Aspects of the biology of the little shag (Phalacrocorax melanoleucos brevirostris Veillot 1817) : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Zoology at Massey University

Aspects of the biology of the little shag (Phalacrocorax melanoleucos brevirostris Veillot) were examined from December 1980 until April 1983 at Hamilton's and Sexton's Lagoons in lowland Manawatu. Body measurements and plumage patterns of both sexes are taken from dried specimens. Although females tend to be smaller, the differences are not significant. Plumage patterns, based on the proportion of white, are listed, and possible reasons for plumage differences between New Zealand and Australia discussed. Postures and behaviour patterns are documented, and related to ordinal and family members. The most distinctive postures and behaviour patterns relate to courtship and sexual activities. Aspects of breeding ecology are recorded, and comparisons between New Zealand and Australian populations made from records of the respective nest record schemes. Fundamental differences occur, possibly due to the unpredictable fluctuations which seem to characterise the Australian freshwater environment. Seasonal and daily time budgets are detailed at both lagoons. Rest and self-maintenance activities decrease during breeding, and tend to occur at dawn and evening. The variable relation of movement and reproductive activities is discussed in terms of season, phase of breeding, and time of day

Cruise Report 66S4 - Albacore

(PDF contains 3 pages.

The Malware Analysis Body of Knowledge (MABOK)

The ability to forensically analyse malicious software (malware) is becoming an increasingly important discipline in the field of Digital Forensics. This is because malware is becoming stealthier, targeted, profit driven, managed by criminal organizations, harder to detect and much harder to analyse. Malware analysis requires a considerable skill set to delve deep into malware internals when it is designed specifically to detect and hinder such attempts. This paper presents a foundation for a Malware Analysis Body of Knowledge (MABOK) that is required to successfully forensically analyse malware. This body of knowledge has been the result of several years of research into malware dissection

ALBANIAN LAW ON CITY PLANNING: CRITICAL SUMMARY OF ITS MAJOR PROVISIONS

This paper includes, as an annex, Law No. 7693, "On Urban Planning," from the People's Assembly of the Republic of Albania. Conceptually, this law has five major parts: (1) planning generally, (2) getting construction permission, (3) special provisions for tourist zones, (4) special provisions for military zones and zones with singular (that is, archaeological, historical, or cultural) value, and (5) penalties for violations. These parts are described and discussed.Cities and towns--Planning--Law and legislation--Albania, City planning and redevelopment law--Albania, Land use, Urban--Government policy--Albania, Land administration--Albania, Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Development of an intelligent interface for adding spatial objects to a knowledge-based geographic information system

Earth Scientists lack adequate tools for quantifying complex relationships between existing data layers and studying and modeling the dynamic interactions of these data layers. There is a need for an earth systems tool to manipulate multi-layered, heterogeneous data sets that are spatially indexed, such as sensor imagery and maps, easily and intelligently in a single system. The system can access and manipulate data from multiple sensor sources, maps, and from a learned object hierarchy using an advanced knowledge-based geographical information system. A prototype Knowledge-Based Geographic Information System (KBGIS) was recently constructed. Many of the system internals are well developed, but the system lacks an adequate user interface. A methodology is described for developing an intelligent user interface and extending KBGIS to interconnect with existing NASA systems, such as imagery from the Land Analysis System (LAS), atmospheric data in Common Data Format (CDF), and visualization of complex data with the National Space Science Data Center Graphics System. This would allow NASA to quickly explore the utility of such a system, given the ability to transfer data in and out of KBGIS easily. The use and maintenance of the object hierarchies as polymorphic data types brings, to data management, a while new set of problems and issues, few of which have been explored above the prototype level

Financial stress: what is it, how can it be measured, and why does it matter?

The U.S. economy is currently experiencing a period of significant financial stress. This stress has contributed to the downturn in the economy by boosting the cost of credit and making businesses, households, and financial institutions highly cautious. To alleviate the financial stress and counteract its effects on the economy, the Federal Reserve has reduced the federal funds rate target substantially and undertaken unprecedented actions to support the functioning of financial markets. There will come a point, however, when the Federal Reserve needs to remove liquidity from the economy and unwind special lending programs to ensure a return to sustainable growth with low inflation. ; In past recoveries, the decision when to tighten policy was based mainly on the strength of business and consumer spending and the degree of upward pressure on prices and wages. An additional element in the current exit strategy will be determining if financial stress is no longer high enough to endanger economic recovery. As financial conditions begin to improve, the various measures of financial stress that the Federal Reserve monitors may give mixed signals. In this situation, policymakers would greatly benefit from having a single, comprehensive index of financial stress. Such an index could also prove valuable further down the road, when the Federal Reserve might again need to decide whether financial stress was serious enough to warrant special attention. ; Hakkio and Keeton present a new index of financial stress--the Kansas City Financial Stress Index (KCFSI). They explain how the components of the KCFSI capture key aspects of financial stress and show that high values of the KCFSI have tended to coincide with known periods of financial stress. They also show that the KCFSI provides valuable information about future economic growth.

Insurance and the Utilization of Medical Services Among the Self-Employed

There has been substantial public policy concern over the relatively low rates of health insurance coverage among the self-employed in the United States. We use data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey conducted in 1996 to analyze how the self-employed and wage-earners differ both with respect to insurance coverage and utilization of a variety of health care services. Our results suggest that for the self-employed, the link between insurance and utilization of health care services is not as strong as assumed in the policy debate. For a number of medical care services, the self-employed have the same rates of utilization as wage-earners, despite the fact that they are substantially less likely to be insured. And when the self-employed are less likely than wage-earners to utilize a particular medical service, the differences generally do not seem very large. The self-employed thus appear to be able to finance access to health care from sources other than insurance. Further, analysis of out-of-pocket expenditures on health care suggests that doing so does not lead to substantial reductions in their ability to consume other goods and services. Finally, there is no evidence that children of the self-employed have less access to health care than the children of wage-earners. Hence, the public policy concerns that the relative lack of health insurance among the self-employed substantially reduces utilization of health care services or creates economic hardship appear to be misplaced.

A REGIONAL BAN OF ALACHLOR AND ATRAZINE IN SOUTHEASTERN MINNESOTA: THE ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS

Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy,