Flux of biomarkers and organisms at AWI HAUSGARTEN from two moorings

Time-series sediment traps were deployed at 4 depths in the eastern Fram Strait from July 2007 to June 2008 to investigate variations in the magnitude and composition of the sinking particulate matter from upper waters to the seafloor. Sediment traps were deployed at 196 m in the Atlantic Water layer, at 1296 and 2364 m in the intermediate and deep waters, and at 2430 m on a benthic lander in the near-bottom layer. Fluxes of total particulate matter, particulate organic carbon, particulate organic nitrogen, biogenic matter, lithogenic matter, biogenic particulate silica, calcium carbonate, dominant phytoplankton cells, and zooplankton fecal pellets increased with depth, indicating the importance of lateral advection on fluxes in the deep Fram Strait. The lateral supply of particulate matter was further supported by the constant fluxes of biomarkers such as brassicasterol, alkenones, campesterol, beta-sitosterol, and IP25 at all depths sampled. However, enhanced fluxes of diatoms and appendicularian fecal pellets from the upper waters to the seafloor in the presence of ice during spring indicated the rapid export (15-35 days) of locally-produced large particles that likely contributed most of the food supply to the benthic communities. These results show that lateral supply and downward fluxes are both important processes influencing the transport of particulate matter to the seafloor in the deep eastern Fram Strait, and that particulate matter size dictates the prevailing sinking process.

The State of the Nation Debate as part of the democratic parliamentary ritual: Rajoy and Rubalcaba discourse analysis, 2014

In this article we analyze the Debate on the State of the Nation 2014. The methodology consists in coding the speeches of the prime minister, Mariano Rajoy (PP) and the then opposition leader Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba (PSOE) through extracting word clouds, branched maps and word trees that have shown the most common concepts and premises. This preliminary analysis of two dimensions, quantitative and qualitative, makes it much easier and viable subsequent discourse analysis where we focus on the different types of arguments in the communicative act: claim/solution, circumstantial premises, goal premises, value premises, meansgoal premises, alternative options/addressing alternative options.

What Makes Your Writing Style Unique? Significant Differences Between Two Famous Romanian Orators

This paper introduces a novel, in-depth approach of analyzing the differences in writing style between two famous Romanian orators, based on automated textual complexity indices for Romanian language. The considered authors are: (a) Mihai Eminescu, Romania’s national poet and a remarkable journalist of his time, and (b) Ion C. Brătianu, one of the most important Romanian politicians from the middle of the 18th century. Both orators have a common journalistic interest consisting in their desire to spread the word about political issues in Romania via the printing press, the most important public voice at that time. In addition, both authors exhibit writing style particularities, and our aim is to explore these differences through our ReaderBench framework that computes a wide range of lexical and semantic textual complexity indices for Romanian and other languages. The used corpus contains two collections of speeches for each orator that cover the period 1857–1880. The results of this study highlight the lexical and cohesive textual complexity indices that reflect very well the differences in writing style, measures relying on Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) and Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) semantic models.

English product names and descriptions in two Swedish supermarkets : A quantitative and qualitative analysis

This study aimed to investigate what proportion of two household staples, soap and crispbread products, in two Swedish supermarkets had English product names or descriptions, and attempted a qualitative analysis of the English language used. Out of the Swedish brands, 54-62% of the soap products had names and/or product descriptions containing English, compared to 13-15% of the crispbread; these differences were in line with previous research, suggesting English is used more to market certain product groups than other ones. Earlier studies have also proposed that English could be considered an ‘elite’ language in Sweden, and it might thus be more commonly found on more exclusive/expensive products, or in the supermarket primarily aiming at higher-income customers. However, the differences between the two supermarkets, and between the more and less expensive products, were not great enough for any firm conclusions. When products had a mixture of languages on the label, English was most often used for product names or part of names, not so often for product descriptions. Further studies with a larger amount of data would be required for more reliable conclusions, especially for the qualitative analyses. It would also be interesting to investigate customers’ attitudes towards the use of English on product labels.

May the Giant Be With You: Twin Peaks Season Two, Episode One and the Television Auteur

The premiere of Season Two of Twin Peaks garnered some of the highest ratings of the series, with celebrated filmmaker and co-creator David Lynch stepping back into the director’s chair. Yet, within this episode many traditional television conventions are flouted, and in response the following week the ratings dropped dramatically. From its slow-paced opening scenes in which an old man admonishes the wounded, bleeding protagonist to drink his warm milk before it gets cold, followed by a vision of a giant speaking in riddles, this episode not only tested its audience’s patience but also seemed to set out to deliberately confuse them. In this essay I will explore how this episode is an example of auteur television, an episode in which the director expresses a consistency of style and theme that is similar to their other work, as well as examine how Lynch’s approach to televisual aesthetics has influenced the way that contemporary film directors have crossed over into the television medium. However, when taking into account the differences in the two media of film and television notions of authorship, with regards to the position of the director, become complicated, especially when considering contemporary television and the rise of the showrunner as key creative force. Even when looking back at Lynch’s contribution to Twin Peaks it becomes clear that the series was deeply collaborative, with Lynch absent during parts of the filming. Yet, when examining the extensive material that has been written about Twin Peaks there is still a continuing tendency to place Lynch as the sole author. The placement of Lynch as author can be argued in relation to the episodes he directed (as will be explored below in relation to the first episode of Season Two), but cannot be attributed to him alone when considering the series as a whole. Finally, I will discuss how the figure of the television auteur has become a central element of television reception rather than production, an integral part of a viewer’s search for narrative meaning in a medium where complexity and mystery are now expected and enjoyed. Just as fans scrambled to uncover the many secrets and mysteries of Twin Peaks by looking to Lynch’s other works for answers, a similar process is experienced by fans of television shows existing today.

Event-related potential effects of object repetition depend on attention and part-whole configuration

The effects of spatial attention and part-whole configuration on recognition of repeated objects were investigated with behavioral and event-related potential (ERP) measures. Short-term repetition effects were measured for probe objects as a function of whether a preceding prime object was shown as an intact image or coarsely scrambled (split into two halves) and whether or not it had been attended during the prime display. In line with previous behavioral experiments, priming effects were observed from both intact and split primes for attended objects, but only from intact (repeated same-view) objects when they were unattended. These behavioral results were reflected in ERP waveforms at occipital-temporal locations as more negative-going deflections for repeated items in the time window between 220 and 300 ms after probe onset (N250r). Attended intact images showed generally more enhanced repetition effects than split ones. Unattended images showed repetition effects only when presented in an intact configuration, and this finding was limited to the right-hemisphere electrodes. Repetition effects in earlier (before 200 ms) time-windows were limited to attended conditions at occipito-temporal sites (N1), a component linked to the encoding of object structure, while repetition effects at central locations during the same time window (P150) were found only from objects repeated in the same intact configuration—both previously attended and unattended probe objects. The data indicate that view-generalization is mediated by a combination of analytic (part-based) representations and automatic view-dependent representations.

BUSINESS NETWORKS IN E-COMMERCE INTERNATIONALIZATION –Two Finnish Companies Targeting Russia

With the proliferation of Internet, online shopping has become an increasingly essential part of global economy and thus, increasingly important field of research. While the internationalization process of a company has for long been in the focus of academic research, internationalization of e-commerce is a much newer field of study. The earlier empirical research has amply pointed out the difficulties of traditional internationalization models to explain the internationalization process of e-commerce companies. Conversely, business networks have been argued to play a major role in the e-commerce internationalization. The purpose of this study is to study how business networks influence the internationalization process of e-commerce companies. Conducted as a case study, this research studies the internationalization process of two Finnish e-commerce companies, Hong Kong and Hifi Studio, into possibly one of the most booming online markets - Russia. The empirical findings of the study concur with the earlier literature. The observed internationalization process differs from the assumptions of traditional international business models, and business networks are found influential for the process. However, the behavior of the two studied organizations is observed more independent than the network view to internationalization presumes. The trigger to internationalize rises from within the organizations and market potential is the primary explanation for selection of target markets. No network relationships were found to have an effect on foreign market selection, nor selection of mode of operations. This study indicates that exploring foreign markets is actually about investing in specific relationships within a business network, rather than overcoming economic, institutional, and cultural barriers. Companies utilize a wide array of relationships in their internationalization process and may effectively overcome disadvantages of operating in a foreign market by adopting partnerships with correct partners. However, building and maintaining operational business relationships is a demanding process, and organizations should prefer quality over quantity in their partner selection. Moreover, relationships where the focal party possess significant influence and leverage over other actor should be favored. Lastly, relationships need to be continuously evaluated and assessed in comparison with strategic business goals. Ultimately, e-commerce can be considered a new, low-risk, cost-effective, and relationship-oriented internationalization method, suitable especially in volatile market conditions as Russia today. This revolutionary new mode of international business activity calls for more profound focus of business managers and academia alike, as its weight on global trade continues to grow.

Integrating corporate responsbility into investor relations. Sustainability report as a part of investor relations.

Corporate responsibility is a question that many stakeholders are interested in. These stakeholders can be e.g. company’s employees, partners, clients, media or investors. Especially for listed companies, investors are one of the most important stakeholders. It is essential for a company to maintain the trust of current investors and gain the trust of potential investors. Investors cannot be divided only into two groups, individual and institutional investors. Investors differ a lot, especially when it comes to investment decisions. Investors can make their investment decisions based on many things, and strong financial performance is not necessarily good enough a reason. Socially responsible investors value responsibility and sustainability related factors when making investment decisions. These things can be divided into three dimensions: environmental, social and economic responsibility. Many companies disclose a sustainability report in order to be able to answer to the needs of different stakeholders, including investors. The purpose of this thesis was to study how companies integrate corporate responsibility into investor relations, and how sustainability report can be used in investor relations. Furthermore, this thesis examined the key elements of sustainability reports. The research was made by a qualitative study in two phases. In the first phase five representatives of two Finnish listed companies, KONE and Kesko were interviewed. The interviewees are professionals within investor relations and corporate responsibility communications. In the second phase of the study the sustainability reports of these two companies were analyzed with content analysis. The existing theory and the interviews created the base for the content analysis. This study suggests that there is a connection between corporate responsibility and investor relations, and those should be integrated. Socially responsible investors are an important target group for companies, and companies should be able to respond to their and other stakeholders’ needs. Sustainability report can be used as a tool both within the company and in external communication for these purposes.

Two “pillars” of cold-water coral reefs along Atlantic European margins: Prevalent association of Madrepora oculata with Lophelia pertusa, from reef to colony scale

The scleractinian coral Lophelia pertusa has been the focus of deep-sea research since the recognition of the vast extent of coral reefs in North Atlantic waters two decades ago, long after their existence was mentioned by fishermen. These reefs where shown to provide habitat, concentrate biomass and act as feeding or nursery grounds for many species, including those targeted by commercial fisheries. Thus, the attention given to this cold-water coral (CWC) species from researchers and the wider public has increased. Consequently, new research programs triggered research to determine the full extent of the corals geographic distribution and ecological dynamics of “Lophelia reefs”. The present study is based on a systematic standardised sampling design to analyse the distribution and coverage of CWC reefs along European margins from the Bay of Biscay to Iceland. Based on Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) image analysis, we report an almost systematic occurrence of Madrepora oculata in association with L. pertusa with similar abundances of both species within explored reefs, despite a tendency of increased abundance of L. pertusa compared to M. oculata toward higher latitudes. This systematic association occasionally reached the colony scale, with “twin” colonies of both species often observed growing next to each other when isolated structures were occurring off-reefs. Finally, several “false chimaera” were observed within reefs, confirming that colonial structures can be “coral bushes” formed by an accumulation of multiple colonies even at the inter-specific scale, with no need for self-recognition mechanisms. Thus, we underline the importance of the hitherto underexplored M. oculata in the Eastern Atlantic, re-establishing a more balanced view that both species and their yet unknown interactions are required to better elucidate the ecology, dynamics and fate of European CWC reefs in a changing environment.

Mafic and felsic plutonism in the Elvas region (SW Iberia, Portugal): two distinct Nd isotope sources and geodynamics

