European markets

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Boston Universit

Safeguards against Unjust Awards

It is submitted that if courts are willing to assume the responsibility of imposing liability without fault, they must recognize the importance of holding plaintiffs to the burdens of proof which they have traditionally been required to bear. There is no valid social, economic, or legal theory which justifies a relaxation of these standards of proof under either theory oftort or express warranty. Particularly in the latter instance, where remote purchasers having no contact with the defendant are permitted to maintain actions without a showing of negligence, such relaxation can only encourage a multiplicity of spurious claims

Safeguards against Unjust Awards

It is submitted that if courts are willing to assume the responsibility of imposing liability without fault, they must recognize the importance of holding plaintiffs to the burdens of proof which they have traditionally been required to bear. There is no valid social, economic, or legal theory which justifies a relaxation of these standards of proof under either theory oftort or express warranty. Particularly in the latter instance, where remote purchasers having no contact with the defendant are permitted to maintain actions without a showing of negligence, such relaxation can only encourage a multiplicity of spurious claims

Pricing and Bundling Electronic Information Goods: Field Evidence

Dramatic increases in the capabilities and decreases in the costs of computers and communication networks have fomented revolutionary thoughts in the scholarly publishing community. In one dimension, traditional pricing schemes and product packages are being modified or replaced. We designed and undertook a large-scale field experiment in pricing and bundling for electronic access to scholarly journals: PEAK. We provided Internet-based delivery of content from 1200 Elsevier Science journals to users at multiple campuses and commercial facilities. Our primary research objective was to generate rich empirical evidence on user behavior when faced with various bundling schemes and price structures. In this article we report initial results. We found that although there is a steep initial learning curve, decision-makers rapidly comprehended our innovative pricing schemes. We also found that our novel and flexible "generalized subscription" was successful at balancing paid usage with easy access to a larger body of content than was previously available to participating institutions. Finally, we found that both monetary and non-monetary user costs have a significant impact on the demand for electronic access.

Direct evidence for cholesterol crystalline domains in biological membranes: role in human pathobiology

AbstractThis review will discuss the use of small-angle X-ray diffraction approaches to study the organization of lipids in plasma membranes derived from two distinct mammalian cell types: arterial smooth muscle cells and ocular lens fiber cells. These studies indicate that cholesterol at an elevated concentration can self-associate and form immiscible domains in the plasma membrane, a phenomenon that contributes to both physiologic and pathologic cellular processes, depending on tissue source. In plasma membrane samples isolated from atherosclerotic smooth muscle cells, the formation of sterol-rich domains is associated with loss of normal cell function, including ion transport activity and control of cell replication. Analysis of meridional diffraction patterns from intact and reconstituted plasma membrane samples indicates the presence of an immiscible cholesterol domain with a unit cell periodicity of 34 Å, consistent with a cholesterol monohydrate tail-to-tail bilayer, under disease conditions. These cholesterol domains were observed in smooth muscle cells enriched with cholesterol in vitro as well as from cells obtained ex vivo from an animal model of atherosclerosis. By contrast, well-defined cholesterol domains appear to be essential to the normal physiology of fiber cell plasma membranes of the human ocular lens. The organization of cholesterol into separate domains underlies the role of lens fiber cell plasma membranes in maintaining lens transparency. These domains may also interfere with cataractogenic aggregation of soluble lens proteins at the membrane surface. Taken together, these analyses provide examples of both physiologic and pathologic roles that sterol-rich domains may have in mammalian plasma membranes. These findings support a model of the membrane in which cholesterol aggregates into structurally distinct regions that regulate the function of the cell membrane

Online Mathematics Homework Increases Student Achievement

In a randomized field trial with 2,850 seventh-grade mathematics students, we evaluated whether an educational technology intervention increased mathematics learning. Assigning homework is common yet sometimes controversial. Building on prior research on formative assessment and adaptive teaching, we predicted that combining an online homework tool with teacher training could increase learning. The online tool ASSISTments (a) provides timely feedback and hints to students as they do homework and (b) gives teachers timely, organized information about students’ work. To test this prediction, we analyzed data from 43 schools that participated in a random assignment experiment in Maine, a state that provides every seventh-grade student with a laptop to take home. Results showed that the intervention significantly increased student scores on an end-of-the-year standardized mathematics assessment as compared with a control group that continued with existing homework practices. Students with low prior mathematics achievement benefited most. The intervention has potential for wider adoption

Collaboration Makes More Lights Come on than Those on the Runway: Experiential Learning through an Interdisciplinary Fashion Show Project Merges Fashion and Technology

Inspired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibit, Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology, the idea for the theme Futuristic Floral was born to guide the direction of the Apparel Merchandising and Product Development (AMPD) fashion show. In only the second year of production, we wanted to make sure the show would entertain the audience and be a professional production. However, as educators, our primary goal was to make a lasting impact on the education of our students. This project has pushed our students to think, act, communicate, and create on a level that would not have been possible without the interaction of students from apparel and electrical engineering. The true impact for all students involved remains to be seen when the lights go down after the show and they realize they have been a part of something much bigger than they could create on their own

‘teen Mental Health First Aid’: a description of the program and an initial evaluation

Additional file 1. Sociodemographic characteristics of the four schools in 2013

The favorable kinetics and balance of nebivolol-stimulated nitric oxide and peroxynitrite release in human endothelial cells

Background: Nebivolol is a third-generation beta-blocker used to treat hypertension. The vasodilation properties of nebivolol have been attributed to nitric oxide (NO) release. However, the kinetics and mechanism of nebivolol-stimulated bioavailable NO are not fully understood. Methods: Using amperometric NO and peroxynitrite (ONOO-) nanosensors, β3-receptor (agonist: L-755,507; antagonists: SR59230A and L-748,337), ATP efflux (the mechanosensitive ATP channel blocker, gadolinium) and P2Y-receptor (agonists: ATP and 2-MeSATP; antagonist: suramin) modulators, superoxide dismutase and a NADPH oxidase inhibitor (VAS2870), we evaluated the kinetics and balance of NO and ONOO- stimulated by nebivolol in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). NO and ONOO- were measured with nanosensors (diameter ~ 300 nm) placed 5 ± 2 μm from the cell membrane and ATP levels were determined with a bioluminescent method. The kinetics and balance of nebivolol-stimulated NO and ONOO- were compared with those of ATP, 2-MeSATP, and L-755,507. Results: Nebivolol stimulates endothelial NO release through β3-receptor and ATP-dependent, P2Y-receptor activation with relatively slow kinetics (75 ± 5 nM/s) as compared to the kinetics of ATP (194 ± 10 nM/s), L-755,507 (108 ± 6 nM/s), and 2-MeSATP (105 ± 5 nM/s). The balance between cytoprotective NO and cytotoxic ONOO- was expressed as the ratio of [NO]/[ONOO-] concentrations. This ratio for nebivolol was 1.80 ± 0.10 and significantly higher than that for ATP (0.80 ± 0.08), L-755,507 (1.08 ± 0.08), and 2-MeSATP (1.09 ± 0.09). Nebivolol induced ATP release in a concentration-dependent manner. Conclusion: The two major pathways (ATP efflux/P2Y receptors and β3 receptors) and several steps of nebivolol-induced NO and ONOO- stimulation are mainly responsible for the slow kinetics of NO release and low ONOO-. The net effect of this slow kinetics of NO is reflected by a favorable high ratio of [NO]/[ONOO-] which may explain the beneficial effects of nebivolol in the treatment of endothelial dysfunction, hypertension, heart failure, and angiogenesis