1,165 research outputs found

    Insights into embedded policy paradigms and Kazakhstan's future trajectory

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    This chapter delineates the lessons from the book by linking the conclusions from different chapters and highlighting the implications for Kazakhstan’s future policy and governance in the light of the ambitious Kazakhstan-2050 strategy that has been on the nation’s agenda since its adoption in 2012. The chapter identifies four themes that were reiterated by the authors throughout the book. The overarching theme is sustainability of Kazakhstan’s development as the future of some sectors does not appear to be resting on policies that are best suited to meeting the challenges of the twenty-first century. The other themes may be summarised as calls to ensure advancement in four areas: economic restructuring, participatory governance, intersectoral thinking in policymaking, and policy integration, rather than fragmentation. This concluding chapter discusses each of these themes in detail and draws the learning points for adjustments in policy and governance

    EPR and SEM study of organo-mineral associations in lower permian evaporite dolomites

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    Lower Permian (280 to 300 Ma) evaporite dolomite rocks from the western part of the East European platform were studied by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with microprobe analysis, and X-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). Microscopic studies showed that many dolomite grains consist of an aggregation of submicron dolomite crystals (0.2-2 Όm) as a spheroidal nucleus which is overgrown by a larger dolomite rhombohedron (5-20 Όm). The EPR spectrum of a raw rock sample is mainly determined by thermally unstable radiation centers and Mn 2+ ions substituted at Ca and Mg sites in the dolomite crystal structure. The presence of dispersed organic matter at low concentrations was revealed from the backscattered electron images with a microprobe analysis of carbon-enriched areas on cleaved surfaces and the registration of the carbon-centered free organic radical signal in EPR spectra of heat-treated samples. A model of two successive growing stages for dolomite grains is suggested: the dolomite (or dolomite precursor) nucleation and aggregation in the colloidal stage to form suspended organo-mineral particles before the gravitational settling, and early diagenetic overgrowth at lower temperature and more stable environment of the marine bottom to form a dolomite rhombohedron. The observation of both growing stages for dolomite grains indicates that there was no recrystallization in the later stages of the rock history. © Springer-Verlag 2009

    Red paleosols in the key sections of the Middle and Upper Permian of the Kazan Volga region and their paleoclimatic significance

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    © 2015, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd. This paper presents the preliminary results of investigations of carbonate nodules from red paleosols of the reference sections of the Middle and Upper Permian of the Kazan Volga region. The main genetic types of paleosols are calcic gleysols and gleyed vertisols, the pedogenic nodules are composed of dolomite and calcite. Scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopic and isotopic methods of analysis show that the nodules retained their original mineral composition and were formed with the participation of soil microorganisms under conditions of contrasting seasonality in an arid climate. In the vicinity of the Kiama–Illawarra paleomagnetic boundary, the Urzhumian paleosols show a transition in the composition of pedogenic nodules from dolomite to calcite. It is suggested that this transition was caused by the humidization of climate, which is supported by lithological and isotopic data

    IDQC anisotropy map imaging for tumor tissue characterization in vivo

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    Intermolecular double quantum coherences (iDQCs), signals that result from simultaneous transitions of two or more separated spins, are known to produce images that are highly sensitive to subvoxel structure, particularly local anisotropy. Here we demonstrate how iDQCs signal can be used to efficiently detect the anisotropy created in breast tumor tissues and prostate tumor tissues by targeted (LHRH-conjugated) superparamagnetic nanoparticles (SPIONs), thereby distinguishing the necrotic area from the surrounding tumor tissue

    Suitability of PSA-detected localised prostate cancers for focal therapy: Experience from the ProtecT study

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    This article is available through a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. Copyright @ 2011 Cancer Research UK.Background: Contemporary screening for prostate cancer frequently identifies small volume, low-grade lesions. Some clinicians have advocated focal prostatic ablation as an alternative to more aggressive interventions to manage these lesions. To identify which patients might benefit from focal ablative techniques, we analysed the surgical specimens of a large sample of population-detected men undergoing radical prostatectomy as part of a randomised clinical trial. Methods: Surgical specimens from 525 men who underwent prostatectomy within the ProtecT study were analysed to determine tumour volume, location and grade. These findings were compared with information available in the biopsy specimen to examine whether focal therapy could be provided appropriately. Results: Solitary cancers were found in prostatectomy specimens from 19% (100 out of 525) of men. In addition, 73 out of 425 (17%) men had multiple cancers with a solitary significant tumour focus. Thus, 173 out of 525 (33%) men had tumours potentially suitable for focal therapy. The majority of these were small, well-differentiated lesions that appeared to be pathologically insignificant (38–66%). Criteria used to select patients for focal prostatic ablation underestimated the cancer's significance in 26% (34 out of 130) of men and resulted in overtreatment in more than half. Only 18% (24 out of 130) of men presumed eligible for focal therapy, actually had significant solitary lesions. Conclusion: Focal therapy appears inappropriate for the majority of men presenting with prostate-specific antigen-detected localised prostate cancer. Unifocal prostate cancers suitable for focal ablation are difficult to identify pre-operatively using biopsy alone. Most lesions meeting criteria for focal ablation were either more aggressive than expected or posed little threat of progression.National Institute for Health Researc

    Single hadron response measurement and calorimeter jet energy scale uncertainty with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

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    The uncertainty on the calorimeter energy response to jets of particles is derived for the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). First, the calorimeter response to single isolated charged hadrons is measured and compared to the Monte Carlo simulation using proton-proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of sqrt(s) = 900 GeV and 7 TeV collected during 2009 and 2010. Then, using the decay of K_s and Lambda particles, the calorimeter response to specific types of particles (positively and negatively charged pions, protons, and anti-protons) is measured and compared to the Monte Carlo predictions. Finally, the jet energy scale uncertainty is determined by propagating the response uncertainty for single charged and neutral particles to jets. The response uncertainty is 2-5% for central isolated hadrons and 1-3% for the final calorimeter jet energy scale.Comment: 24 pages plus author list (36 pages total), 23 figures, 1 table, submitted to European Physical Journal

    Standalone vertex ïŹnding in the ATLAS muon spectrometer

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    A dedicated reconstruction algorithm to find decay vertices in the ATLAS muon spectrometer is presented. The algorithm searches the region just upstream of or inside the muon spectrometer volume for multi-particle vertices that originate from the decay of particles with long decay paths. The performance of the algorithm is evaluated using both a sample of simulated Higgs boson events, in which the Higgs boson decays to long-lived neutral particles that in turn decay to bbar b final states, and pp collision data at √s = 7 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the LHC during 2011

    Measurements of Higgs boson production and couplings in diboson final states with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

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    Measurements are presented of production properties and couplings of the recently discovered Higgs boson using the decays into boson pairs, H →γ Îł, H → Z Z∗ →4l and H →W W∗ →lÎœlÎœ. The results are based on the complete pp collision data sample recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider at centre-of-mass energies of √s = 7 TeV and √s = 8 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of about 25 fb−1. Evidence for Higgs boson production through vector-boson fusion is reported. Results of combined ïŹts probing Higgs boson couplings to fermions and bosons, as well as anomalous contributions to loop-induced production and decay modes, are presented. All measurements are consistent with expectations for the Standard Model Higgs boson

    Measurement of the top quark-pair production cross section with ATLAS in pp collisions at \sqrt{s}=7\TeV

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    A measurement of the production cross-section for top quark pairs(\ttbar) in pppp collisions at \sqrt{s}=7 \TeV is presented using data recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Events are selected in two different topologies: single lepton (electron ee or muon Ό\mu) with large missing transverse energy and at least four jets, and dilepton (eeee, ΌΌ\mu\mu or eΌe\mu) with large missing transverse energy and at least two jets. In a data sample of 2.9 pb-1, 37 candidate events are observed in the single-lepton topology and 9 events in the dilepton topology. The corresponding expected backgrounds from non-\ttbar Standard Model processes are estimated using data-driven methods and determined to be 12.2±3.912.2 \pm 3.9 events and 2.5±0.62.5 \pm 0.6 events, respectively. The kinematic properties of the selected events are consistent with SM \ttbar production. The inclusive top quark pair production cross-section is measured to be \sigmattbar=145 \pm 31 ^{+42}_{-27} pb where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic. The measurement agrees with perturbative QCD calculations.Comment: 30 pages plus author list (50 pages total), 9 figures, 11 tables, CERN-PH number and final journal adde

    Measurement of the top quark pair cross section with ATLAS in pp collisions at √s=7 TeV using final states with an electron or a muon and a hadronically decaying τ lepton

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    A measurement of the cross section of top quark pair production in proton-proton collisions recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV is reported. The data sample used corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 2.05 fb -1. Events with an isolated electron or muon and a τ lepton decaying hadronically are used. In addition, a large missing transverse momentum and two or more energetic jets are required. At least one of the jets must be identified as originating from a b quark. The measured cross section, σtt-=186±13(stat.)±20(syst.)±7(lumi.) pb, is in good agreement with the Standard Model prediction
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