Showing papers by "University of Birmingham published in 1997"

Human-Computer Interaction

Abstract: Contents Foreword Preface to the third edition Preface to the second edition Preface to the first edition Introduction Part 1 Foundations Chapter 1 The human 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Input-output channels Design Focus: Getting noticed Design Focus: Where's the middle? 1.3 Human memory Design Focus: Cashing in Design Focus: 7 +- 2 revisited 1.4 Thinking: reasoning and problem solving Design Focus: Human error and false memories 1.5 Emotion 1.6 Individual differences 1.7 Psychology and the design of interactive systems 1.8 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 2 The computer 2.1 Introduction Design Focus: Numeric keypads 2.2 Text entry devices 2.3 Positioning, pointing and drawing 2.4 Display devices Design Focus: Hermes: a situated display 2.5 Devices for virtual reality and 3D interaction 2.6 Physical controls, sensors and special devices Design Focus: Feeling the road Design Focus: Smart-Its - making sensors easy 2.7 Paper: printing and scanning Design Focus: Readability of text 2.8 Memory 2.9 Processing and networks Design Focus: The myth of the infinitely fast machine 2.10 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 3 The interaction 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Models of interaction Design Focus: Video recorder 3.3 Frameworks and HCI 3.4 Ergonomics Design Focus: Industrial interfaces 3.5 Interaction styles Design Focus: Navigation in 3D and 2D 3.6 Elements of the WIMP interface Design Focus: Learning toolbars 3.7 Interactivity 3.8 The context of the interaction Design Focus: Half the picture? 3.9 Experience, engagement and fun 3.10 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 4 Paradigms 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Paradigms for interaction 4.3 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Part 2 Design process Chapter 5 Interaction design basics 5.1 Introduction 5.2 What is design? 5.3 The process of design 5.4 User focus Design Focus: Cultural probes 5.5 Scenarios 5.6 Navigation design Design Focus: Beware the big button trap Design Focus: Modes 5.7 Screen design and layout Design Focus: Alignment and layout matter Design Focus: Checking screen colors 5.8 Iteration and prototyping 5.9 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 6 HCI in the software process 6.1 Introduction 6.2 The software life cycle 6.3 Usability engineering 6.4 Iterative design and prototyping Design Focus: Prototyping in practice 6.5 Design rationale 6.6 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 7 Design rules 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Principles to support usability 7.3 Standards 7.4 Guidelines 7.5 Golden rules and heuristics 7.6 HCI patterns 7.7 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 8 Implementation support 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Elements of windowing systems 8.3 Programming the application Design Focus: Going with the grain 8.4 Using toolkits Design Focus: Java and AWT 8.5 User interface management systems 8.6 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 9 Evaluation techniques 9.1 What is evaluation? 9.2 Goals of evaluation 9.3 Evaluation through expert analysis 9.4 Evaluation through user participation 9.5 Choosing an evaluation method 9.6 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 10 Universal design 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Universal design principles 10.3 Multi-modal interaction Design Focus: Designing websites for screen readers Design Focus: Choosing the right kind of speech Design Focus: Apple Newton 10.4 Designing for diversity Design Focus: Mathematics for the blind 10.5 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 11 User support 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Requirements of user support 11.3 Approaches to user support 11.4 Adaptive help systems Design Focus: It's good to talk - help from real people 11.5 Designing user support systems 11.6 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Part 3 Models and theories Chapter 12 Cognitive models 12.1 Introduction 12.2 Goal and task hierarchies Design Focus: GOMS saves money 12.3 Linguistic models 12.4 The challenge of display-based systems 12.5 Physical and device models 12.6 Cognitive architectures 12.7 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 13 Socio-organizational issues and stakeholder requirements 13.1 Introduction 13.2 Organizational issues Design Focus: Implementing workflow in Lotus Notes 13.3 Capturing requirements Design Focus: Tomorrow's hospital - using participatory design 13.4 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 14 Communication and collaboration models 14.1 Introduction 14.2 Face-to-face communication Design Focus: Looking real - Avatar Conference 14.3 Conversation 14.4 Text-based communication 14.5 Group working 14.6 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 15 Task analysis 15.1 Introduction 15.2 Differences between task analysis and other techniques 15.3 Task decomposition 15.4 Knowledge-based analysis 15.5 Entity-relationship-based techniques 15.6 Sources of information and data collection 15.7 Uses of task analysis 15.8 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 16 Dialog notations and design 16.1 What is dialog? 16.2 Dialog design notations 16.3 Diagrammatic notations Design Focus: Using STNs in prototyping Design Focus: Digital watch - documentation and analysis 16.4 Textual dialog notations 16.5 Dialog semantics 16.6 Dialog analysis and design 16.7 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 17 Models of the system 17.1 Introduction 17.2 Standard formalisms 17.3 Interaction models 17.4 Continuous behavior 17.5 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 18 Modeling rich interaction 18.1 Introduction 18.2 Status-event analysis 18.3 Rich contexts 18.4 Low intention and sensor-based interaction Design Focus: Designing a car courtesy light 18.5 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Part 4 Outside the box Chapter 19 Groupware 19.1 Introduction 19.2 Groupware systems 19.3 Computer-mediated communication Design Focus: SMS in action 19.4 Meeting and decision support systems 19.5 Shared applications and artifacts 19.6 Frameworks for groupware Design Focus: TOWER - workspace awareness Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 20 Ubiquitous computing and augmented realities 20.1 Introduction 20.2 Ubiquitous computing applications research Design Focus: Ambient Wood - augmenting the physical Design Focus: Classroom 2000/eClass - deploying and evaluating ubicomp 20.3 Virtual and augmented reality Design Focus: Shared experience Design Focus: Applications of augmented reality 20.4 Information and data visualization Design Focus: Getting the size right 20.5 Summary Exercises Recommended reading Chapter 21 Hypertext, multimedia and the world wide web 21.1 Introduction 21.2 Understanding hypertext 21.3 Finding things 21.4 Web technology and issues 21.5 Static web content 21.6 Dynamic web content 21.7 Summary Exercises Recommended reading References Index

Congenital leptin deficiency is associated with severe early-onset obesity in humans

Abstract: The extreme obesity of the obese (ob/ob) mouse is attributable to mutations in the gene encoding leptin, an adipocyte-specific secreted protein which has profound effects on appetite and energy expenditure We know of no equivalent evidence regarding leptin's role in the control of fat mass in humans We have examined two severely obese children who are members of the same highly consanguineous pedigree Their serum leptin levels were very low despite their markedly elevated fat mass and, in both, a homozygous frame-shift mutation involving the deletion of a single guanine nucleotide in codon 133 of the gene for leptin was found The severe obesity found in these congenitally leptin-deficient subjects provides the first genetic evidence that leptin is an important regulator of energy balance in humans

Human cytotoxic t lymphocyte responses to epstein-barr virus infection

Abstract: ▪ Abstract Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) provides one of the most informative systems with which to study cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses in humans. The virus establishes a highly immunogenic growth-transforming infection of B lymphocytes, associated with the coordinate expression of six virus-coded nuclear antigens (EBNAs 1, 2, 3A, 3B, 3C, -LP) and two latent membrane proteins (LMPs 1 and 2). This elicits both primary and memory CT8+ CTL responses that are markedly skewed toward HLA allele-specific epitopes drawn from the EBNA3A, 3B, 3C subset of latent proteins, with reactivities to other antigens being generally much less frequent. This heirarchy of immunodominance among the different latent proteins may at least partly reflect their differential accessibility to the HLA class I–processing pathway. Furthermore, CTLs to some of the immunodominant epitopes involve highly conserved T cell receptor (TCR) usage, a level of focusing which evidence suggests could have immunopathological consequences from cr...

The reliability of the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/American College of Rheumatology Damage Index in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Abstract: Objective. To test the reliability of the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/American College of Rheumatology (SLICC/ACR) Damage Index and the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) in the assessment of patients with SLE. Methods. Ten patients with SLE, representing a spectrum of damage and activity, were included. Each patient was examined by 6 of 10 physicians from 5 countries, representing 10 lupus clinics. The SLICC/ACR Damage Index was used to assess accumulated damage, and the SLEDAI was used to assess disease activity. The order of the patients and physicians was randomized according to a Youden square design. Results. The SLICC/ACR Damage Index detected differences among patients (P < 0.001). There was no detectable observer difference (P = 0.933), and there was no order effect (P = 0.261). Similar results were obtained with the SLEDAI. There was concordance in the SLICC/ACR Damage Index among observers, despite a wide spectrum of disease activity detected by the SLEDAI. Conclusion. Physicians from different centers are able to assess patients with SLE in a reproducible way, using the SLEDAI to assess disease activity and the SLICC/ACR Damage Index to assess accumulated damage.

Reactive oxygen species and antioxidants in inflammatory diseases

Abstract: This paper aims to review the role of free radical-induced tissue damage and antioxidant defence mechanisms in inflammatory diseases that involve pathogenic processes similar to the periodontal diseases. There is a clearly defined and substantial role for free radicals or reactive oxygen species (ROS) in periodontitis, but little research has been performed in this area. This paper reviews the considerable data available relating ROS activity and antioxidant defence to inflammatory diseases and attempts to draw parallels with periodontitis, in an effort to stimulate more periodontal research in this important area. The recent discovery of the transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappa B) is reviewed and several potential pathways for cytokine-induced periodontal tissue damage, mediated by NF-kappa B1 are discussed. Emphasis is placed on cytokines that have been studied in periodontitis, principally TNF-alpha, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8 and beta-interferon. The link between cellular production of such important mediators of inflammation and the antioxidant (AO) thiols, cysteine and reduced glutathione (GSH), is discussed and it is hypothesised that NF-kappa B antagonists may offer important therapeutic benefits.

Measurements of Flow Speeds in the Corona Between 2 and 30 R

Abstract: Time-lapse sequences of white-light images, obtained during sunspot minimum conditions in 1996 by the Large Angle Spectrometric Coronagraph on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, give the impression of a continuous outflow of material in the streamer belt, as if we were observing Thomson scattering from inhomogeneities in the solar wind. Pursuing this idea, we have tracked the birth and outflow of 50-100 of the most prominent moving coronal features and find that: 1. They originate about 3-4 R☉ from Sun center as radially elongated structures above the cusps of helmet streamers. Their initial sizes are about 1 R☉ in the radial direction and 0.1 R☉ in the transverse direction. 2. They move radially outward, maintaining constant angular spans and increasing their lengths in rough accord with their speeds, which typically double from 150 km s-1 near 5 R☉ to 300 km s-1 near 25 R☉. 3. Their individual speed profiles v(r) cluster around a nearly parabolic path characterized by a constant acceleration of about 4 m s-2 through most of the 30 R☉ field of view. This profile is consistent with an isothermal solar wind expansion at a temperature of about 1.1 MK and a sonic point near 5 R☉. Based on their relatively small initial sizes, low intensities, radial motions, slow but increasing speeds, and location in the streamer belt, we conclude that these moving features are passively tracing the outflow of the slow solar wind.

Physiology of diving of birds and mammals

Abstract: This review concentrates on the physiological responses, and their control, in freely diving birds and mammals that enable them to remain submerged and sometimes quite active for extended periods of time. Recent developments in technology have provided much detailed information on the behavior of these fascinating animals. Unfortunately, the advances in technology have been insufficient to enable physiologists to obtain anything like the same level of detail on the metabolic rate and physiological adjustments that occur during natural diving. This has led to much speculation and calculations based on many assumptions concerning usable oxygen stores and metabolic rate during diving, in an attempt to explain the observed behavior. Despite their shortcomings, these calculations have provided useful insights into the degree of adaptations of various species of aquatic birds and mammals. Many of them, e.g., ducks, smaller penguins, fur seals, and Weddell seals, seem able to metabolize aerobically, when diving, at approximately the same (if not greater) rate as they do at the surface. Their enhanced oxygen stores are able to support aerobic metabolism, at what would not be considered unusually low levels, for the duration of the dives, although there are probably circulatory readjustments to ensure that the oxygen stores are managed judiciously. For other species, such as the larger penguins, South Georgian shag, and female elephant seals, there is a general consensus that they must either be reducing their aerobic metabolic rate when diving, possibly by way of regional hypothermia, and/or producing ATP, at least partly, by anaerobiosis and metabolizing the lactic acid when at the surface (although this is hardly likely in the case of the female elephant seals). Circulation is the proximate regulator of metabolism during aerobic diving, and heart rate is the best single indicator of circulatory adjustment. During voluntary dives, heart rates range from extreme bradycardia to well above resting, reflecting metabolic performance. Efferent cardiac control is largely parasympathetic. Reflex cardiorespiratory responses are modulated by conditioning and habituation, but reflexes predominate during extended dives and during recovery, when gas exchange is maximized.

