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We analyzed 33 y of fish community data collected from a low-order, urban stream in central Illinois, USA, to determine the effects of municipal wastewater management projects and urbanization on fish communities. From 1985 to 2017, species richness, number of pollution-intolerant species, and alternative index of biotic integrity significantly increased at sites across this system. Species diversity likewise increased, but was mostly significant only at sites downstream of the effluent outflow. Ceasing the chlorination of wastewater in 1990 resulted in significant increases in fish community metrics both upstream and downstream of effluent outflow, although effects varied from site to site. Completing a combined sewer overflow abatement project in 2008 resulted in some significant increases in species richness, diversity, and number of pollution-intolerant species at sites downstream of effluent outflow. From 2001 to 2016, the change in the number of pollution-intolerant species correlated inversely with the increased percentage of impervious cover in the study system. There was no significant correlation of other metrics with the change in percent impervious surfaces. These results suggest that urbanization at upstream sites limited to some extent the benefits of water management interventions that improved fish community metrics at downstream sites.

Archival research suggests that nonprofit organizations are inaccurately reporting significant asset diversions on IRS Form 990. This suggests that information reported on Form 990 may be misleading. This study investigates three possible causes for the underreporting of significant diversions of assets, including reading the Form 990 instructions, how the threshold for reporting is met, and the threat of outside detection of the theft. Our findings suggest that reading the instructions for Form 990, positively and significantly influences disclosure of an asset diversion. We also examine press release reporting and find that risk of detection of the theft is a significant predictor of press release disclosure. We conduct a second study to test our suggested changes to the wording of the Signature Line and Governance Section of Form 990. Adjusting the wording of the significant diversion of assets question to be more transparent results in greater disclosure.

PurposeThis study arises from a recent school-based professional development (PD) programme conducted for English language teachers (ELTs) in a secondary school in the Kingdom of Bahrain, where a participatory lesson study (PLS) strategy was implemented to develop four ELTs' teaching skills and their senior teacher's leadership. The influence of the PLS on creating a participatory PD experience for the participants was investigated through exploring their perceptions of their professional growth during their PLS experience.Design/methodology/approachFollowing a qualitative interpretive approach, a total of eight lesson study cases and 16 meetings were conducted and analysed.FindingsThe main factors that influenced the participants' perceptions of their professional growth in PLS were high self-efficacy and confidence; dominancy of their peers; the informality of the PLS practice; and reflective practice. Relatedly, the results revealed critical thoughts about PLS as a means for ELT's self-directed PD in non-native English-speaking contexts.Originality/valueThe study provides an alternative approach to PD that can be offered for ELTs in any ESL/EFL context that focusses on supporting non-native English-speaking teachers' practices by associating theory with practice. This approach has enabled them to gain the practical skills they need and develop their awareness about the theoretical principles of these practices. For the first time, teachers were given the role to act as the trainers and the theorisers of their own teaching practices.

Scant coverage of fraud in nonprofit organizations and smaller firms exists despite surveys and headlines indicating fraud prevalence is at greater levels among these firms than at for-profit and larger firms. Applying a combination of stakeholder salience theory and whistleblowing theory, this paper establishes a background for such comparisons. Results of a survey of 153 fulltime employees uncover differences in whistleblowing between for-profit and nonprofit organization types. We find those who work at for-profit organizations are more likely to whistleblow than those who work for nonprofit organizations. The results and supplemental analysis suggest whistleblowing intention for fraud is significantly more likely for larger organizations (measured by number of employees) regardless of organization type. Further, as geographic reach increases, for-profit employees are increasingly likely to report.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether intention to report fraud varies by organization type or fraud type. Employees who self-select into not-for-profits may be inherently different from employees at other organizations. Design/methodology/approach The authors conduct a 2 × 2 experiment in which (n=107) individuals with a bookkeeping or accounting background respond to a fraud scenario. Analysis of covariance models are used for data analysis. Findings The authors find evidence that not-for-profit employees are more likely to report fraud and that reporting intention does not differ significantly by fraud type. Research limitations/implications Limitations of this study include the simulation of a fraud through a hypothetical incident and the use of online participants. Practical implications This study expands the commitment literature by examining the role that commitment plays in the judgment and decision-making process of a whistleblower. Findings suggest affective commitment, which is an employee’s emotional attachment to the organization, and mediate the path between organization type and reporting intention. Affective commitment significantly predicts whistleblowing in not-for-profit organizations but not in for-profit organizations. Originality/value This research provides insight into how organization type influences whistleblowing intentions through constructs such as organizational commitment and public service motivation.

This study investigated English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners' strategic competence in the computer-assisted integrated speaking tests (CAIST) through the development and validation of the Strategic Competence Inventory for Computer-assisted Speaking Assessment (SCICASA). Based on our review of the literature on the CAIST, strategic competence, and available instruments for measuring the construct, we defined EFL learners' strategic competence in the CAIST as learners' use of four metacognitive strategies: Planning, problem-solving, monitoring, and evaluating, with each of them consisting of various components. These metacognitive strategies formulated the four factors and scale items of the SCICASA under validation. An exploratory factor analysis of responses from 254 EFL students and the subsequent confirmatory factor analysis of data collected on another sample of 242 students generated 23 items under the four factors. The high validity and reliability of the SCICASA reveal that EFL learners' strategic competence operates in the forms of the four metacognitive strategies in the CAIST. This will lend some new supporting evidence for Bachman and Palmer's (2010) strategic competence model while providing implications for metacognitive instructions and test development. Concomitantly, the findings show the inventory as a valid instrument for measuring strategic competence in computer-assisted foreign/second language (L2) speaking assessment and relevant research arenas and beyond.

Microfluidic-based microencapsulation requires significant oversight to prevent material and quality loss due to sporadic disruptions in fluid flow that routinely arise. State-of-the-art microcapsule production is laborious and relies on experts to monitor the process, e.g. through a microscope. Unnoticed defects diminish the quality of collected material and/or may cause irreversible clogging. To address these issues, we developed an automated monitoring and sorting system that operates on consumer-grade hardware in real-time. Using human-labeled microscope images acquired during typical operation, we train a convolutional neural network that assesses microencapsulation. Based on output from the machine learning algorithm, an integrated valving system collects desirable microcapsules or diverts waste material accordingly. Although the system notifies operators to make necessary adjustments to restore microencapsulation, we can extend the system to automate corrections. Since microfluidic-based production platforms customarily collect image and sensor data, machine learning can help to scale up and improve microfluidic techniques beyond microencapsulation.

The present study analyzed trace element concentrations from the shells of native freshwater mussels collected from the headwater tributaries of the Illinois River (USA). These analyses were conducted to determine whether (A) anthropogenic enrichment could be observed and (B) whether enrichment had decreased following the enactment of Clean Water Act legislation in the 1970s. Collections archived in museums allowed comparison of the pre-Columbian period, the mid-20th century, and the early 21st century. The element Cu was consistently elevated above pre-Columbian baselines, while the elements As, Cd, Fe, and Zn were elevated in some collections. Although higher than baseline, concentrations Zn consistently declined from the mid-20th century to modern times, although differences occurred at individual sites. There was evidence for food web influence: the element Mn was significantly negatively correlated to sediment primary productivity as indexed by shell δ13C and Cu was positively correlated to trophic position as reflected by shell δ15N. Zn correlated to stream order across all time periods. We conclude that a mixture of historic factors affecting pollution control and land use patterns in the watershed led to sometimes conflicting effects on trace element bioaccumulation in mussel shells.

Many research studies have been conducted during recent years on the topic of geopolymer materials based on the engineering performance of the concrete. What has been missing is the combination of this research in a way that would provide a simple to use design tool for geopolymer concrete as a replacement to concrete based on Portland Cement. This research paper addresses this requirement for developing a standard mix design method for Class F, low calcium fly ash based geopolymer concrete using Multivariate Adaptive Regression Spline (MARS) model. Published geopolymer concrete research data was combined into a database and analysed to give the ratios of water/solid, alkaline activator/fly ash, Na2SiO3/NaOH, and NaOH molarity. Targeted compressive strengths ranging from 30 MPa to 55 MPa at 28 days were achieved with laboratory experiments, using the proposed MARS mix design methodology. Thus, this tool has the capability to provide a novel approach for the design of geopolymer concrete mixes to achieve the desired compressive strength appropriate for the construction requirement.

Mandatory audit firm rotation has been researched for decades with resulting opposition as well as support. Research has mainly treated mandatory auditor rotation at the firm macro level. We submit the client relationship length is comprised of firm tenure and audit team continuity, or auditor familiarity. Increased tenure, at the interorganizational or firm level and interpersonal or individual level, has been shown to increase trust; and further, trust is positively related to employee voice, such as speaking up about fraud (whistleblowing). We conduct an experiment examining whether increased audit firm tenure and auditor familiarity leads to increased trust, which enhances the willingness to whistleblow. We find evidence that suggests auditor familiarity enhances trust, which, in turn, positively influences an employee's intentions to whistleblow. This has important implications for the profession and for future research exploring mandatory audit firm rotation; in particular, the need to include auditor familiarity as a construct.

Cancer development and progression have been linked to oxidative stress, a condition characterized by unbalanced increase in ROS and RNS production. The main endogenous initiators of the redox imbalance in cancer cells are defective mitochondria, elevated NOX activity, and uncoupled NOS3. Traditionally, most attention has been paid to direct oxidative damage to DNA by certain ROS. However, increase in oxidative DNA lesions does not always lead to malignancy. Hence, additional ROS-dependent, pro-carcinogenic mechanisms must be important. Our recent study demonstrated that Tyr nitration of PP2A stimulates its activity and leads to downregulation of BRCA1 expression. This provides a mechanism for chromosomal instability essential for tumor progression. In the present work, we demonstrated that inhibition of ROS production by generating mitochondrial-electron-transport-deficient cell lines (ρ0 cells) or by inhibition of NOX activity with a selective peptide inhibitor significantly reduced PP2A Tyr nitration and its activity in different cancer cell lines. As a result of the decreased PP2A activity, BRCA1 expression was restored along with a significantly enhanced level of DNA HRR. We used TCGA database to analyze the correlation between expressions of the NOX regulatory subunits, NOS isoforms, and BRCA1 in the 3 cancer research studies: breast invasive carcinoma, ovarian cystadenocarcinoma, and lung adenocarcinoma. TCGA database analysis demonstrated that the high expression levels of most of the NOX regulatory subunits responsible for stimulation of NOX1-NOX4 were associated with significant downregulation of BRCA1 expression.

The New Zealand education system is recognised internationally for its overall high quality. At the same time, there is a persistent gap in achievement between students in low socio-economic status (SES) schools in which there is an over-representation of Māori and Pasifika students, and students in more affluent communities. In this paper, we present the findings of a study that explored the participation and achievement rates of secondary school students in selected literacy standards, and used classroom observations to record practices and resources used in literacy teaching. Our findings show the extent to which unequal opportunities to learn (OTLs) for Māori and Pasifika and other students from low SES communities exist at the systems level as well as at the level of classroom instructional offerings. We discuss the factors specific to the New Zealand curriculum and assessment systems that contribute to the current situation and suggest possible ways to achieve a more equitable outcome for al...

Amputation of the digit tip within the terminal phalangeal bone of rodents, monkeys, and humans results in near-perfect regeneration of bone and surrounding tissues; however, amputations at a more proximal level fail to produce the same regenerative result. Digit regeneration is a coordinated, multifaceted process that incorporates signaling from bioactive growth factors both in the tissue matrix and from several different cell populations. To elucidate the mechanisms involved in bone regeneration we developed a novel multi-tissue slice-culture model that regenerates bone ex vivo via direct ossification. Our study provides an integrated multi-tissue system for bone and digit regeneration and allows us to circumvent experimental limitations that exist in vivo. We used this slice-culture model to evaluate the influence of oxygen on regenerating bone. Micro-computed tomography (µCT) and histological analysis revealed that the regenerative response of the digit is facilitated in part by a dynamic oxygen event, in which mutually exclusive high and low oxygen microenvironments exist and vacillate in a coordinated fashion during regeneration. Areas of increased oxygen are initially seen in the marrow and then surrounding areas of vasculature in the regenerating digit. Major hypoxic events are seen at 7 days postamputation (DPA 7) in the marrow and again at DPA 12 in the blastema, and manipulation of oxygen tensions during these hypoxic phases can shift the dynamics of digit regeneration. Oxygen increased to 21% oxygen tension can either accelerate or attenuate bone mineralization in a stage-specific manner in the regenerative timeline. These studies not only reveal a circumscribed frame of oxygen influence during bone regeneration, but also suggest that oxygen may be one of the primary signaling influences during regeneration.

