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Kinds of Commercial Terms modified by Commercial Selected AbstractsPredicting and managing the effects of hypersalinity on the fish community in solar salt fields in north-western AustraliaJOURNAL OF APPLIED ICHTHYOLOGY, Issue 2 2006B. W. Molony Summary Five concentrator ponds (CPs) of a solar salt field in Port Hedland, Western Australia were sampled by seine and gill nets over a 12-month period in order to describe the fish community and examine relationships between diversity, abundance and catch per unit effort (CPUE) with salinity. Salinity varied between 40.2 and 113.7, during the sampling period. Forty-one species of fishes were recorded from the CPs, with fewer species recorded from CPs of higher salinity. A significant inverse relationship was identified between salinity and the number of species (diversity) captured in gill nets, indicating that one species is lost with every 16, increase in salinity. A significant relationship between salinity and CPUE was also identified with gill-net samples, indicating a reduction of 1 kg h,1 with every increase in salinity of 5.5,. As CPs are connected by one-way flaps, fish movements are only possible into CPs of higher salinity. Thus, reductions in diversity, abundance and CPUE suggested fish mortalities, likely as a result of maximum or rapidly changing salinities exceeding the tolerance ability of individual species. As fish kills are not infrequent events in solar salt fields and result in economic losses due to loss of production and clean-up costs, the results may allow managers to identify high risk species and times of year of fish kills by using salinity measurements. Commercial, indigenous and/or recreational fishing opportunities are viable options for reducing fish biomasses within the CPs and are discussed. Although absolute salinity values were higher than those recorded from tropical Australian estuaries, salinity deviations within each CP are similar to other estuaries and the effect on the ichthyo-community is likely to be similar. [source] Reduction of Limonene Chlorohydrins in Commercial Citrus OilsJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE, Issue 1 2005Robert J. Braddock ABSTRACT: Commercial cold-pressed citrus oils containing terpene chlorohydrins may have quality and safety implications for end-users of these oils. Concentrations of (1S, 2S, 4R)-2-chloro-8- p -menthen-1-ol (1), (1R, 2R, 4R)-2-chloro-8- p -menthen-1-ol (2), and (1R, 2R, 4R)-2,9-dichloro-8- p -menthen-1-ol (3) in some citrus essential oils ranged from less than 1 ppm to 30 ppm measured by gas chromatography with a halogen detector. Reduction reactions of these compounds were accomplished by continuous mixing (reaction) of the oil with dilute solutions of KOH. Greater than 95% reduction of 1 and 3 were accomplished after reaction for 15 h with 0.5 N KOH or after 24 h with 0.25 N KOH in oils with either 25 or 30 ppm (1). Similar treatment of an oil containing 5 ppm (1) resulted in reduction to below the threshold limit of quantification (0.4 ppm). Sensory analyses of tasting solutions did not detect any flavor difference between untreated or KOH-treated oils. [source] Consumer Awareness and Willingness to Pay for High-Pressure Processing of Ready-to-Eat FoodJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE EDUCATION, Issue 2 2009Doris T. Hicks ABSTRACT:, Commercial, nonthermal processing of food, such as high hydrostatic-pressure processing (HPP), has increased. The safety and quality of foods produced by HPP has not been well communicated to the public. An online, nationwide consumer survey was implemented to assess awareness of alternative food processing technologies, consumer food safety attitudes and knowledge, and willingness to pay (WTP) for HPP products. The consumer survey was administered by ZoomerangÔ, an online survey clearinghouse. The survey was completed by 1204 adults. Frequencies and crosstabs were calculated on Zoomerang and SPSS used for one-way ANOVA and chi-square analyses. The survey assessed knowledge of HPP, attitudes about new food processing techniques, WTP for HPP foods and demographics. Overall, many demographic characteristics reflected U.S. census population. While traditional methods, that is, canning, freezing, and microwaving were all well recognized by over 80% of respondents, only 8% recognized HPP. Trends indicated an increase in age, education, and income reflected greater food safety knowledge. Regardless of demographics, no survey respondent exhibited knowledge mastery (80%). Given an explanation of HPP and its benefits, 39% of respondents indicated they would be WTP an additional cost, with higher income and education having the most impact. Majority of respondents indicated a WTP of $0.25 to $0.50 regardless of the value of the food product. More respondents were WTP slightly more for a more expensive product. New technologies often encounter a stumbling block in consumer acceptance and processing costs. A consumer's WTP, once they were informed, could encourage industry to look favorably on this technology. [source] IgG classification of anti-PF4/heparin antibodies to identify patients with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia during mechanical circulatory supportJOURNAL OF THROMBOSIS AND HAEMOSTASIS, Issue 2 2007S. SCHENK Summary., Commercial immunoassays frequently detect anti-PF4/heparin antibodies during mechanical circulatory support (MCS), but only a small minority of patients develops heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT). Whereas platelet functional tests can distinguish between platelet-activating and non-platelet-activating antibodies, commercial PF4-dependent immunoassays do not. Between 2003 and 2004, 113 patients were placed