Health and safety problems associated with long working hours: A review of the current position

Abstract: The European Community Directive on Working Time, which should have been implemented in member states of the European Community by November 1996, contains several requirements related to working hours, including the right of employees to refuse to work more than 48 hours a week. The United Kingdom government attempted to oppose the Directive, arguing that there is no convincing evidence that hours of work should be limited on health and safety grounds. Much of the research in this area has focused on the problems of shiftworking and previous reviews have therefore tended to emphasise this aspect of working hours. However, there is much less information about the effects of overtime work, which is a central element of the terms of the Directive. This paper reviews the current evidence relating to the potential effects on health and performance of extensions to the normal working day. Several gaps in the literature are identified. Research to date has been restricted to a limited range of health outcomes--namely, mental health and cardiovascular disorders. Other potential effects which are normally associated with stress--for example, gastrointestinal disorders, musculoskeletal disorders, and problems associated with depression of the immune system, have received little attention. Also, there have been few systematic investigations of performance effects, and little consideration of the implications for occupational exposure limits of extensions to the working day. Existing data relate largely to situations where working hours exceed 50 a week and there is a lack of information on hours below this level, which is of direct relevance to the European Community proposal. Finally, it is clear from investigations relating to shiftwork that a range of modifying factors are likely to influence the level and nature of health and performance outcomes. These include the attitudes and motivation of the people concerned, the job requirements, and other aspects of the organisational and cultural climate. It is concluded that there is currently sufficient evidence to raise concerns about the risks to health and safety of long working hours. However, much more work is required to define the level and nature of those risks.

Development and initial validation of the vasculitis damage index for the standardized clinical assessment of damage in the systemic vasculitides

Abstract: Objective. To develop and validate the Vasculitis Damage Index (VDI) for the standardized clinical assessment of damage in the systemic vasculitides. Methods. Using a nominal group consensus approach, the Birmingham Vasculitis Group generated guiding principles for assessment of damage in all systemic vasculitides. Damage was defined as irreversible change resulting from scars. Consensus principles were developed into the VDI, including guidelines for use, a list of items of damage, and a glossary. Results. For 100 surviving patients with systemic vasculitis, the median VDI score at last observation was 3 (range 0–8). Within the Wegener's granulomatosis subgroup, the median VDI score for 12 non-survivors was higher than for 47 survivors (non-survivors median score 7, interquartile range 5–8 versus survivors median score 4, interquartile range 2–5; P = 0.003). VDI scores for 100 patients with systemic vasculitis increased from initial presentation to last observation by a median score of 3 (range 1–4; P < 0.001). The VDI assesses more items and is more sensitive to change than other indices of damage (P < 0.001). Using the VDI, trained observers can produce moderately consistent damage scores. Conclusion. The VDI is a sensitive, reproducible, comprehensive, and credible clinical tool for quantifying damage. The data presented herein should enable further validation and testing of the VDI in specific vasculitic syndromes, and should facilitate the comparison of different therapies.

Logic Operations at the Molecular Level. An XOR Gate Based on a Molecular Machine

Abstract: A pseudorotaxane formed in solution by self-assembly of a wire-type electron acceptor (2,7-dibenzyldiazapyrenium dication) and a macrocyclic electron donor (2,3-dinaphtho-30-crown-10) can be unthreaded and rethreaded by chemical inputs. Unthreading can be obtained by addition of stoichiometric amounts of acids or amines. After the unthreading process caused by addition of acid, rethreading can be obtained by addition of amine, and vice versa. The threading/unthreading processes are accompanied (and therefore can be monitored) by strong changes in the fluorescence properties of the system. The input (chemical)/output (fluorescence) characteristics of this molecular-level system correspond to those of an XOR logic gate.