Locke characterizes sensitive knowledge as knowledge of the existence of external objects present to the senses, and in terms of an ‘assurance’ that falls short of the certainty of intuition and demonstration. But it is unclear how this fits with his general definition of knowledge, as the perception of the agreement or disagreement of ideas, and it is unclear how that assurance can amount to knowledge, rather than amounting to mere probability (which he contrasts with knowledge). Some contend that Locke does not regard sensitive knowledge as genuine knowledge, but only honourifically calls it knowledge. In contrast, I argue that Locke holds that sensitive knowledge is knowledge, though he takes the conditions for it to be very different from the conditions for intuitive and demonstrative knowledge. It is not the assurance alone which Locke thinks qualifies sensitive knowledge as such: it is also the fact that the assurance arises from the actual employment of the senses upon external objects, and the fac...

This paper examines whether a literacy intervention involving generic and content area literacy components can improve both achievement on a standardized reading test and the attainment of secondary school qualifications, and whether the intervention can be implemented by teachers in their regular classroom settings. We report on a design-based approach for whole-school improvement, the Learning Schools Model (LSM), which was implemented in seven schools with low secondary school qualification rates. The LSM's core premises are that instructional practices need to be developed from evidence about teaching and learning in specific contexts and that professional learning communities need to fine-tune their instructional practices through collaborative analysis of data. The study employed a quasi-experimental design within a design-based approach and included classroom observations and teacher and student surveys. Reading achievement postintervention was statistically significantly higher than the projected achievement levels had the intervention not occurred. Effect sizes for tracked cohorts were Cohen's d = 0.50 and 0.62. The hierarchical linear model of reading achievement, which included students' attitudes toward reading, accounted for about 95% of the total variance. The attainment of secondary school qualifications (measured by odds ratios) increased significantly compared with school attainment prior to the intervention. The rates of attaining these qualifications were faster than national rates. The results suggest that both generic and content area literacy instruction are required and that a strong foundation in generic literacy should be maintained. However, the appropriate blend of literacy instruction is determined by a profiling of teaching and learning needs. Chinese 本文旨在考查一项包含一般性及学科领域的读写干预教学,是否能够帮助学生提高标准化阅读测验的成绩及取得中学毕业证书资格的成绩,同时亦考查该项干预教学能否由教师在其日常教学环境中实施。本文作者报告,这项为求改善整个学校而使用基于调查设计研究方法的干预教学(学习学校模型)在七所中学毕业证书资格合格率低的学校里施行。学习学校模型的核心前提是:教学实践需要根据有关特定教学环境的学习成绩证据而发展出来,而专业学习社区需要通过协作式分析学习成绩资料来微调其教学实践。本研究使用基于调查设计内的准实验设计研究方法,并包括课堂观察及对教师和学生的调查。干预教学阶段后的阅读成绩,统计上显著地高于假设没有干预教学所预期的成绩水平。追踪研究实验群组的效应值为0.50和0.62。阅读成绩的阶层线性模型统计分析,其中包括学生对阅读之态度,可解释约占总方差的95%。与干预教学阶段前相比,干预教学阶段后的中学毕业证书资格成绩(用比值比来衡量)有显著的提高,达到这些资格的进度比全国的进度更快。这些结果显示,一般性和学科领域的读写教学都是有需要的,稳健的一般性读写能力基础是有需要保持的。然而,适当的混合式读写教学,是根据教学与学习需要的分析证据而决定的。 