear of victimization, especially in combination with greater perceived likelihood of victimization. This may suggest an exposure effect, in that being online more frequently may also increase awareness of cyber incidents.
Knowledge Management in Nonprofit Settings
Authors: Zaman Tariq , Yeo Alvin Wee , Kulathuramaiyer Narayanan
Published: December 2014

A well formulated framework depicts the embedded relationships between influencing factors and provides a simplified and assimilative description of the complex knowledge management systems. In organizations, creation of models and frameworks for designing knowledge management tools is a well established practice while there is a lack of a comprehensive framework for Indigenous Knowledge Management System (IKMS). Hence, the research question addressed in this paper is whether the organisational knowledge management frameworks can be used to strategies Indigenous Knowledge Management (IKM) in a meaningful way. The paper presents Balanced Scorecard (BSc) for IKM in indigenous communities as a case study of nonprofit setting. With the help of empirical data, this work explains the four main strategic management processes of BSc approach. The paper argues that, although BSc is found to be useful in many organisations and indigenous community related project, care should be taken when it is implemented for IKM, where the nature of management activities is totally different.
Website Usability Analysis of Non Profit Organizations
Authors: Saeed Saqib , Shabbir Safia
Published: December 2014

Nonprofit organizations are an important pillar of any society, which specifically serve under privileged sections of society. Modern Information and communication technologies have huge potential to benefit the working processes of such organizations but deploying software application in such settings is quite challenging. These challenges emerge due to shortage of skilled employees, limited funds and weak organizational structures. In order to further understand the technological implications in such settings this paper explores the websites of different nonprofit organizations of Pakistan to understand usability problems. In order to gather empirical data, it prepared questionnaire mainly focusing on Jakob Nielson's heuristics. These questionnaires were distributed to final year undergraduate students taking a Human Computer Interaction module. The findings highlight serious usability issues in these websites. These findings are helpful for the nonprofit organizations to improve these websites for better information access.
Preliminary Evaluation of a Software Security Learning Environment
Authors: Hazeyama Atsuo , Saito Masahito
Published: December 2014

The importance of software security technologies is increasingly recognized with the increase in services available on the Internet. It is also important to foster human resources with knowledge and skills relevant to software security technologies. This article aims to construct a software security learning environment. It proposes a learning process for software security and constructed a learning environment that supported the learning process. This article describes a preliminary experiment to evaluate the learning process and the learning environment. It confirms usefulness of the learning process. It also identifies some improvements for the knowledge base system and learning environment, such as visualization support and traceability support.
Business Value of Enterprise Micro-blogging
Authors: Huang Jinghua , Zhang Jing , Li Yangfan , Lv Zhepeng
Published: December 2014

The increasing use of micro-blogging as a marketing tool has increased research attention on usage and business value of enterprise micro-blogging. Based on research on information system (IS) usage and resource-based view (RBV) theory, this study develops a model to reveal the mechanism of business value creation of enterprise micro-blogging. The model consists of metrics on micro-blogging usage, micro-blogging operational performance, marketing capability, and firm performance. Questionnaires were distributed to firms that use micro-blogging. This study collects 241 valid responses for empirical analysis. The results suggest that the use of enterprise micro-blogging improves operational performance of enterprise micro-blogging directly and indirectly by increasing marketing capability, while operational performance of enterprise micro-blogging significantly affects firm performance. This study extends the stream of research that combines IS usage and RBV theory.
Impact of Anonymity on Information Sharing through Internal Psychological Processes
Authors: Lee Ho , Choi Jaewon , Kim Kyung Kyu , Lee Ae Ri
Published: December 2014

Many web users post their opinions and information without revealing their identities (i.e., demographics, social standing, and/or expertise); anonymity has become a common form of information exchange in online communities such as social media sites and Internet forums. In the meantime, negative social consequences have resulted from anonymous activities in online communities. Existing literature reports largely mixed results about the impact of online anonymity on online community outcomes. In an effort to clarify these mixed results, this study proposes a new operational definition of online anonymity that consists of three dimensions: unlinkability, unobservability, and pseudonymity. The data used in this study was collected from 238 online community users through a web-based survey conducted in South Korea. The results show that unlinkability, unobservability and pseudonymity positively influence self-discrepancy, which in turn positively influences the quality and quantity of information sharing.
Evaluation of Wear Resistance of Products on the Basis of Mechanically Activated Materials
Authors: Sobachkin Aleksei V. , Sitnikov Аlexander A. , Sviridov Аlexander P.
Published: December 2014

