Code is Law? Assessing Architectural File Sharing Regulation in the Online Environment

Western legislatures tend towards the use of regulatory policies that favour strong intellectual property rights over public access in the battle to regulate file sharing. It has become apparent that the legislature is increasingly relying on code-based regulation in order to detect infringement, to identify those infringing, and to enforce the law through technical measures. This paper will assess the efficacy of regulation by code in the context of Lessig’s assertion that “code is lawâ€, as applied to the file sharing community. The conclusion will reveal a significant asymmetry between the intended application of the regulatory influence of code and its de facto applicability in the online environment

Self-assembly routes towards creating superconducting and magnetic arrays

Using self-assembly from colloidal suspensions of polystyrene latex spheres we prepared well-ordered templates. By electrochemical deposition of magnetic and superconducting metals in the pores of such templates highly ordered magnetic and superconducting anti-dot nano-structures with 3D architectures were created. Further developments of this template preparation method allow us to obtain dot arrays and even more complicated structures. In magnetic anti-dot arrays we observe a large increase in coercive field produced by nanoscale (50–1000nm) holes. We also find the coercive field to demonstrate an oscillatory dependence on film thickness. In magnetic dot arrays we have explored the genesis of 3D magnetic vortices and determined the critical dot size. Superconducting Pb anti-dot arrays show pronounced Little-Parks oscillations in Tc and matching effects in magnetization and magnetic susceptibility. The spherical shape of the holes results in significantly reduced pinning strength as compared to standard lithographic samples. Our results demonstrate that self-assembly template methods are emerging as a viable, low cost route to prepare sub-micron structures

Consumer preferences for scanning modality to diagnose focal liver lesions

Objectives: Differences in the process of using liver imaging technologies might be important to patients. This study aimed to investigate preferences for scanning modalities used in diagnosing focal liver lesions. Methods: A discrete choice experiment was administered to 504 adults aged 25 years. Respondents made repeated choices between two hypothetical scans, described according to waiting time for scan and results, procedure type, the chance of minor side-effects, and whether further scanning procedures were likely to be required. Choice data were analyzed using mixed-logit models with respondent characteristics used to explain preference heterogeneity. Results: Respondents preferred shorter waiting times, the procedure to be undertaken with a handheld scanner on a couch instead of within a body scanner, no side-effects, and no follow–up scans (p .01). The average respondent was willing to wait an additional 2 weeks for the scan if it resulted in avoiding side-effects, 1.5 weeks to avoid further procedures or to be told the results immediately, and 1 week to have the scan performed on a couch with a handheld scanner. However, substantial heterogeneity was observed in the strength of preference for desirable imaging characteristics. Conclusions: An average individual belonging to a general population sub–group most likely to require imaging to characterize focal liver lesions in the United Kingdom would prefer contrast–enhanced ultrasound over magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography. Insights into the patient perspective around differential characteristics of imaging modalities have the potential to be used to guide recommendations around the use of these technologies

The consequences of functionalist assumptions in the epistemology of organizational culture : the perspective of Critical Management Studies

W artykule zaprezentowano refleksję nad konsekwencjami założeń filozoficznych charakterystycznych dla paradygmatu funkcjonalizmu w epistemologii kultury organizacyjnej. Refleksja prowadzona jest z perspektywy nurtu krytycznego w naukach o zarządzaniu, który stoi w opozycji względem funkcjonalizmu, proponując rozstrzygnięcia teoretyczne i praktyczne o charakterze emancypacyjnym. Prezentowany artykuł ma spełniać cel emancypacyjny związany z denaturalizacją funkcjonalizmu i zaproponowaniem ramy teoretycznej dla krytycznego wglądu w konsekwencje, jakie wynikają z przyjęcia jego założeń w teorii i praktyce zarządzania i organizowania.The author presents the reflection about the consequences of assumptions characteristic for the functionalist paradigm in the epistemology of organizational culture in the management sciences. The study was conducted from the perspective of Critical Management Studies, which stands in opposition to the functionalist paradigm, offering theoretical and practical settlement of an emancipation

Cost-effectiveness analysis of endoscopic eradication therapy for treatment of high-grade dysplasia in Barrett's esophagus

AIM: The aim was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of endoscopic eradication therapy (EET) with combined endoscopic mucosal resection and radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of high-grade dysplasia (HGD) arising in patients with Barrett's esophagus compared with endoscopic surveillance alone in the UK. MATERIALS & METHODS: The cost-effectiveness model consisted of a decision tree and modified Markov model. A lifetime time horizon was adopted with the perspective of the UK healthcare system. RESULTS: The base case analysis estimates that EET for the treatment of HGD is cost-effective at a GB£20,000 cost-effectiveness threshold compared with providing surveillance alone for HGD patients (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio: GB£1272). CONCLUSION: EET is likely to be a cost-effective treatment strategy compared with surveillance alone in patients with HGD arising in Barrett's esophagus in the UK

An open-source solution for advanced imaging flow cytometry data analysis using machine learning