The occurrence of mafic (mainly gabbros and diorites) and felsic (syenites and granites) rocks, in close spatial association, in the Elvas region, at the northern part of the Ossa-Morena Zone, could be interpreted as a single bimodal (alkaline) plutonic complex. However, in spite of scarce isotopic (Sm-Nd) data, the co-magmatic origin of both rock groups (mafic and felsic) has already been questioned [1]. Based on the mineral chemistry of primary clinopyroxenes (Di–Hd, %En: 45.5 – 27.2) and representative whole-rock analyses, gabbros and diorites of the Elvas massif show a transitional character between alkaline and non-alkaline fields and wide compositions: SiO2 (42.47 – 58.00 wt%); TiO2 (0.24 – 1.68 wt%); Y/Nb (4.0 – 10.7); Th (0.1 – 6.8 ppm); Zr (18.6 – 576.9 ppm). The felsic group is composed by highly differentiated rocks which correspond to distinct levels of silica saturation and alkalinity. Peralkaline syenites usually present sodic (riebeckite) and sodic-calcic (aegirine-augite, ferrowinchite) inosilicates and reveal quite variable compositions: SiO2 (57.50 – 72.07 wt%); TiO2 (0.10 – 1.45 wt%); Th (1.7 – 67.0 ppm); Zr (133.0 – 4800.0 ppm). The alkaline granites show hedenbergite as the characteristic inosilicate, presenting relatively common compositions: SiO2 (61.85 – 78.06 wt%); TiO2 (0.21 – 0.58 wt%); Th (11.8 – 38.4 ppm); Zr (317.3 – 1234.6 ppm) [2]. Recent Sm-Nd isotopic results, on a total of 18 whole-rock samples (6 mafites and 12 felsites), allow new and more consistent interpretation concerning the petrogenesis of these plutonic rocks. Assuming an age of 490 Ma [3], the felsic rocks provide (0.6 < Nd490 < 4.3), similar to other contemporary (per)alkaline rocks of this region [4], reflecting magmatic extractions from time-integrated depleted mantle sources followed by variable and incomplete mixing (and/or AFC-type) processes with enriched, probably crustal sources. This alkaline/peralkaline magmatism is thought to represent the main regional record of the rifting event which presumably led to the opening of the Rheic Ocean. On the other hand, the mafic plutonic rocks of the Elvas massif cannot represent the magmatic precursors of these syenites and granites as they show completely distinct Nd isotopic ratios (3.7 < Nd490 < 1.2) indicating important contribution of long-term enriched (crustal) sources. Instead, considering the age and the Nd isotopic signature of other mafic plutonic unit emplaced nearby (the Campo Maior massif: ca. 370 Ma; 6.0 < Nd370 < 5.2) [5], and recalculating the isotopic ratios of the Elvas massif for the same age (4.3 < Nd370 < 1.6), it is plausible to consider that these plutons (Campo Maior and Elvas) can be coeval and representative of the Variscan magmatism in this region. In such hypothesis, the differences between these isotopic values could be explained, on a time-integrated basis, either by magmatic sources for the Elvas massif less enriched in LREE than the sources involved in the Campo Maior massif, or, if both plutonites share similar depleted mantle sources, by magmatic differentiation paths considerably affected by crustal contamination processes, which reached higher degrees in the Campo Maior massif.

PART STUDY OF PERCEPTION OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS IN THE LIBRARY COMMUNITY: OPINION (AS) EMPLOYERS (AS) AND GRADUATES (AS) SCHOOL LIBRARY, DOCUMENTATION AND INFORMATION FOR THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

This article provides a brief description of some general aspects of self-evaluation process conducted in the School of Library, Documentation and Information from the National University of Costa Rica, to obtain accreditation from the career of Library and Documentation in 2005 and to achieve re-accreditation in 2009.The objective consists in a comparison between the two evaluation processes from the point of view of two specific sectors, employers and graduates, and presents the views provided by each of them as a partial analysis of the social impact assessment of educational programs in the community librarianship as a first input to raise awareness of the importance of these studies in the institutional and national level.

Survey on the digenean and monogenean helminthes of clupeidae (teleosts) from southern part of Caspian Sea

The helminthes parasites fauna of 313 specimens of Caspian herrings (Clupeonella cultriventris, Clupeonella engrauliformis, Clupeonella grimmi) caught from catching localities situated in southeast of Caspian Sea Were investigated during winter 2008 until autumn 2009. A total of 3 helminthes species were found. They were including Pseudopentagramma symmetrica from intestine (mid gut, hind gut and cecae) Bunocotyle cingulata in intestine, Mazocreas alosae the only monogenean with Marine origin in the gills of infected specimens. In addition to two zoonotic species including Contracecum sp. and Anisakis sp. in digestive system, muscle and ovary and an Acanthocephal, Corynosoma strumosum in intestine which were previously reported. We can conclude that the main characteristic of the helminthes parasites community of Clupeidae species studied is the dominance of the endoparasites species due mainly to the digenean Pseudopentagramma symmetrica and Bunocotyle cingulata and the relative scarcity of ectohelminthes fauna. In this paper the latest data of helminthes fauna and community ecology of digenean of Clupeidae species are presented and the community structure of Pseudopentagramma symmetrica is discussed.

