In 2009, Azevedo and Galiana developed a process for extracting ethanol from sugar cane for the power industry sector, especially in Brazil. The implication was the process provided clean and renewable source of energy that could be used as a biofuel and for generating bioelectricity [5] . Similarly other countries have produced ethanol from biological products, including corn in the U.S., sugar beets in Germany and wheat in Europe.

The implication was the process provided clean and renewable source of energy that could be used as a biofuel and for generating bioelectricity.


The goal of the present paper is quite modest. Very recently the BOSS collaboration has released precise measurements of the line of sight and angular baryon acoustic oscillation peaks at low redshifts [3] . We will use this new data to show that the tension, should it be confirmed by future observations, arises entirely from the acceleration of the Universe between z = 0.57 and z = 2.34, thus eliminating many of the possible sources of the discrepancy suggested in earlier papers.

Very recently the BOSS collaboration has released precise measurements of the line of sight and angular baryon acoustic oscillation peaks at low redshifts.


One approach to understanding maturity in a self-healing environment is by evaluating systems state via behavioural properties [8, 19, 20] . By understanding when and how long a systems executes self-healing behaviours, it becomes possible to evaluate self-healing methodologies against existing implementations. Understanding the effectiveness of self-healing systems methodologies against current approaches provides a practical baseline for understanding the advancement of self-healing systems outside of the Autonomic Maturity Model. However, to achieve this goal, a set of criteria must first be defined, which is present in a majority of self-healing systems methodologies that are to be evaluated both now and in the future. It is for this reason that computing environment, learning methodology, and management style were selected for comparison.

One approach to understanding maturity in a self-healing environment is by evaluating systems state via behavioural properties.


Self-healing systems frameworks are continuing to explore new methodologies for detecting and mitigating faults. However, which approach is most efficient-and under what circumstances-is an area of research that needs further exploration. At present, very little information is available on this topic, and there are no publicly verifiable results [10, 69] . This may be in part due to the diverse set of situations in which self-healing systems have been implementedmaking direct comparisons difficult-or due to restrictions on releasing this information publicly. A comparison of self-healing systems frameworks using non-simulated data would be greatly beneficial to the field.

At present, very little information is available on this topic, and there are no publicly verifiable results.


The nomenclature used to describe certain aspects of self-healing systems research is becoming increasingly vague. At present, most recovery strategies utilise subsets of other self-*, selfadaptation, or self-management properties. These properties often include aspects in optimisation and configuration-sometimes concurrently. This has led to a diverse understanding of what criteria are acceptable for evaluating the success of a self-healing framework [19, 58, 69, 70] . This multiplicity of terms can be confusing-particularly between systems that autonomously provision themselves within an environment versus those that can elect new subsets of features or configurations to correct faults. Although some research has been produced in this area, it could do with a more explicit set of definitions.

This has led to a diverse understanding of what criteria are acceptable for evaluating the success of a self-healing framework.


Word sense disambiguation (WSD) is the task of determining the correct meaning for an ambiguous word from its context. WSD algorithms usually choose one sense out of a given set of possible senses for each word. A resource that enumerates possible senses for each word is called a sense inventory. Manually created inventories come usually in form of lexical semantic resources, such as WordNet or more specifically created inventories such as OntoNotes (Hovy et al., 2006) .

Manually created inventories come usually in form of lexical semantic resources, such as WordNet or more specifically created inventories such as OntoNotes.


There are strong interactions between the solute atoms and defects in aluminum alloys that result in structural instabilities, variation in solute profiles and changes in solute diffusion rates. Mobile dislocations are pinned by enhanced solute diffusion during tensile straining due to Portevin-Le Chatelier (P-L) effect [5] . This phenomenon appears in aluminum alloys over a range of temperatures above and below room temperature. Plastic deformation not only increases the mobility of solute atoms in aluminum alloys but also cause clustering at dislocations and these clusters act as nucleation sites for subsequent strengthening precipitates at temperatures well below the conventional aging temperatures [6] . This paper investigates the effect of varying levels of cold work on the mechanical and electrical properties of Al 6063 alloy.

Mobile dislocations are pinned by enhanced solute diffusion during tensile straining due to Portevin-Le Chatelier (P-L) effect.

Plastic deformation not only increases the mobility of solute atoms in aluminum alloys but also cause clustering at dislocations and these clusters act as nucleation sites for subsequent strengthening precipitates at temperatures well below the conventional aging temperatures.


Despite an internationally extensive interest in the measurement of the economic impacts of climate change, specifically on agriculture, the empirical research on Asia remains scarce. Particularly, the quantitative analysis of farmer adaptations (using a choice-approach) and their impact on the overall losses or benefits from climate change has not been carried out for any country in South Asia. This study's mandate is to fill this gap for the crop sector of Pakistan. After sketching the country's vulnerability to climate change and describing the dataset and the study area, an overview on the modelling framework is presented. Ensuing, in a first step, a model is built that helps to understand the impact of climate variables, controlling for other factors (soil, water, education, etc.) , on the choice of crops in Pakistan. In other words, to understand how the current crop choices of farmers came about. Once this relationship is established, simulations are run to understand future adaptations that farmers are likely to make. In order to specify possible adaptations and their loss and damage potential, the study applies the structural Ricardian method (Seo and Mendelsohn, 2008a) . Hence, to the shortcoming of simple yield-based calculations of welfare changes, in this study climate change induced welfare changes are calculated by including crop switching to see whether the losses are compensated through adaptation. This with the goal to correct for the bias in other studies that do not consider farmer adaptations when assessing the climate change induced welfare effects for the future.

In order to specify possible adaptations and their loss and damage potential, the study applies the structural Ricardian method.


The multidimensionality of Human Resource (HR) practice allows organizations to accomplish the corporate and personal objectives and therefore the approach of the Human Resource Management (HRM) plays a pivotal role in the success of the company. In order to establish a competitive advantage, organizations have a paramount need to create an edge or a dominance that can be sustained over a long period of time (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, & Wright, 2007) . HRM has the capacity of influencing the organizational behavior of the employees, and by the means of which, it ensures the achievement of the corporate objectives (Nishii & Wright, 2007) . In line with the company objectives, HRM focuses on improving and optimizing the performance of the various strategic business units. Fundamentally, HRM not only strives to mentor the employees but also determines the need for skill acquisition; thereby empowering these individuals for a long-term organizational commitment (OC) (Storey, 2007) . Diversity at work place has posited a challenge for both multinational companies (MNCs) and local large-scale firms as they strive to implement diverse administrative methodologies and systems (Dupuis, 2014; Savaneviciene & Kersiene, 2015) . With the growing concerns of international business and global competition, complexities within the organization and other various malady have led the MNCs and local large-scale firms to validate HRM practices throughout the firm.

In order to establish a competitive advantage, organizations have a paramount need to create an edge or a dominance that can be sustained over a long period of time.

HRM has the capacity of influencing the organizational behavior of the employees, and by the means of which, it ensures the achievement of the corporate objectives.

Fundamentally, HRM not only strives to mentor the employees but also determines the need for skill acquisition; thereby empowering these individuals for a long-term organizational commitment (OC).

Diversity at work place has posited a challenge for both multinational companies (MNCs) and local large-scale firms as they strive to implement diverse administrative methodologies and systems.


There are a wide range of applications where wave-front sensing is essential like adaptive optics, lens testing and ophthalmology [1] . A Shack Hartmann Sensor (SHS) measures the shape of the wave-front incident on it [2] . It is made up of lenses arranged in a two dimensional array that directs the light towards the focal plane. A detector placed at the focal plane of the lenslet array records the position of the spots. The spots by and large maintain a Gaussian structure. The signatures of the distortions in the wave-fronts are seen by the sensor as local shifts in the focal spots depending on the local slopes across individual apertures [3] . The wave-front sensors generally operate in real-time and the position of the fluctuating spot is estimated at a frequency equal to the rate of fluctuations using centroiding techniques [4] . The shape of the wave-front is then evaluated from the measured shifts of the spots [5] [6] [7] [8] .

There are a wide range of applications where wave-front sensing is essential like adaptive optics, lens testing and ophthalmology.

A Shack Hartmann Sensor (SHS) measures the shape of the wave-front incident on it.

The signatures of the distortions in the wave-fronts are seen by the sensor as local shifts in the focal spots depending on the local slopes across individual apertures.

The wave-front sensors generally operate in real-time and the position of the fluctuating spot is estimated at a frequency equal to the rate of fluctuations using centroiding techniques.

The shape of the wave-front is then evaluated from the measured shifts of the spots.


The problem of estimating the centroid of an incoherently imaged point with a detector array is analyzed in the literature [9] . The effects of this on a wave-front reconstruction formed by a ShackHartmann sensor are described. Generally, the wave-fronts falling on the sensor carry along with them additive noise which cannot be distinguished most times from the actual signal. There are many methods of minimizing the effects of noise like thresholding, noise filtering by linear, median and adaptive filters. In applications where the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) is small, noise minimization becomes important. At low SNR, some of the above mention methods of noise minimization fail. They even do not take the advantage of the fact that in this case the spot pattern is generally Gaussian.

The problem of estimating the centroid of an incoherently imaged point with a detector array is analyzed in the literature.


Several research groups have attempted to address the challenges of virtual assembly using existing technologies. Stereo viewing, head tracking, and instrumented glove interaction are all common components of many virtual assembly applications [2, [4] [5] [6] [7] . Efforts have also been directed at interacting with complex CAD models. Recently, haptic interaction has been integrated into many of these applications [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] . Haptic interaction provides force feedback to the user as an additional sensory input to aid in evaluating the suitability of the assembly process represented in the virtual environment.

