bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Nuclear magnetic resonance study of sea-water freezing mechanisms: 1. Temperature dependence of relative brine content in sea ice
Authors: Mel’nichenko N.A. , Slobodyuk A.B.
Published: July 2013

The results of measuring relative brine content (Qlm) in the liquid phase of frozen sea water at temperatures between −2°C and −43°C with variable rate and direction of temperature change are presented. Various pulsed and steady-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods are used and the results are compared with data in the literature. Temperature dependences of Qlm in sea water with dry NaCl added are given. Quasi-hysteresis corresponding to the crystallization range of certain seawater salts, mainly NaCl, which partially precipitates as the crystalline hydrate NaCl·2H2O at temperatures below −23°C, is detected in the temperature dependence of Qlm. The reasons why Qlm values, under various experimental conditions, differ from data in the literature are explained. Brine salinity (S) is calculated from the relative intensity of NMR signals of Ql, and agrees well with previously published data over a wide temperature range. It is shown that determining Qlm from base measurements of Ql in ice does not require information about brine salinity. Empirical equations for calculating brine content at different sea-water temperatures and salinity are given.
Nuclear magnetic resonance study of sea-water freezing mechanisms: 2. Temperature dependence of relaxation time of protons in sea-ice brine
Authors: Mel’nichenko N.A.
Published: July 2013

Results of determinations of proton magnetic relaxation time (T1) in the liquid phase of frozen sea water at temperatures between −2°C and −38°C, with variable rate and direction of temperature change, are presented. Temperature hysteresis corresponding to the crystallization range of certain sea-water salts, mainly NaCl which partially precipitates as the crystalline hydrate NaCl.°2H2O at temperatures below −23°C, is detected in the temperature dependence of T1, as in the analogous dependence of brine content. It is shown that formation of crystalline hydrates in brine is preceded by complete solvation of ions at −5 to −6°C. The main causes of hysteresis in temperature dependence of T1 and the extension of loop limits compared with the analogous loop for liquid brine content are indicated. Additional potentialities of using the nuclear magnetic resonance method for investigating sea-ice properties are presented.
Derrida and the Friendship of Rhyme
Authors: Connors Clare
Published: July 2013

This article takes its inspiration and provocation from a reading of a rhyme-rich passage in Derrida's Politics of Friendship. It thinks about the poetics of friendship, and the politics of rhyme, reading Derrida in relationship to Edward Thomas and Carl Schmitt - an unlikely duo. While it does not offer a ‘defence of rhyme’, it explores the connections between rhyme, defence and undefendedness, and considers the chances and risks that rhyme-writing opens up.
Ich, Ach, Auch: Certain Also-Ran Languages of Jacques Derrida
Authors: Mieszkowski Jan
Published: July 2013

This essay explores the curious role that the word certain plays in Derrida's corpus and the texts of his inheritors. Both less and more than a mere adjective, certain posits a standard for verbal specificity that invariably proves impossible to meet. In this regard, certain is crucial for the conceptualization of syntactic praxes that escape the hegemony of the classical subject-predicate schema. In Derrida's reading of Paul Celan, poetry is understood as the art form that most directly confronts the demands of the language of certain.
Shakespeare Ghosting Derrida
Authors: Cixous Hélène
Published: July 2013

This ‘fabulous’ essay sketches a hauntological bond of debts between Shakespeare and Derrida as a complex intertextual scene of translation across languages and literatures (but also philosophy and psychoanalysis), times and cultures. Starting from Derrida's essay ‘What is a “Relevant” Translation?’, Cixous explores via numerous voices, cloaks and masks (Celan, Joyce, Genet, Blanchot, Marx, Freud, Poe, Socrates but also Cixous's own father Georges, etc.) the spectral ‘visor effect’ of texts and languages concealing one another, or burrowing secretly underground like moles, in Derrida's Hamlet-like passion for the Bard.
Autoapotropaics: Daimon and Psuché between Plutarch and Shakespeare
Authors: Poutiainen Hannu
Published: July 2013

Translation, Walter Benjamin says, grants to a work its future survival, the living-on (überleben) of what is essential in it; yet even for Benjamin, the relevance of a translation, as guarantor of such survival, remains premised, even if only tangentially, on a notion of correctness which, whether semantic or stylistic, risks reducing survival to the mere prolongation of a life already bounded. This essay, tracing the history of a mistranslation as it figures in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, proposes to read, in a deconstructive gesture that affirms life as openness, the paradoxical forms of survival to which an irrelevant and incorrect translation may chance to give birth.
‘This were kindness’: Economies of Differance in The Merchant of Venice
Authors: Kamuf Peggy
Published: July 2013

Following on from Derrida's reading of The Merchant of Venice, Act 4, scene 1, this essay bids to make some headway against all the currents of kind and kindness bound up in the deal between Antonio and Shylock (Act 1, scene 3). What kind of play is this? What is the play of kind? Who is kind? What kind of future is waiting to be born? These and other kinds of questions are hauled up by the net cast into Shakespeare's teeming language.
Porpentine
Authors: Alfano Chiara
Published: July 2013

This essay follows the movements of the porpentine, a poematic and clairaudient animal that appears in Hamlet and Spectres of Marx, as a guide to the singular ways in which Derrida translates and reads Shakespeare.
Ecology without the Present
Authors: Morton Timothy
Published: July 2013

The fact of the Anthropocene makes the metaphysics of presence radically unthinkable. At the same time, and for the same reasons, it reveals to humans a non-totalisable set of unique beings, which this essay calls objects. These objects have a past and a future, but no present.
Polemos: ‘I am at war with myself’ or, Deconstruction™ in the Anthropocene?
Authors: Cohen Tom
Published: July 2013

The term “anthropocene,” emerging around the time of Derrida's death, implies a shift in reference that his late production does not address or anticipate—and thus, if it is to be taken seriously as a ghost term, it poses today a question of a selective translation effect as regards “deconstruction.” This essay finds in Derrida's “last” interview and the “war with myself” that it avows a cipher and entry point for this broader question. Given official “deconstructions” withdrawn, conservative, and fallow state today, as a minor academic camp dedicated to Derridean theology, the essay asks whether the arrival of the term is not a catalyst for the re-organization of deconstructive memes (if not proper names). It examines not only Derrida's systematic avoidance in his writing of eco-catastrophism, but how that occlusion parallels others—specifically, a certain “materiality” that lies outside binaries and, more surprisingly, cinema. In examining this “war” between the two Derridas the essay speculates on whether the anthropocene moves us beyond the sort of soft Derrideanism that, since his death, has paralyzed the franchise (deconstruction™) and fulfilled his prediction of his work's disappearance.
Rock, Life, Fire: Speculative Geophysics and the Anthropocene
Authors: Clark Nigel
Published: July 2013

If origins are as complex and perturbing as Derrida suggests, then we might ask of the current anthropic environmental predicament: what kind of planet is it that gives birth to a creature capable of doing such things? Biological life may be at its liveliest along the earth's sutures and fault-lines. But so too is fire. If humans are a fire species, then this is a fire planet. From the point of view of a ‘speculative geophysics’, our combustive habits may say at least as much about the deep-seated role of fire in welding together a fractious and differentiated planet as they do about any aberration on our own part.
Reverse Transcribing Climate Change
Authors: Solnick Sam
Published: July 2013

This paper suggests that certain conceptual, ethical and economic issues surrounding genetics are also relevant to the challenges that climate change poses to the humanities. It takes J.H. Prynne's and Derrida's engagements with biology and information theory as a starting point to address climate modelling, emissions management, biofuels, bioengineering and the importance of scientific competence.
Novel Climes: Anthropocene Histories, Hans-Jörg Rheinberger's Trace, and Clive Cussler's Arctic Drift
Authors: Trexler Adam
Published: July 2013

The Anthropocene seems to demand a heterogeneous epistemology, but this model also demands reconsideration of the basic functions of literary contextualisation. Through Derrida's trace, Hans-Jörg Rheinberger's account of epistemic things enables both retrospection and the emergence of the new in Anthropocene literature.
What on World is the Earth?: The Anthropocene and Fictions of the World
Authors: Clark Timothy
Published: July 2013

This paper develops a concept of the terrestrial as an abyssal boundary to the thinkable, looking to David Wood's deconstructive eco-phenomenology. The main section deploys this concept of the terrestrial to read various accounts and images of the sight of the whole earth from space. This then suggests a reading of Derrida's arguments on the ‘fiction of the world’. This material is framed at both ends of the paper by consideration of the “Anthropocene” as an ‘event’ which seems to exceed or query elements of Derrida's definition of the ‘event’.
‘Since we have been a dialogue’: Blanchot's Entretiens
Authors: McKeane John
Published: July 2013

At the turn of the 1960s, Maurice Blanchot began publishing texts that he named entretiens, this change in his writing responding to what deconstruction sees as the closure of logocentric or continuous discourse. Paradoxically, this closure does not prevent such discourse, in which philosophical enquiry and technological change are intertwined, from dominating the modern world. By changing his writing, and by reiterating the dialogical form so central to metaphysical tradition since Plato, Blanchot gives voice to the tensions between continuity and its ‘outside’, between philosophy and literature. This is one sense in which his entretiens do not engage in a representation of difference, but instead open themselves to the inflections of what Jean-Luc Nancy calls le partage des voix.
Going to Bits
Authors: Royle Nicholas
Published: July 2013

Royle's essay explores ‘world’ and ‘fiction’ in the final session (26 March 2003) of Jacques Derrida's The Beast and the Sovereign with particular reference to notions of the poetic or poematic, war and non-world, wound and debridement, the mouth, non-human animals, the gothic, being born, grammar and aposiopesis.
A Huge Thing
Authors: Wood Sarah
Published: July 2013

The fiction of the world is a huge thing because it is in Derrida's words ‘the only thing that can make it possible that I can live and have or let you live, enjoy or have or let you enjoy, to carry you for a few minutes without anything happening,’ in a movement of farewell without beginning, without mourning, with the irresistible force of a whirlpool, or a maelstrom: what Poe calls ‘the immense sweeps and swelters of the whirl.’ The maelstrom sweeps, it is an immense sweep, a sweeping away, it is ‘going going away, leaving no trace.’ Throw away your watch; let go the iron ring.
Exploring the Characteristics of Innovation Adoption in Social Networks: Structure, Homophily, and Strategy
Authors: Li Yongli , Wu Chong , Luo Peng , Zhang Wei
Published: July 2013