Design and construction of a two dimensional duct equipped with a wave generator and a variable coastal slope and an ocean wave energy conversion system (OWC)

The aims of this thesis were evaluation the type of wave channel, wave current, and effect of some parameters on them and identification and comparison between types of wave maker in laboratory situations. In this study, designing and making of two dimension channels (flume) and wave maker for experiment son the marine buoy, marine building and energy conversion systems were also investigated. In current research, the physical relation between pump and pumpage and the designing of current making in flume were evaluated. The related calculation for steel building, channels beside glasses and also equations of wave maker plate movement, power of motor and absorb wave(co astal slope) were calculated. In continue of this study, the servo motor was designed and applied for moving of wave maker’s plate. One Ball Screw Leaner was used for having better movement mechanisms of equipment and convert of the around movement to linear movement. The Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) was also used for control of wave maker system. The studies were explained type of ocean energies and energy conversion systems. In another part of this research, the systems of energy resistance in special way of Oscillating Water Column (OWC) were explained and one sample model was designed and applied in hydrolic channel at the Sheikh Bahaii building in Azad University, Science and Research Branch. The dimensions of designed flume was considered at 16 1.98 0. 57 m which had ability to provide regular waves as well as irregular waves with little changing on the control system. The ability of making waves was evaluated in our designed channel and the results were showed that all of the calculation in designed flume was correct. The mean of error between our results and theory calculation was conducted 7%, which was showed the well result in this situation. With evaluating of designed OWC model and considering of changes in the some part of system, one bigger sample of this model can be used for designing the energy conversion system model. The obtained results showed that the best form for chamber in exit position of system, were zero degree (0) in angle for moving below part, forty and five (45) degree in front wall of system and the moving forward of front wall keep in two times of height of wave.

External school evaluation : teachers’ perspectives : two case studies from Northern Portugal

The external evaluation of non-higher education schools in Portugal has been developed by the General Inspectorate of Education since 2006. A first cycle of evaluation was completed, covering all educational units in continental Portugal up to 2011. The model of evaluation has since been subject to alterations, and a second cycle of evaluation is now coming to an end. The current model of evaluation is based on documental analysis, analysis of students’ results, and panel interviews with a variety of representatives of the school community, and addresses three domains: results, provision of educational service and management. This paper is part of an ongoing research project, developed by 6 universities and supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (PTDC/CPE-CED/116674/2010) which intends to analyse the impacts and effects this process of external evaluation has had on Portuguese schools. This project includes a variety of perspectives and methodologies. In particular, we will focus on two case studies undertaken in two schools from the northern region of Portugal, and more specifically on the perspectives expressed by the teachers of those schools. These particular schools were chosen because they have been evaluated twice and represent different educational levels (basic and secondary), contexts and results. These case studies included the analysis of documental data, interviews to key informants and a questionnaire directed to teachers (n = 141) – the latter will be the main focus of this paper. Teachers are essential elements of the school community when considering the impacts of external evaluation, as any changes directed at teaching practices, student evaluation, among others are only possible through their direct action and implication. Therefore, their perceptions on the process and its impacts are crucial to the understanding of what does and does not change in schools as a consequence of external evaluation. Although teachers’ opinions are not homogenous and each school reveals a number of differences when it comes to teachers’ perceptions of School Evaluation, it was possible to stress some areas as the most and as the least consensual. Teachers in both schools agree External School Evaluation (ESE) is useful for the identification of the schools’ strengths and weaknesses, values students’ external evaluation results, imposes a model for schools internal evaluation (and in fact contributes to the very existence of internal evaluation practices), and contributes to schools improvement. However teachers in both schools do not believe ESE contributes to teachers’ autonomy produces changes in how curriculum is managed, or leads to innovative teaching practices. These results point to a greater emphasis on change at the levels of school management, self-evaluation and particularly internal evaluation, but little impact on the teaching practices. We believe the classroom is at the core of school practices and teaching processes are essential to any measure of school quality and to their impacts on student learning.

Two-Stage Stochastic Optimization. An Application in the Third Sector

[en] It is known that most of the problems applied in the real life present uncertainty. In the rst part of the dissertation, basic concepts and properties of the Stochastic Programming have been introduced to the reader, also known as Optimization under Uncertainty. Moreover, since stochastic programs are complex to compute, we have presented some other models such as wait-and-wee, expected value and the expected result of using expected value. The expected value of perfect information and the value of stochastic solution measures quantify how worthy the Stochastic Programming is, with respect to the other models. In the second part, it has been designed and implemented with the modeller GAMS and the optimizer CPLEX an application that optimizes the distribution of non-perishable products, guaranteeing some nutritional requirements with minimum cost. It has been developed within Hazia project, managed by Sortarazi association and associated with Food Bank of Biscay and Basic Social Services of several districts of Biscay.