This paper is devoted to the actual topic of increasing wear resistance of working parts soil cultivating machines. Established that the introduction in welding layer carbides of metal via powder electrodes of SHS materials increases the wear resistance of the deposited layer, which will significantly increase the service life of the working bodies of tillage equipment.
Computer Simulation of the Drawing Process of Cylindrical Cups Taking into Account the Microstructure of the 5056 Alloy
Authors: Voronin Sergey V. , Yushin Valentin D. , Bunova Galina Z.
Published: December 2014

Computer simulation of the process drawing a cup from the 5056 alloy sheet material was conducted. An influence of a real structure of a grain-oriented material on a stress-strain state was shown. The profiles of the formed festoons, their gage interference along the generator line and perimeter were measured. Values of a maximum drawing force for the isotropic, anisotropic, and grain-oriented by 40 and 70% of finite element sample models were defined.
Optimization of a Specimen Size for the Determination of the Diffusible Hydrogen Content in Metals
Authors: Panchenko Oleg V. , Levchenko Alexey M. , Karkhin Victor A.
Published: December 2014

Specimens of various sizes are used to determine hydrogen content in deposited metals in such standards as ISO 3690, AWS A 4.3, and GOST 23338 while measuring methods are the same. It causes problems in comparison of experimental results and brings up the following question: what kind of specimen size is optimal to determine hydrogen content? An optimal specimen size was estimated using a calculation method. Experimental and calculation results obtained by using specimens with estimated dimensions were compared to the results obtained by using the specimen with dimensions of 100*25*8 mm to determine hydrogen content in a deposited metal.
Effect of Heat-Treatment on the Interface Microstructure of Explosively Welded Stainless Steel – Bronze Composite
Authors: Maliutina Iuliia N. , Mali Vyacheslav I. , Skorokhod Ksenia A. , Bataev Anatoly A.
Published: December 2014

Analysis of structural variations taking place at the stainless steel (09Cr18Ni10Ti) - bronze (CuBe2Ni) interface obtained by explosive welding was conducted in the current work. The produced weld joint was post heat-treated in the temperature range from 500 to 800 °С. Microstructural characterizations were carried out using optical and scanning electron microscopy. The results of the analysis revealed the presence of 2 zones at the interface: mixing zone of bronze and stainless steel and a diffusion zone. The diffusion processes in the weld joint during heating were studied by the energy-dispersive analysis (EDX). EDX studies revealed that at 800 °С copper contained in bronze completely migrated from the diffusion layer to the mixing zone whereas iron concentration, on the contrary, increased in the diffusion layer. Voids appeared in the mixing zone of stainless steel and bronze due to the difference of diffusion coefficients of basic elements in the composite.
Obtaining the Nanostructured Nitride Composition TiN-BN Powder by the Self-Propagating High-Temperature Synthesis from the Azide KBF4-NaN3-Na2TiF6 and "NH4BF4-NaN3-Na2TiF6 Systems
Authors: Kerson Irina , Shiganova Ljudmila
Published: December 2014

This paper presents the results of a study on the preparation of nanostructured nitride composition TiN-BN in the boron halide - sodium azide - titanium halide system by the azide SHS technology. SHS-Az technology makes it possible to produce powders having the desired properties, only in one step, without blending separately prepared powders of titanium nitride and boron nitride, and to obtain the final product in the form of micro-and nanosized powder nitride compositions TiN-BN by using complex halides of titanium and boron. Thus, the composite powder TiN and BN obtained from the KBF4-NaN3-Na2TiF6» and «NH4BF4-NaN3-Na2TiF6 systems can be classified as a nanostructured powder (nanopowder).
Investigation of the Process of Mechanical Alloying of Iron by Austenite Forming Elements
Authors: Popovich Anatoly A. , Razumov Nikolay G.
Published: December 2014

