Digital Commons Network^™

National Mine Action Plan For Completion - Mauritania, Government Of Mauritania

Global CWD Repository

The National Mine Action Plan developed by the Government of Mauritania, written in 2007, to achieve goals and outcomes sought by the Mine Ban Treaty and Ottawa Convention.

Bridges : Newsletter Of The Stony Brook Health Sciences Chapter Of United University Professions, Stony Brook University

Bridges Newsletter (UUP HSC Chapter)

Newsletter

Uup Insight | V.1, United University Professions

UUP Insight

Newsletter of the Stony Brook Chapter of the United University Professions | v. : ill. ; 28 cm (original analog pub.),UUP Professional Perspective | Insight | UUP Newsletter | UUP/SB Newsletter

An Evaluation Of Operation Street Sweeper - 2006, Andrew Giacomazzi, Jeremy D. Ball

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Operation Street Sweeper (OSS) was a multi-level, interagency collaboration with multiple purposes. According to OSS documents, Operation Street Sweeper goals included the following: (1) to reduce gang-related criminal and violent activity in Nampa and Caldwell, Idaho through aggressive, proactive, and coordinated street enforcement between the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and local law enforcement; (2) to deter criminal activity through high profile enforcement activity; (3) to develop and/or increase the number of positive community contacts; (4) to show the community and gang members that law enforcement is serious about reducing gang and violent crime in the area; and …

Interventional Options For Malignant Upper Gi Obstruction, 2nd Ed, James R. Ouellette, Lisa Patterson, Paula M. Termuhlen

Department of Surgery Faculty Publications

Background

Patients with unresectable cancers of the upper gastrointestinal tract often suffer severe symptoms due to pain, nausea and vomiting, weight loss, cachexia, and poor food tolerance. This can be related to gastric and duodenal cancers causing intrinsic obstruction of the intestinal lumen or pancreatic and biliary cancers causing extrinsic biliary compression. Management options vary depending on the site of obstruction, the patient’s functional status, the patient-defined goals of care, and estimated prognosis. Fast Fact #45 discussed medical management options. This Fact Fact reviews interventional approaches for upper GI obstructions, especially when further radiation, chemotherapy, medical management, or curative surgical …

A General Boosting Method And Its Application To Learning Ranking Functions For Web Search, Zhaohui Zheng, Hongyuan Zha, Tong Zhang, Olivier Chapelle, Keke Chen, Gordon Sun

Kno.e.sis Publications

We present a general boosting method extending functional gradient boosting to optimize complex loss functions that are encountered in many machine learning problems. Our approach is based on optimization of quadratic upper bounds of the loss functions which allows us to present a rigorous convergence analysis of the algorithm. More importantly, this general framework enables us to use a standard regression base learner such as decision trees for fitting any loss function. We illustrate an application of the proposed method in learning ranking functions for Web search by combining both preference data and labeled data for training. We present experimental …

Bankruptcy Probability Changes And The Differential Informativeness Of Bond Upgrades And Downgrades, Yongtae Kim, Sandeep Nabar

Accounting

Prior studies have found that stock returns around announcements of bond upgrades are insignificant, but that stock prices respond negatively to announcements of bond downgrades. This asymmetric stock market reaction suggests either that bond downgrades are timelier than upgrades, or that voluntary disclosures by managers preempt upgrades but not downgrades. This study investigates these conjectures by examining changes in firms' probabilities of bankruptcy (assessed using bankruptcy prediction models) and voluntary disclosure activity around rating change announcements. The results indicate that the assessed probability of bankruptcy decreases before bond upgrades, but not after. By contrast, the assessed probability of bankruptcy increases …

December 2007 - Volume Vii, Number 1, Theatre Arts Department

Sides (Newsletter)

SIDES Volume VII Number 1 includes articles on the new Doudna Fine Arts Center and also an obituary of Ernest Glendon Gabbard.

Tarble Arts Center Newsletter December 2007, Tarble Arts Center

Tarble Arts Center Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Grevillea Robusta A. Cunningham Ex R. Br., J. Richard Abbott

Specimens by Name

No abstract provided.

Dec. 2007

NASIG Newsletter

No abstract provided.

The Economic Situation, 2007 December, Bruce Yandle

Publications

Quarterly report on the economic situation of the United States and South Carolina.

