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Reconstruction Process (reconstruction + process)
Selected AbstractsCrisis Discourses and Technology Regulation in a Weak State: Responses to a Pesticide Disaster in HondurasDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 1 2003Kees Jansen Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras in October 1998, leaving a trail of death, injury and devastating damage. As it tore through the country, the hurricane damaged a number of warehouses which contained pesticides, resulting in the discharge of more than 70 tonnes of pesticides into the environment. This article explores the responses of the Honduran state and international relief agencies to this event. It analyses the use of crisis discourses and their role in the reconstruction process, arguing that crisis discourses may legitimize political rule in the context of a weak state. It goes on to make the point that the shaping of crisis discourses is not the exclusive terrain of politicians but necessarily involves technical experts. [source] The Political Ecology of Transition in Cambodia 1989,1999: War, Peace and Forest ExploitationDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 4 2000Philippe Le Billon Over the last decade, forests have played an important role in the transition from war to peace in Cambodia. Forest exploitation financed the continuation of war beyond the Cold War and regional dynamics, yet it also stimulated co-operation between conflicting parties. Timber represented a key stake in the rapacious transition from the (benign) socialism of the post-Khmer Rouge period to (exclusionary) capitalism, thereby becoming the most politicized resource of a reconstruction process that has failed to be either as green or as democratic as the international community had hoped. This article explores the social networks and power politics shaping forest exploitation, with the aim of casting light on the politics of transition. It also scrutinizes the unintended consequences of the international community's discourse of democracy, good governance, and sustainable development on forest access rights. The commodification of Cambodian forests is interpreted as a process of transforming nature into money through a political ecology of transition that legitimates an exclusionary form of capitalism. [source] Theoretical analysis of iterative signal reconstruction for impulsive noise mitigation in OFDM systemsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS, Issue 3 2010Nikola Rozic Abstract In this paper a theoretical analysis of the iterative signal reconstruction algorithm for impulsive noise mitigation in orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) systems is developed. The following main results are developed: first, analytical model for the total noise in the frequency domain, and second the model for the total noise probability density function (pdf) in the frequency domain, both defined for each step of the iterative reconstruction process. Finally, based on the pdf of the total noise, explicit expressions for BER in kth iteration are defined as well. The main intention of the paper is to present the approach to theoretical analysis of the iterative impulsive noise mitigation algorithm that has not yet been appeared in the literature, because the theoretical analysis of the noise pdf during iterations has been considered as too complex a problem. Analyses and analytical results presented in the paper are given for scenario with a fixed number of noise impulses per frame. However, this is not a handicap of the proposed approach, since all presented models can be used as building blocks for scenarios with other impulsive noise distributions including Bernoulli,Gaussian and Middleton's Class A. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Nursing, midwifery and allied health education programmes in AfghanistanINTERNATIONAL NURSING REVIEW, Issue 2 2005P. Herberg phd Background:, In 2001, Afghanistan was the centre of the world's attention. By 2002, following 23 years of internal conflict , including Soviet invasion, civil war and Taliban rule, plus 3 years of drought, the country was just beginning the process of re-establishing its internal structures and processes. In the health sector, this included the revival of the Ministry of Health (MOH). The MOH was assisted in its efforts by multiple partners, including the UN, donor and aid agencies, and a variety of non-governmental organizations. The author served as a consultant to the Aga Khan University School of Nursing, in partnership with the World Health Organization and the MOH, as it took on the work of strengthening nursing, midwifery and allied health education programmes for Afghanistan. Aim:, This paper will focus on the initial assessment of that sector. It will describe the situation as it existed in 2002, by examining the Kabul Institute of Health Sciences (IHS) and then turn briefly to the current state of affairs. Conclusions:, Despite the uncertainties of daily life in Afghanistan, the country has successfully initiated the reconstruction process. In the health sector, this can be seen in the work done at the Kabul IHS. Progress has been made in a number of areas, most notably in development and implementation of nursing and midwifery curricula. However, no one would deny that much more work is needed. [source] Exploring the gender dimensions of reconstruction processes post-hurricane MitchJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2002Sarah Bradshaw The paper will consider the reconstruction process in Nicaragua post hurricane Mitch. First, the success of civil society co-ordinations at promoting common people-centred agendas will be highlighted and contrasted with the difficulties they have faced in becoming gender inclusive spaces. Second, the extent to which the official rhetoric they helped to promote has been translated into reality is examined, suggesting that on the ground projects remain at best ,women-centred'. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Keyhole Dixon method for faster, perceptually equivalent fat suppressionJOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING, Issue 1 2003Chris A. Flask MS Abstract Purpose To reduce the acquisition time associated with the two-point Dixon fat suppression technique by combining a keyhole in-phase (Water + Fat) k-space data set with a full out-of-phase (Water , Fat) k-space data set and optimizing the keyhole size with a perceptual difference model. Materials and Methods A set of keyhole Dixon images was created by varying the number of lines in the keyhole data set. Off-resonance correction was incorporated into the image reconstruction process to improve the homogeneity of the fat suppression. A perceptual difference model (PDM) was validated with human observer experiments and used to compare the keyhole images to images from a full two-point Dixon acquisition. The PDM was used to determine the smallest keyhole width required to obtain perceptual equivalence to images obtained from the full two-point Dixon method. Results In experimental phantom studies, the keyhole Dixon image reconstructed from 96 of 192 Water + Fat k-space lines and 192 Water , Fat k-space lines was perceptually equivalent to the full (192 + 192) two-point Dixon images, resulting in a 25% reduction in scan time. Clinical images of a volunteer's knee, orbits, and abdomen created from the smallest, perceptually equivalent keyhole width resulted in a 27%,38% reduction in total scan time. Conclusion This method improves the temporal efficiency of the conventional two-point Dixon technique and may prove especially useful for high-field systems where specific absorption rate (SAR) limits will constrain radiofrequency (RF)-based fat suppression techniques. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2003;18:103,112. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Pollen-inferred palaeoclimate reconstructions in mountain areas: problems and perspectives,JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE, Issue 6 2006Elena Ortu Abstract Transfer functions are an efficient tool for the quantitative reconstruction of past climate from low to mid-elevation pollen sites. However, the application of existing methods to high-altitude pollen assemblages frequently leads to unrealistic results. In the aim of understanding the causes of these biases, the standard ,best modern analogue' method has been applied to two high-altitude pollen sequences to provide quantitative climate estimates for the Lateglacial and Holocene periods. Both pollen sequences (Laghi dell'Orgials, 2130,m, SW aspect and Lago delle Fate, 2240,m, E aspect) are located in the subalpine belt, on opposing sides of the St. Anna di Vinadio Valley (Italian Maritime Alps). Different results were obtained from the two sequences. The largest differences occurred in palaeotemperature reconstruction, with notable differences in both the values and trends at each site. These biases may be attributed to: (1) a lack of high elevation ,best modern analogues' in the database of modern samples; (2) the problem of pollen taxa that have multiple climatic significance; (3) problems related to the complexity of mountainous ecosystems, such as the phenomenon of uphill transport of tree pollen by wind. Possible improvements to the reconstruction process are discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Image processing pipeline for synchrotron-radiation-based tomographic microscopyJOURNAL OF SYNCHROTRON RADIATION, Issue 4 2010C. Hintermüller With synchrotron-radiation-based tomographic microscopy, three-dimensional structures down to the micrometer level can be visualized. Tomographic data sets typically consist of 1000 to 1500 projections of 1024 × 1024 to 2048 × 2048 pixels and are acquired in 5,15,min. A processing pipeline has been developed to handle this large amount of data efficiently and to reconstruct the tomographic volume within a few minutes after the end of a scan. Just a few seconds after the raw data have been acquired, a selection of reconstructed slices is accessible through a web interface for preview and to fine tune the reconstruction parameters. The same interface allows initiation and control of the reconstruction process on the computer cluster. By integrating all programs and tools, required for tomographic reconstruction into the pipeline, the necessary user interaction is reduced to a minimum. The modularity of the pipeline allows functionality for new scan protocols to be added, such as an extended field of view, or new physical signals such as phase-contrast or dark-field imaging etc. [source] In vitro interaction between mouse breast cancer cells and mouse mesenchymal stem cells during adipocyte differentiationJOURNAL OF TISSUE ENGINEERING AND REGENERATIVE MEDICINE, Issue 5 2009Feng Xu Abstract Surgical treatment following breast cancer, i.e. lumpectomy and mastectomy, may not efficiently remove all cancerous cells. As such, when mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are incorporated into the breast reconstruction process, it is likely that those MSCs will encounter remnant cancerous cells after transplantation into the defect site. The potential interaction between breast cancer cells and MSCs remains unclear. We hypothesized that paracrine interactions might occur between cells and various proteinases, growth factors and other cytokine molecules in the local microenvironment. Conditioned media (CM) from two mouse mammary cancer cell lines (4T1 and 4T07) and one mouse mammary epithelial cell line (NMuMG) were studied in the experimental model. Post-confluent mouse MSCs (D1 cells) were differentiated with an adipogenic hormonal cocktail. Conditioned media from the three cell types did not have an inhibitory effect on D1 cell viability; however, triglyceride (TG) and Oil red O (ORO) analysis results showed that 4T1-CM significantly inhibited D1 adipocyte differentiation and reduced lipid vesicle accumulation in the differentiating D1 cells. Preliminary analysis of the conditioned media revealed that a higher presence of matrix metalloprotease-9 (MMP-9) and urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) was present in the 4T1-CM as compared to the levels found in 4T07-CM and NMuMG-CM, which were below the detection limit. Additionally, the conditioned medium of differentiated D1 cells on day 12 had a negative effect on 4T1 and 4T07 cell viability but no effect on NMuMG cell viability. The results suggest that mouse breast cancer cells modulate mouse MSC adipogenic differentiation, the level of modulation specific to the metastatic level. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Novel Amphiphilic Styrene-Based Block Copolymers for Induced Surface ReconstructionMACROMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS, Issue 1 2008Lutz Funk Abstract This paper describes the synthesis of amphiphilic block copolymers by living radical polymerization (NMP) of new styrene-like monomers. The polar monomers (ethylene oxide side chains and free hydroxyl- or amino-groups after deprotection) were polymerized in a "protected form" to adjust the solubility of the monomers. In this way high molar mass polymers with a narrow polydispersity (around or below 1.2) were accessible. In the bulk state hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains demix. By exposing thin films of these polymers to vacuum (air) or alternatively to water or a hydrophilic surface it becomes possible to switch the surface polarity reversibly between contact angles of about 105° and 83° as a result of surface reconstruction. Through side chains of different length and with different functionalities, it was possible to adjust the glass transition temperatures to values between ,2,°C to 140,°C for the hydrophilic blocks and ,30,°C to 100,°C for the hydrophobic block. The wide range of the glass temperatures allowed it to find a block copolymer system with a slow kinetic concerning the surface reconstruction process, so that a mechanistic examination of the process by AFM was possible. It got, thereby, possible to detect the break-up of the hydrophobic surface lamella and the upfold of the hydrophilic lamella in contact with water. [source] RT-GROG: parallelized self-calibrating GROG for real-time MRIMAGNETIC RESONANCE IN MEDICINE, Issue 1 2010Haris Saybasili Abstract A real-time implementation of self-calibrating Generalized Autocalibrating Partially Parallel Acquisitions (GRAPPA) operator gridding for radial acquisitions is presented. Self-calibrating GRAPPA operator gridding is a parallel-imaging-based, parameter-free gridding algorithm, where coil sensitivity profiles are used to calculate gridding weights. Self-calibrating GRAPPA operator gridding's weight-set calculation and image reconstruction steps are decoupled into two distinct processes, implemented in C++ and parallelized. This decoupling allows the weights to be updated adaptively in the background while image reconstruction threads use the most recent gridding weights to grid and reconstruct images. All possible combinations of two-dimensional gridding weights GG are evaluated for m,n = {,0.5, ,0.4, ,, 0, 0.1, ,, 0.5} and stored in a look-up table. Consequently, the per-sample two-dimensional weights calculation during gridding is eliminated from the reconstruction process and replaced by a simple look-up table access. In practice, up to 34× faster reconstruction than conventional (parallelized) self-calibrating GRAPPA operator gridding is achieved. On a 32-coil dataset of size 128 × 64, reconstruction performance is 14.5 frames per second (fps), while the data acquisition is 6.6 fps. Magn Reson Med 64:306,312, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The highly spotted photosphere of the young rapid rotator Speedy MicMONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, Issue 1 2005J. R. Barnes ABSTRACT We present high-resolution images of the young rapidly rotating K3 dwarf Speedy Mic (BO Mic, HD 197890). The photospheric spot maps reveal a heavily and uniformly spotted surface from equatorial to high-latitude regions. Contrary to many images of similar objects, Speedy Mic does not possess a uniform filling at high latitudes, but exhibits structure in the polar regions showing greatest concentration in a particular longitude range. The asymmetric rotation profile of Speedy Mic indicates the presence of a companion or nearby star which shows radial velocity shifts over a time-scale of several years. Using a simple dynamical argument, we show that Speedy Mic is unlikely to be a binary system, and conclude that the feature must be the result of a chance alignment with a background binary. Complete phase coverage on two consecutive nights in addition to 60 per cent phase coverage after a three-night gap has enabled us to track the evolution of spots with time. By incorporating a solar-like differential rotation model into the image reconstruction process, we find that the equator laps the polar regions once every 191 ± 17 d. This finding is in close agreement with measurements for other late-type rapid rotators. [source] | |||||||||||||