Imaging flow cytometry (IFC) enables the high throughput collection of morphological and spatial information from hundreds of thousands of single cells. This high content, information rich image data can in theory resolve important biological differences among complex, often heterogeneous biological samples. However, data analysis is often performed in a highly manual and subjective manner using very limited image analysis techniques in combination with conventional flow cytometry gating strategies. This approach is not scalable to the hundreds of available image-based features per cell and thus makes use of only a fraction of the spatial and morphometric information. As a result, the quality, reproducibility and rigour of results are limited by the skill, experience and ingenuity of the data analyst. Here, we describe a pipeline using open-source software that leverages the rich information in digital imagery using machine learning algorithms. Compensated and corrected raw image files (.rif) data files from an imaging flow cytometer (the proprietary .cif file format) are imported into the open-source software CellProfiler, where an image processing pipeline identifies cells and subcellular compartments allowing hundreds of morphological features to be measured. This high-dimensional data can then be analysed using cutting-edge machine learning and clustering approaches using “user-friendly” platforms such as CellProfiler Analyst. Researchers can train an automated cell classifier to recognize different cell types, cell cycle phases, drug treatment/control conditions, etc., using supervised machine learning. This workflow should enable the scientific community to leverage the full analytical power of IFC-derived data set. It will help to reveal otherwise unappreciated populations of cells based on features that may be hidden to the human eye that include subtle measured differences in label free detection channels such as bright-field and dark-field imagery

Writ(h)ing Images: Imagination, the Human Form, and the Divine in William Blake, Salman Rushdie, and Simon Louvish

In this paper, we address issues in segmentation Of remotely sensed LIDAR (LIght Detection And Ranging) data. The LIDAR data, which were captured by airborne laser scanner, contain 2.5 dimensional (2.5D) terrain surface height information, e.g. houses, vegetation, flat field, river, basin, etc. Our aim in this paper is to segment ground (flat field)from non-ground (houses and high vegetation) in hilly urban areas. By projecting the 2.5D data onto a surface, we obtain a texture map as a grey-level image. Based on the image, Gabor wavelet filters are applied to generate Gabor wavelet features. These features are then grouped into various windows. Among these windows, a combination of their first and second order of statistics is used as a measure to determine the surface properties. The test results have shown that ground areas can successfully be segmented from LIDAR data. Most buildings and high vegetation can be detected. In addition, Gabor wavelet transform can partially remove hill or slope effects in the original data by tuning Gabor parameters

Evidence suggesting that di-n-butyl phthalate has anti-androgenic effects in fish

This article is the pre-print version of the full and final published article.Phthalate ester plasticizers are anti-androgenic in mammals. High doses of certain phthalates consistently interfere with the normal development of male offspring exposed in utero, causing disrupted sperm production, abnormal development of the genitalia, and in some cases infertility. In the environment, phthalates are considered ubiquitous and are commonly measured in aquatic ecosystems at low ng to mu g per litre concentrations. Given the similarity between mammalian and teleost endocrine systems, phthalate esters may be able to cause anti-androgenic endocrine disruption in fish in the wild. In the present study, adult male three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculetaus) (n = 8) were exposed to di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) (0, 15, and 35 mu g DBP/L) for 22 d and analyzed for changes in nesting behavior, plasma androgen concentrations, spiggin concentrations, and steroidogenic gene expression. Plasma testosterone concentrations were significantly higher in males from the 35 mu g DBP/L group compared with the solvent control, whereas plasma 11-ketotestosterone concentrations were not significantly affected. Expression of steroid acute regulatory protein and 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase remained unchanged. Spiggin concentrations were significantly lower in the males exposed to 35 mu g DBP/L. Nest building appeared to be slower in some males exposed to DBP, but this was not statistically significant. These results suggest that DBP has anti-androgenic effects in fish. However, further research is required to firmly establish the consequences of chronic DBP exposure in fish

Labor and Management Relations: Historical Perspectives and Current Trends

Capstone paper from 2015 spring MPA program. Instructed by Allen Zagoren.Over the last 125 years, labor unions and management in the United States have had working relationships that have ranged from positive to co-existence to adversarial. In recent decades, declines in union membership, politically charged legislation seeking to limit union influence, and pressures on management to maintain profits in a global economy have introduced further strain on labor and management relations. In this paper we will examine the factors that impact labor and management relationships on a local level and what can be done to improve them. To provide a bigger context, the history of legislation and economic factors that have influenced labor and management relationships throughout their existence in this country will be explored. Additionally, interviews of labor and management leaders revealed generational differences, complacency, and lack of communication can negatively impact labor and management relationships. Solutions to these problems will be offered and include utilizing a “Problem- Solving, Relationship-Building” (PS/RB) approach. Although hard metrics for this approach are difficult to define, it has been used successfully on both an organizational level as well as on a regional level. Finally, we will describe the resources available to not only begin this approach with labor and management, but to sustain the effort and the benefits it offers

A storage tube for the observation of faint images of low contrast

Imperial Users onl