In this study the effect of the treatment duration on the processes of phase formation and dissolution of alloying elements in the process of mechanical alloying (MA) of iron by austenite forming elements in the nitrogen-containing atmosphere was investigated. Investigating the influence of MA parameters on the phase composition of the alloy showed that the first alloying elements dissolved in the lattice of iron are nickel, chrome and manganese. According to experimental data, the dissolution proceeds through the formation of a layered composite.
The Study of Heating Mode Temperature Behavior of Non-Magnetic Pieces in an Induction System with Permanent Magnets
Authors: Aliferov Aleksander , Promzelev Vladislav , Morev Andrey
Published: December 2014

It is a fact that at present the focus in the area of new energy-saving electrotechnologies for heating of non-ferrous metal products is on induction heating in transverse magnetic field, but a large range of products with rectangular cross-section made of non-ferrous metals is not treated by heating method in a transverse magnetic field. Currently such products are heated in the induction heating installations in alternating longitudinal magnetic field though their electrical efficiency is not greater than 0.5. Attractiveness of heating of such products in the transverse rotating magnetic field of permanent magnets is in ist potential to achieve electrical efficiency equal to 0.75-0.85. The study of heating aluminum products with rectangular and cylindrical cross-sections to a temperature of 550 ° C is done and described.
The Transient Processes Simulation of Kaplan Turbine Operating in Propeller Modes
Authors: Glazyrin Gleb , Kazantsev Yury , Tverdokhlebov Nikolay
Published: December 2014

In this paper simulation of basic elements of hydropower plant (penstock, turbine, and generator) is considered. A new integral method of water hammer effect representation with elastic water column is proposed. The model of Kaplan turbine in propeller modes, considering the change of rotor speed during the transient process, is developed in Simulink simulation environment and tested for the case of real experimental data.
Testbed Based on Hybrid Real-Time Power System Simulator for Setting up and Testing of Protection and Control Systems
Authors: Andreev M.V. , Gusev A.S. , Sulaymanov A.O.
Published: December 2014

In this article we will focus on creating of testbed based on hybrid real-time power system simulator (HRTSim) for setting up and testing of relay protection (RP), automatic (AS) and control systems (CS), as well as the opportunities and prospects of its application. The simulator has physical outputs, which allows using it for close-loop testing of RP, AS and CS. Physical currents and voltages generated in the simulator during a simulation process can be transmitted to the analog inputs of tested device by means of external amplifiers. There are no restrictions on the dimension of the simulated power system and time interval for HRTSim. These opportunities and usage of adequate models of primary and auxiliary power system equipment allows reducing the number of possible equivalenting and creating as closely as possible to the real conditions for setting up and testing of any RP, AS and CS, including wide-area protection and control systems.
Implementation of the Method of Lagrange for Optimal Modes of Energy System of Tajikistan
Authors: Sultonov Sherkhon M. , Sekretarev Yuri A. , Mitrofanov Sergey V.
Published: December 2014

This paper proposes a reduction in the deficit of electricity in the energy system in Tajikistan, by optimizing the operating conditions of hydroelectric power plants of the power system. The paper reveals the application of the method of Lagrange multipliers for the solution of the optimum distribution of power between hydroelectricity power grids corresponding to the minimum water flow.
Multi-Agent Regulation of Voltage in Smart Grid System with the Use of Distributed Generation and Customers
Authors: Fishov Alexander G. , Klavsuts Irina L. , Klavsuts Dmitry A.
Published: December 2014

The paper considers the solution to the problem of distributed voltage regulation in Smart Grid System. It takes into consideration the conflict of interests of companies included in the generation network and consumers of electricity. The paper presents an innovative method of demand side management which can be used for controlling the quality of electricity optimization of consumption and conservation of electric power in distribution grids of low voltage class; to start a service of voltage regulation to the consumers in the parts of the grid adjoining to the nodes of generation; to develop the grid and realize the regulation of the voltage by the network companies during load and generation active behavior. The decentralized regulation of voltage is supposed to be the basic organization principal which uses local information and control actions. The control of the facilities of voltage regulation is performed via the artificial intelligence (expert systems).
Statistical Analysis of Estimating Oiled-Filled Electrical Equipment Status
Authors: Kerimkulov N.N. , Levin V.M.
Published: December 2014