Spanish Este estudio investiga si una intervencion de competencias que incluye componentes genericos y de contenido puede mejorar tanto el exito en un examen estandar de lectura como conseguir las cualificaciones para la escuela secundaria, y si la intervencion puede ser implementada por maestros en sus clases regulares. Les informamos sobre un acercamiento disenado para el mejoramiento de la escuela completa, el Modelo de Escuelas Aprendices (LSM por sus siglas en ingles), que fue implementado en siete escuelas con tasas bajas de cualificacion a la escuela secundaria. Las proposiciones claves del LSM son que las practicas de ensenanza tienen que surgir de evidencia sobre los contextos especificos de ensenanza y aprendizaje, y que las comunidades profesionales del aprendizaje tienen que afinar sus practicas de ensenanza por medio del analisis colaborativo de la informacion. El estudio uso un diseno casi experimental dentro de un acercamiento basado en el diseno e incluyo observaciones en los salones de clase y encuestas de los maestros y los estudiantes. Los logros en la lectura despues de la intervencion resultaron ser significantemente mas altos estadisticamente que los resultados proyectados si no hubiese habido la intervencion. Los tamanos de los efectos de los cohortes que se observaron fueron d = 0.50 y 0.62 de Cohen. El modelo lineal jerarquico de exito lector que incluye la actitud de los estudiantes a la lectura constituyo casi el 95% de la variacion total. El conseguir las cualificaciones para la escuela secundaria (medido por razon de probabilidades) aumento significantemente comparado con lo que se lograba antes de la intervencion. Las tasas de lograr estas cualificaciones fueron mas rapidas que las tasas nacionales. Los resultados sugieren que se necesitan tanto la instruccion de competencias genericas como la de contenido, y que una base fuerte en competencias genericas debe ser mantenida. Sin embargo, la mezcla apropiada de instruccion de competencias se determina por medio de la creacion de un cuadro de las necesidades de ensenanza y de aprendizaje. Arabic تفحص هذه الورقة قدرة تدخل تعلمي يشمل مكونات مجال المحتوى والمجال العمومي على تحسين الإنجاز في امتحان قراءة قياسي وكذلك تحسين مؤهلات مدرسة ثانوية ونسأل إذا استطاع الأساتذة تنفيذ التدخل في صفوفهم العادية. لقد أفدنا بمدخل مبني على التصميم لتحسين المدرسة بإكمالها يسمى نموذج المدارس التعلمية الذي تم تنفيذه في سبع مدارس ذات مستويات مؤهلات منخفضة. وعليه فمبادئ نموذج المدارس التعلمية تقوم على أن لابد من تطوير ممارسات تعليمية على أساس براهين التعلم والتعليم في سياقات معينة وأن مجتمعات التعلم المهني لابد لها من تضبيط ممارساتها التعليمية بواسطة تحاليل مشتركة للمعطيات. وقد استخدمت هذه الدراسة تصميم شبه اختباري من ضمن مدخل مبني على التصميم وشملت ملاحظات الصف واستفتاءات الأساتذة والطلاب. وجدير بالذكر أن إنجاز القراءة ما بعد التدخل كان أعلى إحصائيا من مستويات الإنجاز المتوقعة في حالة لم يتم التدخل. لقد بلغت أحجام تأثير المجموعات تحت المراقبة على مقياس كوهن الفرق = 0.50 و0.62 وقد بلغ نموذج إنجاز القراءة الخطي الهرمي الذي تضمنت عواطف الطلاب تجاه القراءة، إلى ما يعادل 95% من المتغير الشمولي. إن إنجاز مؤهلات مدارس ثانوية (تنقاس عن طريق نسب الأرجحية) ازداد ازديادا كبيرا بالمقارنة مع إنجاز المدرسة قبل التدخل. في حقيقة الأمر نسب إنجاز هذه المؤهلات تجاوزت سرعة النسب الوطنية. تشير النتائج إلى أن كلا من المجال العمومي ومجال المحتوى في تعليم القراءة والكتابة ضروريان وأن أساسا قويا في مجال التعلم العمومي ينبغي صيانته. غير أن الخليط المناسب لتعليم القراءة والكتابة يتحدد من خلال حصر حاجات التعليم والتعلم على حد سواء. Russian Moжeт ли вмeшaтeльcтвo, coчeтaющee в ceбe кoмпoнeнты oбщeй и пpeдмeтнoй гpaмoтнocти, yлyчшить peзyльтaты тecтa пo чтeнию и, в цeлoм, peзyльтaты oбyчeния в cpeднeй шкoлe? Cпocoбeн ли yчитeль ocyщecтвлять тaкoe вмeшaтeльcтвo нa oбычныx ypoкax? B cтaтьe oтpaжeны итoги пpoeктa пo цeлocтнoмy coвepшeнcтвoвaнию шкoлы, т.