Empowerment and local level conflict mediation in Indonesia : a comparative analysis of concepts, measures, and project efficacy

The notion of empowerment has been more often deductively claimed than carefully defined or inductively assessed by development scholars and practitioners alike. The authors define and assess empowerment through an in-depth examination of the extent to which a large community development project in rural Indonesia empowers participants (especially members of marginalized groups) through building their capacity to manage local conflict. Although the project induces conflict through its deployment of a competitive bidding process, the authors argue that, when well implemented, it can also enable otherwise unequal groups to more peacefully, equitably, and effectively engage one another. Using a mixed methods approach, they compare cases from otherwise similar treatment and control villages to shed light on the chief components of villagers'capacity to manage local conflict. They discuss the interdependencies of two major analytical realms-routines of inter-group collaboration, and sources of countervailing power-and their relation to local conflict processes and outcomes.ICT Policy and Strategies,Education and Society,Educational Sciences,Post Conflict Reconstruction,TF054599-PHRD-KYRGYZ REPUBLIC: WATER MANAGEMENT IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

Implementation and application of advanced density functionals

Density functional theory (DFT) is a method of effectively solving the many-electron Schrödinger equation, enabling the properties of condensed matter systems to be calculated from first principles. With the commonly used local density approximation (LDA), and generalised gradient approximations (GGAs), to the exchange correlation functional, it is currently possible to perform calculations on systems containing several hundred atoms. The accuracy of such calculations depends on the system under study and on which particular properties one wishes to calculate. The use of more advanced functionals has the potential to improve accuracy, at the expense of greater computational demand. In this work we use the LDA to calculate certain properties of GaN, such as geometry, band structure, and surface properties, including the reconstruction of GaN surfaces under the presence of hydrogen. We then describe our computational implementation of advanced density functionals, including screened exchange (sX-LDA), Hartree-Fock (HF), and exact exchange (EXX), within an efficient, fully parallel, plane wave code. The implementation of sX-LDA and HF is used to calculate band structure properties of Si, GaN, and other simple semiconductors, and it is found that sX-LDA can improve results significantly beyond the LDA. We also derive and implement the theory that allows one to calculate directly the contribution to the stress tensor from exchange and correlation when using these functionals, and demonstrate this with some simple test cases. Finally, we introduce some new theoretical ideas that may pave the way for yet more accurate density functionals in the future

Recombination and its impact on the genome of the haplodiploid parasitoid wasp Nasonia

Homologous meiotic recombination occurs in most sexually reproducing organisms, yet its evolutionary advantages are elusive. Previous research explored recombination in the honeybee, a eusocial hymenopteran with an exceptionally high genome-wide recombination rate. A comparable study in a non-social member of the Hymenoptera that would disentangle the impact of sociality from Hymenoptera-specific features such as haplodiploidy on the evolution of the high genome-wide recombination rate in social Hymenoptera is missing. Utilizing single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) between two Nasonia parasitoid wasp genomes, we developed a SNP genotyping microarray to infer a high-density linkage map for Nasonia. The map comprises 1,255 markers with an average distance of 0.3 cM. The mapped markers enabled us to arrange 265 scaffolds of the Nasonia genome assembly 1.0 on the linkage map, representing 63.6% of the assembled N. vitripennis genome. We estimated a genome-wide recombination rate of 1.4-1.5 cM/Mb for Nasonia, which is less than one tenth of the rate reported for the honeybee. The local recombination rate in Nasonia is positively correlated with the distance to the center of the linkage groups, GC content, and the proportion of simple repeats. In contrast to the honeybee genome, gene density in the parasitoid wasp genome is positively associated with the recombination rate; regions of low recombination are characterized by fewer genes with larger introns and by a greater distance between genes. Finally, we found that genes in regions of the genome with a low recombination frequency tend to have a higher ratio of non-synonymous to synonymous substitutions, likely due to the accumulation of slightly deleterious non-synonymous substitutions. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that recombination reduces interference between linked sites and thereby facilitates adaptive evolution and the purging of deleterious mutations. Our results imply that the genomes of haplodiploid and of diploid higher eukaryotes do not differ systematically in their recombination rates and associated parameters.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Towards a theory of conceptual design for software

Concepts are the building blocks of software systems. They are not just subjective mental constructs, but are objective features of a system's design: increments of functionality that were consciously introduced by a designer to serve particular purposes. This essay argues for viewing the design of software in terms of concepts, with their invention (or adoption) and refinement as the central activity of software design. A family of products can be characterized by arranging concepts in a dependence graph from which coherent concept subsets can be extracted. Just as bugs can be found in the code of a function prior to testing by reviewing the programmer's argument for its correctness, so flaws can be found in a software design by reviewing an argument by the designer. This argument consists of providing, for each concept, a single compelling purpose, and demonstrating how the concept fulfills the purpose with an archetypal scenario called an 'operational principle'. Some simple conditions (primarily in the relationship between concepts and their purposes) can then be applied to reveal flaws in the conceptual design.SUTD-MIT International Design Centre (IDC