on MCS. Blood samples were obtained on postimplant day 5,7 for analyses by antibody assays and the functional heparin-induced platelet activation (HIPA) assay. Three distinct groups of patient sera were identified: platelet-activating anti-PF4/heparin antibodies (n = 10), non-platelet-activating anti-PF4/heparin antibodies (n = 53), and anti-PF4/heparin antibody negative (n = 50). Patients with platelet-activating antibodies had the highest risk for thromboembolic events (P < 0.005), whereas those with non-platelet-activating antibodies did not differ from antibody negative patients (P = 0.369). The enzyme-immunoassay and column agglutination assays, which cover all immunoglobulin classes, demonstrated adequate sensitivity and negative predictive value; yet, both lacked specificity with respect to the platelet-activating antibodies. If all antibody positive patients were further classified by an IgG-specific anti-PF4/heparin enzyme-immuno assay, specificity for platelet-activating antibodies increased. Whereas IgG-specific optical density (OD) values below 1.0 were likely for non-platelet-activating anti-PF4/heparin antibodies, higher values were progressively predictive for pathogenic platelet activation. The probability of the development of clinical HIT also increased steeply. In conclusion, platelet-activating anti-PF4/heparin antibodies are relatively common (about 9%) in patients on MCS and are associated with significantly higher thrombotic event rates. Low IgG-specific OD values (< 1.0) in the enzyme-immunoassay indicate low likelihood for the presence of platelet-activating antibodies. These results justify further validation so that anticoagulation during MCS becomes safer and adequate. [source] Macromonomer Purification Strategy for Well-Defined Polymer Amphiphiles Incorporating Poly(ethylene glycol) Monomethacrylate,MACROMOLECULAR RAPID COMMUNICATIONS, Issue 8 2006Ikuo Taniguchi Abstract Summary: Commercial hydroxy-terminated poly(ethylene glycol) monomethacrylates (PEG-MAs) contain poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate, which leads to unfavorable gel formation on polymerization. Here, hydroxy-terminated PEG-MA is readily isolated using a dimethylsilyl resin chlorinated with 1,3-dichloro-5,5-dimethylhydantoin. Solution polymerization of the isolated PEG-MA by free radical routes gives a high-molecular-weight amphiphilic graft copolymer without cross-linking. The resulting polymer is stable for long periods in ambient conditions with preservation of the hydroxy end groups of PEG. Commercial hydroxy-terminated PEG-MA can be separated readily and completely from PEG dimethacrylate contaminant with chlorinated dimethylsilyl resin. [source] Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) and Market Efficiency with Respect to Costly InformationREAL ESTATE ECONOMICS, Issue 3 2008Andreas D. Christopoulos Commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) are complex asset-backed securities trading in markets that do not currently use derivatives pricing technology. This lack of usage is due to the complexity of the modeling exercise, and only the recent and costly availability of historical data. As such, CMBS markets provide a natural environment for the testing of market efficiency with respect to this costly information. Using this information, this article develops a CMBS pricing model to provide a joint test of the model and market efficiency. Backtesting our pricing model for 4 years, although there is some evidence of abnormal trading profits, we cannot reject the efficiency of the CMBS markets. [source] Volatile organoselenium monitoring in production and gastric digestion processes of selenized yeast by solid-phase microextraction-multicapillary gas chromatography coupled microwave-induced plasma atomic emission spectrometry,APPLIED ORGANOMETALLIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 12 2004J. Sanz Landaluze Abstract Evolution of volatile organoselenium compounds in the production and gastric digestion of selenized yeast has been monitored. The industrial production of these kinds of material, employed as food supplements, has been simulated in a process of yeast enrichment with inorganic selenium selenium (IV) in different growth media, with variation of the pH value. The in vitro gastric digestion process was carried out with pepsin in an acid and salt mixture. Determination of volatile species of selenium was achieved coupling solid-phase microextraction (SPME) for preconcentration and sample,matrix separation and microwave-induced plasma atomic emission spectrometry, in combination with multicapillary (MC) gas chromatography for separation and detection of the selenium species. The MC column was operated at low temperatures (,30 °C). The method was optimized, using a chemometric approach, with respect to the detection of organoselenium species such as dimethylselenide, diethylselenide and dimethyldiselenide. SPME sampling was carried out in the headspace above the corresponding solutions. Separation is fast, with a chromatogram being obtained in less than 5 min, and the detection limits were at the low parts per billion level for all species investigated. The results of the yeast enrichment process demonstrate inorganic selenium transformation into volatile organic species. The presence of inorganic selenium gave rise to at least five different volatile species after metabolization by yeast, with dimethylselenide and dimethyldiselenide being the predominant species. Commercial pasteurized yeast, containing mainly selenomethionine for use as a food supplement, and tablets were found to be still active under conditions of the simulation of the digestion process, even though producing relatively low amounts of organoselenium compounds. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Oxidation of Aromatic Alcohols in Irradiated Aqueous Suspensions of Commercial and Home-Prepared Rutile TiO2: A Selectivity StudyCHEMISTRY - A EUROPEAN JOURNAL, Issue 15 2008Vincenzo Augugliaro Prof. Abstract The photocatalytic oxidation of benzyl alcohol (BA) and 4-methoxybenzyl alcohol (MBA) has been performed in pure water by using commercial TiO2 samples (Sigma-Aldrich, Merck, Degussa P25) and rutile TiO2 prepared from TiCl4 at low temperature. Particular attention has been devoted to the identification of the produced aromatic compounds along with the formed CO2. Oxidation products such as the corresponding aromatic aldehyde and acid, as well as mono- and dihydroxylated aldehydes have been detected. The home-prepared rutile sample showed a marked selectivity towards the formation of the aromatic aldehyde (38 and 60,% for BA and MBA, respectively), resulting in a three- to sevenfold improvement relative to commercial samples, with the only byproduct being CO2. This catalyst was found to be the most selective in the formation of aldehyde in water. By using the commercial or the calcined home-prepared samples, many hydroxylated aromatic compounds were detected besides the aldehyde and the acid. This finding points to a higher selectivity performance of the home-prepared rutile relative to the commercial TiO2 samples. Some of the home-prepared samples were also dialysed to check the influence of the presence of Cl, species on catalyst reactivity and selectivity. We have attempted to explain the different reaction rate and selectivity observed for MBA and BA. [source] Commercial and sexual exploitation of children and young people in the UK,a reviewCHILD ABUSE REVIEW, Issue 1 2005Elaine Chase Abstract This paper reviews recent information and data relevant to the commercial sexual exploitation of children and young people in the UK. Three main aspects of exploitation are addressed: abuse through prostitution; abuse through pornography; and the trafficking of children and young people to and through the UK for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation. Most published research in this area relates to young people exploited through prostitution. The review explores the range of vulnerability factors, the processes used to engage young people in prostitution and the types of support strategies for those being exploited. Rather less information is currently available on the scale of child pornography, or the links between the use of pornography and other forms of sexual abuse. The internet as a modern technology for proliferating child pornography is discussed, alongside its role in providing opportunities for paedophiles to access and ,groom' children for sexual purposes. Finally, the review provides a summary of research on trafficking of children to and through the UK for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and demonstrates the limited knowledge about this topic. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Rock Stars in Anti-Drug-Abuse Commercials: An Experimental Study of Adolescents' Reactions,JOURNAL OF APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2000Michael D Newcomb Two studies examined adolescents' perceptions and effectiveness of rock stars in antidrug-abuse public-service announcements (PSAs). In the pilot study (N= 24 teenagers), adolescents expected rock musicians, and in particular heavy metal musicians, to be drug users. In our experimental study (N= 78 high school students aged 15 to 16 years), one group was shown 4 PSAs produced by Rock Against Drugs, using rock stars Jon Bon Jovi, Aimee Mann, Gene Simmons, and Belinda Carlysle as spokespersons. The comparison group was shown 4 equivalent PSAs that were created using unknown actors selected for their similarity to the rock stars in terms of age, ethnicity, and gender, but without any reference to rock music. PSA ratings were taken on 4 scales: attractiveness, expertness, trustworthiness, and overall PSA rating. Pretest and posttest measures of drug attitudes supported our hypotheses that countermessages from rock stars denormalize the connection between rock music and drugs, and that adolescents respond more positively to PSAs with rock stars than to PSAs without rock stars. [source] Minorities in Children's Television Commercials: New, Improved, and StereotypedJOURNAL OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, Issue 1 2003HAE-KYONG BANG Mass media is one means by which consumers learn how to behave as consumers. Consumers' beliefs about minorities as consumers are also influenced by mass media, and the impact is likely highest among young children. A content analysis of 813 commercials in children's television programming reveals that while Caucasians continue to be the predominant models in terms of numbers and in the types of roles they play, the numerical representation of minorities, especially Blacks, has improved. However, the study found that minorities are more likely than Caucasians to have minor roles and to be portrayed in certain product categories, settings, and relationships. Societal impacts and implications for minority consumers are discussed. [source] Health, Medicine, and Food Messages in Television Commercials During 1992 and 1998JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, Issue 2 2000Carol Byrd-Bredbenner ABSTRACT: The potential effects of television advertisements on knowledge, attitudes, and behavior have generated considerable concern. Part of this concern arises from the overall exposure of children to this medium. By the time they graduate from high school, the time devoted to watching television will exceed the hours spent in school. Hence, health professionals should recognize the disproportionate role of television as an informational