Dual-frequency planar inverted-F antenna

Abstract: Cellular telephone handsets are now being designed to have dual-mode capabilities. In particular, there is a requirement for internal antennas for GSM and DCS1800 systems. This paper describes a novel planar dual-band inverted-F antenna for cellular handsets, which operates at the 0.9-GHz and 1.8-GHz bands. The dual-band antenna has almost the same size as a conventional inverted-F antenna operating at 0.9 GHz and has an isolation between bands of better than 17 dB. The bandwidths of the antenna are close to those required for the above systems. Good dual-band action is also obtained for other frequency ratios in the range of 1.3-2.4. Studies also show that the dual-band antenna can operate with one or two feeds. A finite-difference time-domain analysis has been shown to give calculated results close to those measured.

Analysis of the elastic properties of open-cell foams with tetrakaidecahedral cells

Abstract: The elastic constants of an open-cell foam model, having tetrakaidecahedral cells on a BCC lattice, were found The Young's modulus, shear modulus and Poisson's ratio were derived, as functions of the edge cross section and the foam density, by considering the bending, twisting and extension of the cell edges If edge bending were the only mechanism the moduli would vary with the square of the foam density The other deformation mechanisms are predicted to reduce the power law exponent by 3–5%, and the effect of edge torsion on the modulus level is small The foam bulk modulus is predicted to vary linearly with its relative density, so Poisson's ratio approaches 05 at low densities The lattice model is elastically isotropic, whereas other lattice models of foams are highly anisotropic

Segregating semantic from phonological processes during reading

Abstract: A number of previous functional neuroimaging studies have linked activation of the left inferior frontal gyms with semantic processing, yet damage to the frontal lobes does not critically impair semantic knowledge. This study distinguishes between semantic knowledge and the strategic processes required to make verbal decisions. Using positron emission tomography (PET), we identify the neural correlates of semantic knowledge by contrasting semantic decision on visually presented words to phonological decision on the same words. Both tasks involve identical stimuli and a verbal decision on central lingual codes (semantics and phonology), but the explicit task demands directed attention either to meaning or to the segmentation of phonology. Relative to the phonological task, the semantic task was associated with activations in left extrasylvian temporal cortex with the highest activity in the left temporal pole and a posterior region of the left middle temporal cortex (BA 39) close to the angular gyrus. The reverse contrast showed increased activity in both supramarginal gyri, the left precentral sulcus, and the cuneus with a trend toward enhanced activation in the inferior frontal cortex. These results fit well with neuropsychological evidence, associating semantic knowledge with the extrasylvian left temporal cortex and the segmentation of phonology with the perisylvian cortex.

Osmotic stress activates phosphatidylinositol-3,5-bisphosphate synthesis

Abstract: Inositol phospholipids play multiple roles in cell signalling systems. Two widespread eukaryotic phosphoinositide-based signal transduction mechanisms, phosphoinositidase C-catalysed phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P2) hydrolysis and 3-OH kinase-catalysed PtdIns(4,5)P2 phosphorylation, make the second messengers inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (Ins(1,4,5)P3) sn-1,2-diacylglycerol and PtdIns(3,4,5)P3. In addition, PtdIns(4,5)P2 and PtdIns3P have been implicated in exocytosis and membrane trafficking. We now show that when the yeasts Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe are hyperosmotically stressed, they rapidly synthesize phosphatidylinositol-3,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(3,5)P2) by a process that involves activation of a PtdIns3P 5-OH kinase. This PtdIns(3,5)P2 accumulation only occurs in yeasts that have an active vps34-encoded PtdIns 3-OH kinase, showing that this latter kinase makes the PtdIns3P needed for PtdIns(3,5)P2 synthesis and indicating that PtdIns(3,5)P2 may have a role in sorting vesicular proteins. PtdIns(3,5)P2 is also present in mammalian and plant cells: in monkey Cos-7 cells, its labelling is inversely related to the external osmotic pressure. The stimulation of a PtdIns3P 5-OH kinase-catalysed synthesis of PtdIns(3,5)P2, a molecule that might be a new type of phosphoinositide 'second messenger, thus appears to be central to a widespread and previously uncharacterized regulatory pathway.

Visual marking: prioritizing selection for new objects by top-down attentional inhibition of old objects.

Abstract: The authors propose a new mechanism for prioritizing the selection of new events: visual marking. In a modified conjunction search task the authors presented one set of distractors before the remaining items, which contained the target if present. Search was as efficient as if only the second items were presented. This held when eye movements were prevented and required a gap of 400 ms between the old and new items. The effect was abolished by luminance changes at old distractor locations when the new items appeared, and it was reduced by the addition of an attention demanding load task. The authors propose that old items can be ignored by spatially parallel, top-down attentional inhibition applied to the locations of static stimuli. The authors discuss the relations between marking and other accounts of visual selection and potential neurophysiological mechanisms.

Antioxidant status in patients with uncomplicated insulin‐dependent and non‐insulin‐dependent diabetes mellitus

Abstract: Oxidative damage by free radicals has been implicated in the pathogenesis of vascular disease in diabetes. We compared the radical-scavenging antioxidant activity of serum from 28 patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and 24 patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus uncomplicated by vascular disease with age-matched non-diabetic control subjects. Patients with insulin-dependent diabetes had significantly reduced total antioxidant activity (320.2 +/- 11.3 vs. 427.5 +/- 19.2 mumol L-1; P < 0.001). This was attributable to lower urate (209.4 +/- 10.4 vs. 297.1 +/- 16.7 mumol L-1; P < 0.001) and vitamin C levels (63.6 +/- 6.0 vs. 87.5 +/- 4.9 mumol L-1; P < 0.01). Patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes had lower total antioxidant activity than age-matched control subjects (433.8 +/- 25.4 vs. 473.9 +/- 30.2 mumol L-1; NS), reflecting lower urate (299.5 +/- 19.4 vs. 324.8 +/- 21.4 mumol L-1; NS) and vitamin C levels (38.6 +/- 5.7 vs. 58.5 +/- 5.3 mumol L-1; P < 0.05). Multiple regression analysis showed that urate, vitamin C and vitamin E were the major contributors to serum total antioxidant activity. These results show that diabetic patients have significant defects of antioxidant protection, which may increase vulnerability to oxidative damage and the development of diabetic complications.

Immediate early and early lytic cycle proteins are frequent targets of the Epstein-Barr virus-induced cytotoxic T cell response.

Abstract: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a human γ-herpesvirus, can establish both nonproductive (latent) and productive (lytic) infections. Although the CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response to latently infected cells is well characterized, very little is known about T cell controls over lytic infection; this imbalance in our understanding belies the importance of virus-replicative lesions in several aspects of EBV disease pathogenesis. The present work shows that the primary CD8+ CTL response to EBV in infectious mononucleosis patients contains multiple lytic antigen-specific reactivities at levels at least as high as those seen against latent antigens; similar reactivities are also detectable in CTL memory. Clonal analysis revealed individual responses to the two immediate early proteins BZLF1 and BRLF1, and to three (BMLF1, BMRF1, and BALF2) of the six early proteins tested. In several cases, the peptide epitope and HLA-restricting determinant recognized by these CTLs has been defined, one unusual feature being the number of responses restricted through HLA-C alleles. The work strongly suggests that EBVreplicative lesions are subject to direct CTL control in vivo and that immediate early and early proteins are frequently the immunodominant targets. This contrasts with findings in α- and β-herpesvirus systems (herpes simplex, cytomegalovirus) where viral interference with the antigen-processing pathway during lytic infection renders immediate early and early proteins much less immunogenic. The unique capacity of γ-herpesvirus to amplify the viral load in vivo through a latent growth-transforming infection may have rendered these agents less dependent upon viral replication as a means of successfully colonizing their hosts.

Theory and experiment of novel microstrip slow-wave open-loop resonator filters

Abstract: This paper presents the theory and experiment of a new class of microstrip slow-wave open-loop resonator filters. A comprehensive treatment of capacitively loaded transmission line resonator is described, which leads to the invention of microstrip slow-wave open-loop resonator. The utilization of microstrip slow-wave open-loop resonators allows various filter configurations including those of elliptic or quasi-elliptic function response to be realized. The filters are not only compact size due to the slow-wave effect, but also have a wider upper stopband resulting from the dispersion effect. These attractive features make the microstrip slow-wave open-loop resonator filters promising for mobile communications, superconducting and other applications. Two filter designs of this type are described in detail. The experimental results are demonstrated and discussed.