Efficient yeast ChIP-Seq using multiplex short-read DNA sequencing

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Short-read high-throughput DNA sequencing technologies provide new tools to answer biological questions. However, high cost and low throughput limit their widespread use, particularly in organisms with smaller genomes such as <it>S. cerevisiae</it>. Although ChIP-Seq in mammalian cell lines is replacing array-based ChIP-chip as the standard for transcription factor binding studies, ChIP-Seq in yeast is still underutilized compared to ChIP-chip. We developed a multiplex barcoding system that allows simultaneous sequencing and analysis of multiple samples using Illumina's platform. We applied this method to analyze the chromosomal distributions of three yeast DNA binding proteins (Ste12, Cse4 and RNA PolII) and a reference sample (input DNA) in a single experiment and demonstrate its utility for rapid and accurate results at reduced costs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We developed a barcoding ChIP-Seq method for the concurrent analysis of transcription factor binding sites in yeast. Our multiplex strategy generated high quality data that was indistinguishable from data obtained with non-barcoded libraries. None of the barcoded adapters induced differences relative to a non-barcoded adapter when applied to the same DNA sample. We used this method to map the binding sites for Cse4, Ste12 and Pol II throughout the yeast genome and we found 148 binding targets for Cse4, 823 targets for Ste12 and 2508 targets for PolII. Cse4 was strongly bound to all yeast centromeres as expected and the remaining non-centromeric targets correspond to highly expressed genes in rich media. The presence of Cse4 non-centromeric binding sites was not reported previously.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We designed a multiplex short-read DNA sequencing method to perform efficient ChIP-Seq in yeast and other small genome model organisms. This method produces accurate results with higher throughput and reduced cost. Given constant improvements in high-throughput sequencing technologies, increasing multiplexing will be possible to further decrease costs per sample and to accelerate the completion of large consortium projects such as modENCODE.</p

Charge-transfer dynamics at the dye-semiconductor interface of photocathodes for solar energy applications

This article describes a comparison between the photophysical properties of two charge-transfer dyes adsorbed onto NiO via two different binding moieties. Transient spectroscopy measurements suggest that the structure of the anchoring group affects both the rate of charge recombination between the dye and NiO surface and the rate of dye regeneration by an iodide/triiodide redox couple. This is consistent with the performance of the dyes in p-type dye sensitised solar cells. A key finding was that the recombination rate differed in presence of the redox couple. This has important implications on the study of electron transfer at dye|semiconductor interfaces for solar energy applications

Data-driven methods for diffusivity prediction in nuclear fuels

The growth rate of structural defects in nuclear fuels under irradiation is intrinsically related to the diffusion rates of the defects in the fuel lattice. The generation and growth of atomistic structural defects can significantly alter the performance characteristics of the fuel. This alteration of functionality must be accurately captured to qualify a nuclear fuel for use in reactors. Predicting the diffusion coefficients of defects and how they impact macroscale properties such as swelling, gas release, and creep is therefore of significant importance in both the design of new nuclear fuels and the assessment of current fuel types. In this article, we apply data-driven methods focusing on machine learning (ML) to determine various diffusion properties of two nuclear fuels, uranium oxide and uranium nitride. We show that using ML can increase, often significantly, the accuracy of predicting diffusivity in nuclear fuels in comparison to current analytical models. We also illustrate how ML can be used to quickly develop fuel models with parameter dependencies that are more complex and robust than what is currently available in the literature. These results suggest there is potential for ML to accelerate the design, qualification, and implementation of nuclear fuels

Safety and efficacy of double vs. triple antithrombotic therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation with or without acute coronary syndrome undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: a collaborative meta-analysis of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant-based randomized clinical trials.

AIMS Safety and efficacy of antithrombotic regimens in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) may differ based on clinical presentation. We sought to compare double vs. triple antithrombotic therapy (DAT vs. TAT) in AF patients with or without acute coronary syndrome (ACS) undergoing PCI. METHODS AND RESULTS A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed using PubMed to search for non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant (NOAC)-based randomized clinical trials. Data on subgroups of ACS or elective PCI were obtained by published reports or trial investigators. A total of 10 193 patients from four NOAC trials were analysed, of whom 5675 presenting with ACS (DAT = 3063 vs. TAT = 2612) and 4518 with stable coronary artery disease (SCAD; DAT = 2421 vs. TAT = 2097). The primary safety endpoint of ISTH major bleeding or clinically relevant non-major bleeding was reduced with DAT compared with TAT in both ACS (12.2% vs. 19.4%; RR 0.63, 95% CI 0.56-0.71; P < 0.0001; I2 = 0%) and SCAD (14.6% vs. 22.0%; RR 0.68, 95% CI 0.55-0.85; P = 0.0008; I2 = 66%), without interaction (P-int = 0.54). Findings were consistent for secondary bleeding endpoints, including intra-cranial haemorrhage. In both subgroups, there was no difference between DAT and TAT for all-cause death, major adverse cardiovascular events, or stroke. Myocardial infarction and stent thrombosis were numerically higher with DAT vs. TAT consistently in ACS and SCAD (P-int = 0.60 and 0.86, respectively). Findings were confirmed by multiple sensitivity analyses, including a separate analysis on dabigatran regimens and a restriction to PCI population. CONCLUSIONS DAT, compared with TAT, is associated with lower bleeding risks, including intra-cranial haemorrhage, and a small non-significant excess of cardiac ischaemic events in both patients with or without ACS