Key principles of statistical identification of the oil-filled equipment status according to the results of dissolved gas analysis are considered. Their information solvency and advantages of practical application are shown.
Thermodynamic Method of Glaze Ice Monitoring on Air Lines Wires
Authors: Titov D.E. , Soshinov A.G. , Shewchenko N. Ju.
Published: December 2014

In article the new principles of creation of system of glaze monitoring are offered. Icing process is considered as a thermodynamic wire surface process.
MHD Device for Transportation, Dosing and Heating Molten Metals
Authors: Mikhaylov Dmitry , Khatsayuk Maksim , Mikhaylov Konstantin
Published: December 2014

In the process of aluminum alloys production liquid melts are often required to load from one mould to another or to heat them to the definite temperature. For these purpose MHD-molds or MHD-pumps are commonly used. During the operation of such pumps the inside channels are often clogged with oxides. The paper presents the MHD-device consisting of MHD pressure pump with MHD stirrer used for transportation, dosage and heating aluminum alloys.
Pulsed Shortwave Diathermy and Joint Mobilizations for Achieving Normal Elbow Range of Motion After Injury or Surgery With Implanted Metal: A Case Series
Authors: Draper David O.
Published: December 2014

Context:

Regaining full, active range of motion (ROM) after trauma to the elbow is difficult.

Objective:

To report the cases of 6 patients who lacked full ROM in the elbow because of trauma. The treatment regimen was thermal pulsed shortwave diathermy and joint mobilizations.

Design:

Case series.

Setting:

University therapeutic modalities laboratory.

Patients or Other Participants:

Six patients (5 women [83%], 1 man [17%]) lacked a mean active ROM of 24.5° of extension approximately 4.8 years after trauma or surgery.

Intervention(s):

Treatment consisted of 20 minutes of pulsed shortwave diathermy at 800 pulses per second for 400 microseconds (40–48 W average power, 150 W peak power) applied to the cubital fossa, immediately followed by 7 to 8 minutes of joint mobilizations. After posttreatment ROM was recorded, ice was applied to the area for about 30 minutes.

Main Outcomes Measure(s):

Changes in extension active ROM were assessed before and after each treatment. Once the patient achieved full, active ROM or failed to improve on 2 consecutive visits, he or she was discharged from the study.

Results:

By the fifth treatment, 4 participants (67%) achieved normal extension active ROM, and 2 of the 4 (50%) exceeded the norm. Five participants (83%) returned to normal activities and full use of their elbows. One month later, the 5 participants had maintained, on average, (mean ± SD) 92% ± 6% of their final measurements.

Conclusions:

A combination of thermal pulsed shortwave diathermy and joint mobilizations was effective in restoring active ROM of elbow extension in 5 of the 6 patients (83%) who lacked full ROM after injury or surgery.
Schoenefeldia transiens (Poaceae): Rare new record from the Limpopo Province, South Africa
Authors: Mashau Aluoneswi C. , Götze Albie R.
Published: December 2014

Background: Schoenefeldia is a genus of C4 grasses, consisting of two species in Africa, Madagascar and India. It is the only representative of the genus found in southern Africa, where it was previously only known from a few collections in the southern part of the Kruger National Park (Mpumalanga Province, South Africa), dating from the early 1980s.Objectives: The objective of this study was to document a newly recorded population of Schoenefeldia transiens in an area that is exploited for coal mining.Method: A specimen of S. transiens was collected between Musina and Pontdrift, about 30 km east of Mapungubwe National Park, in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The specimen was identified at the National Herbarium (Pretoria).Results: This is not only a new distribution record for the quarter degree grid (QDS: 2229BA), but is also the first record of this grass in the Limpopo Province. The population of S. transiens has already been fragmented and partially destroyed because of mining activities and is under serious threat of total destruction.Conclusion: It is proposed that the population of S. transiens must be considered to be of conservation significance, and the population should be made a high priority in the overall environmental management programme of the mining company that owns the land.
Mudança estratégica e processo de institucionalização em uma universidade: o desenvolvimento de esquemas interpretativos entre os gestores
Authors: Palacios Fernando Colares
Published: December 2014

O objetivo da pesquisa foi identificar e analisar ideias, valores e crenças presentes nos processos cognitivos dos gestores de uma nova unidade universitária em processo de implantação de uma nova estratégia. A partir de questionamentos sobre as dimensões da mudança propostas por Mintzberg et al. (2006), é avaliado o desenvolvimento de esquemas interpretativos capazes de comprovar ou não o início de um processo de institucionalização. A coleta de dados deu-se por meio de entrevistas semi-estruturadas com os gestores de nível médio, observação não participante e análise documental. A pesquisa caracteriza-se como um estudo de caso, com perspectiva de análise transversal e abordagem descritivo-qualitativa, sendo o foco, o processo de mudança estratégica em uma universidade pública brasileira Os resultados evidenciaram a importância da análise dos esquemas interpretativos dos dirigentes para compreender o nível de institucionalização de dado projeto. Também se constataram práticas incongruentes com o projeto da nova unidade e que podem comprometer a efetiva implementação da estratégia formulada.
Estimating regional fluxes of CO2 and CH4 using space-borne observations of XCH4: XCO2
Authors: Fraser A. , Palmer P. I. , Feng L. , Bösch H. , Parker R. , Dlugokencky E. J. , Krummel P. B. , Langenfelds R. L.
Published: December 2014

Abstract. We use the GEOS-Chem global 3-D atmospheric chemistry transport model to interpret XCH4:XCO2 column ratios retrieved from the Japanese Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT). The advantage of these data over CO2 and CH4 columns retrieved independently using a full physics optimal estimation algorithm is that they are less prone to scattering-related regional biases. We show that the model is able to reproduce observed global and regional spatial (mean bias =0.7%) and temporal variations (global r2=0.92) of this ratio with a model bias < 2.5%. We also show that these variations are driven by emissions of CO2 and CH4 that are typically 6 months out of phase, which may reduce the sensitivity of the ratio to changes in either gas. To simultaneously estimate fluxes of CO2 and CH4 we use a maximum likelihood estimation approach. We use two approaches to resolve independent flux estimates of these two gases using GOSAT observations of XCH4:XCO2: (1) the a priori error covariance between CO2 and CH4 describing common source from biomass burning; and (2) also fitting independent surface atmospheric measurements of CH4 and CO2 mole fraction that provide additional constraints, improving the effectiveness of the observed GOSAT ratio to constrain flux estimates. We demonstrate the impact of these two approaches using numerical experiments. A posteriori flux estimates inferred using only the GOSAT ratios and taking advantage of the error covariance due to biomass burning are not consistent with the true fluxes in our experiments, as the inversion system cannot judge which species' fluxes to adjust. This reflects the weak dependence of XCH4:XCO2 on biomass burning. We find that adding the surface data effectively provides an "anchor" to the inversion that dramatically improves the ability of the GOSAT ratios to infer both CH4 and CO2 fluxes. We show that the regional flux estimates inferred from GOSAT XCH4:XCO2 ratios together with the surface mole fraction data during 2010 are typically consistent with or better than the corresponding values inferred from fitting XCH4 or the full-physics XCO2 data products, as judged by a posteriori uncertainties. We show that the fluxes inferred from the ratio measurements perform best over regions where there is a large seasonal cycle such as Tropical South America, for which we report a small but significant annual source of CO2 compared to a small annual sink inferred from the XCO2 data. We argue that given that the ratio measurements are less compromised by systematic error than the full physics data products, the resulting a~posteriori estimates and uncertainties provide a more faithful description of the truth. Based on our analysis we also argue that by using the ratios we may be reaching the current limits on the precision of these observed space-based data.
A robust method for removal of glint effects from satellite ocean colour imagery
Authors: Singh R. K. , Shanmugam P.
Published: December 2014

Abstract. Removal of the glint effects from satellite imagery for accurate retrieval of water-leaving radiances is a complicated problem since its contribution in the measured signal is dependent on many factors such as viewing geometry, sun elevation and azimuth, illumination conditions, wind speed and direction, and the water refractive index. To simplify the situation, existing glint correction models describe the extent of the glint-contaminated region and its contribution to the radiance essentially as a function of the wind speed and sea surface slope that often lead to a tremendous loss of information with a considerable scientific and financial impact. Even with the glint-tilting capability of modern sensors, glint contamination is severe on the satellite-derived ocean colour products in the equatorial and sub-tropical regions. To rescue a significant portion of data presently discarded as "glint contaminated" and improving the accuracy of water-leaving radiances in the glint contaminated regions, we developed a glint correction algorithm which is dependent only on the satellite derived Rayleigh Corrected Radiance and absorption by clear waters. The new algorithm is capable of achieving meaningful retrievals of ocean radiances from the glint-contaminated pixels unless saturated by strong glint in any of the wavebands. It takes into consideration the combination of the background absorption of radiance by water and the spectral glint function, to accurately minimize the glint contamination effects and produce robust ocean colour products. The new algorithm is implemented along with an aerosol correction method and its performance is demonstrated for many MODIS-Aqua images over the Arabian Sea, one of the regions that are heavily affected by sunglint due to their geographical location. The results with and without sunglint correction are compared indicating major improvements in the derived products with sunglint correction. When compared to the results of an existing model in the SeaDAS processing system, the new algorithm has the best performance in terms of yielding physically realistic water-leaving radiance spectra and improving the accuracy of the ocean colour products. Validation of MODIS-Aqua derived water-leaving radiances with in-situ data also corroborates the above results. Unlike the standard models, the new algorithm performs well in variable illumination and wind conditions and does not require any auxiliary data besides the Rayleigh-corrected radiance itself. Exploitation of signals observed by sensors looking within regions affected by bright white sunglint is possible with the present algorithm when the requirement of a stable response over a wide dynamical range for these sensors is fulfilled.
Analysis and definition of potential new areas for viticulture in the Azores (Portugal)
Authors: Madruga J. , Azevedo E. B. , Sampaio J. F. , Reis F. , Pinheiro J.
Published: December 2014

Abstract. Vineyards in the Azores have been traditionally settled on lava field "terroirs" but the practical limitations of mechanization and high demand on man labor imposed by the typical micro parcel structure of these vineyards contradict the sustainability of these areas for wine production, except under government policies of heavy financial support. Besides the traditional vineyards there are significant areas in some of the islands whose soils, climate and physiographic characteristics suggest a potential for wine production that deserves to be object of an assessment, with a view to the development of new vineyard areas offering conditions for a better management and sustainability. The landscape zoning approach for the present study was based in a Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis incorporating factors related to climate, topography and soils. Three thermal intervals referred to climate maturity groups were defined and combined with a single slope interval of 0–15% to exclude the landscape units above this limit. Over this resulting composite grid, the soils were than selectively cartographed thru the exclusion of the soil units not fulfilling the suitability criteria. The results show that the thermal interval of warmer conditions, well represented in the traditional "terroir" of Pico island, has practically no expression in the other islands. However, for the intermediate and the cooler classes, we could map areas of 3739 and 19 395 ha respectively, fulfilling the defined soils and slope criteria, indicating thus the existence of some landscapes in the studied islands revealing adequate potential for future development of viticulture, although certainly demanding a good judgment on the better grape varieties to be adapted to those climatic conditions.
Toxoplasma gondii: ANTICORPOS E FATORES DE RISCO EM SUÍNOS DE GRANJAS NO VALE DO ITAJAÍ, SANTA CATARINA.
Authors: Trevisani Natascha , Vieira-Neto Achilles , Güths Marcelo Felipe , Sartor Amélia Aparecida , Souza Antonio Pereira de , Moura Anderson Barbosa de
Published: December 2014

A toxoplasmose afeta a maioria das espécies de animais homeotérmicos, geralmente de forma assintomática. No entanto, infecções congênitas e/ou em animais imunodeprimidos podem causar problemas neurológicos e reprodutivos, gerando prejuízos econômicos significantes, além da importância como zoonose. Com os objetivos de determinar a ocorrência de anticorpos contra T. gondii e identificar possíveis fatores de risco para a infecção, foram colhidas 533 amostras de sangue de suínos em nove municípios da mesorregião Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina. Foi aplicado um questionário para identificar possíveis fatores de risco para a infecção. A pesquisa de anticorpos foi realizada por meio da Reação de Imunofluorescência Indireta (RIFI, ≥1:64). Soros controle positivo e negativo foram utilizados para fins de comparação. Os dados foram tabulados e analisados estatisticamente pelos testes exato de Fisher e qui-quadrado (P≤0,05) para verificar correlação entre sorologia positiva e as variáveis analisadas. Das amostras avaliadas, 35 (6,56%) foram positivas para T. gondii. Somente fêmeas foram sororreagentes e destas, 71,42% eram matrizes. Não foi observada correlação entre a sorologia e os fatores de risco analisados e nem com desordens reprodutivas.
UTILIZAÇÃO DE DIFERENTES SUBPRODUTOS DE ORIGEM ANIMAL NA ALIMENTAÇÃO DE FRANGOS DE CORTE: AVALIAÇÃO DO DESEMPENHO ZOOTÉCNICO E DA VIABILIDADE ECONÔMICA
Authors: KAMWA ELIS BERNARD
Published: December 2014

Este trabalho foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de avaliar o desempenho zootécnico e a viabilidade econômica de frangos de corte, utilizando quatro tratamentos diferentes em relação às fontes de proteína. O tratamento T1 tinha farelo de soja como fonte de proteína, enquanto o T2 tinha além do farelo de soja em todas as fases, a farinha de vísceras na fase inicial, e a de penas e vísceras nas fases de crescimento e final. Os suplementos protéicos de T3, em todas as fases, foram o farelo de soja e a farinha de carne e ossos. Por sua vez, o T4 constou de farelo de soja, farinha de carne e ossos, e farinha de penas e vísceras, como fontes de proteína, nas três fases. Foram utilizados 2.800 pintinhos de corte, da linhagem Ross, machos e fêmeas (proporções aproximadamente iguais), com um dia de idade e peso médio de 37,67g, alojados em 28 boxes. A fim de se garantir a isonomia das condições ambientais, as aves alojadas nos 4 boxes dos cantos não fizeram parte do experimento propriamente dito. O delineamento experimental foi o inteiramente casualizado, com quatro tratamentos e 6 repetições, sendo 100 aves por unidade experimental. Durante os 46 dias de experimento, as aves tinham livre acesso à ração e à água. Os dados eram coletados diariamente, e/ou semanalmente, para posterior cálculo dos índices zootécnicos e do custo de produção. Os índices zootécnicos foram avaliados através da análise de variância e classificação de médias (teste de Tukey). Para a variável peso médio aos 21 dias, o tratamento farelo de soja mais farinha de carne e ossos (T3) promoveu o melhor resultado, seguido pelo tratamento que tinha a combinação de farelo de soja, farinha de carne e ossos e farinha de penas e vísceras como fontes protéicas (T4), o tratamento T2 (farelo de soja mais farinha de vísceras) tendo apresentado o 3° melhor resultado, e finalmente aquele com farelo de soja como única fonte (T1). Aos 46 dias, as aves de T1 tiveram o maior peso médio, seguidas pelas do T4, aquelas do T3 e finalmente os animais do T2. Houve diferença estatisticamente significativa (p < 0,10) apenas entre os resultados referentes aos 21 dias, em que T3 foi diferente de T1. Quanto à conversão alimentar aos 2l dias, a classificação do melhor para o menos eficiente foi T3, T4, T2 e T1, com T3 diferente (p < 0,05) de T1. Na 2ª fase, a ordem foi T1, T4, T2 e T3, sem diferença estatística entre as médias. Com relação ao índice de eficiência produtiva, na 1ª fase, o resultado foi igual ao da conversão alimentar, ao passo que na 2ª, registrou-se T1 > T4 > T3 > T2, sem diferença estatística. No consumo de ração, não houve diferença estatística entre os tratamentos, em qualquer das duas fases. Em termos de custo de produção/kg de frango, calculado aos 46 dias, a ordem do mais barato para o mais oneroso foi T4, T2, T1 e T3, com T3 - T4 = R$ 0,045/kg de frango produzido. Aos 21 dias de idade, o tratamento T4 foi o de menor custo e T1 o mais caro.
The Online Self: Memory and Forgetting in the Digital Age
Authors: Gudmundsdottir Gunnthorunn
Published: December 2014