Stereo viewing, head tracking, and instrumented glove interaction are all common components of many virtual assembly applications.

Recently, haptic interaction has been integrated into many of these applications.


It must be borne in mind that the development or progress of AD is not determined by a single environmental or genetic factor, but by their combinations [5] . Despite numerous studies, we still do not know which of the environmental and genetic factors play a major role. Apart from those discussed earlier, the list of risk factors for AD also includes a family history of atopy, housing conditions and environment or smoking. A positive family history of allergy seems to be the most significant risk factor for AD development [19, 28] . Our results fully support this hypothesis and are similar to the data reported by other authors [22, 23, 37] . Especially atopy found in one or both parents is a strong risk factor. Thus, a genetic predisposition to atopic disorders seems to be an unquestionable and most important factor in the development of AD and other allergic disorders. There is also a general agreement on the adverse effect of wet or damp spots on surfaces inside the home [19, 22, 38] . Our findings confirm this correlation, but it is of a lesser importance than atopy in family members.

It must be borne in mind that the development or progress of AD is not determined by a single environmental or genetic factor, but by their combinations.

A positive family history of allergy seems to be the most significant risk factor for AD development.

Our results fully support this hypothesis and are similar to the data reported by other authors.

There is also a general agreement on the adverse effect of wet or damp spots on surfaces inside the home.


Organization of the paper. In section 2 we introduce the notation that shall be used throughout the paper. Also in Section 2 we recall the result of Koch and Tataru [12] . In section 3 we present a proof of Theorem 1.1.

Organization of the paper.

Also in Section 2 we recall the result of Koch and Tataru.


Dangling references are a safety issue for region-based memory management. A reference from (an object in) one region to (an object in) another region is said to be dangling if the latter region has a shorter lifetime than the former. A region has a shorter lifetime than another region if it is deleted before the latter. Using a dangling reference to access memory is unsafe because the accessed memory may have been reallocated to store a new object. Researchers have identified two approaches to eliminate this problem. The first approach allows the program to create dangling references, but uses a type and effect system to ensure that the program never uses a dangling reference to access memory [16] . The second approach uses a type sytem to prevent the program from creating dangling references at all [9] . The first approach (no-dangling-access) may yield more precise region lifetimes, but the latter approach (no-dangling) is required by the RTSJ and for co-existence with precise garbage collectors.

The first approach allows the program to create dangling references, but uses a type and effect system to ensure that the program never uses a dangling reference to access memory.

The second approach uses a type sytem to prevent the program from creating dangling references at all.


Eisenhart's results in connection with Lorentzian geometry were then overlooked and only later rediscovered following different approaches [9, 10] . Indeed, even the relation between Eisenhart's result and lightlike dimensional reduction is not well known. The aim of this work is to generalize Eisenhart's theorem is such a way that it can become an integral part of presents investigations on the mathematics of lightlike dimensional reduction.

Eisenhart's results in connection with Lorentzian geometry were then overlooked and only later rediscovered following different approaches.


As for the property of planetary mass, we noted that a higher density of small mass planets ( M p ∼ 10M ⊕ ) populate the unique subsets. We found most of these planets to be TTV planets, detected in multi-planetary systems. Usually, the mass of a planet detected through TTV is not resolved directly, and in practice, is degenerate with the planet's eccentric orbit [18] . As a result, we have many small TTV planets with an upper mass limit, rather than a nominal value. However, there is no uniform approach to displaying this mass limit. At times, the catalogs choose to omit the value altogether, while at other times it is displayed as an upper limit. However, in many cases, especially with the EU catalog, the mass limit is reported as a valid nominal estimate. Due to this difference in the mass property criteria, we found many small mass planets biasing the unique subset towards smaller masses.

Usually, the mass of a planet detected through TTV is not resolved directly, and in practice, is degenerate with the planet's eccentric orbit.


In the framework of this analysis, we compared separately (and in combination) the planetary properties of the confirmed planets from the listed catalogs. In addition, we performed a comparison between planetary systems by examining the distributions of stellar and planetary properties of the main star and each system's first detected planet. By doing so, we were able to find the biases of the planet properties emerging from the stellar properties. There was no sense in comparing the stellar parameters of all the confirmed planets since it is possible to unintentionally give more weight to multi-planetary systems when performing the analysis. Table 2 lists the total number of confirmed planets and systems of each catalog as a function of the different stellar and planet properties. The significant variability of those numbers raised the following questions: Does the catalog with the largest number of planets include all the listed objects of the other catalogs? How different is the distribution of planets from two different catalogs? Most of the statistical work in this analysis is based on comparing the different sets using a two-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (hereafter, KS test, [16] ). Broadly speaking, the p-value of the KS test indicates to what extent two samples can be considered to be drawn from the same distribution-a high p-value indicates a good agreement. It is sensitive to differences in both shape and location of the empirical distribution functions of the two samples. A KS test comparison between two catalogs would compare the distributions of all available estimates of one of the planetary properties mentioned above. If a specific object's quantity is unavailable, we excluded the object from the comparison pertaining to this property. In cases where only lower/upper bounds were available, we set it to the listed value instead of excluding it. Thus, there were some cases in which two catalogs agreed on the planetary nature of a specific object, yet, since one of the catalogs had a missing value for some property, we excluded this planet from the test.

Most of the statistical work in this analysis is based on comparing the different sets using a two-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (hereafter, KS test,).


Phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSBs) inhabiting the rhizosphere are considered as promising biofertlizers since they can supply plants with 'phosphorus' from sources otherwise poorly available by several mechanisms and hence a viable substitute to chemical phosphate fertilizers (Khan et al., 2006; Chaiharn et al., 2008) . They are known for secretion of organic acids and phosphates to solubilise insoluble phosphate to soluble forms (Ahemad and Khan, 2011) . The importance of saffron stigma production in the economy of our state encouraged us to isolate and screen new PGPRs on the basis of their ability to produce IAA for enhancing the corm size, siderophore production to quench iron and availability of phosphorus to the corms. The saffron soil is unique in itself found in some areas of J&K, India; particularly in Pampore area of Kashmir province and is known both for maximum area under saffron cultivation and also for the bulk as well as good quality saffron production.

Phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSBs) inhabiting the rhizosphere are considered as promising biofertlizers since they can supply plants with 'phosphorus' from sources otherwise poorly available by several mechanisms and hence a viable substitute to chemical phosphate fertilizers.

They are known for secretion of organic acids and phosphates to solubilise insoluble phosphate to soluble forms.


Singer proposed Singer model [14] . Singer model is a zero-mean model for motor acceleration, which is not reasonable to maneuvering target with mutative velocity and acceleration. It is generally agreed that the data range of next moment acceleration is limited.

Singer proposed Singer model.


Friedland assumed that the target maintains a constant velocity relative to the radar, and the relative acceleration is considered to be the random interference in which the mean is zero. He established a two-order Kalman filter based on CV model [12] . The position and velocity estimation error are small when the velocity of the target is constant, but these estimation errors are larger when speed of the target changes.

He established a two-order Kalman filter based on CV model.


Blom and Bar-Shalom proposed the Interactive Multiple Model (IMM) algorithm [15] [16] [17] [18] . It allows for several parallel models which are combined to a weighted estimate. Choosing models for different driving modes, such as constant velocity, constant acceleration, and strong acceleration changes, the target state estimation can be optimized for highly dynamic maneuvers. But the amount of processing is large and if the weight set is not accurate enough, the estimation performance will decrease.

Blom and Bar-Shalom proposed the Interactive Multiple Model (IMM) algorithm.


Hampton assumed that the target maintains a constant acceleration relative to the radar, and the change of the relative acceleration is considered to be the random interference in which the mean is zero. He established a three-order Kalman filter based on CA model [13] . The position and velocity estimation error are small when the velocity or the acceleration of the target is constant, but these estimation errors are larger when the acceleration changes.

He established a three-order Kalman filter based on CA model.


The rs406113 (c.39 T > G; p.F13L) and rs974334 (c.242-12G > C) polymorphisms on the GPX6 gene had not been studied previously; in fact, there was no information available in the literature about polymorphisms on the GPX6 gene even though they can have a functional effect. Genetic variants in other genes of the GPX family have been associated with BC [30] [31] [32] .

The rs406113 (c.39 T > G; p.

Genetic variants in other genes of the GPX family have been associated with BC.


Understanding code and determining how to use it is a manual and time-consuming process. In general, programmers try to find initial points such as relevant functions (methods in object oriented parlance). They want easily understand how the functions are used and see the sequence of function invocations in order to understand how some concepts are implemented [10] . When programmers learn about a program (source code), the control flow (execution of function calls) needs to be followed. It means successive jumping from one function to another.

They want easily understand how the functions are used and see the sequence of function invocations in order to understand how some concepts are implemented.


It appeared that the convection heat treatment caused stronger discoloration on veneer surfaces regardless the wood species when compared to press heat treatment [22] . The dark colour of veneers can easily mask some blemishes and other discolorations on the surface. Various processes, such as staining and varnishing, which involve mainly chemicals, may be skipped when using heat treatment as an eco-friendly alternative to obtain dark colour veneers for furniture manufacturing.

It appeared that the convection heat treatment caused stronger discoloration on veneer surfaces regardless the wood species when compared to press heat treatment.