Exploration of the characteristics of innovation adoption in the context of social network will add new insights beyond the traditional innovation models. In this paper, we establish a new agent-based model to simulate the behaviors of agents in terms of innovation adoption. Specifically, we examine the effects of the network structure, homophily and strategy, among which homophily is a new topic in this field of innovation adoption. The experiments illustrate six important findings involving five aspects and their influences on the innovation adoption. The five aspects are initial conditions, homophily, network topology, rules of updating and strategy, respectively. This paper also compares the different cases within one aspect or across several aspects listed above. Accordingly, some management advices and future work are provided in the last part of this paper.
Feasibility of a Simple Small Wind Turbine with Variable-Speed Regulation Made of Commercial Components
Authors: Cuesta Andrés , Gomez-Gil Francisco , Fraile Juan , Rodríguez Jesús , Calvo Justo , Vara Jesús
Published: July 2013

The aim of this study was to propose and evaluate a very small wind turbine (VSWT) that competes with commercial grid-connected VSWTs in terms of simplicity, robustness and price. Its main components are a squirrel-cage induction generator (SCIG) driven by a frequency converter. The system has a direct-drive shaft, and may be constructed with commercial equipment. Simulation of the wind turbine effect is done with a motor. A control program regulates the variable-speed of rotation through three operational modes: (i) to drive the turbine to its optimum operation point; (ii) to limit its maximum rotational speed; and (iii) to limit the maximum power it generates. Two tests were performed, in order to evaluate the dynamic response of this system under variable wind speeds. The tests demonstrate that the system operates at the optimum operational point of the turbine, and within the set limits of maximum rotational speed and maximum generated power. The drop in performance in relation to its nominal value is about 75%, when operating at 50% of the nominal power. In summary, this VSWT with its proposed control program is feasible and reliable for operating direct-shaft grid-connected VSWTs.
Fiber-Optic Refractometer Based on an Etched High-Q π-Phase-Shifted Fiber-Bragg-Grating
Authors: Zhang Qi , Ianno Natale , Han Ming
Published: July 2013

We present a compact and highly-sensitive fiber-optic refractometer based on a high-Q p-phase-shifted fiber-Bragg-grating (pFBG) that is chemically etched to the core of the fiber. Due to the p phase-shift, a strong pFBG forms a high-Q optical resonator and the reflection spectrum features an extremely narrow notch that can be used for highly sensitivity refractive index measurement. The etched pFBG demonstrated here has a diameter of ~9.3 μm and a length of only 7 mm, leading to a refractive index responsivity of 2.9 nm/RIU (RIU: refractive index unit) at an ambient refractive index of 1.318. The reflection spectrum of the etched pFBG features an extremely narrow notch with a linewidth of only 2.1 pm in water centered at ~1,550 nm, corresponding to a Q-factor of 7.4 ´ 105, which allows for potentially significantly improved sensitivity over refractometers based on regular fiber Bragg gratings.
Psychological and Behavioral Aspects of Sustainability
Authors: Koger Susan
Published: July 2013

I am honored to introduce this special issue of Sustainability, which exemplifies how the field of Psychology can contribute to multi- and inter-disciplinary efforts to create a sustainable society. In fact, achieving the goal of environmental, economic, and social sustainability is predicated on changing human behavior; the purview of Psychologists (reviewed in [1], see also [2–7]). So-called “environmental problems” are really problems of human behavior, caused by collective human actions and their underlying thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and values [1]. Consequently, research from various sub-fields of psychology can [...]
Treatment of Enterococcal Peritonitis with Intraperitoneal Daptomycin in a Vancomycin-Allergic Patient and a review of the literature
Authors: Gilmore James F. , Kim Miae , LaSalvia Mary T. , Mahoney Monica V. Golik
Published: July 2013

Background

Intraperitoneal (IP) administration of antibiotics is a mainstay of therapy in the treatment of peritoneal dialysis–related peritonitis. The therapeutic options against gram-positive organisms in patients intolerant to vancomycin are limited.

Methods

This case report and review of the literature used a search of PubMed with the terms “daptomycin,” “intraperitoneal,” and “peritoneal” for 2004 through 7 February 2013 to find relevant publications.

Results

In addition to our patient, we identified 6 case reports of IP daptomycin for the treatment of peritonitis. Our patient was treated with a 14-day course of IP daptomycin, with resolution of signs and symptoms of peritonitis. She presented again 7 weeks later with signs and symptoms of peritonitis and was treated with a repeat course of IP daptomycin. Among the 6 patients reported in the literature, 4 received loading doses of daptomycin. Daptomycin 20 mg per liter of dialysate was administered in 4 patients, and the other 2 patients received higher doses based on body weight (milligrams per kilogram). Treatment duration averaged 10 or 14 days. In all 6 cases, clinical cure was reported.

