142,462 research outputs found
Book review: Madan Mohan Malaviya and the Indian Freedom Movement
No full textFreedom fighter and educationist, Madan Mohan Malaviya is one of the least known figures from the Indian freedom movement. In a new book on his life, Gayathri D Naik finds a man who was a staunch supporter of press freedom and the power of education
Bibliographics for the 983 eprints in the live archives of E-LIS : trends and status report up to 7th July 2004, based on author-self-archiving metadata
No full textThe priority for ideas and philosophy related to "Network Theory" have been traced back and documented by Braun(2004),and credit goes to Karinthy(1929).The IT has empowered to realise it, as the most practical phenomena and it is no more a humour. The OAI (Open Archives Initiatives)and ACIS (Academic Contributor Information System)are progressive in the direction ,which may lead to realise the "Collective Genius" at global level. Focus of present study is on Author-Self-Archiving (A-S-A)Metadata of the 983 Eprints in the Live Archives of the E-LIS (EPrints of Library and Information Science),which were approved till 7th July 2004.The A-S-A Metadata was used for librametric analysis. Self-explanatory bibliographics are illustrated.The highlights include: Conference papers (34%); highest approval, June 2004 (28%); published archives (76%);not refereed (52%); not in public domain (60%); highest self-archiving-author (De Robbio, Antonella).The Nos. of EPrints having single JITA domain specifications were: Theoretical and general aspects of libraries and information(27); Information use and sociology of information(80);Users,literacy and reading(13);Libraries as physical collections(30);Publishing and legal issues(57);Management(13);Industry, profession and education(36);Information sources, supports, channels(113) ; Information treatment for information services, Information functions and techniques (101); Technical services libraries, archives and museums(25); Housing technologies(1); Information technology and library technology(92); and Inter-domainery (395) i.e. having specifications of two or more than two JITA classes
Emerging contours of financial regulation: challenges and dynamics.
No full textThe current ongoing financial crisis is attributed to a variety of factors such as the developments in the subprime mortgage sector, excessive leverage, lax financial regulation and supervision, and global macroeconomic imbalances. At a fundamental level, however, the crisis also reflects the effects of long periods of excessively loose monetary policy in the major advanced economies during the early part of this decade. The theory and belief of efficient and rational markets have been severely discredited by the current crisis. There is, therefore, a growing agreement for much strengthened, and perhaps, intrusive regulation and supervision in the financial sector. Hitherto unregulated institutions, markets and instruments will now have to be brought under the regulatory framework. A more developed macroprudential approach will be important. Once the current financial crisis is beyond us, minimum regulatory capital requirements would need to be signifi cantly above existing Basel rules, with emphasis on Tier I capital, and supported by a maximum gross leverage ratio. Liquidity regulation and supervision must be recognised as of equal importance to capital regulation, reinforced by an effective global liquidity framework for managing liquidity in large, cross-border fi nancial institutions. The issue of remuneration in the fi nancial sector would require reforms on an industry-wide basis so that improved risk management and compensation practices by some systemically important firms are not undermined by the unsound practices of others. Whereas the suggested reform principles are being increasingly well accepted, many challenges will arise on their modes of implementation, and their practicality. For instance, once normalcy returns, the fi nancial industry will do its utmost to resist the requirements for higher capital at that time. From the point of view of emerging market economies (EMEs), the volatility in capital flows – mainly the outcome of extant monetary policy regimes in developed countries – has led to severe problems in both macro management and financial regulation. This will remain a challenge since there is little international discussion on this issue. Finally, as the global economy starts recovery, a calibrated exit from the prevalent unprecedented accommodative monetary policy will have to be ensured to avoid the recurrence of the financial crisis being experienced now.
From hospital contributory schemes to health cash plans: mutualism in health care in the post-war period.
No full textThe article traces the post-war history of the British hospital contributory schemes, which had developed during the inter-war years to the point where, through the accumulation of small weekly contributions from a mass membership, they provided substantial proportions of hospital income. A minority of contributory schemes remained in existence post-1948, but their subsequent development has received little attention. Some evolved into provident associations offering private health insurance; others remained committed to the provision of low-cost benefits to a blue-collar clientele, and continued to be known as hospital contributory schemes. This article outlines the principal features of the contributory schemes' contemporary history. We first explore why many schemes decided to continue in existence. The next section uses national and individual scheme records to delineate the market niche which they captured and to investigate their role in post-war health provision, relative to the state system. In particular we trace the decline of convalescent home benefit, and the gradual trend towards a more uniform benefit package, of which optical and dental grants were the most popular. We then survey patterns of membership and account for the main trends in support for cash plan products since 1950. Finally, we ask to what extent the schemes were able to retain their character as a ‘movement’ with distinctive mutualist and charitable features, particularly in the more competitive environment of the later twentieth century
NANOMETRSKE CELULOZNE PLASTI ZA SPECIFIČNO ADSORPCIJO POLISAHARIDOV IN IMOBILIZACIJO BIOAKTIVNIH MOLEKUL
No full textThe aim of the thesis is to investigate the applicability of nanometric amorphous cellulose model films for the immobilization of functional DNA molecules and to apply this knowledge in the field of DNA microarray preparation. To achieve this aim, the whole thesis work is divided into three major parts, namely part I (partly and fully regenerated cellulose film preparation and its characterization), part II (functional polysaccharide conjugates preparation) and part III (DNA microarray preparation from polysaccharide functional conjugates).
The first part of the work mainly focuses on the preparation of cellulose model films from spin coated trimethylsilyl cellulose (TMSC) using an in-situ and ex-situ regeneration methods and its characterization. In the in-situ method, the conversion of TMSC to pure cellulose via acid vapor hydrolysis is investigated at the gas-solid interface in real time and at ambient conditions employing quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D). For this purpose, a permanent flow of gaseous HCl is employed which reacts with TMSC coated surface to form pure cellulose. The kinetics behind this reaction is elucidated and reveals first order. Moreover, the influence of the acid concentration on the kinetics and on changes in mass and film thickness of TMSC is studied.
In the case of an ex-situ method, partly and fully regenerated cellulose model films are prepared from spin coated TMSC films through acid vapor phase hydrolysis. This is done by exposing the TMSC films placed in a closed container to vapors of HCl. The regeneration is carried out on one hand by exposing the films to different time intervals and on the other hand to different volume of HCl. The changes in surface morphology, structure, surface composition and film thickness in the course of regeneration (i.e. desilylation) is studied by using various surface analytical techniques like atomic force microscopy (AFM), attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and ‘Sarfus’-technique. In order to gain detailed insight into the desilylation reaction of the films the results from ATR-IR, XPS and thickness measurements are compared with data from static contact angle (SCA) and surface free energy (SFE) determination.
Besides, to verify the completion of regeneration of cellulose from TMSC the partly and fully regenerated films prepared using ex-situ method are interacted with cellulase enzymes from Trichoderma viride using QCM-D technique. The changes in mass and energy dissipation due to the interaction of the enzymes with the substrates are correlated with the surface wettability and elemental composition of the regenerated films. The enzymatic degradation rate correlated well to the rate of regeneration. It is demonstrated that capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) can be used to support QCM-D data via the detection of enzyme hydrolysis products in the eluates of the QCM-D cells. It is also shown that a combination of QCM-D together with enzymatic digestion is a reliable method to monitor the time dependent regeneration of TMSC to pure cellulose.
Furthermore, the effect of heat treatment on partly and fully regenerated cellulose films prepared using ex-situ method is investigated by exposing the films to elevated temperature (105 °C) for a prolonged time (6 hours). Upon heating, a structural rearrangement in the films from a featureless to a fibrillar-like structure is observed as evidenced by AFM. Several analytical methods, namely GIXRD, ATR-IR, Sarfus, XPS and SCA data are employed to analyze the alteration in the structure, surface composition, film thickness, wettability and SFE of the time dependent regenerated films before and after heat treatment. Results from solvent (D2O/H2O) exchange studies proved that water content and water uptake capacity of heat treated cellulose films are significantly reduced compared to non heated films.Additionally, a new method is developed to structure nanometric cellulose films via vapor phase acid hydrolysis and enzymatNamen predstavljenega doktorskega dela je razvoj nanometrskih amorfnih celuloznih modelnih filmov za imobilizacijo funkcionalnih DNA molekul in uporaba pridobljenega znanja za pripravo DNA mikromrež. Doktorska disertacija je razdeljena v tri dele in sicerpriprava in karakterizacija delno in popolnoma regeneriranih celuloznih filmovpriprava funkcionalnih polisaharidnih konjugatov in priprava DNA mikromrež s polisaharidnimi funkcionalnimi konjugati.