The Internet has become more crucial these days but at the same time, the Internet attacks have increased dramatically in size and in scale. Instead of attacking a computer directly, most attackers launch their attacks through intermediary hosts they have previously compromised to hide themselves. These compromised computers are called stepping stones [1] . In this technique, attackers construct a chain of interactive connections on stepping stones using protocols such as Telnet or SSH. Attack commands or programs are sent from an attacker's machine, transferred by stepping stones, and then to the target machine. The final victim only sees traffic from the last hop in the chain of stepping stones, making it difficult for the victim to learn any information about the true origin of the attack.

These compromised computers are called stepping stones.


Given that a number of successes have been reported in the field of traditional text classification, the focus of recent research has expanded from simple topic identification to more challenging tasks such as opinion/modality identification. Example includes categorization of customer E-mails and reviews by types of claims, modalities or subjectivities (Turney, 2002; Wiebe, 2000) . For the latter, the traditional bag-of-words representation is not sufficient, and a richer, structural representation is required. A straightforward way to extend the traditional bag-of-words representation is to heuristically add new types of features to the original bag-of-words features, such as fixed-length n-grams (e.g., word bi-gram or tri-gram) or fixedlength syntactic relations (e.g., modifier-head relations). These ad-hoc solutions might give us reasonable performance, however, they are highly taskdependent and require careful design to create the "optimal" feature set for each task.

Example includes categorization of customer E-mails and reviews by types of claims, modalities or subjectivities.


Previous clinical studies have shown that periodontitis is positively associated with metabolic syndrome through mechanisms such as low-grade inflammation, and lipid or vascular abnormalities [28] [29] [30] . A meta-analysis of 20 studies showed a positive association between periodontitis and metabolic syndrome [31] . Studies of ethnic or national differences are ongoing. Some studies have investigated the association between periodontitis and metabolic syndrome in the Korean population, and 5 studies showed a positive association [13] [14] [15] [16] 32] . Among 5 studies, 4 enrolled participants in a limited region within Korea or only small numbers of participants [13, 15, 16, 32] . One study used a representative sample from KNHANES but analyzed data collected at 1 year [14] . Our study used a representative sample from KNHANES 2008-2014 and enrolled the largest sample. The proportion with metabolic syndrome and the numbers of metabolic syndrome components increased as the severity of periodontitis increased. Logistic regression analysis showed that the presence of periodontitis was associated with a high OR compared with the absence of periodontitis, but statistical significance in a comparison between NS-PO and Severe PO groups was not evident. Statistically significant differences in elderly participants with metabolic syndrome were observed among the 3 groups, but the association was weak.

Previous clinical studies have shown that periodontitis is positively associated with metabolic syndrome through mechanisms such as low-grade inflammation, and lipid or vascular abnormalities.

A meta-analysis of 20 studies showed a positive association between periodontitis and metabolic syndrome.

Some studies have investigated the association between periodontitis and metabolic syndrome in the Korean population, and 5 studies showed a positive association.

Among 5 studies, 4 enrolled participants in a limited region within Korea or only small numbers of participants.

One study used a representative sample from KNHANES but analyzed data collected at 1 year.


The finite element model (Fig. 3) was axisymmetric with h PR and h PDMS denoting the thickness of photoresist and PDMS, respectively. The radius of the hole in the substrate was a 0 and Da was the increment in the blister radius due to delamination. The outer radius of the substrate was 1000 lm, much greater than the largest blister radius considered. The substrate was either copper or silicon, and its thickness was 80 lm. Graphene was not included in the model, because it was extremely thin compared to the other layers. Except for the delaminated portion, perfect bonding was imposed at the photoresist/PDMS and PDMS/substrate interfaces, making this a linearly elastic fracture mechanics model, where any process or sliding zones are assumed to be small. Uniform pressure was applied to the blister and between the crack faces. A series of models with different blister radii a ¼ a 0 þ Da ð Þ were assembled to calculate the energy release rate and mode-mix. Quadrilateral elements (CAX8R) with reduced integration were used throughout the body except in the vicinity of the crack tip, where a set of quarter point singular elements were used to capture the stress singularity. Based on the observation that deflection of the outer surface of the blister extended well beyond the crack front, nonlinear geometrical analysis was incorporated in the simulations in order to account for potentially large deformations of the compliant PDMS. The J-integral, interfacial stress intensity factors, and fracture mode-mix were obtained using the interactive integral approach [27] . A suitable level of mesh refinement was established by convergence of the Jintegral values, and it was determined that large deformations in the PDMS increased the J-integral values by 0.8%.

The J-integral, interfacial stress intensity factors, and fracture mode-mix were obtained using the interactive integral approach.


The sensitivity of the deflection of the outer surface of the blister to the Young's moduli of the PDMS and photoresist was exploited to determine E PDMS and E PR . As mentioned in Sec. 2, the surface deflection extended beyond the crack front (Fig. 2) because of the high compliance of the PDMS layer. This phenomenon was also observed in the finite element solutions. As shown in Fig. 4(a) , while the inner surface of the blister was deflected up to the crack front r=a 1 ð Þ , the deflection of the outer surface remains appreciable in an annular region beyond the crack front 1 r=a 1:6 ð Þ . To compare with the measured deflection of the outer surface, we conducted a parametric study of the effect of the moduli of the PDMS and photoresist. Varying the modulus of the photoresist resulted in notable differences in the central deflection of the blister (Fig. 4(a) ) but had little effect on the deflection beyond the crack front r=a > 1 ð Þ . On the other hand, the effect of stiffness of PDMS was significant beyond the crack front (Fig. 4(b) ), where both the deflection and the radius at which it became zero were reduced with higher values of E PDMS . As a result, the modulus of the PDMS was determined first by matching the surface deflection beyond the crack front, after which the photoresist modulus was determined by matching the central deflection. Using this approach, the moduli of the photoresist and PDMS were found to be 3.4 GPa and 0.8 MPa, respectively, which are in good agreement with previously published values [28] . The Poisson's ratios were taken to be 0.5 for PDMS and 0.35 for the photoresist in all simulations.

Using this approach, the moduli of the photoresist and PDMS were found to be 3.4 GPa and 0.8 MPa, respectively, which are in good agreement with previously published values.


In order to improve the diagnosis of the delamination path, PDMS was spun between graphene and photoresist. Because PDMS does not contain sp 2 carbon bonding, it does not generate background noise to change the ratio of the G to 2D peak intensities. Figure 10 shows the Raman spectra of (a) PDMS and the graphene surfaces of PDMS/photoresist membrane after delamination from (b) a copper substrate and (c) a silicon substrate. Each spectrum was itself an average of three runs. The spectrum of a bare PDMS surface ( Fig. 10(a) ) confirmed that it did not have any peaks near the G and 2D peaks of graphene. There were some peaks near the graphene D peak, thereby leaving open the possibility of D peak masking. Peaks from PDMS on graphene delaminated from copper ( Fig. 10(b) ) and silicon ( Fig. 10(c) ) indicated that the graphene had been successfully transferred to PDMS. The G and 2D peaks occurred at 1586 and 2724 cm À1 for delamination from copper and 1592 and 2727 cm À1 for silicon, respectively. Such a minor difference might be due to residual stresses in graphene [31] . The ratio of the peak intensities I 2D =I G ð Þ is 3:1 for high quality graphene on silicon, and the value obtained here was 2.3:1, which indicates that the graphene under the beam spot was a monolayer and free of defects as indicated by absence of the D peak. Figure 10(d) is a Raman map of the ratio in a region near the hole with an average value of 1.8. In most areas, the ratio was approximately 2, which is indicative of monolayer graphene. In a very few spots, the ratio was less than 1; these could correspond to small flakes of multilayer graphene formed during the CVD process. Thus the characterization of the fracture surfaces by Raman spectroscopy confirmed that graphene had indeed been successfully transferred from the copper and silicon substrates to PDMS.

Such a minor difference might be due to residual stresses in graphene.


In solar tracking systems, solar panels are mounted on a structure which moves to track the movement of the sun throughout the day. There are three methods of tracking: active, passive and chronological tracking. These methods can then be configured either as single-axis or dual-axis solar trackers. In active tracking, the position of the sun in the sky during the day is continuously determined by sensors. The sensors will trigger the motor or actuator to move the mounting system so that the solar panels will always face the sun throughout the day. This method of sun-tracking is reasonably accurate except on very cloudy days when it is hard for the sensor to determine the position of the sun in the sky thus making it hard to reorient the structure [2] .

This method of sun-tracking is reasonably accurate except on very cloudy days when it is hard for the sensor to determine the position of the sun in the sky thus making it hard to reorient the structure.


Electrical energy from solar panels is derived by converting energy from the rays of the sun into electrical current in the solar cells. The main challenge is to maximize the capture of the rays of the sun upon the solar panels, which in turn maximizes the output of electricity. A practical way of achieving this is by positioning the panels such that the rays of the sun fall perpendicularly on the solar panels by tracking the movement of the sun [1] . This can be achieved by means of using a solar panel mount which tracks the movement of the sun throughout the day. Energy conversion is most efficient when the rays fall perpendicularly onto the solar panels. Thus, the work is divided into three main parts namely the mounting system, the tracking controller system and the electrical power system.

A practical way of achieving this is by positioning the panels such that the rays of the sun fall perpendicularly on the solar panels by tracking the movement of the sun.


Adjacent buildings are constructed without any structural link connected to surrounding buildings. However, in few cases, they are rarely connected at the foundation level. As a matter of fact, engineers have taken serious concerns about structural damages caused by devastating earthquakes [1] [2] [3] .