and attitudinal source for children. The potential impact of television advertisements, particularly those promoting health-related products such as medications and foods, coupled with the changing nature of television points to this medium as an important candidate for examination. The purpose of this study was to content analyze and compare advertisements broadcast in 1992 and 1998 to create a description of the health information conveyed in top-rated, prime time network television advertisements and to determine the congruence of this information with current health recommendations. [source] Serious Games: Broadening Games Impact Beyond EntertainmentCOMPUTER GRAPHICS FORUM, Issue 3 2007Ben Sawyer Computer and videogames for many years has been an island of technology and design innovation largely left to itself as it morphed from a cottage business into a global media and software industry. While there have been pockets of derivative activity related to games and game technology only in the last half-dozen years has there been a real movement toward exploiting this industry in many new and exciting ways. Today the general use of games and game technologies for purposes beyond entertainment is collectively referred to as serious games. The Serious Games Initiative was formed in 2002 and since its inception has been among a number of critical efforts that has helped open up the world and many disciplines to the ideas and innovations that may be sourced from the commercial, independent, and academic game fields. This has been a person-by-person, project-by-project effort that not only has informed us about the potential of games but also in how you merge innovation and innovators from one discipline with those in another. In this talk we will explore the total gamut of the serious games field identifying past the obvious how games and game technologies are being applied to problems in a wide array of areas including healthcare, productivity, visualization, science, and of course training and education. Once a proper definition of serious games is established the talk will focus on the current state of the field as it relates to research and infrastructure issues that are needed to make the difference between seeing serious games take hold as a major new practice or having it devolve into another trend of the moment lost to history. [source] Novel software architecture for rapid development of magnetic resonance applicationsCONCEPTS IN MAGNETIC RESONANCE, Issue 3 2002Josef Debbins Abstract As the pace of clinical magnetic resonance (MR) procedures grows, the need for an MR scanner software platform on which developers can rapidly prototype, validate, and produce product applications becomes paramount. A software architecture has been developed for a commercial MR scanner that employs state of the art software technologies including Java, C++, DICOM, XML, and so forth. This system permits graphical (drag and drop) assembly of applications built on simple processing building blocks, including pulse sequences, a user interface, reconstruction and postprocessing, and database control. The application developer (researcher or commercial) can assemble these building blocks to create custom applications. The developer can also write source code directly to create new building blocks and add these to the collection of components, which can be distributed worldwide over the internet. The application software and its components are developed in Java, which assures platform portability across any host computer that supports a Java Virtual Machine. The downloaded executable portion of the application is executed in compiled C++ code, which assures mission-critical real-time execution during fast MR acquisition and data processing on dedicated embedded hardware that supports C or C++. This combination permits flexible and rapid MR application development across virtually any combination of computer configurations and operating systems, and yet it allows for very high performance execution on actual scanner hardware. Applications, including prescan, are inherently real-time enabled and can be aggregated and customized to form "superapplications," wherein one or more applications work with another to accomplish the clinical objective with a very high transition speed between applications. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts in Magnetic Resonance (Magn Reson Engineering) 15: 216,237, 2002 [source] In vivo proton spectroscopy without solvent suppressionCONCEPTS IN MAGNETIC RESONANCE, Issue 4 2001David B. Clayton Abstract In 1H MR spectroscopy of the human brain, it is common practice to suppress the solvent signal prior to acquisition. This reduces the large dynamic range which is otherwise required of the MR receiver and digitizer in order to detect the dilute metabolite resonances in the presence of the much larger water signal. However, complete solvent suppression is not always obtainable, particularly over large volumes and in superficial regions containing large susceptibility gradients. In this work, it demonstrated that modern commercial MR scanners possess the dynamic range necessary to adequately resolve the 1H metabolites in unsuppressed spectra. Moreover, a postacquisition method is presented which can completely remove the intact water signal and accurately quantitate the metabolite peaks. Preserving the water signal in in vivo spectroscopy has several useful benefits, such as providing a high signal-to-noise ratio internal concentration, frequency, and line shape reference. Comparison is made between suppressed and unsuppressed spectra from both a phantom and the human brain acquired at 4 T. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson 13: 260,275, 2001 [source] Philopatry and Homing Behavior of Sea Snakes (Laticauda colubrina) from Two Adjacent Islands in FijiCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2002Sohan Shetty Even in highly vagile species, local populations may comprise ecologically separate entities if most animals display strong and consistent site attachment. We conducted a mark-recapture study on yellow-lipped sea kraits ( Laticauda colubrina) on two small Fijian islands separated by 5.3 km. These snakes forage over many kilometers in the ocean, but return to land to reproduce, slough, and digest their food. Recovery of marked snakes showed that the populations on these two islands were essentially separate. Relocated snakes returned "home" almost immediately after they were released. Growth rates and mean adult body sizes of male sea snakes also differed between the two islands. This high site fidelity means that activities such as resort development or commercial harvesting for the skin trade are likely to have intense localized effects rather than diffuse broad-scale effects on sea snake populations. Our results also call into question the feasibility of plans to reintroduce snake populations to areas where a species has been eliminated by overexploitation. Resumen: La escala espacial a la que las perturbaciones antropogénicas afectan a una población de animales depende del grado de filopatría y de la búsqueda del hogar de individuos dentro de esta población. Aún en especies altamente móviles, las poblaciones locales pueden contener entidades ecológicamente separadas si la mayoría de los animales presentan un apego fuerte y consistente por un sitio. Llevamos a cabo un estudio de marcado-recaptura en las serpientes marinas de labios amarillos ( Laticauda colubrina) de dos islas pequeñas de Fiji, separadas por 5.3 km. Estas serpientes forrajean a lo largo de muchos kilómetros en el océano, pero regresan a tierra a reproducirse, mudar de piel y digerir su comida. La recuperación de serpientes mostró que las poblaciones en estas dos islas estaban substancialmente separadas. Las serpientes reubicadas regresaron a "casa" casi inmediatamente después de haber sido liberadas. Las tasas de crecimiento y el tamaño promedio de machos también difirieron entre las dos islas. Esta alta fidelidad al sitio significa que las actividades tales como el desarrollo de un centro turístico o de la cosecha comercial para el comercio de la piel son probablemente factores que tendrán efectos localizados en lugar de efectos difusos de amplia escala sobre las poblaciones de serpientes marinas. Nuestros resultados también cuestionan la viabilidad de planes para reintroducir poblaciones de serpientes en áreas donde una especie ha sido eliminada por sobreexplotación. [source] Temperate marine reserves: global ecological effects and guidelines for future networksCONSERVATION LETTERS, Issue 6 2009Gavin B. Stewart Abstract Marine reserves, areas closed to all fishing and other extractive activities, provide a refuge for species of commercial and conservation importance. Given the considerable resources committed to designing temperate reserve networks, we synthesized data from temperate reserves worldwide to determine their ecological effects. In common with other studies, we found higher density, biomass, and species richness in temperate marine reserves compared to adjacent exploited areas. However, there was considerable heterogeneity in magnitude of effect among reserves, variability which was largely unexplained by species or reserve characteristics. Our analytical approach allowed for formal power analyses, indicating that detection of large reserve effects in temperate systems globally requires monitoring at least 37 reserves. These results must be qualified by the limitations of data available and will undoubtedly vary at different spatio-temporal scales and for different focal species, but provide guidance for the design and monitoring of future marine conservations plans. International commitments toward establishment of multiple reserves offer a unique opportunity to assess reserve effectiveness; this opportunity can only be realized if reserves are designed to achieve clear and quantifiable objectives and are adequately monitored before and after establishment, based on appropriate power analyses, to assess how well those objectives are achieved. [source] Proof of principle: An HIV p24 microsphere immunoassay with potential application to HIV clinical diagnosis,CYTOMETRY, Issue 3 2009Pascale Ondoa Abstract The measurement of CD4 counts and viral loads on a single instrument such as an affordable flow cytometer could considerably reduce the cost related to the follow-up of antiretroviral therapy in resource-poor settings. The aim of this study was to assess whether the HIV-1 p24 antigen could be measured using a microsphere-based flow cytometric (FC) assay and the experimental conditions necessary for processing plasma samples. A commercial anti-p24 antibody pair from Biomaric was used to develop a p24 microsphere immunoassay (MIA) using HIV culture supernatant as the source of antigen. The ultrasensitive Perkin Elmer enzyme immunoassay (EIA) served as a reference assay. Quantification of HIV p24 using the heat-mediated immune complex disruption format described for plasma samples was feasible using the Biomaric MIA and applicable to a broad range of HIV-1 Group M subtypes. The inclusion of a tyramide amplification step was successful and increased the fluorescence signal up to 3 logs as compared with the MIA without amplification. The analytical sensitivity of this ultrasensitive Biomaric assay reached 1 pg/mL, whereas the ultrasensitive Perkin Elmer EIA was sensitive to less than 0.17 pg/mL. Our data indicate, for the first time, that the principle of p24 detection using the heat-denatured ultrasensitive format can be applied to FC. © 2008 Clinical Cytometry Society [source] Impact of the international program for quality assessment and standardization for immunological measures relevant to HIV/AIDS: QASICYTOMETRY, Issue 2 2002Francis Mandy Abstract Measurements of CD4 T-cell levels are essential for the assessment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease course, clinical staging, epidemiological studies, and decisions regarding prophylactic therapies against opportunistic infection. Until now, only in the industrialized countries was T-cell subset monitoring considered a practical option to assess disease progression. The Quality Assessment and Standardization for Immunological Measures Relevant to HIV/AIDS (QASI) program was established in 1997 to meet performance assessment for immunophenotyping laboratories in countries where such service is not available. The QASI program is provided at no cost to any laboratory in a resource-poor setting that wishes to participate. This report describes the beneficial impact of participation in the QASI program. Carefully selected commercial stabilized whole blood preparations were sent regularly to participating laboratories. Participants reported the T-cell subset values they obtained by flow cytometry. Once the aggregate mean values for the T-cell subsets were established for the shipment, a comprehensive and confidential report was sent to each laboratory. The results from five consecutive shipments were analyzed. The coefficient of variation decreased from 7.2% to 4.7% and from 14.2% to 8.8% for percent and absolute CD4 T-cell counts, respectively. With the implementation of the QASI program using commercial stabilized whole blood specimens, it is possible to reduce interlaboratory error. This study illustrates that a quality assessment program can improve the overall performance of laboratories. Reducing interlaboratory variation can enhance significantly the effectiveness of multicenter HIV vaccine or drug trial evaluation. Cytometry (Clin. Cytometry) 50:111,116, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Long term effects of cormorant predation on fish communities and fishery in a freshwater lakeECOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2001Henri Engström Cormorant impact upon natural fish populations has long been debated but little studied because of the requirements of sound data that are often hard to fill. In this study I have monitored fish community composition/abundance before and after a cormorant colony was established in a high productive lake, Ymsen, of south-central Sweden. Data on fish abundance before cormorant establishment enabled me to control for changes in fish densities prior to cormorant colonisation. To control for possible changes in fish populations caused by factors other than cormorant predation (i.e. large-scale regional changes due to climate) data were compared with a control lake, Garnsviken, with no cormorants. Since Lake Ymsen also harbour an important commercial fishery, cormorant impact upon fishery yields was evaluated. The most important fish species in the diet of the cormorants were ruffe (75% by number), roach (11%) and perch (10%). Except for perch, commercially important fish made up a very small fraction of the cormorant diet. Eel, the most important fish for the fishery, was absent in the cormorant diet, pikeperch constituted 0.2% and pike 1.5%. Estimated fish outtake by the cormorants was 12.8 kg ha,1 yr,1 compared to 8.6 kg ha,1 yr,1 for the fishery. Despite considerable fish withdrawal by the cormorants, fish populations did not seem to change in numbers or biomass. The present study indicates that cormorant impact upon fish populations in Lake Ymsen was small and probably in no case has led to declines of neither commercial nor of non-commercial fish species. Still, the number of breeding cormorants in Lake Ymsen, in relation to foraging area, is among the highest known for Swedish lakes. [source] From imitation to invention: creating commodities in eighteenth-century BritainECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW, Issue 1 2002Maxine Berg This article presents the history of new goods in the eighteenth century as a part of the broader history of invention and industrialization. It focuses on product innovation in manufactured commodities as this engages with economic, technological and cultural theories. Recent theories of consumer demand are applied to the invention of commodities in the eighteenth century; special attention is given to the process of imitation in product innovation. The theoretical framework for imitation can be found in evolutionary theories of memetic transmission, in archaeological theories of skeuomorphous, and in eighteenth-century theories of taste and aesthetics. Inventors, projectors, economic policy makers, and commercial and economic writers of the period dwelt upon the invention of new British products. The emulative, imitative context for their invention made British consumer goods the distinctive modern alternatives to earlier Asian and European luxuries. [source] Enter at your own risk: HMO participation and enrollment in the Medicare risk marketECONOMIC INQUIRY, Issue 3 2000J Abraham We examine HMO participation and enrollment in the Medicare risk market for the years 1990 to 1995. We develop a profit-maximization model of HMO behavior, which explicitly considers potential linkages between an HMO's production decision in the commercial enrollee market and its participation and production decisions in the Medicare risk market. Our results suggest that the payment rate is a primary determinant of HMO participation, while the price of a supplemental Medicare insurance policy positively affects HMO Medicare enrollment. We also find empirical support for the existence of complementarities in the joint production of an HMO's commercial and Medicare products. [source] The Choice Among Interbank Settlement Systems: The European ExperienceECONOMIC NOTES, Issue 1 2003Angelo Baglioni This paper addresses the choice of banks between alternative channels for interbank payments. The conventional view assumes a tradeoff between the safety of real-time gross settlement (RTGS) and the liquidity savings of multilateral netting. Moreover, correspondent banking is believed to be inefficient, both in terms of liquidity and of administrative costs. In the last decade, however, the impulse of the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems, technological changes and the management of RTGS systems by central banks have reduced the difference between the various systems. This is especially true for risk, whereas liquidity cost crucially depends on the refinancing policy adopted by the central bank and the co-ordination among the participants. On the basis of the recent evolution of payment systems in Europe, we verify the importance of liquidity, as well as other variables like transaction costs, for the choice of banks among different settlement systems. Cost factors imply that the nature of payments flows (value, commercial versus financial) and some structural features of the banking systems (dimension of the intermediaries, concentration of the banking sector) become important. The analysis is carried out both through a theoretical model and a cross-country comparison based on three data sources: ECB (European Central Bank, EBA (Euro Banking Association) and SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication). [source] COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ON THE INDIGENOUS ESTATE: A PROFIT-RELATED INVESTMENT PROPOSALECONOMIC PAPERS: A JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECONOMICS AND POLICY, Issue 3 2005Jon Altman This article assesses the state of commercial development and resource management on Indigenous land in remote Australia. Indigenous landowners control significant assets,over one million square kilometres of land,often with substantial resource rights and income earning potential. The inactivity and missed opportunities on the Indigenous estate are of such magnitude as to represent a major risk both for Indigenous landowning communities, in terms of their future economic and social well-being, and for national and international interests in terms of ecological vulnerability. The article explores the role of government as risk manager in such circumstances and outlines the principles that might underpin any intervention program targeted to the commercial development of Indigenous land. Using the analytical framework for profit-related loans and elements of an existing venture capital support programme, the Innovation Investment Fund Program, we outline the hypothetical skeleton of a new investment scheme to assist development and natural resource management on the Indigenous estate. Our proposal can be conceptualised as a profit-related loan scheme or as a form of capped public investment. It seeks to address key elements of the market failure that exists in relation to financing development on remote Indigenous land, provides incentives for greater private sector investment, and ensures that commercial and social risks are shared equitably between government, private sector investors and Indigenous-owned corporations to avoid problems of adverse selection and moral hazard. [source] Design and adaptation of miniaturized electrochemical devices integrating carbon nanotube-based sensors to commercial CE equipmentELECTROPHORESIS, Issue 19 2009Alberto Sánchez Arribas Abstract The design of new electrochemical devices integrating carbon nanotube sensors and their adaptation to commercial CE equipments are described. One of these designs was made for using commercial screen-printed electrodes, whereas the second was projected for coupling commercial glassy carbon electrodes. The electrochemical characterization of these devices revealed that their hydrodynamic behaviour is strongly influenced by the electrode modification with multi-wall carbon nanotubes that provided faster and/or more sensitive signals. The analytical applicability of these devices was illustrated for the CZE separation of chlorinated phenols and the MEKC separation of endocrine disruptors, where the use of carbon nanotube sensors has proved to be advantageous when compared with unmodified ones, with good electrocatalytic properties combined with acceptable background currents and a remarkable resistance to passivation. [source] Automatic analysis of multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification products (exemplified by a commercial kit for prenatal aneuploidy detection)ELECTROPHORESIS, Issue 22 2005Tommy Gerdes Dr. Abstract For use in routine prenatal diagnostics, we developed software and methods for automatic aneuploidy detection based on a commercial multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) kit. Software and methods ensure a reliable, objective, and fast workflow, and may be applied to other types of MLPA kits. Following CE of MLPA amplification products, the software automatically identified the peak area for each probe, normalized it in relation to the neighboring peak areas of the test sample, computed the ratio relative to a reference created from normal samples, and compensated the ratio for a side effect of the normalization procedure that scaled all chromosomally normal DNA peak areas slightly up or down depending on the kind of aneuploidy present. For the chromosomes 13, 18, 21, X, and Y, probe reliability weighted mean ratio values and corresponding SDs were calculated, and the significance