Prvi del se nanasa predvsem na in-situ in ex-situ regeneracijo celuloznih filmov in njihovo karakterizacijo. Z uporabo kremenove mikrotehtnice (QCM-D metoda) smo podrobno spremljali hidrolizo in konverzijo trimetilsililne celuloze (TMSC) v celulozo v hlapih klorovodikove kisline. Plinasta HCl v neprekinjenem dotoku reagira s plastjo TMSC in na taksen nacin tvori plast celuloze. Raziskali smo kinetiko procesa regeneracije in dolocili reakcijo prvega reda. Poleg tega smo raziskali tudi vpliv koncentracije kisline na kinetiko reakcije ter na maso in debelino formiranega sloja celuloze.
Za potrebe študija ex-situ regeneracije smo prav tako pripravili TMSC filme s tehniko \u27\u27spin coat\u27\u27. V nasprotju z in-situ metodo regeneracije smo v tem primeru položili substrate s TMSC filmi v zaprto posodo, kjer so bili izpostavljeni hlapom klorovodikove kisline. Postopek regeneracije je potekal pri različnih časih izpostavitve kislinskim hlapom ter volumnih kisline. Spremembe v strukturi, debelini filmov, površinski elementni sestavi ter površinski prosti energiji regeneriranih celuloznih filmov (pri različnih časih regeneracije) smo raziskali z uporabo, ATR-IR, Sarfus, XPS tehnik ter z merjenjem stičnih kotov.
Z interakcijo med delno ter popolnoma regeneriranimi celuloznimi filmi in encimom celulazo (Trichoderma viride) smo dodatno raziskali stopnjo hidrolize TMSC filmov in posledično stopnjo njihove regeneracije. Spremembe v masi filma in disipaciji energije, kot posledice delovanja celulaze, smo korelirali s sposobnostjo omakanja filmov in njihovo elementno sestavo. Stopnja encimske razgradnje regeneriranih celuloznih filmov je v dobri korelaciji s stopnjo regeneracije. V kombinaciji s kvarčno mikrotehtnico smo uporabili tudi kapilarno consko elektroforezo, s katero smo določili razgradne produkte encimske hidrolize celuloznih filmov. Kombinacija QCM-D tehnike in postopek encimske razgradnje celuloznih filmov se je izkazala koz zanesljiva metoda spremljanja regeneracije TMSC filmov v odvisnosti od časa.
Vpliv toplotne obdelave na tako pripravljene filme smo dolocili z naknadno izpostavitvijo celuloznih filmov povišani temperaturi za daljši čas (6 ur). Segrevanje povzroci preureditev filmov, ki se ne ponašajo s posebnimi strukturnimi artefakti, v fibrilarno strukturo, kar je razvidno iz AFM posnetkov. Uporabili smo različne analitske metode, s katerimi smo raziskali spremembe v strukturi, elementni sestavi, debelini, sposobnosti omakanja ter prosti površinski energiji regeneriranih celuloznih filmov pred in po toplotni obdelaviGIXRD, ATR-IR, Sarfus tehnika, XPS in goniometrija. Z izvedbo postopka izmenjave topila (D2O/H2O) smo dokazali, da se vsebnost vode in sposobnost navzemanja vode toplotno obdelanih regeneriranih celuloznih filmov občutno zmanjša v primerjavi z neobdelanimi filmi..
Three-Dimensional Integrated Photonics in Transparent Substrates Enabled by Femtosecond Laser Fabrication
No full textUnlike integrated electronic circuits that are built mostly on silicon wafers, integrated photonic devices involve a great variety of materials and platforms. The development of integrated photonic devices in both 2-D and 3-D architectures in each material and platform presents distinct fabrication challenges. The research in this dissertation explores the femtosecond laser as a versatile cross-platform manufacturing tool to fabricate 3-D photonic structures in transparent optical substrates.