As a matter of fact, engineers have taken serious concerns about structural damages caused by devastating earthquakes.


From the literature review, it was found that the seismic responses of FBI adjacent buildings have not been studied thoroughly. In this paper, an attempt was thoroughly made by dividing the scenarios into two cases comprising (i) investigate the seismic response characteristics of FBI adjacent building comparing to FFB buildings (Scenario 1) and (ii) investigate the gap size effect on seismic pounding of FBI adjacent buildings (Scenario 2) having different heights. For this aim, lead rubber bearings (LRB) were designed based on the NEHRP provisions [29] . Afterwards, a comparative analysis of two FFB and BI adjacent buildings under bidirectional seismic excitations was carried out.

For this aim, lead rubber bearings (LRB) were designed based on the NEHRP provisions.


In the first half, we will comment on the phenomenology of emergent spacetimes, and address its relevance for quantum gravity and quantum gravity phenomenology. Systematically, we explain why the particle production process in parametrically excited condensates, corresponding to emergent Friedmann-Robertson-Walker geometries, is in general not robust against model-specific deviations from "Lorentz invariance". The modifications in the collective regime originate in the microscopic physics of the condensate, i.e., the fundamental Bosons. These modifications break the Lorentz symmetry in the analogue model at ultraviolet scales [20] . A significant branch of socalled "quantum gravity phenomenology" focusses on the consequences of Lorentz violations at high energies, and thus the study of stability / robustness of semi-classical quantum gravity against "Planck-scale modification" is of great theoretical interest [20, ?, 44] . We also suggest an alternative approach to get a grasp on the momentum-dependent behavior of quantum modes in an explicitly time-dependent external geometry, by using the notion of rainbow spacetimes.

These modifications break the Lorentz symmetry in the analogue model at ultraviolet scales.


This work analyzes the behavior of IaaS services with zero RPO in real WAN topologies. We propose a physical server placement scheme, which designs the DC by choosing where to install the primary servers and their corresponding backups. The placement scheme has to take into account the failure model, in such a way that a disaster does not damage the primary server and its backup at the same time. In addition, the proposed scheme takes advantage of virtualization to reduce the number of backup servers. The basic idea is that a backup server needs to instantiate VMs only after a given disaster occurs [8] . We thus argue that, in a virtualized environment, it is inefficient to provide a dedicated backup server for each primary one. Instead, the proposed scheme aims at sharing backup servers, allowing them to receive replications from different primary servers. To share these resources, the primary and backup servers must not fail at the same time. We apply the proposed scheme in WAN topologies and show that backup sharing can reduce by at least 40% the number of required servers, as compared to the case with dedicated backups. We also quantify the capacity of each WAN topology in terms of number of primary servers supported, which directly affects the number of supported VMs. Using these results, we show that more stringent resilience requirements reduce by at least 50% the number of primary servers supported. Our work differs from the literature by considering the service replication, which incurs in stringent latency and bandwidth requirements. In addition, the current proposals based on anycast do not save backup resources, since all backup servers are also operational. We thus focus on IaaS models, different from traditional CDNs.

The basic idea is that a backup server needs to instantiate VMs only after a given disaster occurs.


Extensive research has clearly shown that externally bonded fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites have good potential for use in strengthening of concrete members [1] [2] [3] . The stiffness of FRP and compressive concrete strength are the most effective parameters on the responses and behaviour of strengthened concrete members [4] [5] [6] . However, there are some variations in FRP stiffness (bending stiffness and tension stiffness; hereafter called "stiffness" only unless the tension or bending stiffness needs to be emphasized) and concrete strength, particularly the localized strength. In the following, the sources of the FRP stiffness and concrete strength variations are briefly explained, respectively.

Extensive research has clearly shown that externally bonded fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites have good potential for use in strengthening of concrete members.

The stiffness of FRP and compressive concrete strength are the most effective parameters on the responses and behaviour of strengthened concrete members.


Concrete is a mixture of water, cement, sand, aggregate, admixtures, and air. Variations in the properties or proportions of these constituents as well as variations in the transporting, placing, compaction, and curing of the concrete lead to variations in the strength of the finished concrete. In addition, discrepancies in the tests will also cause apparent differences in strength [12] . The concrete near the top of concrete members tends to be weaker than the concrete lower down, probably because of increased water to cement ratio at the top due to upward water migration after the concrete is placed and by greater compaction of concrete near the bottom due to the sinking of aggregates in the form during vibration [13] . Therefore, there is variation of concrete strength at different spots even in the same member.

In addition, discrepancies in the tests will also cause apparent differences in strength.

The concrete near the top of concrete members tends to be weaker than the concrete lower down, probably because of increased water to cement ratio at the top due to upward water migration after the concrete is placed and by greater compaction of concrete near the bottom due to the sinking of aggregates in the form during vibration.


Existing experimental studies have shown that in the vast majority of cases, except when a weak adhesive or a high strength concrete is used, debonding failure of an FRP-concrete bonded joint is due to the fracture within the concrete at a small distance from the concrete-adhesive interface [9, 10] . During the debonding failure, the concrete crack path continuously changes direction and the thickness of substrate concrete layer attached to the FRP varies at different locations [11] . This phenomenon causes the stiffness variation during debonding propagation.

Existing experimental studies have shown that in the vast majority of cases, except when a weak adhesive or a high strength concrete is used, debonding failure of an FRP-concrete bonded joint is due to the fracture within the concrete at a small distance from the concrete-adhesive interface.

During the debonding failure, the concrete crack path continuously changes direction and the thickness of substrate concrete layer attached to the FRP varies at different locations.


One of the common methods to use FRP to strengthen existing concrete structures is wet lay-up bonding that consists of installation by hand using unidirectional dry fiber sheets or fabrics impregnated with a saturating resin on-site [3] . Since it is hard to accurately determine Young's modulus of the cured FRP constructed by wet lay-up process and there is variation of the cured FRP thickness, it is almost impossible to obtain the accurate magnitude of the FRP stiffness. Generally, the manufacturers provide the properties of the fiber sheets, such as Young's modulus and design sheet thickness, based on the tests in laboratories. However, when it is used in field, the properties of the FRP are affected by the curing process and defects such as gouges or deep scratches which may occur through the instalment of FRP [7, 8] . Typically it is difficult to get the same level of quality control for wet lay-up FRP as for the FRP plates or strips precured in the factory. Therefore, this operation may cause differences between what is in the manufacturer's reports and the actual FRP stiffness achieved in situ. The FRP properties may also be dissimilar at different locations even in the same specimen 2 Mathematical Problems in Engineering because the fibers may be curved to different extents at different locations.

One of the common methods to use FRP to strengthen existing concrete structures is wet lay-up bonding that consists of installation by hand using unidirectional dry fiber sheets or fabrics impregnated with a saturating resin on-site.

However, when it is used in field, the properties of the FRP are affected by the curing process and defects such as gouges or deep scratches which may occur through the instalment of FRP.


The extended period from medical malpractice to proceeding for malpractice suits, the duration of the hearing after the malpractice incident, and the disposition of a lawsuit imposes psychological, administrative, and financial burdens to the corresponding medical practitioners or associated departments. Furthermore, patients and their family members can be negatively affected by these proceedings. The average duration from medical malpractice to litigation was 16.5 months in PNUH, and the mean duration of the hearing after the initiation of litigation was 21.7 months. Approximately three years passed from the medical malpractice incident to the disposition of the litigation. The mean duration of the hearing was shorter than that of the medical lawsuits in Japan from 1996 (37 months) to 2008 (27 months), but was about 2.5 times longer than that of general lawsuits that occurred in 2005 in Japan (8.4 months). The duration of the medical hearings was found to be relatively longer in Japan due to the length of the required medical assessments, the existence of emotional conflicts, and for other reasons. Therefore, a range of efforts needs to be exerted to reduce the duration medical lawsuit hearings. The hearing duration was reported to be reduced by about half to 14.8 months after the initiation of the Division of Medical Malpractice Lawsuits in the Osaka District Court of Japan over five years from April 2001 to March 2006 [8] . Thus, legal systems need to apply efforts to reduce the duration of these hearings through court consultations.

The hearing duration was reported to be reduced by about half to 14.8 months after the initiation of the Division of Medical Malpractice Lawsuits in the Osaka District Court of Japan over five years from April 2001 to March 2006.


It is now a well established fact in the empirical education literature that unobserved school quality plays an important role in explaining learning gains for primary school pupils (Hanushek, 2005) . As a result, parental school choices cannot be fully informed, since schools will likely differ in unobserved quality. However, if uncertainty about school quality is relatively high it is plausible to expect that some private schools would have incentives to provide credible signals on their own quality in order to facilitate the sorting between students and schools.

It is now a well established fact in the empirical education literature that unobserved school quality plays an important role in explaining learning gains for primary school pupils.


This study focuses on a sample of 592 small companies in the UK, which includes 419 companies that are likely to be categorized as micro-companies under the European Commission's proposed Directive on accounting for 'micro-entities' (EC 2007 (EC , 2011 . The sample represents a subset of private companies that took part in a survey commissioned by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) 1 (Collis 2008) . The purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature by investigating the determinants of two The Fourth Directive requires limited liability entities to prepare and register annual accounts, which must be audited by one or more persons entitled to carry out such audits. The rationale for the requirement to make the accounts available at a registry is that anyone dealing with a limited liability company should be able to see the financial statements.

The sample represents a subset of private companies that took part in a survey commissioned by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) 1.


Signed languages have been recognized as autonomous languages in many countries, including the USA and most of Europe, and are used worldwide by large numbers of deaf individuals. Yet, sign language research can be considered a fairly young field, which did not start until the 1960s, whereas studies of hearing children's language development have a much longer history and traditionally have focused on spoken languages, exploiting the auditory modality. The study of signed languages makes an important contribution to the area of language development by allowing researchers to raise and explore issues that would not and could not be raised if human languages were confined only to the spoken modality (Meir, 2012) . One such issue is the question of how and in what ways the physical modality of language transmission influences development.

The study of signed languages makes an important contribution to the area of language development by allowing researchers to raise and explore issues that would not and could not be raised if human languages were confined only to the spoken modality.


Grease is by far the most common type of lubricant in rolling bearings. However, the lubrication mechanisms needed to predict grease behaviour in many different applications are not yet fully understood. A very interesting overview on grease lubrication in rolling bearings was published by Lugt in 2009 [1] .

A very interesting overview on grease lubrication in rolling bearings was published by Lugt in 2009.


Another grease lubrication model is often used, the sponge model. This mechanism assumes that the grease 'bleeds' oil, which replenishes the film in the raceway and lubricates the contact zone [12, 2] . The model considers that base and bleed oils have the same characteristics.

This mechanism assumes that the grease 'bleeds' oil, which replenishes the film in the raceway and lubricates the contact zone.


The most recent studies indicate that the grease lubrication mechanism is dominated by oil thickened with broken/sheared thickener. Most likely it is similar to the product obtained through the static bleed oil test IP 121 (see Section 2.3), which has rheological properties significantly different from those of the base oil [13] . To the authors' knowledge, few scientific studies have been published concerning the bleed oil properties and their influence on the tribological behaviour of the EHD contact, namely [14, 15] .

Most likely it is similar to the product obtained through the static bleed oil test IP 121 (see Section 2.3), which has rheological properties significantly different from those of the base oil.

To the authors' knowledge, few scientific studies have been published concerning the bleed oil properties and their influence on the tribological behaviour of the EHD contact, namely.


The existence of the surface polygons seems connected with the fact that the flow is turbulent. In fact, switching transitions are observed in similar but smaller systems, where the flow irregularly switches between a weakly deformed, rotationally symmetric state and a strongly deformed state with two corners. Here, the free surface touches the bottom, and this transition is linked with a transition to turbulence (Suzuki, Iima & Hayase 2006; Tasaka & Iima 2009) . Thus the strong mixing present in the turbulent flow seems to be necessary for the formation of surface polygons.

Here, the free surface touches the bottom, and this transition is linked with a transition to turbulence.


To date there are only two reports on the effect of nutrient factors on vegetative mycelia growth in L. squarrosulus [15] [16] . The authors studied the effect of medium components on only one strain, but did not consider agitation and scalability. The present study investigates the influence of different sources and concentrations of carbon and nitrogen, as well as agitation, on mycelia growth and CEPS secretion in three strains of L. squarrosulus. The study also presents data on optimized medium for the growth of L. squarrosulus under static and shake fermentation conditions. Furthermore, the optimized conditions were studied for applicability in scale up fermentation.

To date there are only two reports on the effect of nutrient factors on vegetative mycelia growth in L. squarrosulus.


A novel scheme was introduced for the quantum Boltzmann equation, inspired by work [6, 9] . The new idea here is to penalize the quantum collision operator by a 'classical' BGK operator so as to avoid the difficulty of inverting the nonlinear system ρ = ρ(z, T ), e = e(z, T ). The new scheme is uniformly stable in terms of the Knudsen number, and can capture the fluid (Euler) limit even if the small scale is not numerically resolved. We have also developed a spectral method for the quantum collision operator, following its classical counterpart [16, 7] .

A novel scheme was introduced for the quantum Boltzmann equation, inspired by work.

We have also developed a spectral method for the quantum collision operator, following its classical counterpart.


The traditional approach to resolving problems of website usability it to use the Web server accesses logs [4] . Developers can know various kinds of information including users' IP address, accessed time, request data, and Web server's response from the Web server access log. The advantage of using the Web access sever log is that the access log is automatically saved in a Web server and can be used by developers with low cost. If developers can easily use the Web access log to improve website usability, however, they cannot know users' interactions such as mouse motions, mouse-click positions, and mouse-click timings on a website [5] .

The traditional approach to resolving problems of website usability it to use the Web server accesses logs.

If developers can easily use the Web access log to improve website usability, however, they cannot know users' interactions such as mouse motions, mouse-click positions, and mouse-click timings on a website.


HRQoL assessments The 42-item Functional Assessment of Cancer Treatment-Lymphoma (FACT-Lym) questionnaire was used to assess aspects of HRQoL [16, 17] . The FACT-Lym questionnaire is composed of the FACT-General (FACT-G)-a 27-item compilation of general questions scored on a 5point scale ranging from 0 = Bnot at all^to 4 = Bvery much^and an additional 15 items that assess patient concerns relating to lymphoma: the FACT-Lym lymphoma-specific subscale (FACT-Lym LYMS; range, 0-60). FACT-G items are divided into four primary HRQoL domains: PWB (seven items; range, 0-28), SWB (seven items; range, 0-28), EWB (six items; range, 0-24), and FWB (seven items; range, 0-28). The FACT-Lym LYMS consists of common lymphoma disease and/or treatment-related symptoms (e.g., pain, fever, swelling, night sweats, insomnia, itching, weight loss, fatigue, and loss of appetite). Three summary scales: FACT-Lym trial outcome index (FACT-Lym TOI; range, 0-116; composed of the PWB, FWB, and FACT-Lym LYMS scales); FACT-G (range, 0-108; composed of the PWB, FWB, SWB, EWB), and the FACT-Lym total score (FACT-Lym TOT, range, 0-168; composed of all of the scales) can also be calculated. Higher scores are reflective of better HRQoL.

HRQoL assessments The 42-item Functional Assessment of Cancer Treatment-Lymphoma (FACT-Lym) questionnaire was used to assess aspects of HRQoL.


These approaches to student group projects can be characterised as founded upon the philosophy of a practicum [12] . In other words, by offering students experiences that mimic the "real world", the students will learn. We revisit this in the Discussion.

These approaches to student group projects can be characterised as founded upon the philosophy of a practicum.

We revisit this in the Discussion.


The overlap-aware algorithm compared favorably in terms of memory, requiring only 9.1MB of memory [12] . However, the algorithm is time intensive and needs multiple hours to execute. For the seven algorithms described in this paper, the scaling technique successfully reduced the prioritization execution time. In one case in Gradebook, the time was decreased by 330%, as seen in Figure 6 (e). However, as described in Figure 6 (h), scaling does not always improve the time overhead. It also occasionally had a negative impact on memory overhead, particularly for JDepend in Figure 6 (g).

The overlap-aware algorithm compared favorably in terms of memory, requiring only 9.1MB of memory.


Possibly more expected is that one-loop amplitudes in integrable, supersymmetric theories appear to be cut-constructible via standard unitarity. This is analogous to the cutconstructibility of one-loop amplitudes in massless, supersymmetric theories in four di-mensions [17, 18] . We also apply our procedure to the AdS 5 × S 5 light-cone gauge-fixed world-sheet superstring finding agreement, at one-loop in the near-BMN expansion, with the S-matrix known from integrability techniques.

This is analogous to the cutconstructibility of one-loop amplitudes in massless, supersymmetric theories in four di-mensions.


The main part of this paper focusses on testing the validity of our procedure for several models of interest, and therefore exploring the cut-constructibility (via standard unitarity methods) of S-matrices in two dimensions. For bosonic theories with integrability, the result obtained is rather intriguing -we find close agreement with perturbation theory, the only price to pay being a finite shift in the coupling. Incidentally, a hint of a connection between unitarity and integrability can be seen, for example, in the sine-Gordon modelthe only non-vanishing contribution to the connected part of the 3 → 3 tree-level amplitude is obtained by setting the intermediate particles on-shell [12] . These results seem to suggest a relationship between quantization preserving integrability and unitarity techniques which would be interesting to investigate further.

Incidentally, a hint of a connection between unitarity and integrability can be seen, for example, in the sine-Gordon modelthe only non-vanishing contribution to the connected part of the 3 → 3 tree-level amplitude is obtained by setting the intermediate particles on-shell.


It is important to note that our procedure is inherently finite. All the theories we consider are either UV-finite or renormalizable. In the latter case, our procedure implicitly chooses a particular regularization scheme. Hence the result we will compare to is the renormalized four-point amplitude, up to scheme ambiguities. A related point is that the expressions (2.13) and (2.17) , obtained via the implementation of unitary cuts in fixed dimension, are not necessarily expected to give the full answer, possibly missing rational terms (terms with only a rational dependence on momentum invariants) that can arise from the ǫ-expansion in d = 2 − 2ǫ dimensions [16] . A thorough discussion of these issues is contained in Section 2.

A related point is that the expressions (2.13) and (2.17) , obtained via the implementation of unitary cuts in fixed dimension, are not necessarily expected to give the full answer, possibly missing rational terms (terms with only a rational dependence on momentum invariants) that can arise from the ǫ-expansion in d = 2 − 2ǫ dimensions.


Violence against women constitutes a violation of human rights, it is also considered as a manifestation of unequal power relations between women and men, which helps the survival of male control over women and prevents women advancement. The issue of violence against the wife falls under the Domestic Violence, which is still not recognized in the community because of the privacy of family relations, and wives cover-up to what violence comes on them, and their sense of shame and disgrace if violence appeared to the public, because consciously or unconsciously the society makes them responsible for what violence falls on them by their husbands. The causes of violence against the wife, lie in the absence of mind, lack of knowledge and understanding, inability to think well or lack of self control (Al-qudah & Salloum, 2006) .

The causes of violence against the wife, lie in the absence of mind, lack of knowledge and understanding, inability to think well or lack of self control.


The Jordanian social culture accepts the use of violence with women as a kind of discipline, and this acceptance is supported by cultural and social norms. However, hurting the individual, or harming them is not accepted religiously (Al-badayneh, 2005 ab) . Violence against women in Arab society, in general, can be seen as practicing the masculine power to achieve power and control over the wife or a method of family (wife) discipline (Al-badayneh, 2012) .

Violence against women in Arab society, in general, can be seen as practicing the masculine power to achieve power and control over the wife or a method of family (wife) discipline.


As aforementioned, micro milling requires micro tools and hence high rotational speeds to achieve even modest machining rates. The rotational speeds in micro milling are always higher than 5000 rpm and even up to 300,000 rpm. Therefore, tool manufacturing errors and tool alignment errors become relatively large compared to the associated chip load. The dynamic tool runout can be considered as the total figure for these errors. Different from conventional milling, the tool runout to tool diameter ratio cannot be neglected in micro milling; thus, it has significant influence on the machining process [10] . The tool runout makes the cutting force variation increase significantly, resulting in severe tool wear and even breakage. Therefore, the tool runout must be carefully considered in micro milling force modelling. In addition, the machine tool system vibration will change the cutter edge location and leave a wavy surface. The wavy surface in turn provides a feedback mechanism to cutting forces because the instantaneous uncut chip thickness depends on both the vibration during the current tool path and the surface left by the previous tool paths, which form multiple time delays (MTD).

Different from conventional milling, the tool runout to tool diameter ratio cannot be neglected in micro milling; thus, it has significant influence on the machining process.


Due to their small diameter, typically between 0.1 and 1 mm, micro cutters have much lower stiffness but experience much higher stress variation on the tiny shaft compared with conventional tools; hence, micro cutters are prone to tool wear and breakage. A well-developed cutting force model with precise force prediction can assist operators in choosing the optimal cutting parameters; furthermore, the predicted toolworkpiece dynamic displacement can be used for tool path adjustment in order to increase the accuracy of machined parts and reduce tool breakage [7] [8] [9] . Therefore, developing an accurate cutting force model becomes imperative for micro milling process.

A well-developed cutting force model with precise force prediction can assist operators in choosing the optimal cutting parameters; furthermore, the predicted toolworkpiece dynamic displacement can be used for tool path adjustment in order to increase the accuracy of machined parts and reduce tool breakage.


The increasing demand on micro and miniature parts, components and systems has led to the development of micro manufacturing technology. It is well-recognized that micro manufacturing has been a key enabling technology in industries producing useful micro components and products [1] . Micro milling is recognized as a versatile process and has found its application in processing various materials due to its wide material machining ability, high processing efficiency, low cost and low environmental requirements [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] .

It is well-recognized that micro manufacturing has been a key enabling technology in industries producing useful micro components and products.

Micro milling is recognized as a versatile process and has found its application in processing various materials due to its wide material machining ability, high processing efficiency, low cost and low environmental requirements.


The intermittency of renewable power sources such as wind and photovoltaic (PV) presents a major obstacle to their extensive penetration into the grid [1] . The developed world has become accustomed to reliable, on-demand electricity; most of its population simply would not accept access to electricity only when the wind is blowing or the sun is shining. The only way to turn naturally fluctuating wind or PV electricity into a dispatchable electricity source (see Fig. 1 ) is to have some other dispatchable form of electrical energy to take up the slack (a so-called "balancing capacity").

The intermittency of renewable power sources such as wind and photovoltaic (PV) presents a major obstacle to their extensive penetration into the grid.


In recent years, human-induced CO 2 severely results in global climate change [1] . Especially the combustion of fossil fuels produces a large number of gas emissions. So capturing CO 2 from flue gas in the postcombustion process will be an effective way to reduce CO 2 emissions. Nowadays several methods of CO 2 removal have been used like adsorption, chemical and physical absorption, and membrane separation. But conventional absorption methods have plenty of shortcomings such as flooding, foaming, channeling, air entrainment, and high capital and operational costs [2, 3] . In order to solve those problems, the membrane gas absorption which combines the merits of membrane separation and chemical absorption is gradually introduced by some researchers. In a hollow fiber membrane contactor, the absorbent always flows on one side while gas mixture flows in the other side. Meanwhile, a gasliquid interface is formed at membrane pores, which are filled with gases. In the membrane absorption process, gas mixture initially diffuses through the gas-liquid interface, and then CO 2 reacts with the liquid. After that the rich liquid is sent into a gas-liquid separator or other membrane contactors. Ultimately the lean solution flows back to the membrane contactor for recycling. Compared with conventional absorption technologies, the gas membrane separation provides faster mass transfer rate, good operational flexibility, and bigger gas-liquid contacting area. Therefore, it runs well without entrainment, flooding, foaming, and so forth. And this technique is considered to be a promising large-scale application of CO 2 capture [4, 5] .

In recent years, human-induced CO 2 severely results in global climate change.

But conventional absorption methods have plenty of shortcomings such as flooding, foaming, channeling, air entrainment, and high capital and operational costs.

And this technique is considered to be a promising large-scale application of CO 2 capture.


The particular tests in which the unwanted enhanced pressure rise occurred were performed in the aerosol can explosion simulator at the FAA Technical Center by Reinhardt and co-workers [1, 3] . The test consisted of a pressure vessel, 11400 L, simulating an aircraft cargo bay container in which a fire causes the explosion of an over-heated aerosol can. In the simulator, a fast-acting valve releases a mixture of propane, ethanol, and water from a heated container (16.2 bar ± 0.33 bar) into the chamber, which is filled with either air or air with added suppressant. Sparks from a DC arc, located 91.4 cm downstream of the valve opening, ignite the fuel from the aerosol can simulator, creating an expanding fire ball (if the overall mixture is explosive). The resulting heat release from reaction of the fuel and oxidizer raises the temperature, and hence the pressure, of the contents of the chamber. The fire-ball growth and ensuing pressure rise occur in an elapsed time of about 1 s. During each test, pressure transducers, thermocouples, gas sampling probes, and a video camera record the pressure, temperature, agent and oxygen concentration, as well as visual images at select locations in the chamber.

The particular tests in which the unwanted enhanced pressure rise occurred were performed in the aerosol can explosion simulator at the FAA Technical Center by Reinhardt and co-workers.


Tamil Nadu's record of superior policymaking in this arena is likely to be important in our cross-state comparison, although we can only speculate about this. From the early 80s until the late 90s, the Tamil Nadu Integrated Nutrition Program (TINP) delivered a set of interventions centered on nutrition education, growth monitoring, primary health care, and food supplementation on a state-wide scale. The TINP has been widely praised and was able to reach under-3s much more effectively than the ICDS program that was rolled out in the rest of the country in this period (Heaver, 2002) . Although the TINP merged with the ICDS in the late 1990s, some of its unique features continued in the same form in Tamil Nadu. For example, Tamil Nadu retained its existing model of "two-workers" per ICDS center model of program delivery, wherein one staff member focused on service provision for under-3s, while the other focused on older children. In contrast, other states operated a "one-worker" model wherein a single worker in every ICDS center had responsibility for the entire age-range. These features, and the experience gained under the TINP model could well have had a bearing on nutrition outcomes during the NFHS-3 data collection in 2005.

The TINP has been widely praised and was able to reach under-3s much more effectively than the ICDS program that was rolled out in the rest of the country in this period.


These findings have important implications for the design of future studies that concern bilingual and multilingual speakers. As we pointed out at the beginning of this article, there is a distinctive lack of consideration in experimental design of psycholinguistic studies of CS of inter-and intra-speaker variations in attitudes. Whilst attention is given to the speaker's gender, age, language proficiency, and, occasionally, frequency of CS, their attitudes towards the very linguistic phenomenon that is being studied are rarely taken into account. The complex variations in attitudes towards CS as seen in the present study will have significant effects on CS practices (Dewaele and Li Wei, 2013b) . They need to be considered seriously and systematically in the design of future studies.

The complex variations in attitudes towards CS as seen in the present study will have significant effects on CS practices.


Although the long-term survival of juvenile Pecten maximus subjected to elevated SPM was not assessed, all scallops were still alive 20 d after the experiment. Therefore, it is concluded that the shortterm survival of P. maximus is not affected by increased SPM levels, although long-term effects require further investigation. Due to the proximity of scallop beds to aggregate extraction sites and the current increasing effort in the scallop fishery, potential repetitive exposure to increased SPM levels may have implications for growth rate and other costs associated with increased energetic output, such as reduced fecundity. Conversely, Aequipecten opercularis show high mortality after being subjected to elevated SPM for 6 d, and 100% mortality within 1 mo of exposure (Last et al. 2011) .

Conversely, Aequipecten opercularis show high mortality after being subjected to elevated SPM for 6 d, and 100% mortality within 1 mo of exposure.


One explanation for this discrepancy between stated intentions and actual behavior is that low-income couples lack the relationship skills to overcome the economic and social challenges confronting their familybuilding efforts. Beginning in 2006, the federal government has funded programs designed to foster relationship skills but the results have been disappointing in terms of measurable impacts on relationship quality and marriage. A randomized treatment evaluation of one of the first major programs targeted at unmarried couples, Building Strong Families, found no effect of program access or participation on relationship quality, relationship outcomes, or the probability of marriage (Wood et al., 2012) . Even if the skills that enhance relationship quality and stability cannot be easily taught, however, individuals who possess psychological traits that enhance negotiating ability and self-control may experience more positive family outcomes.

A randomized treatment evaluation of one of the first major programs targeted at unmarried couples, Building Strong Families, found no effect of program access or participation on relationship quality, relationship outcomes, or the probability of marriage.


However, such a system cannot provide any information on the 3D catheter tip location. Localization of the IVUS catheter is still dependent on X-ray fluoroscopy. To this end, recent research has introduced the use of electromagnetic (EM) trackers [8] . Such systems rely on catheter-mounted multiple-degree-of-freedom sensors (5-or 6-DOFs) that provide not only the x-y-z-position of the tip but also two or three of its orientations. This would facilitate the retargeting of a specific point of interest (e.g. lesion) within the vascular tree after any catheter re-insertion or substitution. Empirically, this would allow for the decrease of procedural time, inducing lower radiation and contrast doses. However, the introduction of EM sensors can affect the manipulability of the catheter.

To this end, recent research has introduced the use of electromagnetic (EM) trackers.


In a period when the interaction between individuals and machines has increased, the definitiondetection of feelings might allow the creation of intelligent machinery and make emotions, just like individuals. In voice recognition and speaker definition applications, emotions are at the forefront. Because of this, the definition of emotions and its effect on speech signals might improve the speech performance and speaker recognition systems. Fear type emotion definition can be used in the voicebased control system to control a critical situation [5] .

Fear type emotion definition can be used in the voicebased control system to control a critical situation.


There are a large number of CI users who will not benefit from permanent hearing but will benefit from the tips available in low frequency information. Wang and colleagues have studied the skill of tactile helpers to convey low frequency cues in the study because the frequency sensitivity of human haptic sense is similar to the frequency sensitivity of human acoustic hearing at low frequencies. A total of 5 CI users and 10 normal hearing participants provide adaptations that are designed for low predictability of words and rate the proportion of correct and incorrect words in word segmentation using empirical expressions balanced against syllable frequency. The results of using the BAHA show that there is a small but significant improvement on the ratio of the tactile helper and correct words, and the word segmentation errors are decreasing. These findings support the use of tactile information in the perceptual task of word segmentation [15] .

These findings support the use of tactile information in the perceptual task of word segmentation.


Speech is the primary form of communication among people. People have the ability to understand the meaning and to recognize the speaker, gender of speaker, age and emotional situation of the speaker [1] . Voice communication among people starts with a thought and intent activating neural actions generating speech sounds in the brain. The listener receives the speech through the auditory system converting the speech to neural signals that the brain can comprehend [2, 3] .

People have the ability to understand the meaning and to recognize the speaker, gender of speaker, age and emotional situation of the speaker.

The listener receives the speech through the auditory system converting the speech to neural signals that the brain can comprehend.


For the 17 black spruce trees dead for 7 years or more, wood degradation was evident. This category included a wide range of time since death, from 7 to 31 years. The best grades (Select Structural, Grades 1 and 2) were nonexistent in our sample and several rejects were found. Reductions of product value are to be expected, even without changes in recovery rates. Mean MC was lower than in living trees but higher than in trees dead for 4 years. Such increases in MC when decay progresses are typical in the process of organic matter decomposition (Swift et al. 1979) . Bending MOE values were not significantly reduced although a clear tendency was noted. Bending MOR showed important reductions in comparison with living trees. Even though a relationship between MOR and age was noted for black spruce, the decrease in MOR with time since death could not be attributed to age because the decrease was significant for trees that died in 2003, without differences in age. To try to account for the wide range of year of windthrow in that category, an attempt was made to subdivide it into trees that had been dead for 7 to 11 years and those that had been dead for longer periods. These two groups did not differ from each other in terms of MC, MOE, or MOR. Trees that had been dead for 7 to 11 years differed from trees that had been dead for 4 years in terms of MC but not in terms of MOE and MOR. Thus, the general conclusions are not affected by the 2000 group having a wide range in time since death.

Such increases in MC when decay progresses are typical in the process of organic matter decomposition.


We would also like to explain at the outset how a gauge theory (with spin one excitations) can describe gravity with its spin two excitations. This is a version of the story "spin one plus spin one is spin two", of relevance for the gauge theory gravity relationship [2] . There are, however, also significant differences. Thus, the main dynamical field of our theories is an SU(2) connection A i µ , where µ is a spacetime index, and i = 1, 2, 3 is a Lie algebra one. Let us recall that in the usual gauge theories in Minkowski spacetime the temporal component A i 0 of the connection field becomes a Lagrange multiplier -the generator of the gauge rotations. Then of the spatial components A i a , where a = 1, 2, 3 is a spatial index, some components are pure gauge in that they can be set to any desired value by a gauge transformation. The physical propagating degrees of freedom of the theory can be described as the gauge equivalence classes of the spatial projection of the connection. In the case of gauge group SU(2), the gauge invariance removes 3 of the 9 components of the spatial connection A i a , leaving two propagating polarizations per each Lie algebra generator.

This is a version of the story "spin one plus spin one is spin two", of relevance for the gauge theory gravity relationship.


In this section, we compare the performance of the baseline model and OPE in terms of security, retrieval accuracy, and examine the tradeoffs involved in securing the term frequency using order preserving encryption. We evaluate the retrieval accuracies of the secure search schemes on the W3C collection, with the 59 queries used for the discussion search in the enterprise track in the 2005 Text Retrieval Conference (TREC) [12] . Any document that is judged partially relevant or relevant is taken to be relevant in our test (i.e. conflating the top two judgement levels). We study the per- formance of these schemes using precision-recall graphs. The precision-recall results for all 59 queries are collected and the average is shown in Fig. 5 . We notice from the figure that the retrieval accuracy of the OPE is slightly lower than that of the baseline scheme. However, this small drop in performance in OPE comes with added advantages of fewer communication rounds between the user and the server for search and retrieval than the baseline schemes.

We evaluate the retrieval accuracies of the secure search schemes on the W3C collection, with the 59 queries used for the discussion search in the enterprise track in the 2005 Text Retrieval Conference (TREC).


Consequently, the release of reactive dyes into dyebath effluent is exacerbated by their relatively low fixation (50-90%) to cellulosic fibers, compared with other dyes such as acid, basic, disperse and direct dye (Cooper, 1995; Reife and Freeman, 1996) . Reactive dyes in dyeing wastewater have been identified as recalcitrant compounds since they contain high alkalinity, high concentration of organic materials and strong color in comparison with other dyes. Unless coloring materials are properly removed, dye wastewater significantly affects photosynthetic activity in aquatic life due to reduce light penetration (Kouba and Zhuang, 1994) .

Consequently, the release of reactive dyes into dyebath effluent is exacerbated by their relatively low fixation (50-90%) to cellulosic fibers, compared with other dyes such as acid, basic, disperse and direct dye.

Unless coloring materials are properly removed, dye wastewater significantly affects photosynthetic activity in aquatic life due to reduce light penetration.


We interpret the finding in the two experiments as providing evidence of criminals being as prosocially motivated as non-criminals in an important type of distributive situations. If we assume cross-situational consistency in social preferences, this suggests that the prosocial motivation captured by the dictator game is of little importance in explaining criminal behavior. We cannot, however, exclude the possibility that criminal behavior is affected by differences in prosocial motivation that are not captured by the dictator game or that there is weak cross-situational consistency in social preferences (Levitt and List, 2007) .

We cannot, however, exclude the possibility that criminal behavior is affected by differences in prosocial motivation that are not captured by the dictator game or that there is weak cross-situational consistency in social preferences.


An experimental study of prosocial motivation among criminals 3 We report the results from two economic experiments, a lab experiment and an Internet experiment. Both experiments employ the classical dictator game where one participant, the dictator, is asked to determine how a sum of money should be distributed between himself and another participant, the receiver, with whom he is anonymously matched (Camerer, 2003; Engel, 2011) . The key feature of this game is that it places the dictator in a situation where there is no potential economic benefit from sharing since the recipient has no opportunity to respond to the decision made by the dictator. How much the dictator gives to the receiver, as a share of the available money, is therefore commonly used as a measure of an individual's level of prosocial motivation.

Both experiments employ the classical dictator game where one participant, the dictator, is asked to determine how a sum of money should be distributed between himself and another participant, the receiver, with whom he is anonymously matched.


Two concerns when interpreting the data from the lab experiment are that there might have been an experimenter demand effect and that imprisonment may have made the criminal identity of the prisoners salient (Cohn, Maréchal, and Noll, 2012) . The Internet experiment, which was conducted with a large group of participants from the general population, allows us to address these two concerns. In the Internet experiment there was nothing to indicate that the purpose of the experiment was to compare criminals and non-criminals and all subjects could participate in the experiment from their home. By linking the behavioral data from the Internet experiment to official criminal records, we could compare the average level of prosocial behavior of individuals with and without a criminal record. The results are in line with the results from the lab experiment: we find no significant difference in the prosocial behavior of individuals with and without a criminal record.

Two concerns when interpreting the data from the lab experiment are that there might have been an experimenter demand effect and that imprisonment may have made the criminal identity of the prisoners salient.


Pesticides hold a unique position among contaminants found in water, since they are deliberately used to control pest in agriculture and public health [1] . Water pollution due to pesticides is a critical problem in developing countries. The sources of pesticides in water are runoff from agricultural fields, industrial wastes and orchards treated with pesticides [2] . They comprise different classes such as insecticides, fungicides, herbicides and rodenticides etc. Due to their lack of high specificity, pesticides are toxic to many unintended species including humans.

Pesticides hold a unique position among contaminants found in water, since they are deliberately used to control pest in agriculture and public health.

The sources of pesticides in water are runoff from agricultural fields, industrial wastes and orchards treated with pesticides.


Because of their widespread use, they leach into surface and ground water and are therefore present in drinking water as well. They persist in the environment and pose a significant health threat especially to humans. Among the possible effects related to this exposure, genetic damage has important health implications for the induction of lung cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, pancreatic cancer, bladder cancer and leukemia [3, 4] .

Among the possible effects related to this exposure, genetic damage has important health implications for the induction of lung cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, pancreatic cancer, bladder cancer and leukemia.


The approach which was implemented herein may be equally applied to other areas in the Eastern Mediterranean in which there is the availability of datasets which could be analysed within a GIS, so as to assess the changes that have occurred over time in those landscapes. The areas of Eastern Mediterranean basin are indeed being profoundly transformed by human activity [40] . Agricultural lands, evergreen woodlands and maquis habitats, that dominate the present landscape of the Mediterranean basin, are the result of anthropogenic disturbances over millennia [41] . Many common factors contribute to landscape modifications: the abandonment of the countryside in the last decades is due to socio-economic changes occurred during the last decades; these changes were linked with the shift from traditional agricultural systems, characterized by a high landscape complexity, to new agricultural schemes supported by modern technology [42] . The comparison between past and present land use represents a straightforward approach for identifying landscape changes and quantifying the relationships among anthropogenic, agricultural, and forest systems, as well as fostering sound land use policies to other regions and local situations in this common territorial context.

The areas of Eastern Mediterranean basin are indeed being profoundly transformed by human activity.

Agricultural lands, evergreen woodlands and maquis habitats, that dominate the present landscape of the Mediterranean basin, are the result of anthropogenic disturbances over millennia.

Many common factors contribute to landscape modifications: the abandonment of the countryside in the last decades is due to socio-economic changes occurred during the last decades; these changes were linked with the shift from traditional agricultural systems, characterized by a high landscape complexity, to new agricultural schemes supported by modern technology.


After the Second World War, the landscape was significantly modified thanks to a general improvement of economic conditions and due to specific reforms targeted at the south of Italy, which resulted in radical changes in land management. In fact, land use was heavily influenced by the "Land reform", having among its objectives the qualitative and quantitative improvement in land use and equity for farmers [36] . The arrival of extensive agriculture, the improvement of cultivation techniques, and public financing involved a change in the landscape structure, because marginal and steep areas were then cultivated. Consequently, with the increase of agricultural activities, roads and buildings have almost doubled. The current trend, as demonstrated by the analysis of land use in the 2013, showed a progressive decrease in the agricultural areas to the benefit of natural vegetation, that growth over the years, having spontaneously covered areas that, in the past, were cultivated. This phenomenon has steadily increased over the past decades, i.e., with the development of the so-called "set-aside" EU regime (EEC Regulation 1272/88) by the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) aimed to control the overproduction of cereals and other crops, in order to avoid an excessive reduction in agricultural prices [37] . Agricultural land use change is often one of the causes, but it is not always possible to identify proximate causes for the agricultural change itself, except for urbanization and the development of natural areas [38] .

In fact, land use was heavily influenced by the "Land reform", having among its objectives the qualitative and quantitative improvement in land use and equity for farmers.

This phenomenon has steadily increased over the past decades, i.e., with the development of the so-called "set-aside" EU regime (EEC Regulation 1272/88) by the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) aimed to control the overproduction of cereals and other crops, in order to avoid an excessive reduction in agricultural prices.

Agricultural land use change is often one of the causes, but it is not always possible to identify proximate causes for the agricultural change itself, except for urbanization and the development of natural areas.


Compared to the situation in 1829, the natural area of Forenza municipality decreased, overall. However, during the last decades the re-vegetation of the abandoned agricultural areas occurred, a common phenomenon widespread in the south of Italy and, particularly, in the Basilicata region. Many studies show the consequences of the grassland, pastures and woodland recovery after land abandonment. The major problems related to this phenomenon have been identified: biodiversity loss, increase of fire frequency and intensity, soil erosion; and desertification, loss of cultural and/or aesthetic values, reduction of landscape diversity and of water provision [25, 40] . The extraordinary properties of representation offered by GIS technologies increase the perception of the study areas and improve the informational aspects and the opportunities of visual simulation of the land use evolution.

The major problems related to this phenomenon have been identified: biodiversity loss, increase of fire frequency and intensity, soil erosion; and desertification, loss of cultural and/or aesthetic values, reduction of landscape diversity and of water provision.


The digitization of historical cartography allows for understanding the evolution of the landscape over time, and may account for the susceptibility of spaces to territorial transformations and provide insights to spatial and contextual specifics, which is an issue that is essential for appropriate spatial planning [4] . With the support of a GIS in which historical documents are input, a multi-temporal analysis of land is possible. This is a fundamental tool for monitoring landscape diversity and changes in vegetation and landscape structure [5] [6] [7] .

The digitization of historical cartography allows for understanding the evolution of the landscape over time, and may account for the susceptibility of spaces to territorial transformations and provide insights to spatial and contextual specifics, which is an issue that is essential for appropriate spatial planning.

This is a fundamental tool for monitoring landscape diversity and changes in vegetation and landscape structure.


An experimental work was recently conducted on the subject of the zero concept on the bee Apis mellifera (Howard, Avarguès-Weber, Garcia, Greentree, & Dyer, 2018) . The bees were trained to discriminate numbers 1 to 6, then an empty set from these numbers 1 to 6. The bees succeeded in completing the first task: they thus have the notion of 'what is lower'. They also correctly chose a cue with no element versus a cue with one element. They can thus perceive the empty set as belonging to the lower end of a numerical continuum. The most basic result of this experiment on bees is comparable to that of our second experiment: the ants could (but weakly) discriminate a white paper with no black circle from a white paper with one black circle. However, a white paper is a cue; it is not an absence, a 'nothing'. We here went a step further and looked if ants could distinguish the absence of a cue, i.e. 'nothing'. Effectively, through differential operant conditioning, they succeeded in doing so, and did so better when the cue (the presence) was associated with the reward than when the 'nothing' (the absence) was associated with the reward. This is a very basic notion of zero, a concrete notion perceptible to senses.

An experimental work was recently conducted on the subject of the zero concept on the bee Apis mellifera.


As a variant of PSO, quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization (QPSO) is a novel optimization algorithm inspired by the fundamental theory of particle swarm and features of quantum mechanics such as the use of Schrödinger equation and potential field distribution [15] . As a global optimization algorithm, the QPSO can seek many local minima and thus increase the likelihood of finding the global minimum. This advantage of the QPSO can be applied to neural networks to optimize the topology and/or weight parameters [16] .

As a variant of PSO, quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization (QPSO) is a novel optimization algorithm inspired by the fundamental theory of particle swarm and features of quantum mechanics such as the use of Schrödinger equation and potential field distribution.

This advantage of the QPSO can be applied to neural networks to optimize the topology and/or weight parameters.


Some have advocated greater attention to urban areas and equity in the distribution of park and openspace benefits (Fairfax et al. 2005) . Our analysis indicates that fee-simple lands were more likely to be located in urban areas than were conservation easements. City and federal governments were the most likely, and land trusts the least likely, to hold protected areas in urban environments. The conservation easements held by land trusts and special districts were located slightly further from urban areas than were the fee-simple properties held by these organizations, but the differences were small within this highly urbanized region. The San Francisco Bay Area is unique in having the country's largest urban national park, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and other sizable urban open spaces such as those held by the East Bay Regional Park District.

Some have advocated greater attention to urban areas and equity in the distribution of park and openspace benefits.


Publicly held conservation easements originate in federal programs, state and regional acquisition and regulatory programs, and local city and county efforts to secure open space within a land-use planning framework. Nonprofit organizations operating at national, regional, local, and neighborhood, i.e., homeowner, scales also hold conservation easements to meet natural, agricultural, or scenic protection goals. Long-term leases such as those established under the federal Cropland Reserve Program provide limited term protection. Land acquisition by public agencies and nonprofit organizations has typically occurred through the reservation of land from the public domain and the acquisition of fee-simple properties, rather than through conservation easements. Land acquisition may also result from a regulatory process, such as local land-use planning, subdivision planning, or habitat conservation plans for endangered species (Lippmann 2004) .

Land acquisition may also result from a regulatory process, such as local land-use planning, subdivision planning, or habitat conservation plans for endangered species.


Large sums of public and private dollars have and will continue to be spent on conservation easements through ballot initiatives, government programs, and private land-trust campaigns. Voters in the United States approved 1299 land protection initiatives authorizing $31 billion in conservation http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol13/iss1/art40/ funding between 1994 and 2006 (Trust for Public Land 2006) . Conservation easement acquisitions are often a major focus of these land protection programs. For instance, the $1 billion Conserving California Landscapes Initiative conserved most of its 138,000 ha (342,000 acres) through conservation easements between 1998 (Delfin and Tang 2005 .

Voters in the United States approved 1299 land protection initiatives authorizing $31 billion in conservation http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol13/iss1/art40/ funding between 1994 and 2006.