Tectonostratigraphic model for underfilled peripheral foreland basins: An Alpine perspective

Abstract: Advances in the development of quantitative models of foreland basin stratigraphy have outpaced the observational data used to constrain the input parameters in such models. Underfilled peripheral foreland basins comprise a broad threefold subdivision of depositional realms that translates into three stratigraphic units which are commonly superimposed during basin migration; these units are here termed the “underfilled trinity.” The three units of the trinity reflect (1) carbonate deposition on the cratonic margin of the basin (the lower unit), (2) hemipelagic mud sedimentation offshore from the cratonic margin of the basin (the middle unit), and (3) deep water turbiditic siliciclastic sedimentation toward the orogenic margin of the basin (the upper unit). Theoretical predictions of how such a complex basin fill initiates and evolves through time are not currently available; hence this study reviews the stratigraphy of underfilled peripheral foreland basins and provides a unique data set comprising rates of thrust advance and basin fill migration for the Tertiary foreland basin of the European Alps. The Paleocene to Oligocene Alpine foreland basin of France and Switzerland comprises a well-developed underfilled trinity that is preserved within the outer deformed margins of the Alpine orogen. Structural restorations of the basin indicate a decrease in the amount of basin shortening from eastern Switzerland (68%) to eastern France (48%), to southeastern France (35%). Structurally restored chronostratigraphic diagrams allow rates of basin migration to be calculated from around the Alpine arc. Paleogeographic restorations of the Nummulitic Limestone (lower unit) illustrate a radial pattern of coastal onlap on to the European craton. Time-averaged rates for northwestward coastal onlap of the underfilled Alpine basin across Switzerland were between 8.5 and 12.9 mm/yr. Time-equivalent westward to southwestward coastal onlap rates in France were between 4.9 and 8.0 mm/yr. The direction of migration of the cratonic coastline of the basin was parallel to the time-equivalent thrust motions, and oblique to the Africa-Europe plate motion vector. By comparing rates of thrust propagation into the orogenic margin of the basin to rates of coastal onlap of the cratonic margin of the basin, it is possible to suggest that the Alpine foreland basin of central Switzerland migrated with an approximately steady state geometry for at least 210 km northwestward over the European craton. The westward and southward decrease in the basin migration rate around the Alpine arc was associated with an increase in the degree of syndepositional normal faulting on the European plate; this is thought to relate to the opening of the Rhine-BresseRhone graben system.

QUESTIONING THE MEASUREMENT OF THE ‘FEAR OF CRIME’: Findings from a Major Methodological Study

Abstract: Research upon the fear of crime has grown substantially in recent years. From its very inception, this field has relied almost exclusively upon quantitative surveys, which have suggested that the fear of crime is a prevalent social problem. However, doubts about the nature of the instruments used to investigate this phenomenon have cumulatively raised the possibility that the fear of crime has been significantly misrepresented. Dealing with the epistemological, conceptual, operational and technical critiques of quantitative surveys in general and of fear of crime surveys in particular, this article suggests that our understanding of the fear of crime is a product of the way it has been researched rather than the way it is. As the aim of the research project under which this data was collected was to develop and design new quantitative questions, the article ends with some possible solutions to the epistemological, conceptual, operational and technical problems discussed which may improve future quantitative research in this field.

In favour of financial liberalisation

Abstract: I present a simultaneous-equation model with which I estimate both direct and indirect effects of financial distortions in real interest and black-market exchange rates on saving, investment, export growth and output growth.

Multiple Stakeholder Orientation in UK Companies and the Implications for Company Performance

Abstract: Orientation to the diverse interests of stakeholder groups is central to strategic planning, and failure to address the interests of multiple stakeholder groups may be detrimental to company performance. However, some companies may be unable to address all these interests, owing to a scarcity of resources, and the impact of multiple stakeholder orientation may be influenced by the environment. Despite calls by leading writers in the literature, there is no empirical evidence about the potential association of orientation to multiple stakeholders with company performance. The results of a study of UK companies designed to elucidate this association are reported in this paper. Although the results give some support to the proposition that orientation to multiple stakeholders is positively associated with performance, such associations are contingent on the external environment, as they are moderated by competitive hostility, after controlling for the intervening effects of market growth.