for being outside a reference interval around ratio 1.0 was tested. p,,,1% suggested aneuploidy and 1,<,p,,,5% suggested potential aneuploidy. Individual peaks, where the normalized area was situated more than 4 SD from the corresponding reference, suggested possible partial deletion or gain. Sample quality was automatically assessed. Control probes were not required. Having used the software and methods for two years, we conclude that a reliable, objective, and fast workflow is obtained. [source] Bioremediation of 6 % [w/w] Diesel-Contaminated Mainland Soil in Singapore: Comparison of Different Biostimulation and Bioaugmentation TreatmentsENGINEERING IN LIFE SCIENCES (ELECTRONIC), Issue 1 2006M. Mathew Abstract The efficacy of indigenous microorganisms to degrade diesel oil in contaminated mainland sites in Singapore was investigated. A semi-scale trial was made by spiking topsoil with 6,% [w/w] of diesel oil. The results indicated that in the presence of NPK commercial (Rosasol®) fertilizer a 53,% reduction in contaminant concentration was recorded after 60,days compared to untreated controls while the addition of a mixture of urea and K2HPO4 effected a 48,% reduction in the Total Recoverable Petroleum Hydrocarbons. A commercial culture and an enriched/isolated microbial association proved to be the least effective with 25 and 9,% reductions, respectively. The results confirmed the bioremediation potential of indigenous microorganisms for diesel-oil contaminated mainland soil. Identification of the persistent compounds was done and perceived as a tool in decision-making on strategies for speeding up of the degradation process to achieve clean-up standards in shorter remediation periods. [source] Social and Commercial Entrepreneurship: Same, Different, or Both?ENTREPRENEURSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE, Issue 1 2006James Austin Entrepreneurship has been the engine propelling much of the growth of the business sector as well as a driving force behind the rapid expansion of the social sector. This article offers a comparative analysis of commercial and social entrepreneurship using a prevailing analytical model from commercial entrepreneurship. The analysis highlights key similarities and differences between these two forms of entrepreneurship and presents a framework on how to approach the social entrepreneurial process more systematically and effectively. We explore the implications of this analysis of social entrepreneurship for both practitioners and researchers. [source] Pursuing community forestry in LiberiaENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 5 2009Jennifer N. Lamb Abstract While Liberian forests are a biodiversity hotspot and integral to the livelihoods of indigenous communities, 14 years of conflict forestry turned this national asset into a source of economic inequality and corruption in an extreme example of a ,natural resource curse'. Moreover, overharvesting of timber through the conflict period has endangered community livelihoods and raised concerns regarding resource sustainability from international conservation organizations. Since the end of conflict in 2003, the Liberian government has forged international partnerships to create a reformed policy framework balancing commercial, conservation and community (the three Cs) interests. In an effort to contribute to the larger body of work on the role of natural resource management institutions in the creation and fostering of the resource curse, this paper offers a case study of timber in Liberia. We feel that an in-depth understanding of the Liberian case clarifies the challenge of timber as an extractive commodity and how the institutional framework can be shaped to provide a positive contribution to economic development. The discussion focuses on the historical development of Liberian land and forest tenure institutions that lead to poverty, ecological degradation and conflict. Tracing the more recent implementation of the three Cs, this paper analyzes the current conditions of community engagement and outlines critical steps to be taken for Liberia to escape further resource driven cycles of conflict. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Interpreting sustainable development and societal utility in Norwegian GMO assessmentsENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 4 2008G. Kristin Rosendal Abstract This article examines the process of assessing applications for genetically modified (GM) crops or plants for import or commercial planting in Norway. GMO legislation in Norway is closely linked to the EU through the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA), to which Norway is a party. A central difference with the EU processes emanates from specific clauses in the Norwegian Gene Technology Act on ,sustainable development' and ,societal utility', which provide a potentially wider leverage for Norwegian authorities to turn down the applications. Research material indicates evidence of an increasingly restrictive practice in the Norwegian evaluations, raising the question of how this can be explained in the face of increasing global acceptance of GMOs. A related question is to what extent and how this result is affected by the trends in the EU. An increasingly restrictive practice may be explained by changes in the access structure to the evaluating body, or it may be due to learning and a growing acceptance of the precautionary principle in this sector. Third, a higher number of rejections may largely be associated with the interest structure pertaining to GMOs in Norway. Final decisions are pending and there are uncertainties concerning how Norwegian authorities will apply the specific criteria of the Gene Technology Act. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||