Dit News, 1st.-31st. Of December, 2007, Dit:Students Union

DIT Student Union

No abstract provided.

The Long Haul: Risks Associated With Livestock Transport, Michael Greger

Agribusiness Collection

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations describes live animal transport as “ideally suited for spreading disease,” given that animals may originate from different herds or flocks and are “confined together for long periods in a poorly ventilated stressful environment.” Given the associated “serious animal and public health problems,” the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe has called for the replacement of the long-distance transportation of live animals for slaughter as much as possible to a “carcass-only trade.”

In the United States, more than 50 million live cattle, sheep, and pigs and an unknown number of the more …

Neuroanatomy Of The Subadult And Fetal Brain Of The Atlantic White-Sided Dolphin (Lagenorhynchus Acutus) From In Situ Magnetic Resonance Images, Eric W. Montie, Gerald E. Schneider, Darlene R. Ketten, Lori Marino, Katie E. Touhey, Mark E. Hahn

Veterinary Science and Medicine Collection

This article provides the first anatomically labeled, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) -based atlas of the subadult and fetal Atlantic white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus) brain. It differs from previous MRI-based atlases of cetaceans in that it was created from images of fresh, postmortem brains in situ rather than extracted, formalin-fixed brains. The in situ images displayed the classic hallmarks of odontocete brains: fore-shortened orbital lobes and pronounced temporal width. Olfactory structures were absent and auditory regions (e.g., temporal lobes and inferior colliculi) were enlarged. In the subadult and fetal postmortem MRI scans, the hippocampus was identifiable, despite the relatively small size …

Systematic Reviews Of Animal Experiments Demonstrate Poor Human Clinical And Toxicological Utility, Andrew Knight

Experimentation Collection

The assumption that animal models are reasonably predictive of human outcomes provides the basis for their widespread use in toxicity testing and in biomedical research aimed at developing cures for human diseases. To investigate the validity of this assumption, the comprehensive Scopus biomedical bibliographic databases were searched for published systematic reviews of the human clinical or toxicological utility of animal experiments. In 20 reviews in which clinical utility was examined, the authors concluded that animal models were either significantly useful in contributing to the development of clinical interventions, or were substantially consistent with clinical outcomes, in only two cases, one …

Heritable And Experiential Effects On Boldness In A Tropical Poeciliid, Culum Brown, Fiona Burgess, Victoria Braithwaite

Sentience Collection

Consistent differences in human behaviour are often explained with reference to personality traits. Recent evidence suggests that similar traits are widespread across the entire animal kingdom and that they may have substantial fitness consequences. One of the major components of personality is the shyness–boldness continuum. Little is known about the relative contributions of genes and the environment in the development of boldness in wild animal populations. Here, we bred wild-caught fish (Brachyraphis episcopi) collected from regions of highand low-predation pressure, reared their offspring in the laboratory under varying conditions and tested boldness utilising an open-field paradigm. First-generation laboratory-reared fish showed …

Correlation Between Boldness And Body Mass In Natural Populations Of The Poeciliid Brachyrhaphis Episcopi, C. Brown, F. Jones, V. Braithwaite

Sentience Collection

The boldness of individual Brachyrhaphis episcopi, collected from regions of high and low predation, was investigated using two independent assays: (1) the time to emerge from cover and (2) the propensity to leave shoal mates and investigate a novel object. A strong correlation between the two assays was revealed such that fish that emerged from shelter sooner were also more likely to approach a novel object. This is indicative of a boldness personality axis acting across both behavioural contexts. Fish from high-predation areas were bolder than those from low-predation areas and males were bolder than females. A significant correlation between …

Farmers' Relationship With Different Animals: The Importance Of Getting Close To The Animals. Case Studies Of French, Swedish And Dutch Cattle, Pig And Poultry Farmers, B. B. Bock, M. M. Van Huik, M. Prutzer, F. Kling Eveillard, A. Dockes

Human-Animal Relationships Collection

No abstract provided.

Is It Time To Mandate Volunteerism?, Leonard Wong Dr.

Articles & Editorials

Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the December 2007 newsletter.

Evaluation Of Current Nonlinear Static Procedures For Concrete Buildings Using Recorded Strong-Motion Data, Rakesh K. Goel, Charles Chadwell

Civil and Environmental Engineering

This study evaluates current Nonlinear Static Procedures (NSPs) specified in the FEMA356, ASCE-41, ATC-40, and FEMA-440 documents using strong-motion data from reinforced-concrete buildings. For this purpose, three-dimensional computer models of five reinforced concrete buildings – Imperial County Services Building, Sherman Oaks Commercial Building, North Hollywood Hotel, Watsonville Commercial Building, and Santa Barbara Office Building – are developed. When appropriate, springs at the building’s base are included to account for the soil-structure interaction effects. These buildings are selected because they were strongly shaken, several deformed beyond their linear-elastic range, during past earthquakes and their recorded motions are available. The recorded motions …

Review Of Thomas W. Zeiler, Ambassadors In Pinstripes: The Spalding World Baseball Tour And The Birth Of The American Empire, Andrew Morris

History

No abstract provided.

Efficiency Study Of Adjustable Speed Drive With Dual Motor Connection, C. Mitsui, S. Tu, Taufik, M. Anwari

Electrical Engineering

This paper presents a study of AC adjustable speed drive when used to operate two induction motors. The impact of running the two motors under various loading conditions and operating output frequency to overall efficiency of the adjustable speed drives under room temperature will be discussed. Data obtained from laboratory and their analysis will be presented

Global Vor Gain Adaptation During Near Fixation To Foveal Targets, Jason A. Williams, Bruce Bridgeman, Tadg Woods, Robert Welch

Psychology and Child Development

Long-term rotational vestibulo-ocular (VOR) adaptation occurs during systematic dysmetria between visual and vestibular afferents, adjusting eye-rotation angular velocity to re-establish retinal stability of the visual field. Due to translational motion of the eyes during head rotation, VOR gain is higher when fixating near objects. The current study measures VOR in humans before and after 6min of exposure to a foveal near-target during sinusoidal whole-body rotation at 0.45 Hz. All of six participants showed post-exposure increases in open-loop VOR gain after fixating near targets, demonstrating a mean modulation increase of open-loop VOR gain from 0.86 before adaptation to 1.2 after adaptation. …

Markov-Based Lane Positioning Using Intervehicle Communication, Thanh-Son Dao, Keith Yu Kit Leung, Christopher M. Clark, Jan Paul Huissoon

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The majority of today's navigation techniques for intelligent transportation systems use global positioning systems (GPS) that can provide position information with bounded errors. However, due to the low accuracy that is experienced with standard GPS, it is difficult to determine a vehicle's position at lane level. Using a Markov-based approach based on sharing information among a group of vehicles that are traveling within communication range, the lane positions of vehicles can be found. The algorithm's effectiveness is shown in both simulations and experiments with real data.

Life Cycle Aware Computing: Reusing Silicon Technology, John Y. Oliver, Rajeevan Amirtharajah, Venkatesh Akella, Roland Geyer, Frederic T. Chong

Electrical Engineering

Despite the high costs associated with processor manufacturing, the typical chip is used for only a fraction of its expected lifetime. Reusing processors would create a "food chain" of electronic devices that amortizes the energy required to build chips over several computing generations.

Protecting Factfinders From Being Overly Misled, While Still Admitting To Weakly Supported Forensic Science Into Evidence, Michael J. Saks

Tulsa Law Review

No abstract provided.

Lichens Of Pine Hill, A Peridotite Outcrop In Eastern North America, Tanner B. Harris, Fred C. Olday, Nishanta Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

Despite a large body of work on the serpentine-substrate effect on vascular plants, little work has been undertaken to describe lichen communities growing on serpentine soils derived from peridotite and other ultramafic rocks. Most such work has been conducted in Europe and western North America. Only one study to date has examined the lichen flora of an ultramafic outcrop in eastern North America. The current paper examines the lichen flora of a peridotite outcrop from Deer Isle, Hancock County, Maine, U.S.A. The lichen flora is presented along with relevant ecological and geochemical data. Sixty-three species were found, comprising 35 genera. …

Nemo News, Volume 4, Issue 2, Uno Library Science Education

NEMO Newsletter

This issue of NEMO News features Announcements, Advice from the Frontlines from Theresa Jehlik, Alumni Spotlight on Rebecca Wymer, Student Spotlight on KArin Dalziel, Hot Topics: ALA, and Final Thoughts.

Forgiveness

Shabbat Shalom: A Journal for Jewish-Christian Reconciliation

No abstract provided.