Improving spam filtering by combining Naive Bayes with simple k-nearest neighbor searches

Using naive Bayes for email classification has become very popular within the last few months. They are quite easy to implement and very efficient. In this paper we want to present empirical results of email classification using a combination of naive Bayes and k-nearest neighbor searches. Using this technique we show that the accuracy of a Bayes filter can be improved slightly for a high number of features and significantly for a small number of features

Development of fire-resistant wood structural panels

Structural panels made with Xylok 210 resin as the binder had a burn-through resistance at least equal to the structural panels made with Kerimid 500. Therefore, because of its comparative ease of handling, Xylok 210 was selected as the resin binder to provide the baseline panel for the study of a means of improving the flame-spread resistance of the structural panels. The final resin-filler system consisted of Xylok 210 binder with the addition of ammonium oxalate and ammonium phosphate to the strands of the surface layers, using 24% of each salt based upon the air-dry weight of the strands. This system resulted in a panel with a flame-spread code of about 60, a Class 2 classification. A standard phenolic based structural panel had a flame-spread greater than 200 for laboratory prepared panels. The burn-through tests indicated an average burn-through time of 588 seconds for the specimens made with the final system. This compares to an average burn-through time of 287 seconds for the standard phenolic base structural specimen. One full-size panel was made with the final system

Refugee policy in Northern Europe: Nordic countries grow closer but differences remain

One year after the great refugee influx reached Europe, lasting changes are seen to have occurred in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. All four have tightened their asylum policies, in some cases drastically, and border controls between them have been reinstated for the first time since the 1950s. While differences over joint EU migration policy also remain, the situation has also created awareness of the need to improve coordination of migration and integration policies in Northern Europe. Closer coordination with Germany would also be desirable. (author's abstract

STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISATION OF MUCUS ADHESION PROTEINS OF LACTOBACILLUS REUTERI

Mucus is the first point of contact between the gut microbiota and the host. Mucus adhesins are thought to be key mediators in the mucus adhesion of commensal Lactobacillus species. However, knowledge on the structural or functional basis of adhesin interaction with mucin glycoproteins, the main component of mucus, is limited. This work describes the biochemical and structural properties of two cell-surface proteins from Lactobacillus reuteri, the mucus-binding protein (MUB) and the Lar0958 protein, and their mucin binding ability. MUB from L. reuteri ATCC 53608 consists of 14 Mub repeats, six type 1 and eight type 2. Single and tandem Mub repeats were heterologously expressed and purified for structural and functional studies. The three-dimensional structure of the Mub type 1 MubRV was determined by X-ray crystallography and revealed two structural domains, B1 and B2. Furthermore, structural homology between MubRV and fibre-like adhesins of Gram-positive pathogens was identified. Small angle X-ray scattering experiments of single and tandem Mub repeats suggested an elongated structure of MUB in a ‘beads on a string’ arrangement. Functional studies of recombinant Mub repeats and the full-length native MUB isolated from Lactobacillus spent culture media, demonstrated binding to different mucins in vitro. Sugar inhibition experiments and glycan arrays suggested the involvement of sugar recognition in MUB protein binding to mucins. Lar0958 is a modular protein of six Lar0958 repeats present on the cell-surface of L. reuteri DSM 20016T. The crystal structure of a single recombinant Lar0958 repeat was solved at 1.5 Å, demonstrating a similar protein fold to Mub repeats. In addition, the Lar0958 repeat shows structural similarity to internalin proteins of the pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. Taken together these results provide new insights into the structural organisation of lactobacilli mucus adhesins and their interaction with mucins, highlighting similarities with Gram-positive adhesins of pathogenic bacteria

Participation as an added value of macro-regions: the potential for developing macro-regional cooperation in Europe

A new format for regional cooperation within the EU was created from 2007 onwards with the European macro-regions and associated EU strategies. The concept offers useful approaches to closer regional cooperation and integration. However, to date macro-regional cooperation has offered only limited added value in the regional and European context, and there is an absence of substantive results. It is nevertheless worth-while reflecting on the extent to which effective macro-regional cooperation can contribute to strengthening European integration at the regional level. One of the advantages of the format is its participatory approach, which might help successfully integrate regional, local and civil-society structures more closely in shaping regional and European integration. (author's abstract

The Nordic Council of Ministers: Aspirations for More Political Relevance

Due to changing circumstances and new challenges, the Nordic Council of Ministers underwent an incremental process of change and some modest transformation since the 1990s. However, there has never been a major overhaul of structures and contents owing to considerable inertia. The most recent modernisation process, aiming at more political relevance and flexibility, has been ambitious but whether it has been a success remains unclear thus far. Weaknesses and limits in cooperation in the Nordic Council of Ministers are obvious, i.e., no majority voting or ‘opting-out’ system, a lack in supra-national structures and policies and no common immigration, foreign, security and EU policies. Nonetheless, the organisation has at least some relevance and meaning for the Nordic countries and the potential to promote and facilitate cooperation in policy areas in which common interests exist, such as environment, climate, research and social affairs. Therefore, rather than constituting a common political order of its own, Nordic cooperation, as it is conducted within the Nordic Council of Ministers, is best characterized by differentiated integration, promoting full integration only to a limited extent but respecting integration to different extents and speeds by fostering cooperation and coordination of certain policies where possible and desired