Conclusions

Although limited to case reports, the available literature suggests that IP daptomycin is a viable alternative for peritoneal dialysis–related peritonitis. However, routine use of this agent must be cautioned, because further prospective studies are required.
Cancer Antigen 125 as a Biomarker in Peritoneal Dialysis: Mesothelial Cell Health or Death?
Authors: Cheema Harpaul , Bargman Joanne M.
Published: July 2013

The concentration or appearance rate of cancer antigen 125 (CA125) in peritoneal dialysis (PD) effluent has been used for many years as a biomarker for mesothelial cell mass in patients on PD. However, this marker has limitations, and emerging evidence has raised doubts as to its significance. This review explores our current understanding of CA125, its prominent role in studies of “biocompatible” PD solutions, and the ongoing uncertainty concerning its interpretation as a measure of mesothelial cell health.
A3-Coupling catalyzed by robust Au nanoparticles covalently bonded to HS-functionalized cellulose nanocrystalline films
Authors: Huang Jian-Lin , Gray Derek G , Li Chao-Jun
Published: July 2013

We decorated HS-functionalized cellulose nanocrystallite (CNC) films with monodisperse Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) to form a novel nanocomposite catalyst AuNPs@HS-CNC. The uniform, fine AuNPs were made by the reduction of HAuCl4 solution with thiol (HS-) group-functionalized CNC films. The AuNPs@HS-CNC nanocomposites were examined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), TEM, ATR-IR and solid-state NMR. Characterizations suggested that the size of the AuNPs was about 2–3 nm and they were evenly distributed onto the surface of CNC films. Furthermore, the unique nanocomposite Au@HS-CNC catalyst displayed high catalytic efficiency in promoting three-component coupling of an aldehyde, an alkyne, and an amine (A3-coupling) either in water or without solvent. Most importantly, the catalyst could be used repetitively more than 11 times without significant deactivation. Our strategy also promotes the use of naturally renewable cellulose to prepare reusable nanocomposite catalysts for organic synthesis.
Moving Implementation of Evidence-Based Practice Forward: A Practitioner's View
Authors: Nagy Geraldine
Published: July 2013

There is a gap between science and practice in community corrections. Until recently, most community corrections practitioners have faced the challenge of implementing evidence-based practice (EBP) by simply figuring it out on their own. But as the articles in this issue illustrate, the tide has begun to shift toward a more balanced approach that embraces the science of implementation and engages in the deliberate study of specific implementation methods that can bring EBP to scale and achieve the results that community supervision agencies have promised. From a practitioner's point of view, achieving this goal must involve coordinated and deliberate discussion among correctional researchers and practitioners. Implementing EBP is a complex endeavor that involves multiple players and multiple layers within organizations and across components of a system. Building a framework that recognizes interdependent levels will make it possible to define key decisions at each level, identify implementation strategies attuned to interdependencies within a complex system that might otherwise be missed, and develop a structure for evidence-based decision making. In building this framework, it is critical that we embrace research on decision making and cognitive biases, which might help explain common roadblocks that practitioners have faced in their efforts to implement EBPs.
Taking the Leap: From Pilot Project to Wide-Scale Implementation of the Strategic Training Initiative in Community Supervision (STICS)
Authors: Bonta James , Bourgon Guy , Rugge Tanya , Gress Carmen , Gutierrez Leticia
Published: July 2013

Meta-analytic reviews of the offender rehabilitation literature have consistently demonstrated that treatment can reduce recidivism. The majority of the treatment programs in these reviews consist of small-scale demonstration projects (N < 100). Larger interventions, although effective in reducing recidivism, do not produce as robust effects as the smaller demonstration projects. The reasons for this may have to do more with quality implementation issues rather than with the treatment itself. This article describes the implementation plans for a previously validated probation officer training intervention that is being introduced across a large jurisdiction. The steps taken to ensure quality implementation are outlined and obstacles that arose are discussed.
INDIRECT ESSENCES AND MEANINGS OF ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITIONS / NETIESIOGINĖS ARCHITEKTŪROS KONKURSŲ ESMĖS IR PRASMĖS
Authors: Linartas Darius
Published: July 2013

In order to understand the significance and fullscale phenomenon of architectural competitions, it is not only necessary to analyze their direct goals, processes and material outcome, but also multisided indirect impact on the whole artistic field of architecture. In order to structure the whole of generally accepted insights on this issue, the theoretical model of artistic fields (champs) by Pierre Bourdieu has been selected. After analyzing the essential main points, meaning and examples of the indirect effect of competition system, the situation of competitions in Lithuania is reviewed in this aspect, identifying its peculiarities, significance and possible threats. Santrauka Norint suprasti architektūros konkursų fenomeno reikšmę ir mastą, būtina nagrinėti ne tik tiesioginius jų tikslus, procesą ir materialų rezultatą, bet ir įvairiapusį netiesioginį poveikį visam architektūros meno laukui. Siekiant struktūrizuoti visuotinai pripažintų įžvalgų šiuo klausimu visumą, pasirinktas P. Bourdieu meno laukų (champs) teorinis modelis. Išanalizavus esmines netiesioginės konkursų sistemos veikimo esmes, prasmes ir pavyzdžius, apžvelgiama Lietuvos konkursų situacija šiuo požiūriu, įvardinami ypatumai, reikšmė ir galimos grėsmės.
URBANISM AND OUR URBAN FUTURE
Authors: Samalavicius Almantas
Published: July 2013

The last century was marked by the proliferation of modernism and many of its varieties have left lasting marks on architecture as well as contemporary cities, however, this legacy and its present forms produce ambiguous affects on architectural practices as well as on city-building. The legacy, or perhaps it is much better to call it legacies – of modernism so far remains rather controversial and sparkles ongoing debates not only among architects, theorists and critics of architecture, but affects wider layers of society, these days preoccupied with architectural and urban issues.

Witold Rybcynski – an architect, urban historian as well as prolific and renowned architectural writer and author of numerous books that have been translated to many languages is professor emeritus of Pennsylvania University and co-founder of Wharton Real Estate Review. He has contributed a lot to the understanding of architectural legacy as well as it contemporary trends. A stimulating and thoughtful writer, he has discussed various aspects of architecture, urbanism and city-life that are important to architects, architectural academy and society at large. This conversation was stimulated by his writings as well as need to reconsider historical issues.
MEASURES GUARANTEEING ARCHITECTURE QUALITY IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT REGULATION / ARCHITEKTŪROS KOKYBĖS UŽTIKRINIMO PRIEMONĖS VIEŠŲJŲ PIRKIMŲ TEISINIO REGULIAVIMO SISTEMOJE
Authors: Bakšienė Daiva , Matvejenkaitė Kristina
Published: July 2013

The article analyses legal rules of public procurement having a direct impact or possibly influencing the quality of architecture of buildings built using state or municipality funds. Also relevant questions of construction regulation, bounding public clients as builders when organizing public tenders related to design of buildings and implementing solutions of the design, are discussed herein. The main attention is paid to the most frequently disputed problems – the architect selection procedure and setting down of requirements for the architectural design. Based on the research of the legal acts and other related sources the conclusions in this article reveal the shortcomings of the current construction and public procurement regulations preventing the effective reaching of the goals declared by national and EU legal acts in order to secure the quality architecture, being one of the subjects of public matter. Santrauka Straipsnyje nagrinėjamos viešųjų pirkimų teisinio reguliavimo nuostatos, darančios ar galinčios daryti įtaką valstybės, savivaldybių biudžetų ar Europos Sąjungos struktūrinių fondų lėšomis statomų statinių architektūros kokybės užtikrinimui, taip pat aptariami aktualūs statinių statybos teisinio reguliavimo klausimai, kuriais vadovautis privalo ir statytojo statusą įgyjančios perkančiosios organizacijos, vykdydamos viešuosius pirkimus statinių projektavimo srityje bei įgyvendindamos projektinius sprendinius. Pagrindinis dėmesys straipsnyje skiriamas dažniausiai minimoms projektuotojo parinkimo bei architektūrinių projekto sprendinių reikalavimų nustatymo problemoms. Remiantis atliktu teisės aktų ir kitų šaltinių nuostatų tyrimu, formuluojamos išvados, atskleidžiančios esamo statybos bei viešųjų pirkimų teisinio reguliavimo ydas, trukdančias efektyviai įgyvendinti tiek mūsų šalies, tiek Europos Sąjungos dokumentuose keliamus tikslus užtikrinti architektūros, kaip viešojo intereso dalyko, kokybę.
ARCHITECTURAL EXHIBITIONS-COMPETITIONS IN LITHUANIA AS A TOOL OF PROMOTING ARCHITECTURE / ARCHITEKTŪROS PARODA-KONKURSAS LIETUVOJE KAIP ARCHITEKTŪROS POPULIARINIMO PRIEMONĖ
Authors: Leitanaitė Rūta
Published: July 2013

An architectural exhibition-competition is analyzed as a type of architectural media, which performs as a promotion tool of architecture and education of the wide public. Via review of current architectural exhibitions-competitions in Lithuania, Baltic States and several European level architectural awards, the criteria and characteristics, defining and destining the quality and prestige of an architectural exhibition-competition are distilled and defined. Santrauka Straipsnyje architektūros paroda-konkursas tiriamas kaip architektūrinės žiniasklaidos (media) tipas, kurio misija – kokybiškos architektūros propagavimas bei architektūrinė visuomenės edukacija. Svarbiausių architektūros parodų-konkursų ir apdovanojimų, organizuojamų Lietuvoje, Latvijoje, Estijoje bei Europoje, analizė atskleidžia kokybiško, prestižinio architektūros parodos-konkurso kriterijus ir charakteristikas, kurias galima pritaikyti ir Lietuuvoje.
Le secteur des assurances
Authors: Vincent Anne
Published: July 2013

Le secteur des assurances constitue un acteur de premier plan dans l’économie belge. En raison de leur rôle dans la captation de l’épargne à long terme, les compagnies d’assurances interviennent dans nombre d’opérations de prêt et d’investissements de grande envergure, auxquels ont recours tant l’État et les institutions financières que les entreprises et les particuliers. Réservant l’essentiel de leur attention aux évolutions du secteur des banques, les médias ne se sont guère intéressés aux mutations qu’a connues le secteur des assurances au cours des dernières années. Pourtant, ces transformations ont été profondes. Le processus d’internationalisation s’est poursuivi et accéléré. De nouvelles normes réglementaires ont été édictées (en particulier Solvabilité II). D’importantes fusions ont été opérées au niveau européen. Les compagnies ont développé leurs activités bancaires (assurbanque). Les technologies informatiques ont induit un recours plus fréquent à la vente en direct et à l’intervention d’entreprises opérant en libre prestation de services. Divers outils fiscaux ou réglementaires ont été activés par les pouvoirs publics afin de promouvoir l’assurance vie. Le nombre de contrats portant sur une couverture complémentaire des soins de santé a sensiblement augmenté. Le projet des assureurs de faire baisser le taux légal garanti en assurances de groupe n’a par contre pas abouti. Enfin, certains groupes, tel Ethias, ont été affectés par la crise financière déclenchée en 2008. Anne Vincent revient sur ces sujets, étudie les caractéristiques actuelles du secteur des assurances en Belgique et passe en revue les principaux groupes présents sur le marché belge.
1001 fontaines pour demain : pour une nouvelle économie de l'eau potable
Authors: Rambicur Jean-François , Jaquenoud François
Published: July 2013

Trois personnes créent au Cambodge un dispositif permettant aux populations isolées de satisfaire leurs besoins en eau de boisson pour un investissement de moins de dix euros par bénéficiaire. Ayant fait ses preuves, le projet se diffuse régulièrement.
Quête identitaire et troubles de la filiation : Réflexion sur un cas de possession par les djinns à Mayotte
Authors: Harmant Victor
Published: July 2013

Mayotte, île française de l’Océan Indien et terre de brassages ethnique et culturel, a vu son premier service de consultation en santé mentale ouvrir en 2001. Certaines prises en charge demandent au soignant mzungu (le Blanc), de se décentrer de ses propres représentations. À travers l’étude de cas du jeune Omar, qui évoque ses crises de possession par des djinns, esprits du folklore africain et musulman, nous jetons des ponts entre la médecine occidentale et traditionnelle dans les îles des Comores. L’analyse du rôle que peuvent jouer ces esprits dans le fonctionnement psychique de ce jeune nous permet d’appréhender ces phénomènes, parfois déroutants, dans toute leur richesse pour l’écologie du lien social.
Le « travail sexuel » à l'épreuve de l'économie psychique d'une jeune femme tunisienne
Authors: Cannou Emmanuel
Published: July 2013

Cet article propose de partir d’un autre point de vue que celui habituel pour comprendre les difficultés d’intégration du sujet migrant. En effet, la littérature à ce sujet évoque souvent des difficultés intrapsychiques en lien avec le contexte de séparation de la terre d’origine. L’auteur, en s’appuyant sur les travaux en psychodynamique du travail, montre comment, sur la terre d’accueil, les difficultés liées au travail renforce les impasses émancipatoires. C’est qu’il existe un lien entre, d’une part les rapports sociaux de domination sociale et sexuelle, et d’autre part l’économie psychique. La situation de Samia, une jeune tunisienne immigrée en France a servi de support à ce point de vue. La difficulté a consisté à distingué entre ce qui appartenait à la division sociale des sexes et aux revendications phalliques du sujet.
Une législation pour mieux intégrer les employés âgés : l'expérience de la France
Authors: Poilpot-Rocaboy Gwénaëlle , Pijoan Natacha , Chevanche Alain
Published: July 2013

L’absence d’intégration des employés âgés dans les entreprises pousse certains États à adopter des lois. Cet article vise à analyser les incidences de la Loi de financement de la sécurité sociale, adoptée en France en 2009, qui demande aux entreprises de négocier un accord d’entreprise ou d’élaborer un plan d’action relativement à l’emploi des travailleurs âgés. Nous décrivons le contenu des plans d’action et accords adoptés par les entreprises françaises. Puis, nous indiquons les atouts et les limites de la législation. Enfin, nous faisons des recommandations visant à aider les dirigeants à optimiser les retombées de leurs actions en allant au-delà de ce que prescrivent les lois.
L'intégration professionnelle des travailleurs âgés : le cas d'Électricité Réseau Distribution France
Authors: Guérin Serge , Urasadettan Jennifer , Saint-Germes Ève
Published: July 2013

L’ensemble des pays occidentaux fait face à la problématique du maintien en emploi des travailleurs âgés de plus de 50 ans. Dans ce contexte, de nombreuses dispositions légales ont été instituées pour reculer l’âge de la retraite et pour pousser les entreprises à améliorer le taux d’activité des salariés âgés. Quelles sont les incidences de la loi française sur la gestion et l’intégration des travailleurs âgés dans les entreprises françaises ? Après avoir rappelé les obligations légales en matière de négociation d’Accords et plans d’actions seniors (APAS) depuis 2010, cet article décrit de quelle manière une grande société française, Électricité Réseau Distribution France (ERDF), a réalisé un diagnostic et fait évoluer ses pratiques afin d’améliorer l’intégration des salariés âgés de plus de 50 ans. Pour relever ce défi, l’entreprise doit aller au-delà de la loi et repenser la relation avec tous ses salariés.
Les dirigeants : comme nouveau groupe social
Authors: Galambaud Bernard
Published: July 2013

Une société n’est pas un simple agrégat d’individus, mais un ensemble instable de groupes sociaux. Cependant, ni la situation de ces groupes au sein de la société, ni même leur réalité n’est jamais stabilisée. Cette réflexion s’intéresse à la naissance et au développement d’un nouveau groupe, les dirigeants. Comme tout groupe social, il offre à ses membres une place dans la société, une identité collective, des valeurs et des normes de comportements, ainsi que des avantages et une rémunération matériels et symboliques. La naissance de ce groupe est largement liée à une mutation de l’entreprise. De nombreuses entreprises ont évolué effectivement d’un modèle où l’exigence de développement l’emportait sur l’exigence de rentabilité financière vers un modèle où cette exigence est première. Or, ce nouveau modèle rencontre des oppositions et les dirigeants peinent à légitimer leurs avantages et rémunérations.
Empirical Performance Analysis of HPC Benchmarks Across Variations in Cloud Computing
Authors: Ahuja Sanjay P. , Mani Sindhu
Published: July 2013

High Performance Computing (HPC) applications are scientific applications that require significant CPU capabilities. They are also data-intensive applications requiring large data storage. While many researchers have examined the performance of Amazon’s EC2 platform across some HPC benchmarks, an extensive study and their comparison between Amazon’s EC2 and Microsoft’s Windows Azure is largely missing with metrics such as memory bandwidth, I/O performance, and communication and computational performance. The purpose of this paper is to implement existing benchmarks to evaluate and analyze these metrics for EC2 and Windows Azure that span both Infrastructure-as-a-Service and Platform-as-a-Service types. This was accomplished by running MPI versions of STREAM, Interleaved or Random (IOR) and NAS Parallel (NPB) benchmarks on small and medium instance types. In addition a new EC2 medium instance type (m1.medium) was also included in the analysis. These benchmarks measure the memory bandwidth, I/O performance, communication and computational performance.
A Secure Data Transmission Mechanism for Cloud Outsourced Data
Authors: Alhaj Abdullah , Aljawarneh Shadi , Masadeh Shadi , Abu-Taieh Evon
Published: July 2013

The Cloud has become a significant topic in computing; however, the trend has established a new range of security issues that need to be addressed. In Cloud, the data and associated software are not under their control. In addition, with the growing demands for Cloud networks communication, it becomes increasingly important to secure the data flow path. The existing research related to security mechanisms only focuses on securing the flow of information in the communication networks. There is a lack of work on improving the performance of networks to meet quality of service (QoS) constrains for various services. The security mechanisms work by encryption and decryption of the information, but do not consider the optimised use of the network resources. In this paper the authors propose a Secure Data Transmission Mechanism (SDTM) with Preemption Algorithm that combines between security and quality of service. Their developed SDTM enhanced with Malicious Packets Detection System (MPDS) which is a set of technologies and solutions. It enforces security policy and bandwidth compliance on all devices seeking to access Cloud network computing resources, in order to limit damage from emerging security threats and to allow network access only to compliant and trusted endpoint devices. This SDTM also provides support for quality of service. High-level simulations and the related results are provided to show the properties of the SDTM.
Optimal Resource Usage in Multi-Cloud Computing Environment
Authors: Goswami Veena , Sahoo Choudhury Nishkanta
Published: July 2013

Cloud computing has emerged as a new paradigm for accessing distributed computing resources such as infrastructure, hardware platform, and software applications on-demand over the internet as services. This paper presents an optimal resource management framework for multi-cloud computing environment. The authors model the behavior and performance of applications to integrate different service-providers for end-to-end-requirements. Each service model caters to specific type of requirements and there are already number of players with own customized products/services offered. Intercloud Federation and Service delegation models are part of Multi-Cloud environment where the broader target is to achieve infinite pool of resources. They propose an analytical queueing network model to improve the efficiency of the system. Numerical results indicate that the proposed provisioning technique detects changes in arrival pattern, resource demands that occur over time and allocates multiple virtualized IT resources accordingly to achieve application Quality of Service targets.
Restoration of Coherent Population Movement from Noise-Induced Chaos in the Chemotaxis of E. Coli
Authors: Patnaik Pratap R.
Published: July 2013

Bacteria navigating in a chemically guided manner are under the impact of noise from at least three sources – inside the cells, at the binding sites between chemoattractants in the environment and corresponding receptors of the cells, and in the environment itself. For Escherichia coli as model system, compounded effects of these sources of noise were investigated recently by using the fractal dimensions of the trajectories of the cells as an index of the nature of population motility. It was observed that environmental noise can drive synchronized movement of a population toward a chemoattractant into stochastic chaos. Those results have been used here to explore the effectiveness of different kinds of noise filters in restoring coherent motion of the cells. An auto-associative neural filter was the best, followed by the extended Kalman filter. The performance of either filter depended on the relative rates of motion of the bacteria and the chemoattractant, and on whether the responses of the cells to fluctuations in the external chemoattractant was non-adaptive or adaptive. The results establish: (a) the validity and usefulness of fractal indexes to characterize noise-affected chemotaxis, (b) the significance of the effect of environmental noise on chemotactic motility, and (c) the effectiveness of a neural filter in rescuing coherent population movement from noise-induced chaos.
A Three-Pass Algorithm for Generation of BE-Matrices from IUPAC Names
Authors: Mandal Sourav , Pal Somnath
Published: July 2013

One of the basic needs of chemoinformatics is to represents chemical compounds graphically in computer. Among several matrix representations of chemical graphs, BE-Matrix is one of the popular choices to represent molecules. There are several line notations available to input a chemical graph. Although several algorithms exist to convert from different line notations to suitable computer representations but using IUPAC Name, a line notation, to give input to the computer is not a popular method, because of the lack of suitable algorithm from IUPAC names to BE-Matrix or its variants. However, each and every chemist is familiar with IUPAC names, and therefore it calls for development of a suitable algorithm for such purpose. In this paper a three-pass algorithm for generating BE-Matrix from IUPAC name have been proposed and illustrated with suitable examples. The third pass of the algorithm can independently be used to convert from symbolic chemical names of any compound to BE-Matrix, thus making task of a chemist much simpler.
Physical-Mechanical Model of Fibrous Polymerized Bar Deformation at the Neck Zone
Authors: Aliyev Gabil G.
Published: July 2013

In the paper the author suggests a model of mechanical deformation of a polymerized bar made of fibres in the neck with regard to forces interacting with a matrix. In the paper, the author suggests an experimental-theoretical method that allows one to define the character of deformation non-homogeneity in the neck area. In particular, analytic dependence of mechanical properties of the material on longitudinal coordinate of the sample is established. Numerical comparison of theoretical results with experimental ones is given.
Optimization of Power Allocation in Multimedia Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Yang Ming , Wang Dajin , Bourbakis Nikolaos
Published: July 2013

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) have been widely applied in monitoring and surveillance fields in recent years and have dramatically changed the methodologies and technologies in monitoring and surveillance. However, the sensor nodes in WSN have very limited computing resources and power supply, and thus the maximization of network life is a very critical issue. In the newly-emerging Wireless Multimedia Sensor Network (WMSN), the high volume of sensed video data needs to be compressed before transmission. Different video coding schemes have been developed and applied to wireless multimedia sensor networks, and there exists a tradeoff between the power consumption of data compression and that of data transmission. Video compression will reduce the amount of data that needs to be transmitted and thus the amount of power consumed for data transmission; however, too much video compression will consume excessive power which outweighs the power savings on data transmission. Thus, how to reach an optimized balance between compression and transmission and maximize network life becomes a challenging research issue. In this paper, the authors propose mathematical models which describe power consumptions of data compression and transmission of sensor nodes in hexagon-shaped clusters. Under the proposed model, they have achieved the optimized data compression ratio which can minimize the overall power consumption of the whole cluster.
A Multivariable System Approach for the Assessment of the Influence of Fiscal Policy to Business Cycle Shocks
Authors: Kollias Iraklis , Leventides John
Published: July 2013

The authors consider a multivariable system comprising a set of macroeconomic variables as inputs, states and outputs. In this setting the authors assess the control potential of fiscal policy versus a large negative business cycle shock that affects the output of the system. The inputs considered for this matter are the cyclical components of government spending and taxes. The states are the cyclical components of consumption and investment. These variables convey information to the policy maker at each time period. The output of the system is the cyclical component of GDP. In order to assess the control potential of government fiscal policy we begin by solving an optimal control problem minimizing the deviations of log GDP from its trend subject to a multivariable system and a set of input - output inequality constraints. Based on the results obtained the authors propose a set of optimal control indicators used to evaluate the effectiveness of fiscal policy action against a large negative business cycle shock and the potential controllability of the system.
Visualizing Sixteen Years of Data About Portuguese Leisure-Cultural Activities
Authors: Rodrigues Clarissa , Carvalho Elizabeth
Published: July 2013

This paper describes an interactive data visualization application that aims to show how the Portuguese people spent culturally their leisure time between 1994 and 2009. The leisure trend is displayed to the end-user through the use of different visualization techniques and visual cues. The authors developed the visual representations based on the use of simple and regular visual shapes that could be easily combined, interpreted, memorized and used. To better evaluate their results, the authors tested their prototype against a preselected group of subjects.
Modeling of Flowers with Inverse Grammar Generation Interface
Authors: Petrenko Olga , Sbert Mateu , Terraz Olivier , Ghazanfarpour Djamchid
Published: July 2013

Flowers belong to one of the natural phenomena that cannot be captured completely, as there is enormous variety of shapes both within and between individuals. The authors propose a procedural modeling of flowering plants using an extension of L-Systems – a model based on three-dimensional generalized maps. Conventionally, in order to build a model the user has to write the grammar, which consists of the description of 3Gmaps and all the production rules. The process of writing a grammar is usually quite laborious and tedious. In order to avoid this the authors propose new interface functionality: the inverse modeling by automatic generation of L-systems. The user describes the flower he wants to model, by assigning the properties of its organs. The algorithm uses this information as an input, which is then analyzed and coded as L-systems grammar.