н. Learning Schools Model (LSM), кoтopый был пpeдпpинят в ceми cpeдниx шкoлax c низкими итoгoвыми пoкaзaтeлями. Ocнoвнoй пocыл пpoeктa LSM cocтoит в тoм, чтo мeтoды oбyчeния cлeдyeт paзpaбaтывaть нa ocнoвe и для кoнкpeтнoгo кoнтeкcтa и пpoфeccиoнaльныe yчитeльcкиe cooбщecтвa дoлжны пocтoяннo нacтpaивaть и пepeнacтpaивaть cвoи инcтpyмeнты нa ocнoвe coвмecтнoгo aнaлизa дaнныx. B иccлeдoвaнии иcпoльзoвaн квaзиэкcпepимeнтaльный пoдxoд и тaкиe мeтoды, кaк нaблюдeниe нa ypoкax и aнкeтиpoвaниe yчитeлeй и yчaщиxcя. Peзyльтaты в чтeнии пocлe вмeшaтeльcтвa oкaзaлиcь cтaтиcтичecки знaчимo вышe, чeм peзyльтaты, пpeдcкaзaнныe бeз yчeтa вмeшaтeльcтвa. Beличинa эффeктa для oтcлeжeнныx кoгopт пo Дж.Кoэнy (d) = 0.50 и 0.62. Иepapxичecкaя линeйнaя мoдeль ycпexoв в чтeнии, кoтopaя включaлa и oтнoшeниe yчaщиxcя к чтeнию, oтpaжaeт пpиблизитeльнo 95% вceгo paзбpoca. Уcпexи пo cpeднeй шкoлe в цeлoм (измepялиcь мeтoдoм cooтнoшeния шaнcoв) знaчитeльнo yвeличилocь пo cpaвнeнию c cитyaциeй дo вмeшaтeльcтвa. Teмпы дocтижeния этиx ycпexoв были вышe, чeм в цeлoм пo cтpaнe. Peзyльтaты иccлeдoвaния cвидeтeльcтвyют o тoм, чтo для пoвышeния кaк oбщeй, тaк и пpeдмeтнoй гpaмoтнocти нeoбxoдимo вмeшaтeльcтвo, и нeoбxoдимo пoддepживaть и paзвивaть бaзoвyю гpaмoтнocть. Oднaкo инcтpyмeнтapий для paзвития гpaмoтнocти в кaждoм cлyчae oпpeдeляeтcя пpeдмeтoм и yчeбными пoтpeбнocтями. French Ce texte examine la question de savoir si une intervention de litteratie comportant des aspects generiques et des aspects avec un contenu propre a un domaine particulier permet d'ameliorer a la fois les resultats a un test standard de lecture et d'obtenir un diplome de fin d'etudes secondaires, et si cette intervention peut etre realisee par des enseignants dans une situation scolaire ordinaire. Il s'agit d'un plan de recherche visant l'ecole entiere, le Learning Schools Model (LSM), qui a ete mis en place dans sept ecoles presentant de faibles taux d'obtention du diplome final. Les premisses de base du LSM sont que les pratiques pedagogiques doivent etre developpees a partir d'un enseignement et d'un apprentissage ayant un contexte specifique et que les communautes d'apprentissage professionnel doivent affiner leurs pratiques pedagogiques en recourant a une analyse cooperative des donnees. La recherche a utilise un plan quasi-experimental au sein d'une methode fondee sur un plan de sondage et comportait des observations de classe et des questionnaires pour les eleves. Les resultats en lecture apres l'intervention ont ete statistiquement plus eleves que le niveau attendu si l'intervention n'avait pas eu lieu. La taille des effets pour le d de Cohen pour les cohortes etudiees est de 0.50 et 0.62. Le modele hierarchique lineaire de reussite en lecture, qui inclut les attitudes des eleves envers la lecture, rend compte d'environ 95% de la variance totale. La reussite aux diplomes de fin d'etudes secondaires (mesuree par des rapports de probabilite) ont augmente significativement par rapport aux taux avant l'intervention. Les taux de reussite a ces diplomes ont ete plus rapides que les pourcentages nationaux. Ces resultats permettent de penser qu'il est necessaire d'effectuer un enseignement generique aussi bien qu'un enseignement propre a un domaine particulier et qu'il faut conserver de solides bases en litteratie. Toutefois melanger comme il convient les enseignements de litteratie demande un profilage des besoins d'enseignement et d'apprentissage.

