Detecting Ca2+ sparks on stationary and varying baselines.

Studies concerning the physiological significance of Ca2+ sparks often depend on the detection and measurement of large populations of events in noisy microscopy images. Automated detection methods have been developed to quickly and objectively distinguish potential sparks from noise artifacts. However, previously described algorithms are not suited to the reliable detection of sparks in images where the local baseline fluorescence and noise properties can vary significantly, and risk introducing additional bias when applied to such data sets. Here, we describe a new, conceptually straightforward approach to spark detection in linescans that addresses this issue by combining variance stabilization with local baseline subtraction. We also show that in addition to greatly increasing the range of images in which sparks can be automatically detected, the use of a more accurate noise model enables our algorithm to achieve similar detection sensitivities with fewer false positives than previous approaches when applied both to synthetic and experimental data sets. We propose, therefore, that it might be a useful tool for improving the reliability and objectivity of spark analysis in general, and describe how it might be further optimized for specific applications.

The shifting engines of medicalization

Social scientists and other analysts have written about medicalization since at least the 1970s. Most of these studies depict the medical profession, interprofessional or organizational contests, or social movements and interest groups as the prime movers toward medicalization. This article contends that changes in medicine in the past two decades are altering the medicalization process. Using several case examples, I argue that three major changes in medical knowledge and organization have engendered an important shift in the engines that drive medicalization: biotechnology (especially the pharmaceutical industry and genetics), consumers, and managed care. Doctors are still gatekeepers for medical treatment, but their role has become more subordinate in the expansion or contraction of medicalization. Medicalization is now more driven by commercial and market interests than by professional claims-makers. The definitional center of medicalization remains constant, but the availability of new pharmaceutical and potential genetic treatments are increasingly drivers for new medical categories. This requires a shift in the sociological focus examining medicalization for the twenty-first century.

Shifting Ground:Beyond National Architecture

The Irish Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2012 charts a position for Irish architecture in a global culture where the modes of production of architecture are radically altered. Ireland is one of the most globalised countries in the world, yet it has developed a national culture of architecture derived from local place as a material construct. We now have to evolve our understanding in the light of the globalised nature of economic processes and architectural production which is largely dependent on internationally networked flows of products, data, and knowledge. We have just begun to represent this situation to ourselves and others. How should a global architecture be grounded culturally and philosophically? How does it position itself outside of shared national reference points?
heneghan peng architects were selected as participants because they are working across three continents on a range of competition-winning projects. Several of these are in sensitive and/or symbolic sites that include three UNESCO World Heritage sites, including the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo, the Giants Causeway Visitor Centre in Northern Ireland, and the new Rhine Bridge near Lorelei.
Our dialogue led us to discussing the universal languages of projective geometry and number are been shared by architects and related professionals. In the work of heneghan peng, the specific embodiment of these geometries is carefully calibrated by the choice of materials and the detailed design of their physical performance on site. The stone facade of the Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre takes precise measure of the properties of the volcanic basalt seams from which it is hewn. The extraction of the stone is the subject of the pavilion wall drawings which record the cutting of stones to create the façade of the causeway centre.
We also identified water as an element which is shared across the different sites. Venice is a perfect place to take measure of this element which suggests links to another site – the Nile Valley which was enriched by the annual flooding of the River Nile. An ancient Egyptian rod for measuring the water level of the Nile inspired the design of the Nilometre - a responsive oscillating bench that invites visitors to balance their respective weights. This action embodies the ways of thinking that are evolving to operate in the globalised world, where the autonomous architectural object is dissolving into an expanded field of conceptual rules and systems. The bench constitutes a shifting ground located in the unstable field of Venice. It is about measurement and calibration of the weight of the body in relation to other bodies; in relation to the site of the installation; and in relation to water. The exhibit is located in the Artiglierie section of the Arsenale. Its level is calibrated against the mark of the acqua alta in the adjacent brickwork of the building which embodies a liminal moment in the fluctuating level of the lagoon.
The weights of bodies, the level of water, changes over time, are constant aspects of design across cultures and collectively they constitute a common ground for architecture - a ground shared with other design professionals. The movement of the bench required complex engineering design and active collaboration between the architects, engineers and fabricators. It is a kind of prototype – a physical object produced from digital data that explores the mathematics at play – the see-saw motion invites the observer to become a participant, to give it a test drive. It shows how a simple principle can generate complex effects that are difficult to predict and invites visitors to experiment and play with them.

Changing shape and shifting boundaries - the media portrayal of probation in Ireland

Literature on the media representation of probation highlights that probation as a ‘brand’ and concept is poorly understood and lacks public visibility. This has implications for its legitimacy and credibility. In this article we explore probation’s visibility in one country, the Republic of Ireland, through a critical analysis of print media representations of probationover a 12-year period (2001 to 2012). While our study finds that the majority of the coverage of probation was either positive or neutral in tone, we note a recent shift towards a more negative tone that we argue is reflective of the changing shape of the penal-probation boundaries. These changes are linked to resourcing of the criminal justice system and have implications for the public perception of probation.