Online self-expression has proliferated in the last decade or so to such an extent that more people now than ever before engage in some sort of autobiographical activity. Social networking sites are the main gateways for this expression and their framework and rules and restrictions influence the type of narrative told there. This essay examines this given framework, the role of memory and forgetting in this process and how the story is told in words and images. What is remembered and forgotten online and in turn our digital traces must influence our sense of identity. Constantly telling one’s story in words and pictures online opens up new autobiographical practices, some of which in one way or another hark back to earlier practices, such as the diary or the use of the family album in autobiography, others are strictly the result of the new technology. What influence this will have in the long term is difficult to envisage, as the future use of these traces seems to be out of our control. THis article was submittted on May 1st, 2014 and published on November 3rd, 2014.
Achieving a Shared Understanding of Life. Artists’ reflections on their constructions of the past and the self in traumatic and nostalgic autobiographical picturebooks
Authors: Schrijvers Marloes
Published: December 2014

When sharing the own life story through a picturebook, artists are expected to be influenced by several factors: their motive for creating an autobiographical picturebook, the construction of their past self and present self through the interplay of text and image, and social, historical and cultural factors and the flow of time between the past and the present. Creators of autobiographical picturebooks may, to a greater or lesser extent, reflect on how these factors have influenced the construction of their life narrative. This article analyzes Peter Sís’s The wall (2007) and Ed Young’s The house Baba built (2011). In both autobiographical picturebooks, the ‘hand of the artist’ cannot be overlooked. The artistic choices show how Sís’s book is based on traumatic memories of his childhood experiences, whereas Young’s book is a nostalgic reflection on his safe and happy childhood. Both artists have been influenced by the social context of their past, but they differ in reflecting on these influences. Sís does not inform the reader about how the book is created or about what led him to making certain choices. Young, on the other hand, reflects explicitly on his process of remembering and creating the book. This article shows how such explicit reflection affects the relation between the life narrator and the reader. Because ‘autobiographical truth’ can be understood as an intersubjective exchange between narrator and reader, ideally leading to a shared understanding of the meaning of a life, the narrator’s explicit reflection on the factors influencing the construction of the life story may ease this ‘shared understanding’. As the books discussed here are examples of ‘crossover picturebooks’, future research may discover whether a shared understanding of life is achieved alike for adult and younger readers. This article was submitted on November 1st, 2013, and published on November 3rd, 2014.
Illness Narrative and Self-Help Culture – Self-Help Writing on Age-Related Infertility
Authors: Wohlmann Anita
Published: December 2014

Both self-help books and illness narratives are motivated by an impulse to overcome a crisis and, simultaneously, to help others who suffer from similar conditions. In doing so, authors of self-help and illness narratives move in between polar opposites: they have both individual and collective motives, they have a desire to overcome uncertainty and achieve control and they negotiate the authority of experience versus the authority of expertise. This paper has two objectives: (1) It describes the intersections of illness life writing and self-help culture and traces the thematic, cultural and historical similarities. (2) It analyzes a selection of four autobiographical, U.S.-American self-help books on age-related infertility published between 1987 and 2009. In juxtaposing these books with research perspectives from self-help criticism and medical humanities, the paper suggests that the authors blur the boundaries between patient and expert in their attempts to achieve control over what is ultimately uncontrollable – the body. The paper closes with a reflection on how scientific discourses and the Quantified Self-movement influence self-help narratives on illness.  This article was submitted on June 1st, 2014 and published on November 3rd 2014.
Analysis of platelet function and dysfunction
Authors: Jurk K.
Published: December 2014

Although platelets act as central players of haemostasis only their cross-talk with other blood cells, plasma factors and the vascular compartment enables the formation of a stable thrombus. Multiple activation processes and complex signalling networks are responsible for appropriate platelet function. Thus, a variety of platelet function tests are available for platelet research and diagnosis of platelet dysfunction. However, universal platelet function tests that are sensitive to all platelet function defects do not exist and therefore diagnostic algorithms for suspected platelet function disorders are still recommended in clinical practice.

Based on the current knowledge of human platelet activation this review evaluates point-of-care related screening tests in comparison with specific platelet function assays and focuses on their diagnostic utility in relation to severity of platelet dysfunction. Further, systems biology-based platelet function methods that integrate global and specific analysis of platelet vessel wall interaction (advanced flow chamber devices) and posttranslational modifications (platelet proteomics) are presented and their diagnostic potential is addressed.