This dissertation first presents the fabrication of multiplexable and distributed optical sensors in silica and sapphire optical fiber with high radius of curvature surfaces. Using a diffraction-limited oil-immersion fabrication setup, a reel-to-reel laser direct writing system was established to deposit laser energy inside optical fibers with micrometer precision. Through careful tuning of laser-matter interaction to form nanograting in fiber core, Intrinsic Fabry-Perot Interferometer arrays were fabricated with a high fringe visibility of 0.49 and low insertion loss of 0.002 dB per sensor. The temperature sensitivity, cross-talk, and spatial multiplexability of sensor arrays were investigated in detail. By continuously introducing nanograting as artificial Rayleigh scattering centers, femtosecond laser-fabricated Rayleigh scattering enhanced section could achieve an optimized propagation loss of 0.01 dB/cm with drastic improvement of the signal-to-noise ratio of over 35 dB for Optical Frequency-Domain Reflectometry-based distributed sensing. Long-term high-temperature performance was successfully demonstrated with improved thermal stability.
This dissertation also explores the fabrication of high-density 3-D topological photonic circuits in glass substrates with flat surfaces. Inspired from solid-state physics, topological photonics has found potential applications such as quantum information processing and defect-resistant lasing devices. Through careful control of the multiphoton laser-matter interaction in the femtosecond time scale and nanometer spatial scale, we demonstrate the fabrication of high-density coupled and low-loss 3-D waveguide arrays with varying index profiles. This dissertation presents the experimental verification of lattice braiding, Thouless pumping under the presence of disorder, and the topological pumping in a higher-order system.
In sum, the dissertation studies the optics science of femtosecond laser-matter interaction and unveil the potentials of femtosecond laser as a powerful fabrication tool for 3-D photonic device fabrication for studies in optics science and for photonics applications in communication and sensing
Input-rate modulation of gamma oscillations is sensitive to network topology, delays and short-term plasticity
No full textAbstract not availableMark D. McDonnell, Ashutosh Mohan, Christian Stricker, Lawrence M. War
MeSH term explosion and author rank improve expert recommendations
No full textInformation overload is an often-cited phenomenon that reduces the productivity, efficiency and efficacy of scientists. One challenge for scientists is to find appropriate collaborators in their research. The literature describes various solutions to the problem of expertise location, but most current approaches do not appear to be very suitable for expert recommendations in biomedical research. In this study, we present the development and initial evaluation of a vector space model-based algorithm to calculate researcher similarity using four inputs: 1) MeSH terms of publications; 2) MeSH terms and author rank; 3) exploded MeSH terms; and 4) exploded MeSH terms and author rank. We developed and evaluated the algorithm using a data set of 17,525 authors and their 22,542 papers. On average, our algorithms correctly predicted 2.5 of the top 5/10 coauthors of individual scientists. Exploded MeSH and author rank outperformed all other algorithms in accuracy, followed closely by MeSH and author rank. Our results show that the accuracy of MeSH term-based matching can be enhanced with other metadata such as author rank
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Individual voluntary participation in the United Kingdom: an overview of survey information
No full textThe measurement of voluntary activity is not straightforward; definitional and methodological questions affect the responses. This is true within the context of the UK but also in other countries of the developed world (Archambault 1993, Kendall and Knapp 1993, Gidron and Katz 1998, Salamon and Sokolowski 2001). The existence of definitional difficulties and ambiguities has a detrimental impact on the quality of academic research and policy-making in this sphere. Firstly, it impedes orderly collection of statistical information on volunteering in administrative sources. Also, it complicates the collection of survey information: the absence of well-understood and widely-agreed concepts of voluntarism in the public mind introduces uncertainty in people’s responses. To date, however, there has not been an attempt to compare findings of different surveys systematically. This paper aims to fill the gap in research by reviewing the available surveys for the UK. It focuses specifically on the methods used to obtain information on volunteering and the comparability of the results generated by different surveys
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