Public management, Peace-building and Creating Change: Shifting the Lens of Analysis from the Macro to the Micro

Considerable time, research money and expertise has been spent exploring the complex reality of ethno nationalist conflict and the role that public management plays in supporting the transition from violent conflict to stability, order and prosperity (Esman 1999; Guelke and Milton-Edwards 2000; Brinkerhoff 2005; Brinkerhoff, Wetterberg et al. 2012; Rao 2014). However, there seems to be a gap in relation to the practical challenges of managing change within, through and beyond such conflict. This paper aims to begin the process of putting a framework around the real experience of public management in conflict and transition by shifting the lens of analysis from macros concerns about sequencing interventions (Rao 2014) and legitimate requirements of security, stability and service delivery (Brinkerhoff, Wetterberg et al. 2012) to a micro analysis of the attitudes, behaviours, challenges and compromises held and faced by those public servants on the front line of conflict management and conflict transformation processes. Using senior managers as the unit of analysis and Northern Ireland as an embryonic case study, this paper discusses the links between ethno nationalist societal conflict, public sector reform and manager behaviour. In doing so, it highlights some initial data from an early pilot study into the experiences of individuals in significant public service roles at various stages of the NI conflict / peace process and draws some tentative conclusions about the viability of a wider study.

The Shifting Battleground of Article 4(2) TEU: Evolving National Identities and the corresponding need for EU management?

Article 4(2) TEU requires that the European Union (EU) respect the Member States’ national identities, creating a legal obligation enforceable before the CJEU and valuable in political negotiations. However, the concept of national identities is unclear, leaving open questions about the scope or parameters of the provision and its applicability. The CJEU appears likely to take a relatively flexible approach in light of Article 4(2) TEU’s relationship with national constitutional courts’ reserves. This flexible approach would enable Member States to rely upon a range of aspects as part of their national identity, including ones that were previously unidentified. This is a crucial feature if one considers that national identities may evolve gradually or even dramatically, including where Member States purposefully attempt to develop their national identities further. This possibility of an evolved national identity is exemplified by the French Charte de l’Environnement. It may thereby be possible for Member States to stretch the scope and application of Article 4(2) TEU through reference to these evolving national identities. This potential raises significant challenges for the EU regarding the management of Article 4(2) TEU, which it will need to address if it wishes to ensure harmonisation and uniformity in the relevant areas.

Unsettling modernity: Shifting values and changing housing styles in the Kathmandu Valley

Abstract

Culture has always been important for the character of the cities, as have the civic and public institutions that sustain a lifestyle and provide an identity. Substantial evidence of the unique historical, urban civilisation remains within the traditional settlements in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal; manifested in houses, palaces, temples, rest houses, open spaces, festivals, rituals, customs and cultural institutions. Indigenous knowledge and practices prescribed the arrangement of houses, roads and urban spaces giving the city a distinctive physical form, character and a unique oriental nativeness. In technical sense, these societies did not have written rules for guiding development. In recent decades, the urban culture of the city has been changing with the forces of urbanisation and globalisation and the demand for new buildings and spaces. New residential design is increasingly dominated by distinctive patterns of Western suburban ideal comprising detached or semi-detached homes and high rise tower blocks. This architectural iconoclasm can be construed as a rather crude response to the indigenous culture and built form. The paper attempts to dismantle the current tension between traditional and contemporary ‘culture’ (and hence society) and housing (or built form) in the Kathmandu Valley by engaging in a discussion that cuts across space, time and meaning of architecture as we know it.

Constrained Consumption Shifting Management in the Distributed Energy Resources Scheduling Considering Demand Response

Demand response concept has been gaining increasing importance while the success of several recent implementations makes this resource benefits unquestionable. This happens in a power systems operation environment that also considers an intensive use of distributed generation. However, more adequate approaches and models are needed in order to address the small size consumers and producers aggregation, while taking into account these resources goals. The present paper focuses on the demand response programs and distributed generation resources management by a Virtual Power Player that optimally aims to minimize its operation costs taking the consumption shifting constraints into account. The impact of the consumption shifting in the distributed generation resources schedule is also considered. The methodology is applied to three scenarios based on 218 consumers and 4 types of distributed generation, in a time frame of 96 periods.

Optimization of Generation and Aggregated Consumption Shifting for Demand Response Programs Definition

The concept of demand response has drawing attention to the active participation in the economic operation of power systems, namely in the context of recent electricity markets and smart grid models and implementations. In these competitive contexts, aggregators are necessary in order to make possible the participation of small size consumers and generation units. The methodology proposed in the present paper aims to address the demand shifting between periods, considering multi-period demand response events. The focus is given to the impact in the subsequent periods. A Virtual Power Player operates the network, aggregating the available resources, and minimizing the operation costs. The illustrative case study included is based on a scenario of 218 consumers including generation sources.

Quantum-based Particle Swarm Optimization Application to Studies of Aggregated Consumption Shifting and Generation Scheduling in Smart Grids

Demand response programs and models have been developed and implemented for an improved performance of electricity markets, taking full advantage of smart grids. Studying and addressing the consumers’ flexibility and network operation scenarios makes possible to design improved demand response models and programs. The methodology proposed in the present paper aims to address the definition of demand response programs that consider the demand shifting between periods, regarding the occurrence of multi-period demand response events. The optimization model focuses on minimizing the network and resources operation costs for a Virtual Power Player. Quantum Particle Swarm Optimization has been used in order to obtain the solutions for the optimization model that is applied to a large set of operation scenarios. The implemented case study illustrates the use of the proposed methodology to support the decisions of the Virtual Power Player in what concerns the duration of each demand response event.