Nail connections salvaged from the timber floor diaphragms of two ∼100 year old unreinforced masonry buildings were pseudostatically tested to determine their hysteretic behavior. The research objective was to establish expected load-slip characteristics of nail connections in historic timber diaphragms to facilitate improved seismic assessment accuracy. A summary of the testing procedure, test results, and performance characterization is presented. Nail connections constructed from Kauri (Agathis australis) timber and wire-drawn nails in the 1890s were found to have an average yield strength of 1.0 kN and an average maximum strength 1.4 kN. Nail connections constructed in 1914 from Rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum) timber and wire-drawn nails were found to have an average yield strength of 0.8 kN and an average maximum strength of 1.0 kN. Both connection types exhibited an average ultimate displacement capacity of approximately 11.4 mm.

The current equations for diaphragm fundamental period determination and for diaphragm deformation determination published in commonly used seismic assessment documents are firstly reviewed to establish their origin. Using a validated analytical model that captures diaphragm deformation mechanics, three beam idealizations (a fixed-ended flexure beam, a pin-ended flexure beam, and a shear beam) are compared against true diaphragm behavior to determine which idealization is most suitable for the seismic assessment of diaphragm performance. Wherever necessary, recommendations have been made to update and to harmonize the current seismic assessment procedures for timber diaphragms in unreinforced masonry buildings. The presented analysis is specifically focused on straight-sheathed timber diaphragm configurations that are typically found in historic unreinforced masonry buildings.

According to Thomas Reid, every act of mind is accompanied by a conception of its object. For instance, he holds that the thing one conceives in an act of perception is always an individual thing that exists, and that the thing one conceives in an act of judgment is the thing expressed by the proposition judged. However, Reid never is clear about what kind of thing is expressed by a proposition; neither is it clear from the existing literature on Reid. What he says about judgments, propositions, and general conceptions together suggests four distinct candidates. But I will argue that each of these candidates either fails to have sufficient textual support, or leads to absurd conclusions (such as that we conceive semi-existent things). In conclusion, I argue that while Reid does not offer an account of the kind of conception accompanying judgments, his writings leave the matter open.

The ryanodine receptor (RyR) is a large, homotetrameric sarcoplasmic reticulum membrane protein that is essential for Ca(2+) cycling in both skeletal and cardiac muscle. Genetic mutations in RyR1 are associated with severe conditions including malignant hyperthermia (MH) and central core disease. One phosphorylation site (Ser 2843) has been identified in a segment of RyR1 flanked by two RyR motifs, which are found exclusively in all RyR isoforms as closely associated tandem (or paired) motifs, and are named after the protein itself. These motifs also contain six known MH mutations. In this study, we designed, expressed and purified the tandem RyR motifs, and show that this domain contains a putative binding site for the Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase β isoform. We present a 2.2 Å resolution crystal structure of the RyR domain revealing a two-fold, symmetric, extended four-helix bundle stabilized by a β sheet. Using mathematical modelling, we fit our crystal structure within a tetrameric electron microscopy (EM) structure of native RyR1, and propose that this domain is localized in the RyR clamp region, which is absent in its cousin protein inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor.