188 research outputs found
Retraining displaced workers : what can developing countries learn from OECD nations?
No full textThe governments of most industrial countries provide financial support for adult training programs intended to retrain displaced workers. The author draws lessons from the experience of six industrial countries (Australia, Britain, Canada, Japan, Sweden, and the United States) on how to design and implement such retraining programs in low-income developing nations and middle-income countries. By retraining, the author means both improving job skills and remediating deficiencies in basic education. These are the lessons he emphasizes: Training programs should be independent of the educational system, with its rigid ties to degree requirements and academic schedules; links to employers must be developed and maintained so that trainees have marketable skills on completing the program. Training programs should be designed to minimize trainees'foregone earnings; basic education should be relevant to the jobs the trainees might seek. External providers of education must be made accountable - but with care; the system of accountability should also ensure that the needs of displaced workers most likely to suffer long-term unemployment are met. Not all displaced workers require relatively expansive retraining; some may need only inexpensive job-search assistance services. A permanent, institutionalized training system is preferable to short-term intervention.Labor Standards,Tertiary Education,ICT Policy and Strategies,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Teaching and Learning
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Translating a Canonical Author: C. P. Cavafy
No full textTranslation, Walter Benjamin reminds us, involves the afterlife of the work, not the author’s life. Teaching canonical works with attention to the history of their survival enables students to move away from fixed notions of authorship and invention. Translation becomes a hermeneutic practice worthy of study in its own right, where learning how to interpret is indistinguishable from learning how to translate into different media. These points form the basic rationale of my course on C. P. Cavafy (1863–1933), a poet of the Greek diaspora who lived in Alexandria and profoundly influenced many prose writers, poets, and artists, from E. M. Forster and Marguerite Yourcenar to James Merrill and Duane Michals
Discrete-time wavelets and applications as a culminating experience
No full textWavelets have proven to be very useful in many discrete-time applications such as multi-resolution analysis, data compression and signal classification. Unfortunately, the study of wavelets can be intimidating due to the mathematical complexity involved with the derivation and definition of wavelets. This paper attempts to sort through some of this complexity and reveal the basics of discrete-time wavelet processing in standard filter theory terms that are familiar to most engineers and scientists. First, the continuous-time wavelet transform will be defined and briefly discussed. Next, the discrete-time wavelet transform will be described, followed by a discussion of perfect reconstruction filters. The discussion of perfect reconstruction filters will provide insight into the nature of the discrete-time wavelet transform from a filter theory point of view, and the conditions to be met in designing discrete-time, orthogonal wavelet functions. A description of some of the various types of wavelets likely to be seen in digital signal processing applications will then follow. Finally, two DSP applications will be discussed; subband coding via wave packets, and 2D spatial filtering using Gabor wavelets.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 38-39)California State University, Northridge. Department of Engineering
Review of Duane L. Christensen, \u3ci\u3eDeuteronomy 21:10–34:12\u3c/i\u3e
No full textThis commentary, which covers Deut 21: 10-34:12, is the second volume of Duane Christensen’s massive work on Deuteronomy (the revised first volume. WBC 6A, encompasses 1:1–21:9) in the WBC series. The series is written from an evangelical Christian perspective, and each volume follows the same format, presenting an exposition of the text in the original language (Hebrew or Greek). Each volume contains an original translation by the author, with explicating notes and commentary. ... On the whole, however, C. has done a marvelous job distilling the vast field of Deuteronomic research into a usable commentary. This volume, along with its companion, is an important new addition to any collection of commentaries on Deuteronomy
Evolution, systematics and phylogeography of pleistocene horses in the new world: a molecular perspective
No full textThe rich fossil record of horses has made them a classic example of evolutionary processes. However, while the overall picture of equid evolution is well known, the details are surprisingly poorly understood, especially for the later Pliocene and Pleistocene, c. 3 million to 0.01 million years (Ma) ago, and nowhere more so than in the Americas. There is no consensus on the number of equid species or even the number of lineages that existed in these continents.Likewise, the origin of the endemic South American genus Hippidion is unresolved, as is the phylogenetic position of the “stilt-legged” horses of North America. Using ancient DNA sequences, we show that, in contrast to current models based on morphology and a recent genetic study, Hippidion was phylogenetically close to the caballine (true) horses, with origins considerably more recent than the currently accepted date of c. 10 Ma. Furthermore, we show that stilt-legged horses, commonly regarded as Old World migrants related to the hemionid asses of Asia, were in fact an endemic North American lineage. Finally, our data suggest that there were fewer horse species in late Pleistocene North America than have been named on morphological grounds. Both caballine and stilt-legged lineages may each have comprised a single, wide-ranging species.<br/
Stratigraphy of Pleistocene glaciations in the St Elias Mountains, southwest Yukon, Canada
No full textAt least five Middle to Late Pleistocene advances of the northern Cordilleran Ice Sheet are preserved at Silver Creek, on the northeastern edge of the St Elias Mountains in southwest Yukon, Canada. Silver Creek is located 100 km up-ice of the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 2 McConnell glacial limit of the St Elias lobe. This site contains approximately 3 km of nearly continuous lateral exposure of glacial and non-glacial sediments, including multiple tills separated by thick gravel, loess and tilted lake beds. Infrared-stimulated luminescence (IRSL) and AMS radiocarbon dating constrain the glacial deposits to MIS 2, 4, either MIS 6 or mid-MIS 7, and two older Middle Pleistocene advances. This chronology and the tilt of the lake beds suggest Pleistocene uplift rates of up to 1.9 mm a (super -1) along the Denali Fault since MIS 7. The non-glacial sediment consists of sand, gravel, loess and organic beds from MIS 7, MIS 3 and the early Holocene. The MIS 3 deposits date to between 30-36 (super 14) C ka BP, making Silver Creek one of the few well-constrained MIS 3-aged sites in Yukon. This confirms that ice receded close to modern limits in MIS 3. Pollen and macrofossil analyses show that a meadow-tundra to steppe-tundra mosaic with abundant herbs and forbs and few shrubs or trees, dominated the environment at this time. The stratigraphy at Silver Creek provides a palaeoclimatic record since at least MIS 8 and comprises the oldest direct record of Pleistocene glaciation in southwest Yukon. Abstract Copyright (2016), John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Peer reviewedFinal article publishe
Spaceflight Enhances Cell Aggregation and Random Budding in Candida albicans
No full textabstract: This study presents the first global transcriptional profiling and phenotypic characterization of the major human opportunistic fungal pathogen, Candida albicans, grown in spaceflight conditions. Microarray analysis revealed that C. albicans subjected to short-term spaceflight culture differentially regulated 452 genes compared to synchronous ground controls, which represented 8.3% of the analyzed ORFs. Spaceflight-cultured C. albicans–induced genes involved in cell aggregation (similar to flocculation), which was validated by microscopic and flow cytometry analysis. We also observed enhanced random budding of spaceflight-cultured cells as opposed to bipolar budding patterns for ground samples, in accordance with the gene expression data. Furthermore, genes involved in antifungal agent and stress resistance were differentially regulated in spaceflight, including induction of ABC transporters and members of the major facilitator family, downregulation of ergosterol-encoding genes, and upregulation of genes involved in oxidative stress resistance. Finally, downregulation of genes involved in actin cytoskeleton was observed. Interestingly, the transcriptional regulator Cap1 and over 30% of the Cap1 regulon was differentially expressed in spaceflight-cultured C. albicans. A potential role for Cap1 in the spaceflight response of C. albicans is suggested, as this regulator is involved in random budding, cell aggregation, and oxidative stress resistance; all related to observed spaceflight-associated changes of C. albicans. While culture of C. albicans in microgravity potentiates a global change in gene expression that could induce a virulence-related phenotype, no increased virulence in a murine intraperitoneal (i.p.) infection model was observed under the conditions of this study. Collectively, our data represent an important basis for the assessment of the risk that commensal flora could play during human spaceflight missions. Furthermore, since the low fluid-shear environment of microgravity is relevant to physical forces encountered by pathogens during the infection process, insights gained from this study could identify novel infectious disease mechanisms, with downstream benefits for the general public.The article is published at http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.008067
Relationship between hockey skating speed and selected performance measures
No full textThe objective of this study was to determine the relationship between specific performance measures and hockey skating speed. Thirty competitive secondary school and junior hockey players were timed for skating speed. Off-ice measures included a 40-yd (36.9-m) sprint, concentric squat jump, drop jump, 1 repetition maximum leg press, flexibility, and balance ratio (wobble board test). Pearson product moment correlations were used to quantify the relationships between the variables. Electromyographic (EMG) activity of the dominant vastus lateralis and biceps femoris was monitored in 12 of the players while skating, stopping, turning, and performing a change-of-direction drill. Significant correlations (p < 0.005) were found between skating performance and the sprint and balance tests. Further analysis demonstrated significant correlations between balance and players under the age of 19 years (r = -0.65) but not those over 19 years old (r = -0.28). The significant correlations with balance suggested that stability may be associated with skating speed in younger players. The low correlations with drop jumps suggested that short contact time stretch-shortening activities (i.e., low amplitude plyometrics) may not be an important factor. Electromyographic activities illustrated the very high activation levels associated with maximum skating speed. ABSTRACT FROM AUTHORPeer reviewedFinal article publishedelectromyographystrengthflexibilityspeedbalanc
Brushless Permanent Magnet Motor Design
No full textWritten for electrical, electronics and mechanical engineers responsible for designing and specifying motors, as well as motor topologies, this guide covers topics ranging from the fundamentals of generic motor design to concepts for designing brushless permanent-magnet motors. In addition, the author explains techniques for magnetic modelling and circuit analysis, shows how magnetic circuit analysis applies to motor design, describes major aspects of motor operation and design in simple mathematical terms, develops design equations for radial flux and axial flux motors, and illustrates basic motor drive schemes. The text aims to clearly define all common motor design terms.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/fac_monographs/1235/thumbnail.jp
Radon detection and measurement
No full textThe author developed a procedure in the Nuclear Physics laboratory at California State University, No1ihridge to measure the radon concentration in an enclosed environment using gamma ray spectroscopy. A charcoal canister is used to adsorb a fraction of the radon present in the enclosure. The canister is then removed from the environment and counted with a shielded 3 x 3 sodium iodide [Nal(T1)] detector and a multichannel analyzer. Gamma ray spectroscopic analysis of the Bi-214 peak at 609 keV gives the activity of radon adsorbed by the canister. The level of radon in the enclosed environment is obtained from the activity by use of a proportionality constant derived experimentally. Using this method, many measurements in the local environment were taken and two were found to be above the Environmental Protection Agency standard. Four samples in the 0.8 to 5.0 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) range were carefully compared to certified measurements and agreement was to within 33 percent.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 32-33)California State University, Northridge. Department of Physics and Astronomy
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